Conference Sessions
Adolescent Girls | Anger Management | Campus Cultures | Co-teaching | Differentiated Instruction | Inclusive Classrooms | Paraprofessional Strategies | Parenting | Response to Intervention | Safe & Drug Free Schools | Stress Management | Technology
Adolescent Girls
Presentation Title:
Adolescent Girls: Fostering Courage, Strength, and Compassion
Presentation Description: Participants gain an understanding of how adolescent girls make moral choices and how those choices affect their relationships. Susan explains the transition from girl to woman and the implications for moral development, the power behind the media, and its role in moulding young women.
Because relationships and connectedness are so important to females, they will often conform to society’s expectations rather than stick up for their true selves. Susan addresses how to be positive role models for girls, key issues in their relationships, and how our social environment shapes their attitudes. Participants will learn practical skills and strategies to assist girls to be strong and peaceful and to become clear, focused, and centered.
Preferred Program Length: 2 1/2 hours
Target Audience: Parents, teachers, and others who work with youth
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades 6-12
Anger Management
Presentation Title:
Transforming Anger to Personal Power
Presentation Description: What do you do when student anger disrupts classrooms and learning? How do we help students to manage anger in a positive, proactive way? In this workshop you will learn to identify and implement strategies in the classroom or a group session to teach youth to manage anger. These strategies teach youth to be proactive rather than re-active in stressful, provoking situations.
The Anger Management Program is a hands-on, practical introductory program that teaches anger management skills. It is based on an eight session model; however, it can be extended if the opportunity exists. It’s based on the five-component process for conflict education defined in Free The Children: Conflict Education for Strong Peaceful Minds, by Susan Fitzell. These five components are necessary to promote long-term results in any conflict, character, or anger education program.
Objectives:
- Learn how to help students understand these for basic concepts: We Own Our Feelings, We Have choices about how we react When we feel angry, and how to identify primary emotions.
- Participants will consider physiological Definitions for what triggers anger and the anger reaction.
- Understand the importance of Language for Emotions as well as self-talk and it’s impact on emotions.
- Explore what escalates and de-escalates Anger as well as healthy ways to express and deal with anger.
Session Overview: This session teaches participants how to help students to keep their power. It’s not about adults trying to fix students anger issues, rather, it’s about teaching students how to own their behavior and make constructive choices. The goal of this program is to help students see that they are not helpless victims of their environment. They have an opportunity to take control of their lives and emotions and choose healthier responses to anger. This program is the result of five years of work with students ages 11-18 years old in an evolving anger management program.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: School counselors
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Can be customized for grades 1 through 12 or can focus specifically on grades 6 through 12; if the presentation focuses on older students, the role of substance abuse is discussed with regards to anger management.
Campus Culture
Presentation Title:
Workplace Bullying: How to Deal with the Anger AND the Difficult People
Presentation Description: Does the typical image of the school yard bully truly capture the reality of bullying in the workplace and society? Have you ever walked away from a situation with a gut feeling that something was wrong, but you couldn’t put your finger on it? Were you the victim of a bully? Do you see colleagues and co-workers struggle with this issue? In this dynamic, interactive workshop, you will gain an understanding of what bullying is and action ‘thoughts’ and techniques to deal with the anger and the difficult people.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 – 2 hours
Target Audience: General audience
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Adult Audiences
Co-Teaching
Presentation Title:
Co-Teaching: Beyond Discussing Theory and Benefits!
Presentation Description: Review the five models of co-teaching and how each model might be implemented using content area examples. Learn how to decide which models to use and the benefits and challenges of each model. Learn how Station Teaching reaches ALL learners.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training; this session is appropriate for participants in all stages of learning about and implementing inclusive practices
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Presentation Title:
Differentiated Instruction Strategy Blast for the Co-taught Classroom
Presentation Description: In this dynamic, idea-packed session you’ll discover new strategies to add spark to instruction in the co-taught classroom. You’ll leave this workshop with realistic strategies to differentiate instruction in ways that are good for all, but critical for different learners. What you learn in this workshop today can be used in your classroom tomorrow.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: Campus and District Administrators
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
Memorization and Test Taking Strategies in the Co-taught Inclusive Classroom
Presentation Description: Discover sensible strategies that foster recall in the classroom for all learners and learn how to overcome memory challenges for students with learning difficulties. Susan will discuss concrete instructional strategies that assist students with special needs, at-risk learners, and average test performers in the general classroom with short and long term memory. This engaging, interactive session for all educators with beginner to intermediate levels of experience in the inclusive classroom offers ideas that can be used in your classroom immediately.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
Increase Student Success by Building Vocabulary with Fun, Effective Strategies in the Co-Taught Classroom
Vocabulary is the single biggest indicator of success. In this session, Susan focuses on how to help youth build better vocabularies using fun, effective strategies and tools. Discover how to engage students in meaningful vocabulary practice to anchor words in long-term memory. Your students will receive better grades, higher test scores, and improved reading comprehension through a passionate focus on building vocabulary.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
“What do I say when my co-teacher says…?” Communication Strategies that Support Collaboration
Presentation Description: Have you ever walked away from a situation feeling as if something was wrong, but you couldn’t put your finger on it? Learn communication tips to enhance collaboration with co-teachers and parents. Identify strategies for dealing with conflict so that relationships grow and problems are minimized. Utilize strategies to overcome attitudes and emotions that can become barriers in collaborative relationships. Discover how to remove roadblocks and conflicts that hinder successful collaboration with co-teachers, and other relationships.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
Station Teaching and Flexible Groups: Managing the Process and Behavior
Presentation Description:Discover proactive, positive ways to manage groups, centers, and stations that increase student productivity. Use scripts for managing behavior through planned response rather than reaction and identify concrete strategies for dealing with lack of focus, fidgeting, and re-direction without disrupting the learning process. Susan offers proactive strategies that can help to prevent discipline problems as well as sound ideas and resources for managing groups in the inclusive classroom.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: Generl and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Differentiated Instruction
Presentation Title:
Differentiated Instruction and Response to Intervention Strategy Blast
Presentation Description: “Good for all, critical for different learners” is the motto of this interactive workshop. Whether students are gifted, at-risk, on a 504 plan, or have special needs, participants will leave this workshop with realistic strategies to differentiate instruction. You will learn how these strategies tie in to Tier One and Tier Two Response to Intervention guidelines. The techniques work for ALL students, whether academically gifted or different learners. What is learned in the workshop today can be used in the classroom tomorrow.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and specialists in the classroom
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Presentation Title:
Increase Student Success by Building Vocabulary with Fun, Effective Strategies
Presentation Description: Promote better grades, higher test scores and improved reading comprehension through a passionate focus on building vocabulary. Vocabulary is the single biggest indicator of success. This workshop focuses on how to help youth build better vocabularies using fun, effective strategies and tools.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training; this session is appropriate for participants in all stages of learning about and implementing inclusive practices
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Inclusive Classrooms
Presentation Title:
Effective Strategies and Techniques for the Multi-Ability Classroom
Presentation Description: “Good for all, critical for students with special needs” is the motto of this workshop. Whether students are gifted, at-risk, on a 504 plan, or have special needs, participants will leave this workshop with realistic strategies and techniques to enhance learning. The strategies work for ALL students, whether they are academically gifted or “different” learners. What is learned in the workshop today can be used in the classroom tomorrow.
Preferred Program Length: 2 1/2 hours
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, paraprofessionals, and other specialists who work with students
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades K-12
Presentation Title:
Memorization and Test Taking Strategies in the Inclusive Classroom for Grades 1-12
Presentation Description: Participants will leave this interactive workshop with realistic strategies to foster memory in the classroom for all learners and to bypass memory issues for students with learning difficulties. We will discuss concrete instructional strategies that assist students with special needs, at-risk learners, and average test performers in the general classroom with short- and long-term memory. What is learned in the workshop today can be used in the classroom tomorrow.
Program Objectives:
- From reading recall and retention to the effects of anxiety on working memory, this session provides teachers with tools that address memory-related issues, allowing them more time to provide rich instruction.
- Learn teaching strategies specific to short term memory, working memory, and long term memory while gaining an understanding of how memory works yet not getting bogged down in theory.
- Gain hands-on activities that realistically target student memory deficits and learning challenges. Multiple approaches allow teachers to address a wide range of abilities while maximizing instruction time.
Session Overview:
- Topics include ways to use color that stimulate the brain, how to incorporate mnemonics, visuals, and music into the learning process, and the value and application of peer teaching and small group activities. This dynamic session includes do-able homework ideas that are fun, challenging and reach all learners.
- Introduction and reinforcement of multiple approaches that allow teachers to address a wide range of abilities in the classroom while maximizing instruction time and bringing the quality of teaching to the next level.
- Brain-based learning techniques to incorporate into your teaching tool bag that increase student achievement in one-to-one, small group and whole class instruction.
Preferred Program Length: 2 hours (time slot flexible)
Target Audience: General classroom teachers and special educators with beginner-to-intermediate levels of experience with inclusion
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades 1 – 12
Presentation Title:
You Mean Chris Felt Left Out? Social Considerations for Inclusive Classrooms
Presentation Description: Do special students in the mainstream classroom feel included? Many times students with learning difficulties in the mainstream feel exclusion and social isolation. How do we help them to fit in and feel welcome and supported by their peers? In this workshop, you will gain insight into how social exclusion occurs in the inclusion classroom and learn intervention strategies to increase the acceptance and success of the special learners in your class.
Preferred Program Length: 2 1/2 hours
Target Audience: Parents and elementary school-level teachers and administrators
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Elementary school
Presentation Title:
Techno Strategy Blast to Differentiate Instruction in the 21st Century Classroom!
Presentation Description:In this session, participants will be offered a smorgasbord of web-based tools and free portable applications to enhance learning in their classrooms without requiring any installation on school owned computing equipment. The tools and applications offered in this session allow teachers to apply classroom-proven, brain-based teaching techniques that are “Good for all, critical for students with special needs.” to their 21st century classrooms in ways that reach all learners. Whether students are gifted, struggling learners, or have special needs, participants will leave this workshop with technology centered strategies to differentiate instruction. These teacher friendly, free resources and applications can be used on any web enabled, MS Windows PC with minimal preparation or set up. Participants will be provided with the opportunity to download every tool offered, many of which can be used in the classroom immediately.
Additional Information: This fast-paced, solution-focused session addresses two significant issues facing educators in today’s classrooms. First: how to reach all learners in the classroom and second: how to incorporate technology easily and efficiently into daily teaching practice.
Teachers struggle to use technology in the classroom for many reasons, however, one that continually comes up is the inability to access the technology they need in the classroom. Teachers seem to constantly face obstacles when attempting to use technology. These obstacles include programs that require a steep learning curve, budgets that can’t afford to fund technology, and varied school administrative restrictions that include “cleaning” beloved programs off of their school computer and restrictions on what teachers may install on ‘their’ computers. Participants in this session will be offered a smorgasbord of web-based tools and free portable applications to enhance learning in their classrooms without requiring any installation on school owned computing equipment. Every application discussed in this session directly supports best-practice teaching techniques in the inclusive, differentiated classroom.
Technology solutions discussed will include strategies for all disciplines, such as mind mapping across the curriculum, the use of non-linguistic representation for vocabulary development, math applications with virtual manipulatives, graphic notes for social studies, and software to enhance the understanding of scientific concepts.
These teacher friendly, free resources and applications can be used on any web enabled, MS Windows PC with minimal preparation or set up. Participants will be provided with the opportunity to download every tool offered, many of which can be used in the classroom immediately.
Preferred Program Length: 2 1/2 hours
Target Audience: Teachers, Teacher Coaches, Teaching assistants
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
What Should an Inclusive, Differentiated Classroom Look Like?
Presentation Description/Abstract: Gain an understanding of how an inclusive, differentiated classroom environment appears during observation and build the skills needed to successfully support and encourage teaching staff to implement and employ best-practice teaching in their classrooms. Examine the role of the administrator in ensuring that all students’ needs are met and explore research-based strategies and methods to engage all learners to raise test scores and reach their potential.
Participant Objectives or Outcomes:
- Understand what should be observed during a walk-through or observation of an inclusive and/or differentiated classroom.
- Identify best-practice, research-based strategies that maximize performance in all students and key steps that teachers might implement to help every student to be successful.
- Explore ways to quickly and easily prepare activities that increase retention and success on quizzes and tests, encourage student cooperation and promote peer support.
- Discuss strategies to encourage and empower staff to embrace and implement best-practice teaching techniques across their curriculum.
Session Alignment: Every administrator understands the need for effective, well-implemented, differentiated instruction and explores ways to promote that understanding in their staff to ensure the success of all students, in all grades, regardless of their challenges as learners.
Session Overview:
- What a differentiated classroom should look, and not look, like. Setting the stage for a successful classroom walk-through. One hour; Presentation, enhanced by activities and participant discussion.
- What learning and assessment strategies should be in use, and why, in a differentiated classroom? Two hours; Presentation, enhanced by activities and participant discussion.
- Following up after a classroom walk-through; effective coaching techniques to encourage teaching staff to continuous performance improvement. One hour; Presentation, enhanced by activities and participant discussion.
Research Base:
Ewy, C. A. (2003). Teaching with visual frameworks: Focused learning and achievement through instructional graphics. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
Gregory, G. (2008). Differentiated instructional strategies in practice: Training, imple mentation, and supervision (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Hall, S. L. (2008). Implementing Response to Intervention: A principal’s guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
Hanson, H. M. (Director). (2009). RTI and DI: Response to Intervention and Differentiated Instruction [DVD]. Port Chester, NY: National Professional Resources.
Marzano, R. J., Pickering, D. J., & Pollock, J. E. (2001). Classroom instruction that works: Research-based strategies for increasing student achievement. Alexandria, VA: ASCD
Impact: Administrators often ask what they should see when they visit inclusive, differentiated classrooms. that should be effectively and consistently employing best-practice, brain-based teaching techniques to reach all learners. Administrators, teacher leaders, coaches, and mentors, have a key role in ensuring that students’ learning needs are met. Understanding what best-practice, researched based strategies and methods might be used to engage all learners so that students reach their potential is imperative to effectively leading their staff to excellence.
Preferred Program Length: Varied
Target Audience: School Administration
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
Administrative Session: Coaching Teachers to Excellence!
Presentation Description: How does an administrator lead teachers to implement exemplary teaching and learning practices? What approach motivates and inspires rather than instills fear, resentment and resistance? In this session, you will discover powerful cognitive coaching strategies to enhance your ability to deepen relationships with teachers and inspire growth. Options will be presented for how to meet teachers where they are while providing nurturing support.
Objectives:
- Use data combined with meaningful encouragement to inspire resistant teachers to reinvent themselves in response to your coaching.
- Identify and learn how to document observations and provide constructive feedback that gets results.
- Gain an understanding of how to navigate conversations with your staff to enhance communication and willingness to accept change.
- Focus on effort and willingness to take steps towards progress rather than comparison to others.
Preferred Program Length: Varied
Target Audience: School Administration
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Paraprofessional Strategies
Presentation Title:
Increasing the Effectiveness of Paraprofessionals: Behavior Management
Presentation Description: Gain proactive, positive ways for paraprofessionals to handle problem behavior. Use scripts for managing behavior through planned response rather than reaction and concrete strategies for dealing with lack of focus, fidgeting, and re-direction without disturbing the rest of the class.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hours
Target Audience: General classroom teachers and special educators, as well as teachers in training and school administrators; those in fully inclusive classrooms as well as those who are in the initial stages of learning about inclusion will benefit from this program
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Presentation Title:
Increasing the Effectiveness of Paraprofessionals: Roles, Hovering, Cueing, and More!
Presentation Description: Learn how to ensure that students respect all adults in the classroom and how to encourage student independence and relationships. Gain tools to assist paraprofessionals and teachers with defining roles, collecting data, collaborating on critical issues, and working effectively together.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hours
Target Audience: General classroom teachers and special educators, as well as teachers in training and school administrators; those in fully inclusive classrooms as well as those who are in the initial stages of learning about inclusion will benefit from this program.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Parenting
Presentation Title:
Please Help Me With My Homework! Strategies for Parents and Caregivers
Presentation Description: Help children finish homework assignments successfully! Get answers to questions that parents and people who care for elementary students often ask about homework. Learn simple strategies for memorizing facts, keeping learning fun, and ways to organize assignments so that they are manageable.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours
Target Audience: Parents and other caregivers
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Elementary school
Presentation Title:
Umm Studying? What’s That? Learning Strategies for the Overwhelmed and Confused College and Secondary Education Student
Presentation Description: Get answers to questions that assist secondary education and college students to be successful in school and on tests. Learn simple strategies for memorizing facts, taking tests, and organizing assignments so they are manageable.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours
Target Audience: Parents
Grade-Level Appropriateness: High school and college students
Response to Intervention
Presentation Title:
RTI Strategies for Secondary Teachers
Presentation Description: RTI in Grades 6-12: What’s a teacher to do? Acquire researched based, practical strategies and activities for RTI implementation to build an Intervention Bank for your RTI team and support classroom interventions at all three tiers. Gain examples of authentic assessments that identify students’ progress efficiently, accurately, and fairly.
Participant Outcomes/Objectives:
- Participants will be able to implement specific interventions at all three RTI tiers and to address non-responders in all subject areas in grades 6-12.
- Participants will gain viable options for organizing lessons to include intensive, systematic, multi-leveled instruction.
- Participants will discover several ways to incorporate practical, easy-to-implement assessment techniques that will provide the necessary data to inform their instructional decisions.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and specialists in the classroom, school psychologists, administrators.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades 6-12
Presentation Title:
RTI Strategies for Elementary Teachers
Presentation Description: RTI in Grades K-5 (or 6): What’s tools are available beyond the canned and scripted programs? Acquire researched based, practical strategies and activities for RTI implementation to build an Intervention Bank for your RTI team that supplements programs you might already have in place. Gain examples of authentic assessments that identify students’ progress efficiently, accurately, and fairly.
Participant Outcomes/Objectives:
- Participants will be able to implement specific interventions at all three RTI tiers and to address non-responders in all subject areas in grades 6-12.
- Participants will gain viable options for organizing lessons to include intensive, systematic, multi-leveled instruction.
- Participants will discover several ways to incorporate practical, easy-to-implement assessment techniques that will provide the necessary data to inform their instructional decisions.
- Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and specialists in the classroom, school psychologists, administrators
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and specialists in the classroom, school psychologists, administrators.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades K-5 (or 6)
Presentation Title:
Really Terrific Instruction Strategy Blast: Inclusive Teaching at its Best
Presentation Description: This session emphasizes new, practical strategies, activities, tips, and tools that really work. In this dynamic, idea-packed session, educators will discover effective, proven, brain-based strategies that impact instruction in all areas of the classroom and reach all learners. The basic premise is “Good for all, critical for students with special needs.” Many of the strategies and techniques modelled in this session can be used in the classroom immediately. These are teacher-friendly, easy-to-use strategies for differentiating instruction.
Topics include ways to use color that stimulate the brain, how to incorporate mnemonics, visuals, and music into the learning process, the value and application of peer teaching and small group activities, as well as four powerful teaching tips. This dynamic session includes do-able homework ideas that are fun, challenging and reach all learners.
Program Objectives:
- Leave with successful strategies that differentiate instruction, and motivate ALL students, especially students with special needs in the general classroom, without requiring formal tiered lesson plans or demanding hours of prep work.
- Gain proven, easy to implement research-based techniques that make teaching more efficient by reducing the need to re-teach, motivating the hard to reach learner and promoting responsiveness to instruction
- Expand your Teacher’s Toolbox to include proven, common-sense strategies that increase achievement for ALL students as well as address individual learners, IEP requirements and Response to Intervention (RTI)
Preferred Program Length: Varied
Target Audience: Teachers, Teacher Coaches, Teaching Assistants
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12, can also be customized for 6-12
Presentation Title:
RTI in Grades 6-12: What’s a teacher to do?
In this dynamic, thought provoking session, Susan offers a collection of researched based, practical strategies and activities for implementing RTI, in the secondary classroom, to build an ‘Intervention Bank’ for your RTI team and support classroom interventions at all three tiers. Discover examples of authentic assessments that identify students’ progress efficiently, accurately, and fairly.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 TO 2 hrs
Target Audience: General and special educators, as well as principals and teachers-in-training
Grade-Level Appropriateness: 6-12
Safe & Drug Free Schools
Presentation Title:
Bullying: Understanding and Technique for All Ages
Presentation Description: Does the typical image of the school yard bully truly capture the reality of bullying in schools and society? Have you ever walked away from a situation with a gut feeling that something was wrong, but you couldn’t put your finger on it? Were you the victim of a bully? Do you see students in your classrooms struggle with this issue? In this dynamic, interactive workshop, you will gain an understanding of what bullying is and action ‘thoughts’ and techniques to address the problem.
Program Objectives: At the end of my session, participants will be able to…
- Identify the critical approaches and components required for building caring communities based on current research.
- Identify where their school stands in regards to these components: What is in place? What is working? What is not working? What is missing?
- Develop a plan to create a nurturing school community where acceptance of individual differences, respect, non-violence and collaboration are present and valued so that all children may reach their highest potential.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General classroom teachers and special educators, as well as paraprofessionals and school administrators.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Presentation Title:
Character & Conflict Education: Bully Prevention in Caring Communities
Presentation Description: Children who don’t feel safe at school cannot achieve to their highest potential. Explore what’s necessary to successfully build caring communities and teach conflict education. Learn realistic skills and techniques to teach young people how to resolve conflict peacefully while maintaining a strong sense of self. Through brain compatible instruction, experiential exercises, and discussion, learn how to reduce bullying, build caring communities, reinforce empathy and resolve conflict.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs to full day
Target Audience: General Audience
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12
Presentation Title:
Gender Stereotypes and Conflict
Presentation Description: This workshop is designed to give a basic understanding of how gender stereotypes contribute to and reinforce relationship conflict. We will define stereotypes and discuss how people label each other based on appearances. We will examine how people’s attitudes and behaviors are based on how and where they were brought up.
We’ll learn that we do not have to accept the limits of stereotypes because we have the power to decide what makes sense for us. We will discuss how stereotypes destructively limit our potential.
Participants will evaluate attitudes, expectations and beliefs they grew up with regarding gender roles and learn how they create patterns of thinking that result in misunderstanding, anger and/or violence.
Preferred Program Length: 1 hour
Target Audience: General Audience
Grade-Level Appropriateness: Grades 6-12
Presentation Title:
Media: Impact on Children’s Moral Development
Presentation Description: Are we, by allowing our children to be exposed to violence on TV, movies, and video games, setting up an environment that physically changes the brain by making it ‘good at’ thinking violently? How is the media affecting our children’s brains? What can we do to counter media conditioning? Violence in the media is a problem with devastating consequences. Not only are our children being conditioned to think in terms of combat, to think of it as entertainment, and to accept it as normal, but there is also strong evidence indicating that it physically alters the brain. Learn what parents and educators can do to take action!
- Gain a general awareness of the physical effect of media violence on the brain.
- Gain an understanding of the possible long-term impact of media violence on our society.
- Learn what we can do to counter the effect of media violence
Media violence impacts the physical brain. Most people think its effect is purely psychological and minimize the danger it presents. An awareness of the physical impact is sobering and motivates people to take steps to address it.
Preferred Program Length: 2 1/2 hours
Target Audience: Parents, teachers, and other adults who work with youth.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: K-12
Stress Management
Presentation Title:
Finding Balance in Stressful Lives
Presentation Description: Stress is one of the most common words used today. How often do you hear the following: “I’m so stressed out.” “My students are stressing out.” “I wonder if my child is stressed about something.” What is stress? Where does it come from? How does stress affect the balance of our lives? What does it do to our memory? Student test scores? What can I do about stress? In this interactive workshop we will discuss these questions and discover options to help ourselves, our students and families understand and cope with stress.
Preferred Program Length: 1 1/2 hrs – 3 hours
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and paraprofessionals.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: General Audience
Program Objectives:
- From reading recall and retention to the effects of anxiety on working memory, this session provides teachers with tools that address memory-related issues, allowing them more time to provide rich instruction.
- Learn teaching strategies specific to short term memory, working memory, and long term memory while gaining an understanding of how memory works yet not getting bogged down in theory.
- Gain hands-on activities that realistically target student memory deficits and learning challenges. Multiple approaches allow teachers to address a wide range of abilities while maximizing instruction time.
Session Overview:
- Topics include ways to use color that stimulate the brain, how to incorporate mnemonics, visuals, and music into the learning process, and the value and application of peer teaching and small group activities. This dynamic session includes do-able homework ideas that are fun, challenging and reach all learners.
- Introduction and reinforcement of multiple approaches that allow teachers to address a wide range of abilities in the classroom while maximizing instruction time and bringing the quality of teaching to the next level.
- Brain-based learning techniques to incorporate into your teaching tool bag that increase student achievement in one-to-one, small group and whole class instruction.
Technology Sessions
Presentation Title:
Presentation Description: In this session, participants will be offered a smorgasbord of web-based tools and free portable applications to enhance learning in their classrooms without requiring any installation on school owned computing equipment. The tools and applications offered in this session allow teachers to apply classroom-proven, brain-based teaching techniques that are “Good for all, critical for students with special needs.” in their 21st century classrooms in ways that reach all learners.
Whether students are gifted, struggling learners, or have special needs, participants will leave this workshop with technology-centered strategies to differentiate instruction. These teacher friendly, free resources and applications can be used on any web enabled, MS Windows PC with minimal preparation or set up. Participants will be provided with the opportunity to download every tool offered, many of which can be used in the classroom immediately.
Note: Discussion of iPad and Mac OS tools may be incorporated where appropriate.
Preferred Program Length: 2 hours
Target Audience: General classroom teachers, special educators, and paraprofessionals.
Grade-Level Appropriateness: All grade levels
Follow Susan Fitzell