Inspire Excellence
Through Learning
Description of Class Offerings
Parent Classes
Secrets for a Great School Year
Children start school with a natural enthusiasm. Everything is new and exciting: the outfit planned for day one, the clean sneakers (a size larger than last year), and the hip backpack with matching lunch bag. Even the school has a fresh look: the floors glow with a new coat of wax, the bulletin boards send greetings for the new year, and colorful book jackets advertize adventures that await in the library.
Wouldn’t it be great to keep this excitement going all year? Join us to explore ways to extend your child’s enthusiasm and motivation throughout the year. More information and registration
Raising Remarkable Readers
Learning to read starts at home even before children go to school. Early on they learn about sounds and language from family interactions, catchy songs, and soft lullabies. They learn the importance of reading as they watch family members with newspapers, magazines, books, and tablets. They listen to stories while snuggled under an arm of a caring adult or curled up in their lap.
Your role does not end when your child enters school. Join this session to learn about the 5 key building blocks of reading. You will also gather ways to support your child’s reading process. More information and registration
Make your Refrigerator a Word Playground
A word playground is any space that you create in your home for a specific collection of words. These words can then be used in games and activities. This is a fun way for your child to interact with words and build strong literacy skills. Research shows that young children become good readers when parents reinforce what is learned at school.
Join this session and learn which words to use in building your child’s playground. You will leave with ways to have fun engaging in games and activities. More information and registration
Supercharge Your Read Aloud
Reading aloud to young children is one of the most effective ways to support reading development. This workshop focuses on ways to read aloud that will actively engage your child in building comprehension and vocabulary. Join us to supercharge your read aloud. Enhance your child’s reading process by learning strategies such as identifying story elements, asking questions to make connections and predictions, and to support fluency growth. More information and registration
School Workshops
Building School, Family, and Community Engagement
There is no topic in education on which we agree more than the need for family and community engagement. Yet most schools have not had the time or support to develop multidimensional programs. Today that can change. What school goals do you want to achieve? How can you build partnerships with parents and the community to reach that goal? This workshop will help you create the culture of partnership and engagement you envision. You’ll have time to work as a school team and to share ideas and resources across teams. Join us and gain a special insight on ways to communicate via social networks. More information and registration
Teacher Classes
Creating High Involvement Lessons
Have you ever stopped during a lesson and wondered, how many of your students are really “getting it”? You know they are looking at you. They seem to be listening, but you’re not sure that their minds are really engaged in the content. Effective teachers have a variety of strategies to engage students. They hook their students’ attention at the very beginning, draw them into the lesson, and keep them involved. More information and registration
Inspiring Student Learning
Do you have a student who is unmotivated? Do you have a student you wish was more engaged in learning? Are you concerned that teaching has become test preparation? This workshop is for you. More information and registration
Writing the Right Way
There is so much information available about the teaching of writing. But how do we develop writers, who choose to write and generate text? Come learn and have fun participating in writing exercises that you can take back to your students. More information and registration
Equity: Teaching With Gender in Mind
Gender equity for females is not new. However, for males it is a new topic. Together we can look at the research, examine our practices, and modify the learning environment to be responsive to all, including boys.More information and registration
Mini Retreats
Creating a Positive Mindset
We all know that times are tough. We keep hearing this again and again, in the media, in the morning paper, over lunchtime conversations and during the nightly news. Staying Positive is a challenge. How do we achieve it? We stay positive not just by thinking positive thoughts, but also by taking deliberate positive action. More information and registration