Events

Lunch will be provided on site and the cost to attend is outlined: PD Co-op member districts $25.00, Non PD Co-op districts $115.00 This session is for school secretaries and office staff/administrators, educators and support personnel members who encounter any/all school visitors (parents, public guests, board members and beyond). The first portion of this course blends customer service theory with practical tips for improvement. Participants engage in lively conversations regarding the fundamental needs of customers, building relationships, simple communications and good versus bad service. With the aid of humorous video footage, discussions center on probable causes of bad customer service. This class also includes a detailed look at proper service habits for various modes of service including face-to-face, telephone and email conversations. The second portion of this course is a “roll up your sleeves” session designed to build upon the discussions from the morning session. Participants may be asked to put service tips into practice through a combination of live phone calls and/or writing professional answers to real email questions. They may also devise strategies for serving especially difficult customers (such as Belligerent Bob, Pompous Paul, and Basket Case Brenda), handling public criticism and delivering uncomfortable messages. Spots are limited, registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event date unless tickets are sold out. Cancellations must be made 48 hours prior to the event date or the cost to attend is nonrefundable.  Materials and information are provided on behalf of the American Association of School Customer Service. This session will be duplicated on May 30, 2024.

Note: This workshop will be held at Wingate Elementary in the library.

 

Whether you're new to special education or you’ve been doing it for years the goal writing process can be a tedious one.  Join Mascoutah # 19 Instructional Coach Shannon Knolhoff as we walk through a step by step process of writing strong present levels that will then lend itself to selecting a goal, determining success criteria, and finally developing the stepping stones (aka objectives) to achievement.  Participants will work through a current goal of their own to determine if it is SMART and make changes when necessary.

  Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.

Jim Kestner will introduce a ground-breaking curriculum, the Writers’ Workshop Wayfarer Challenge. Writing instruction from Kestner’s more than 30 years of experience as a dynamic speaker brings workshop participants a series of videos and web links that teach writing skills, freeing teachers to spend time focused on students’ individual needs. Featuring video vignettes and the option of an incentives-based, game-like interface, middle and high school English teachers will discover how to harness the power of avatars and individual-based skill progression to shatter barriers and generate excitement in students as they gain ever greater writing proficiency along a virtual expedition to climb Mt. Everest. Every participant receives a free Writers’ Workshop Wayfarer Challenge curriculum and implementation guide! Check out these exciting features: * A series of 17 self-paced writing challenges adaptable to time frames ranging from a few units to an entire school year * Real potential for students who need extra time a chance to master skills while simultaneously propelling gifted students to pursue advanced concepts that typically lie beyond the time available during the school year * Instruction on customizing the curriculum to a variety of settings and applications * Data collection and reporting mechanisms * ELA standards-aligned curriculum for grades 6-12 * Video vignettes featuring Alan Arnette, a world-class Everest mountaineer and expedition guide * Web-based data and leaderboards for teachers who decide to gamify the program * Easily adaptable for remote learners   Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.

This event will be held at Wingate Elementary in the Library (150 Wingate Blvd. Belleville).

Join Shannon Knolhoff, Instructional Coach at Mascoutah # 19 in this session.  The hard truth is the paraprofessionals serving in our schools today are not the same as they were 10 years ago.  Back then, many of our paraprofessionals were certified teachers looking to get their foot in the door. Now, they’re adults who, oftentimes, have never stepped foot inside a school.  During this PD, special education teachers will hear strategies, tips, and tricks to get your paraprofessionals off on the right foot and keep them eager to grow all year long.  This session will offer opportunities for collaboration with fellow teachers facing the same challenges when it comes to paraprofessionals.  

Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.

Jim Kestner will present his nationally recognized program in a high-energy session dedicated to helping experienced 5-12 teachers address a wide range of classroom management issues. Teachers who attend will find strategies that lead students to make good choices, replacing controlling behaviors with strategies that lead students to monitor and take responsibility for their own behavior. Specifically, the session will address the following: * What teachers should know about teaching Generation Z * Developing character-based discipline * Addressing common challenging behaviors * Difference between controlling behaviors and building good decision-making skills * Consistency * Developing and implementing effective classroom policies * Establishing a character-building classroom environment * Teaching self-respect, self-discipline, and responsibility * Self-esteem vs. self-respect * Grading systems that encourage student effort and engagement * Assessing student behavior * Parent and administrator involvement

Join Instructional Coach, Lori Griffith from Bethalto # 8 as she shares various aspects of co-teaching, emphasizing the collaboration and power it can bring to the classroom. The objectives of the presentation include:

• Understanding the importance of collaboration in co-teaching.
• Building and sustaining healthy relationships between co-teachers.
• Maximizing the benefits of co-planning.
• Engaging and exciting learners through effective co-teaching strategies.
• Setting personal goals for successful co-teaching.
• Identifying the six essential modules of co-teaching.

Registration will close 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.

 Targeted Audience: K-5 teachers, RTI, and Special Education teachers This professional development opportunity delves into the intricate components of reading fluency, unraveling its true nature. Educators will gain a deep understanding of the nuanced aspects of fluency, exploring not just speed, but also accuracy, prosody, and comprehension. Through engaging sessions, participants will be equipped with practical strategies, activities, and assessments that can be seamlessly integrated into the classroom setting. This professional development empowers teachers to refine their instructional approaches, fostering a holistic approach to reading fluency, ensuring students develop a well-rounded and proficient reading skill set. Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event date.  

Targeted Audience: Instructional Coaches and their K-5 general and special education colleagues Instructional coaches, grab a general education and special education teacher you work with to join you for this professional development designed to empower instructional coaches and teachers with the knowledge and skills necessary to cultivate impactful dual-teacher partnerships. Attendees will gain the tools and insights needed to foster effective collaboration, utilize data for informed decision-making, seamlessly integrate modifications, and establish strong relationships within this unique instructional context. 

Explore ways to connect adolescent readers to books that will name their hearts. Study the practices that help all students develop a reading habit to increase stamina and joy in independent reading, leading to increased engagement in challenging, complex texts.

Independence is at the heart of the Common Core Standards. Adolescents must develop a reading habit that increases stamina and joy in reading, while increasing the complexity of the texts they can independently read. Our middle and high school teachers investigated widespread non-reading among our teenagers and transformed our culture through books, time to read, and conferring with readers. Come to listen to students, explore ways to measure growth in stamina, and the connections we can make between the most reluctant readers and books that will name their hearts. We will study the practices that help all students develop a reading habit to increase stamina and joy in reading. We’ll look at challenging readers through weekly goals and identifying rich books. Our whole school effort has more students challenging themselves as readers in English class and beyond. We can increase students’ ability to respond thoughtfully and analytically to their reading in conferences and in writing. This analytical reading leads students to deeper comprehension and vision for their own writing.

• Increase volume, capacity, and complexity for all readers over time
• Understand the wide range of books that appeal to teenagers
• Create a balance of weekly goals in independent reading, text study, and novel study in English class
• Use short text study to lead students to read rhetorically and broaden the genres they choose to read
• Increase the effectiveness of reading conferences
• Help students deepen their thinking through writing about independent reading
• Build a school culture & summer reading focused on the love of books

  Penny Kittle teaches first year writers at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire. She was a teacher and literacy coach in public schools for 34 years. She is the author of nine books including Book Love, Write Beside Them, and two books co-authored with Kelly Gallagher: 4 Essential Studies and 180 Days. She is the founder and president of the Book Love Foundation, which annually grants classroom libraries to teachers throughout North America. Penny works beside teachers and leaders across the world to empower young readers and writers. Penny Kittle was a teacher and literacy coach in public schools for 34 years, 21 of those spent at Kennett High School in North Conway. She is the co-author of 180 Days with Kelly Gallagher, and is the author of Book Love, and Write Beside Them, which won the James Britton award. She also co-authored two books with her mentor, Don Graves, and co-edited (with Tom Newkirk) a collection of Graves’ work, Children Want to Write. She is the president of the Book Love Foundation and was given the Exemplary Leader Award from NCTE’s Conference on English Leadership. In the summer Penny teaches graduate students at the University of New Hampshire Literacy Institutes.  Throughout the year, she travels across the U.S. and Canada (and once in a while quite a bit farther) speaking to teachers about empowering students through independence in literacy. She believes in curiosity, engagement, and deep thinking in schools for both students and their teachers. Penny stands on the shoulders of her mentors, the Dons (Murray & Graves), and the Toms (Newkirk & Romano), in her belief that intentional teaching in a reading and writing workshop brings the greatest student investment and learning in a classroom.   Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.