In this session, we will focus on ways we can internalize our science curriculum to make lessons more engaging for students while still keeping instruction aligned with standards and rigorous.
Attendees can expect to identify, examine, and create simple, curriculum-based writing opportunities within the Studies Weekly materials. The session will focus on addressing the need to provide content-based writing within social studies.
Every classroom has students who seem hesitant, disengaged, or unmotivated to participate in learning activities. Engaging Reluctant Learners (K–4) is a hands-on, interactive training designed to equip educators with effective, research-based strategies to spark interest, build confidence, and foster active participation in even the most hesitant learners.
In the traditional classroom, the teacher often carries the heavy pack—doing the planning, the monitoring, and the reflecting. Project Goals shift that weight. This session equips teachers with the tools to help students "pack their own bags," navigate their own learning paths with goal setting, and reach the summit of their personal goals by putting it into their own hands through data-driven classrooms.
How can you challenge advanced and gifted learners without creating separate lessons or extra work? The answer lies in designing tasks that every student can enter, yet naturally promote deeper thinking for those ready to go further.In this interactive session, teachers will explore low-floor high-ceiling tasks, open-ended learning experiences that allow every student access while providing opportunities for increasingly complex thinking. These tasks support all learners while naturally extending depth, creativity, and rigor for advanced students. Participants will examine practical examples and learn how to embed critical and creative thinking into everyday lessons across grade levels and content areas.
Building Thinking Classrooms using engaging thinking tasks provides teachers the tools to construct a collaborative thinking culture in the classroom. At the start, beginning tasks are non-curricular and encourage the students to develop a culture of collaborative thinking. When later tasks become curricular, the students have developed a collaborative way of thinking so that everyone works together to solve problems.
Building Thinking Classrooms outlines 14 key concepts to create a more engaged student in math class. In this session, we will look at vertical learning, collaborative grouping, and handling questions in a way that puts the workload on the students.
Attendees can expect to locate and examine English Language Development scaffolds built into the Studies Weekly materials before exploring a variety of ways they can be seamlessly incorporated into different timeframes and instructional scenarios.
Kick off Discovery Education in your classroom with this beginner-level session! Learn how to access and navigate the platform, discover content, and begin using it to support your instruction. This session will serve as either an introduction or a refresh, so all experience levels are welcome!
Andy is the Digital Resources Consultant at ESC Region 11, supporting Discovery Education and other digital resources in the region. Prior to Region 11, he was an Ed Tech Specialist in Fort Worth ISD and a teacher/coach at several schools.
Get ready to turn your math classroom up to eleven by ditching the "unplugged" life and plugging into the free Desmos Graphing Calculator Audio Trace features. In this high-energy session, we’re moving beyond the textbook blues to explore how auditory feedback can transform your lessons into a sensory wall of sound that supports every learner in the arena. You’ll learn to shred through quadratic functions and interpret the gritty descent of a negative slope using your ears, pairing visual data with a "math-rock" soundtrack that makes abstract concepts tangible. Close your eyes and lean into the rhythm as we channel our inner René Descartes to compose a mathematical symphony, proving that when algebra meets the amplified stage, the results are nothing short of legendary.
Much of the conversation around gifted learners focuses on academic differentiation, which is essential for students to grow and flourish. However, supporting gifted students also requires an understanding of their affective development and the unique challenges they may experience. In this session, educators will explore characteristics such as asynchronous development, perfectionism, boredom, and heightened sensitivity. Participants will gain insight into how these traits may appear in the classroom and how they can influence learning, motivation, and behavior. Participants will leave with concrete tools to support gifted learners in ways that strengthen both their academic growth and overall well-being.
In this interactive workshop, educators will explore and apply AVID’s WICOR strategies to strengthen instructional rigor. Through collaborative and inquiry-based learning experiences, participants will explore, practice, and implement strategies that create rigorous learning environments and support college and career readiness for all students.
Today’s families look different than they did even a decade ago. Teachers are partnering with single parents, blended families, grandparents, guardians, and caregivers who often juggle demanding schedules and competing responsibilities. The Modern Family Playbook focuses on practical strategies for building positive relationships with families, strengthening communication, and creating meaningful connections between home and school. When families feel valued and informed, they are more likely to support classroom expectations, reinforce learning at home, and partner with teachers to ensure student success. In this training, educators will explore ways to create parent buy-in, strengthen student accountability, and bridge the curriculum between school and home. Participants will leave with actionable tools to build trust with families, communicate proactively, and empower parents to be partners in their child’s education.
Have you already kicked off Discovery Education in your classroom but need to start building a playbook for teaching with it? In this session, we will move beyond the basics and begin exploring content specific to your classroom, teaching strategies and supports to implement immediately, and the newest resources for college and career-readiness. You may want to attend the “Kicking Off” session prior to this, but it is not required.
Andy is the Digital Resources Consultant at ESC Region 11, supporting Discovery Education and other digital resources in the region. Prior to Region 11, he was an Ed Tech Specialist in Fort Worth ISD and a teacher/coach at several schools.
This session will provide educators with an introduction and overview of Savvas Realize. Participants will explore the platform’s essential features and leave with the confidence to navigate and utilize Savvas' features effectively throughout the school year.
Listen up, people! We've got a crisis on the floor, and the patient is the student mind flatlining under the pressure of math anxiety. We’re seeing a total systemic failure of confidence, and if we don’t identify the root causes now, we’re going to lose them. This session is your crash course in emergency intervention. We’re going in deep, using high-impact tools like “Which One Doesn’t Belong?” to jumpstart their natural curiosity and shock their mathematical thinking back to life. This isn't just a lesson—it's a rescue mission for every interventionist and teacher on the front lines. Grab your gear and get ready to trade self-doubt for a pulse of empowerment, because we’re not letting another student slip away on our watch.
