Connecting, Collaborating and Closing the School Year Strong
Join us Friday, May 10, 2024
Hosted by the College of Education and Human Services in partnership with CMU Online, this conference is a hotspot for practical strategies to boost student success. Whether you're into reading, writing, literacy, or intrigued by AI in education, we've got you covered. Plus, let's not forget about building those classroom connections and fueling your own career growth! It's all about collaborating and closing the school year on a high note.
Best part? Michigan educators and staff can register for free and score 5 SCECHs. We encourage pre-service teachers to attend. We can welcome 150 participants on campus, and many more online. Sign up for either option using the same registration link.
Schedule
| Time | Event | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7:30 am - 8:30 am |
Continental Breakfast
| EHS Lobby | Registration Table | |
| 8:30 am - 8:45 am |
Welcome
| French Auditorium | |
| 8:45 am - 9:45 am |
Plenary Session
Cultivating a Writing Community through Text, Talk, and Teaching All learning is social, and writing is no different. Let’s consider how to leverage mentor texts, cultivate conversations, and instructional strategies that build on students’ natural curiosity and desire to share their thinking with the world. | French Auditorium
| |
| 9:55 am - 10:55 am |
Breakout session 1
| Breakout Classrooms | |
| 11:05 am - 12:05 pm |
Breakout session 2
| Breakout Classrooms | |
| 12:05 pm - 1:05pm |
Enjoy Lunch on Your Own: Check out chain restaurants along Mission Street or local spots in downtown off Broadway and Main. | Mount Pleasant | |
| 1:10 pm - 2:10 pm |
Breakout session 3
| Breakout Classrooms | |
| 2:20 pm - 3:20 pm |
Breakout session 4
| Breakout Classrooms | |
| 3:30 pm - 3:40 pm |
Win Big: Door Prize Extravaganza! Don't forget to swing by the registration table to check if you've won a door prize; remember, winners must be present to claim their prize and must do so by 4:00 pm! |
| |
|
Group Alike Meetings Join us to discover our latest projects expanding across education, designed to support educators in their professional growth and classroom practices. | Breakout Classrooms |
Session descriptions and presenter information
Dr. Paula Lancaster
Session: Welcome and Introduction, Setting the Stage
Dr. Troy Hicks
Email: Hicks1tw@cmich.edu
Session: AI in Education: Problems and Possibilities
For all of us in education, as we teach our students to be readers, writers, and thinkers in various disciplines, AI tools will continue to become enmeshed in the work that we all do, both as instructors and as learners. How can we teach students to become "AI literate" in productive, ethical ways?
Dr. Brandi Ansley
Email: ansle1b@cmich.edu
Session Description: Educators notoriously experience high stress levels exacerbated by working conditions (e.g., high demands, heavy workloads, problematic interpersonal interactions) and other matters outside their control. Moreover, there is a higher prevalence of burnout and secondary traumatic stress compared to most other professions. Though the threats to physical, mental, and emotional wellness may come from sources outside themselves, the individual must take charge of their health and happiness. This is not another self-care session. Rather, this is about education professionals making wellness work for them. The spring and summer may offer a ripe opportunity for educators to engage in a wellness reset. Content includes integrated strategies to restore and reinvigorate themselves. During this session, participants will engage in reflective and interactive tasks that compel them to design and apply a simple plan that launches the next steps of their wellness journey.
Dr. Meghan Block
Email: block1m@cmich.edu
Session: M&Ms: Motivation and Mentor Texts in the Elementary Classroom
Motivation and Engagement are critical components of the literacy classroom. In this session, we will consider ideas to facilitate motivation/engagement in the writing classroom and explore the role mentor texts play in children’s writing motivation and development.
.png?Status=Master&sfvrsn=ae98f5e3_4)
Dr. Amanda Cornwell
.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=bacb213b_4)
Ashley O'Neil
Email: cornw2a@cmich.edu
Email: biede1aj@cmich.edu
Session: Unlocking Creativity: The Transformative Potential of Design Thinking
Participants will get a glimpse of the underlying tenets of maker education through hands-on activities. They'll explore the skills throughout the various stages of the design thinking process and engage in a shared experience. Working within a single breakout session, we will wrap up with conversation surrounding potential ways to customize this approach based on their teaching goals and/or students' needs.
Dr. Scott Roberts
Email: rober4s@cmich.edu
Session: Hollywood or History?
This session discusses effective ways to use film in the K-12 Social Studies/History classroom. Participants will receive lesson plans based on this topic.
.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=6b1906ed_4)
Dr. Kristina Rouech
Email: rouec1k@cmich.edu
Session: Building Respectful Relationships with Students
Building Respectful Relationships with Students is one of 19 Core Teaching Practices required by the State of Michigan. This session will define this practice and share strategies I've used in the college classroom. All strategies are easily adapted for any grade level.
Dr. Benjamin Jankens
Email: janke1bp@cmich.edu
Session: Roles in Educational Administration and Leadership
This session explores administrative and leadership positions in the field of education. What does a principal do and what roles are available for teachers as they think about advancing in their careers and being part of the bigger picture of the school or district decision-making? Learn about the role and how to prepare yourself for a position in leadership.
Session: Three Decades of Charter Schools in Michigan: What We Know about Innovation and Performance
Charter schools in Michigan began more than 30 years ago as an innovative approach, yet not everyone – even those of us in education – fully understand what they are, how they work, and their performance over time. This session explores charter schools in Michigan, how they fit into the larger educational K-12 landscape, and the similarities and differences that teachers in these school's experience in their day-to-day work.
.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=c0cbbcee_6)
Marisa Ramirez Stukey
Email: mstukey@collaborativeclassroom.org
Session: What is the Science of Reading: Integrating Effective Literacy Practices
Cultivating a Writing Community through Text, Talk, and Teaching
All learning is social, and writing is no different. Let’s consider how to leverage mentor texts, cultivate conversations, and instructional strategies that build on students’ natural curiosity and desire to share their thinking with the world.
Discussing Writing for Life
Join us for an opportunity to dig into the research white paper " Writing for Life: The Evidence Base for Powerful Writing Instruction" and discuss with one of the authors and your colleagues, ways to incorporate these powerful research-based aspects of writing instruction into your practice.
Dr. Chad Waldron
Email: waldr1ch@cmich.edu
Session: What is the Science of Reading: Integrating Effective Literacy Practices
Have you heard about the Science of Reading or SOR? It has become a hot topic in popular media and current legislative conversations. However, it's not a new topic- but the evidence from it is still critical to literacy learners, as it has been for decades. This session will focus on what the Science of Reading is (or isn't) and thinking broadly about using research-informed instructional practices with literacy learning.
Session: Exploring Michigan's Literacy Essentials
Michigan is leading the way in developing literacy rich experiences for children and educators across infancy through 12th grade. Learn more about Michigan's Literacy Essentials in this session- what are the best practices for literacy from B-3, PK, grades K-3, 4-5, and 6-12. This interactive session will share valuable resources and links to support literacy learning success in your classroom!
Dr. Jennifer Weible
Dr. Ray Francis
Email: weibl1jl@cmich.edu
Email: francr1w@cmich.edu
Session: AI and Assessment: Promoting Learning and Student Success in the age of Generative AI
In this session, educators will begin to explore the intersection of Generative AI and assessment, particularly focusing on the role of Generative AI in promoting learning and student success. The session aims to achieve two main objectives. Firstly, participants will develop an overall perspective on the current and potential relationship between Generative AI and the teaching and learning cycle. Throughout the session educators will gain insights into how Generative AI can enhance assessment practices and support personalized learning experiences for students. Secondly, participants will explore three strategies for incorporating Generative AI into their own personal knowledge-base of teaching and learning. By examining practical examples and engaging in hands-on activities, educators will learn how to leverage Generative AI tools to create dynamic and adaptive assessments, provide targeted feedback, and facilitate deeper student engagement. Lastly, participants will articulate an understanding of the promises and pitfalls of Generative AI in the teaching and learning process. Overall, this session will begin the process of equipping educators with the knowledge, skills, and perspectives needed to begin to harness the transformative potential of Generative AI while navigating its inherent challenges in promoting student success and fostering a culture of lifelong learning.
.png?Status=Master&sfvrsn=c82b5d56_6)
Margo Wilson
Email: kosta1m@cmich.edu
Session: Strengthening Student-Teacher Relationships Through Writing Conferences!
We will discuss specific strategies you can use to enliven your writer’s workshop at the end of the year and keep things focused but fun. We will dive deeper into writing conferences and how you can continue to build on your teacher-student relationships, students’ interests, and strengths and avoid the tough struggles. We will also discuss ways to stretch and influence your students and families for a literacy-rich summer
Bio: Margo Wilson has been with CMU since the Fall of 2020. She first began her higher education career as a graduate assistant in the Educational Leadership Department at CMU, while also pursuing her Educational Leadership Doctoral degree. She is now a half-time faculty member at CMU's English and Literature Department and a doctoral candidate. She hopes to defend her dissertation in May of 2025. Her dissertation topic is the teacher's perspective of SEL Program implementation in K-5 schools and its effect on teachers' social-emotional competencies and ability to create a pro-social classroom environment.
Before her higher education journey, Margo was an elementary teacher for 15 years, 11 of which were at Mt. Pleasant Public Schools. During her elementary teaching career, Margo served on the Writing and Science district committees, where she helped make curriculum decisions, developed curriculum and assessment guides, and facilitated some professional development.
.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=80998807_7)
Jeremy Hyler
Email: jhyler@collaborativeclassroom.org
In this interactive session educators will explore mentor texts and writing prompts that can help teachers have a safe space to grow as writers and build confidence as a teacher of writing.
-(1).jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=6d86f1e2_4)
Bill Cecil
Email: billcecil@bestyearever.net
Session: Make Every Year as a Teacher Your "Best Year Ever!"
I will explore three key topics that helped me make every year in my classroom the "Best Year Ever!" for my students and me: 1) What I loved most about teaching. 2) The importance of "Tapping into the Power of Team" with my students. 3) Introduce 4-strategies called "Setting the Table for Success" that I used at the start of each school year to help build a positive, safe, productive learning environment for all the thrive in.
BIO: Bill Cecil taught 31-years and had the great honor to serve as Michigan Teacher of the Year in 2003-2004. He has written two books–Best Year Ever! Winning Strategies to Thrive in Today’s Classroom and Seven Winning Strategies to Help Your Children Succeed in School and Life. Since retiring from teaching, Bill continues to share proven, powerful strategies teachers can use to help make every year as a teacher their "Best Year Ever!"-- despite the many challenges they may encounter throughout their teaching career.