In-Service Workshops

This workshop will review the basic principles of Ross Greene’s Collaborative Proactive Solutions model for addressing student behavior. Participants will get a better understanding of the fundamental elements that drive Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS). This includes an explanation of the difference between CPS (skill based) vs. Behavior Modification (motivation based) models, and the 3 Steps involved in CPS (Empathy, Adult Concern, Invitation to Problem Solve)

What are some of the challenging behaviors you are dealing with as you teach? Traditional discipline does not always have the desired outcomes we seek. Conscious Discipline utilizes everyday events to cultivate emotional intelligence through a self-regulation program that integrates social-emotional learning and discipline. Learn what Conscious Discipline is all about and how to apply the concepts in your role as a teacher or as a parent. This workshop is recommended for Preschool through Elementary staff.

Many children who may be identified as having behavioral struggles, may actually be managing the needs of their sensory systems. These systems process all of the internal and external stimuli that enter the body and brain throughout the day. By uncovering how each sensory system may be impacted, we can better understand the needs of the children we work with and more easily support their development and success in the classroom.

Many of our students have been exposed to trauma before ever entering our classroom. When children experience or are exposed to domestic violence and other forms of trauma, it can have a dramatic impact on their brain development. Every child has the incredible capacity to heal, and every child deserves a learning environment that fosters healing and resilience. This workshop will focus on the impact of child exposure to domestic violence and other forms of trauma; to help us better understand the behaviors a traumatized child may exhibit in the classroom and develop strategies to offer support.

Creating awareness about mental wellness can begin in elementary school. This interactive presentation teaches children how to identify their emotions, develop coping skills, and build empathy. Suitable for grades K-4 and facilitated by a licensed clinician from Minding Your Mind. Recommended for Grades K - 4. Available in Spanish.

Many building-level school administrators enter the role unprepared to make adaptive, emotionally responsive decisions when faced with behavioral, social-emotional, and functional challenges. Traditional preparation programs emphasize academic leadership and operational management but often neglect the emotional intelligence, co-regulation, and crisis-response skills that are essential in today’s school environments.

Do you have a student or know a person who has "Given up” on trying to learn, feels like they are just not good enough, or outside or internal criticism has led them to believe that no matter what they do, their circumstance will not improve? They may be a struggling learner, and the pain of dealing with their disability, even though they feel they have tried to learn, has led them to constant failures, shame, and the inability to progress. This is a state called "Learned Helplessness." The person feels that whatever they do, they have no power to change their current circumstances. This can also lead to anxiety, stress, depression, and substance abuse. Dr. Martin Seligman theorized learned helplessness, which can leave a person feeling hopeless, passive, and lacking motivation or internal drive. Change can happen if we help a person rewire their brain. Changing the negative story they have been telling themselves is the first step in this process.

When students consistently receive support that removes challenge rather than builds capacity, the nervous system draws a quiet but powerful conclusion: I can't do this on my own. Repeated often enough, that conclusion stops being a thought and starts being a physiological default. The body learns to become afraid of hard things. This session explores the difference between avoidance-based support that fosters dependence and approach-based support that builds genuine self-efficacy. When students learn to regulate, they become more independent and develop the biological expectation of success.

This session can be tailored for classroom teachers, paraprofessionals, or administrators.

For many of us, we define ourselves by what we do professionally. This can be good, but also detrimental if we lose focus on everything else that life has to offer. In this workshop, you will assess your life in 18 areas – career and 17 others – to get a sense of your LIFE/work balance. You will also go through exercises to prioritize some other areas and set goals in them too. Finally, you will leave with a personalized, color-coded bar chart that reflects your 18 areas, which can be an excellent source of motivation, inspiration, and validation.

Get familiar with the newly revised English Language Development Framework (WIDA 2020) Standards, gaining practical insights and strategies to effectively support the linguistic and academic development of multilingual learners. This is an overview of the key elements of the framework including what has changed, what has remained, and how it applies to K-12 educators with multilingual learners.