The following workshops are available for staff, students and parents. Workshops are offered both in person and via Zoom. MPY requires a minimum of 25 participants for staff workshops and a minimum of 40 participants for parent and caregiver workshops. Exceptions are made on a case by case basis.
Section 504 for Student Support Staff
Section 504 can be confusing for school staff and families alike. Yet its implementation is is essential to ensure that students with disabilities have equal access to educational opportunities. This Section 504 workshop is designed to equip student support staff with the necessary knowledge and skills to actively engage in the Section 504 process for students with disabilities.
Self-Care and Work-Life Balance: What Works for YOU (In Person Only)
The demands of educators today have faculty, administrators, and staff running in numerous directions with little time to pause and reflect, let alone allow for space to define what self-care at work (and at home) could/should look like. This interactive workshop provides participants with a "time out" to breathe (seriously), learn steps to craft an individualized self-care approach, understand how to protect oneself from emotional mugging, as well as an honest conversation on why asking your supervisor about "work-life balance" might set us up for disappointment. Participants will leave empowered and recharged--because when you feel good, you do good!
Self-Regulation Strategies: Grades 5-12
Providing 5-12 students with a cognitive behavioral approach to teach how to identify and to process feelings will result in developing strategies to cope with difficult situations. These skills will lead to improved self-regulation in students as well as increase increased ability to be actively engaged in learning.
Self-Regulation Strategies: Grades K-5
Providing K-5 students with a cognitive behavioral approach to teach how to identify and to process feelings will result in developing strategies to cope with difficult situations. These skills will lead to improved self-regulation in students as well as increase increased ability to be actively engaged in learning.
Sensory Processing (Remote only)
We all have sensory processing preferences, but it becomes an issue if these preferences interfere with typical functioning and interactions. In this workshop you will gain a deeper understanding of what sensory integration is and why it is important. We will look at the eight sensory systems and sensory processing difficulties within each system. We will then examine some Ideas for re-creating more sensory-friendly environments in Preschool through Grade 2 classrooms.
Social Media's Impact on Mental Health: Optimizing the Connection (Remote Only)
Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook foster a culture of peer comparison and entice users to stay online longer than they intend, which can foster discouraging or negative feelings. Snapchat locations and Instagram stories cause FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), contributing to anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Teachers and parents will learn individual and group strategies to optimize students' use of social media.
Strategies for Creating a Trauma-Sensitive Classroom Where all Students Can Thrive
Creating a trauma-sensitive classroom fosters an environment for all students to learn because educators are uniquely positioned to help students overcome challenges and build resilience. Participants will review preliminary information and definition of terms and explore ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) before delving into academic instruction techniques and relationship building for teaching students impacted by trauma. This workshop will also examine misconceptions about trauma, the effect trauma has on the brain, and review common challenges when working with students impacted by trauma. Participants will have an opportunity to share and reflect on their current practices and to learn ways to improve their self-care to ensure that the classroom is a safe space for all learners to grow.
Stress Reduction: Learn From the Best How to be Less Stressed (Remote Only)
Are you stressed? This can often be due to workload, the type of work you’re doing and relationships with your colleagues. This interactive workshop will explore solutions to all three of those issues, getting you to explore what your personal stress points are and giving you the tools you need to come up with a plan to reduce or even eliminate them.
Stronger Together: Supporting Your Teen's Mental Health & Well-Being
Get practical tips to listen, respond and create supportive spaces at home. Learn how to support your youth through mental health and relationships and strengthen your skills at being the trusted person your child can turn to when they need to talk.
Students with High Functioning ASD (Remote Only)
Students identified with High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), formerly known as Asperger's Syndrome, present behaviors that require more subtle and relationship-oriented interventions compared to an ABA approach. This presentation reviews some of the challenges inherent in this diagnostic profile, including addressing the question as to what interventions are necessary. Also detailed are social skills challenges those students encounter, with specifics addressing young students needs vs. adolescents.