SUMMER INSTITUTE 2019
Let’s Learn Together! May 28-June 12, 2019
WESTMINSTER
Hello, fellow educators! As teachers, coaches, administrators, and leaders, we are a vital part of how our schools prepare students for college and careers while engaging them in relevant and meaningful learning experiences that build their 21st century skills. This year, the Center for Teaching will offer professional development workshops in instructional design, coaching, leadership development, mathematics, project-based learning, Design Thinking, STEAM, and more! These workshops will help you prepare for the new school year and renew your energy for engaging with students. All workshops are designed and facilitated by faculty from private and public schools, as well as national organizations. Last year, nearly 400 participants attended Summer Institute at Westminster. We look forward to seeing familiar faces and welcoming new ones this summer! Happy to be lifelong learners together! Sincerely, Bob Ryshke
Executive Director Center for Teaching Westminster
SUMMER INSTITUTE 2019
2019 Workshop Offerings Summer Institute 2019 includes 20 workshops for teachers and administrators to learn together and continue improving as educators. Browse the full list of workshops by date below. Find full descriptions of workshops listed by category on subsequent pages. May 28-29 R.E.A.L. Discussion: Make Classroom Discussion More Than Just “Talk” | $395 May 28-29 Ultimate Lesson Planning: Plan Your Entire Year in 2 Days | $395 May 28-30 Food: An Atlanta Experience | $485 May 28-30 Mindfulness & Music in the Classroom | $485 May 29-30 Harnessing Children’s Natural Inclination to Learn through Play and Storytelling | $395 May 30
ADVANCED Ultimate Lesson Planning | $325
May 30-31 Tips, Tactics, and Tools for an Assessment-Rich Classroom | $395 May 31
Building Influence as a Teacher Leader | $325
June 3
The Coachable School | $325
June 3-4
Social Media IRL (In Real Life): Firsthand Accounts from Students | $395
June 3-5
Creating a Line of Sight to Being an Effective Leader | $485
June 4
Diffusing F-Bombs (Fight, Flight, Freeze) with the Anxious Learner | $325
June 4
Math Strategies in Your Classroom | $325
June 4-5
R.E.A.L. Discussion: Make Classroom Discussion More Than Just “Talk” | $395
June 5
Design Thinking | $325
June 5
Your Brain on Math: It All Adds Up! | $325
June 5-6
Build & Grow Your School Broadcast Program: News, Sports, Events, and More | $395
June 5-7
Project-Based Learning: Learn and Apply | $485
June 6
STEAM in Action | $325
June 6-7
Mentoring: Creating a Partnership Culture | $395
June 11-12 If You Want to Improve, Work With a Coach | $395
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER TODAY!
Coaching for Change If You Want to Improve, Work With a Coach June 11 and 12 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Top athletes, corporate leaders, and other professionals see it as essential to engage with a coach, someone who can see things that are often invisible. If you are in a position at your school to support the professional development of other adults, this workshop is a perfect place to spend two days. We will look at different coaching models, their similarities, and their differences. You will develop and practice your coaching skills using tools and techniques from a variety of experts. We will focus on how effective coaching conversations can support a person’s development. Activities include: participating in coaching conversations, refining your listening strategies, applying frameworks and tools, and sharing your learning with others. Instructor: Robert Ryshke, Executive Director, Center for Teaching, Westminster
The Coachable School June 3 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 Coaching is a form of leadership grounded in trust, curiosity, and growth. Participants in this workshop will briefly examine various coaching models and the methods of highly successful instructional and corporate coaching systems. With a foundation of models and methods, we will spend the majority of the time role-playing situations typical to the school context. You will leave with a new toolset for engaging colleagues in powerful, trustful conversations—the first step to creating a coachable school. Instructor: Ted Sadtler, Middle School Director of Teaching & Learning, Westminster
Curriculum Design, Assessment, and Instruction R.E.A.L. Discussion: Make Classroom Discussion More Than Just “Talk” May 28 and 29 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 June 4 and 5 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 As educators, we know discussion is an art that needs to be practiced. Yet, on a daily basis, we expect our students to use classroom discussion to engage productively with ideas and each other! This workshop will focus on student-led discussion from a skills perspective, blending experiential learning and implementation. We will begin by considering the challenges of classroom discussion for a generation raised amidst political polarity and unprecedented screen time. Then, Liza Cowan and pilot teacher Doris Moss will introduce R.E.A.L.: a skills-based method for structuring and assessing student-led discussion that can be adapted to fit your style, students, and subject matter. Learn more at REALdiscussion.org. Instructors: Liza Cowan, US English faculty, Westminster Doris Moss, Middle School and Upper School English faculty, Whitefield Academy
Tips, Tactics, and Tools for an Assessment-Rich Classroom May 30 and 31 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Assessing student learning is one of a teacher’s most important jobs. If you’ve been asking yourself, “How can I expand my repertoire of assessment tools to engage students and determine whether they deeply understand?” Stop! Sign up for this two-day, hands-on workshop that will equip you with a thorough understanding of formative and summative assessment strategies. You will learn and practice strategies from a bank of 53 formative assessment practices. In addition, we will look at how to construct different types of summative and performance-based assessments. This workshop will equip you with tools and give you an understanding for how to design your classroom to support student learning. Instructor: Robert Ryshke, Executive Director, Center for Teaching, Westminster
Ultimate Lesson Planning: Plan Your Entire Year in 2 Days May 28 and 29 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Leave this two-day workshop with plans for the entire 2019-20 school year. In this course, participants will quickly and efficiently design objective-based units and lessons. Get a jump on next year, take the rest of the summer off, and start your school year stress-free! Instructor: Peyten Williams, Middle School Director of Teaching and Learning, Westminster
ADVANCED Ultimate Lesson Planning May 30 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 If you are already familiar with concepts of Backwards Design, UBD, or you’ve already taken the Ultimate Lesson Planning course, then this deeper dive class is for you. Plan weekly and daily lessons, assessments, and even your exam. Learn how to use alignment to speed up your planning process and make your lessons achieve more bang for their buck. You’ll get multiple lesson plan templates and techniques for application. Instructor: Peyten Williams, Middle School Director of Teaching and Learning, Westminster
Experiential Learning Strategies Food: An Atlanta Experience May 28-30 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $485 If you are an experiential and lifelong learner, this is the workshop for you! This threeday workshop engages participants with Atlanta through the lens of food as it relates to health, production, processing, and equity/access. Day one, we will explore our local food economy with a focus on the rewards and challenges of building “farm to table” establishments in Atlanta. Over lunch, we will hear from a local entrepreneur whose commitment to the movement has had its share of hurdles. Day two, the group will explore the processing stage of food at a local level, visiting several Atlanta companies that promote economic growth within their communities. Day three will tackle the important topic of food equity in our city. Workshop participants will travel around town using public transportation to experience the challenges facing many Atlantans as they try to access healthy balanced food. Instructors: Emily Horne, Discovery and Outdoor Programs faculty, Westminster Joey Jarrell, Middle School science faculty, Westminster
Project-Based Learning: Learn and Apply June 5-7 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $485 How might you authentically engage, intrinsically motivate, and challenge students? Project-based learning (PBL) is a teaching strategy that uses authentic learning activities to increase student interest and motivation through real-world application. Join us for a three-day introduction to PBL, where we will share with you the Buck Institute’s eight essential gold standard project design elements necessary to engage students in active and powerful learning. Come collaborate with us and create new work—or develop and enhance existing work—using the best aspects of PBL. We will also design a project you can take with you into the new school year. This workshop is geared toward teachers, curriculum specialists, and department chairs. Instructors: Keisha Hancock, Director of Teaching and Learning, Drew Charter School Natasha Jenkins-Jones, Lower School PBL Coordinator, Drew Charter School
Leadership and Mentoring Building Influence as a Teacher Leader May 31 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 In today’s educational world, it’s not enough to just be a teacher. If we want our students to be leaders, we need to be strong leaders. In this two-day workshop, you will discover ways to cultivate your leadership qualities, build influence in your school, and model leadership for your students. Gain immediate take-away resources for future learning and finish with a plan for your leadership during this upcoming school year. This year’s workshop includes some content from last year’s workshop, as well as some new content. Instructor: Peyten Williams, Middle School Director of Teaching and Learning, Westminster
Creating a Line of Sight to Being an Effective Leader June 3-5 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $485 The three-day workshop will explore the role of department chair, academic dean, associate principal, and principal through a variety of activities designed to explore each participant’s strengths, opportunities, and challenges in leadership, supervision, curriculum work, classroom observation, and visioning for excellent teaching. We will take and use StrengthsFinder 2.0, an inventory of personal strengths. The format will includeseminar-stylediscussionsaboutreadingsonselectedtopics,classroomobservation techniques, case studies on having difficult conversations, collaborative design work in small and large groups, and reflection on practice in the leadership role. Topics to be covered are: supervising teachers and providing essential resources and feedback, managing the schedule and details of the job, envisioning and leading a department or team,guidingtransformativeteaching,initiatingandplanningdynamiccurricularchange, cultivating teacher leadership within the department or team, and running effective meetings. Participants should be able to use information from this workshop to begin the development of a “strategic plan” for the year’s work. Instructors: Robert Ryshke, Executive Director, Center for Teaching, Westminster Thad Persons, Dean of Faculty, Westminster
Mentoring: Creating a Partnership Culture June 6 and 7 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Participants will learn about the principles of good mentoring and will design a mentoring curriculum. In addition, participants will work on providing and receiving instructional feedback based on the partnership principles put forth by Dr. Jim Knight’s Instructional Coaching Group, including reviewing best practices around using videotaping and student feedback to support growth. Administrators will leave with design ideas for establishing an effective mentoring program. Experienced faculty will gain knowledge, skills, and understanding of what it takes to mentor a teacher new to your school. In addition, participants will practice ways to help new teachers set and reach their goals. This workshop is appropriate for all faculty interested in or currently mentoring other teachers, as well as for school leaders seeking to design a mentoring program. Instructors: Brooke Hight, Lower School Director of Teaching and Learning, Westminster Thad Persons, Dean of Faculty, Westminster
Mathematics Your Brain on Math: It All Adds Up! June 5 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 How do students develop mathematical thinking? How can we support struggling math learners? This daylong session will help participants understand how students develop mathematical thinking, considerations for an environment that encourages math development, and state-of-the-art math teaching methods. Participants will learn specific strategiestohelpcreatemaththinkers,classroomtechniquestohelpstudentsreducemath anxiety, and research-based practices for creating a math culture in the classroom. Instructors: Dr. Tara Terry, Lower and Middle School Principal, The Howard School Tom Pittard, Math Resource Specialist, The Children’s School
Math Strategies in Your Classroom June 4 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 Translate Singapore Math’s concrete-to-pictorial-to-abstract instructional sequence into practical application for your classroom. Develop your students’ mental math skills with games and activities that include number bonds, part-whole relationships, branching, and compensation.Teachstudentsthevisualandconcretemodel-drawingapproachtosolving word problems. Create effective, engaging lessons with Anchor Tasks. Illustrate links to algebra as you teach to mastery. This workshop is appropriate for educators teaching grades K-5. Instructor: Jane Simpkins, STEAM Instructional Coach, Atlanta International School
Mindfulness Mindfulness & Music in the Classroom May 28-30 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $485 Experience how to integrate mindfulness and music into your classroom every day. Specificactivities,music,handouts,andinformativeresearchinterspersedwithexperiential moments will immerse you in awareness of the benefits of bringing attention to the presentmoment.Withthepracticeofmindfulness,studentsandteachersbecomemasters of emotional self-regulation, learn to respond rather than react, open themselves to compassion and gratitude, and free themselves from limiting beliefs. Candace Keach is a professional musician and meditation facilitator certified in mindfulness. She integrates mindfulness with music, creating a unique and “harmonious� classroom resource for teachers and students. Instructor: Candace Keach, performing arts faculty, musician, and mindfulness facilitator, Westminster
Neuroscience and Learning Diffusing F-Bombs (Fight, Flight, Freeze) with the Anxious Learner June 4 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 The rate of diagnosed anxiety disorders has skyrocketed in the past decade. Anxious children and teens are a new classroom reality. This session will help educators understand the biological, psychological, and social underpinnings of anxiety and how anxious children will exhibit fight, flight, and freeze behaviors at school. Teachers and school leadersinattendancewilllearnpractical,neuroscience-informedstrategiestohelpstudents manage anxiety more effectively. Topics will include differentiating “good” versus “bad” stress, emotional self-regulation as a key executive function, and how school culture and climate can have a macro-level impact on reducing student anxiety. Instructors: Tamara Hamilton, LCSW, administrator and school counselor, Cliff Valley School Dr. Scott Hamilton, licensed clinical psychologist, Assistant Head of School for Academics, The Howard School
Social Media, Technology, and Broadcasting Build & Grow Your School Broadcast Program: News, Sports, Events, and More June 5 and 6 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Work to create, build, implement, and deliver a student-run school broadcast program with online streaming. Build and grow the program as a club, an extracurricular, a standalone course, or integrated into an ongoing class. Participants of this workshop will learn: • Technology and equipment needs for a student broadcast station; • How to select, purchase, and use the equipment: cameras, audio, and editing software (Adobe Premiere, Final Cut and more); • Streaming platforms available for free or for a nominal fee; and • Curriculum ideas and plans for a broadcast journalism program. Participants will create their very own newscast and broadcast, edit, and upload a live event. Schools with an existing streaming platform will learn how to take the production to the next level with additional cameras, replay, and graphics. WCAT received the 2017 National Student Production EMMY Award for Live Sports Broadcast and was honored as the 2017 School Broadcast Program of the Year by the NFHS Network. Instructor: Daniel Searl, head of WCAT, Spanish faculty, Westminster
Social Media IRL (In Real Life): Firsthand Accounts from Students June 3 and 4 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 This class features firsthand accounts from students of varying ages discussing social media and its impact on their mental health, character, and relationships. Informed by these accounts and the instructor’s work as Middle School Dean of Students, participants will examine the latest research and trends regarding social media and technology. In particular, participants will examine the effect of social media and technology in regards tostudentperformance,integrity,characterdevelopment,andanxiety/depression.Finally, everyone will look at strategies, as well as build takeaways, that can be used in schools to instill healthy habits in students regarding social media, including ways in which social media can build character, empower students, and develop healthy relationships. Instructor: Heather Karvis, Middle School Dean of Students, Westminster
STEAM, Design, and Storytelling Design Thinking June 5 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 Design Thinking is a solution-based approach to solving problems that can be used in conjunction with STEAM, project-based learning (PBL), trans-disciplinary studies, service learning, or global studies. It emphasizes observing and developing empathy for the user, as well as promoting quick prototyping and iteration. Participants will learn the Design Thinking process and how it develops a child’s ability to innovate and to think creatively and critically. Instructor: Jane Simpkins, STEAM Instructional Coach, Atlanta International School
Harnessing Children’s Natural Inclination to Learn through Play and Storytelling May 29 and 30 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $395 Children are natural storytellers. Story Workshop uses play and the arts to help students overcome writer’s block, amplify expressive language, and improve sequencing. All teachers will share their collaborative journey using drama, painting, building, green screen technology, and stop-motion animation to build a community of young writers. Participants will experience the magic of this methodology firsthand and have the opportunity to develop concrete activities and ideas for their classroom. Instructors: Julia Myrick, Lower School visual art and Design Thinking faculty, Westminster Elizabeth Tozzer, Lower School visual art and Design Thinking faculty, Westminster
STEAM in Action June 6 | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. | $325 Why transform STEM into STEAM, and who is doing it? We will discuss ways of bridging K-12 programs with universities and industry as we strive to create tomorrow’s innovators. We will explore Atlanta to see STEAM in action and look for best practices on how to integrate art and design into STEM. This workshop is geared towards K-12 teachers, curriculum specialists, and department chairs. Instructors: Jane Simpkins, STEAM Instructional Coach, Atlanta International School Courtney Bryant, STEAM Coordinator, Charles R. Drew Charter School
Registration Details We can’t wait to welcome you to learn with a community of teachers and administrators at Summer Institute. Please register online by clicking the registration button below. Registration will end May 15, 2019. All payments must be made via check and received no later than May 20, 2019. After registering online, you will receive a confirmation email with further payment details. Please make your check payable to The Westminster Schools and mail your check to: Westminster Attn: Andrea Corley 1424 West Paces Ferry Road, NW Atlanta, Georgia 30327
Cancellation Policy Any cancellations made prior to May 15, 2019, will be fully refunded. Any cancellation on or after May 15 will be refunded minus a $150 cancellation fee. Any cancellation after May 24 will not receive a refund. In the event a workshop has low enrollment (less than five registrants), it may be subject to cancellation. Participants in a cancelled workshop will receive a full refund.
Contact Information Please contact Andrea Corley at andreacorley@westminster.net or 404-609-6271 with your questions.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER TODAY!