2011 Friday workshops

The Friday keynote and workshop sessions might fulfill specific state requirements for license renewal in positive behavioral interventions, accommodations and modifications, reading, mental illness, reflective practice, or technology; check with your district continuing education committee. Each workshop is worth two CEUs.

Friday keynote
8:45-9:45 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21

Coming Together for All Kids: Universal Design for Learning
Ballroom A

How can educators make a difference for all learners? Universal Design for Learning (UDL) offers educators, family and community members and advocates a research-based framework that benefits all learners and can be implemented by all educators. In this session, participants will learn about collaborative national, state and district efforts to promote and implement UDL with the goal of improving learning for all.
Presenter: Patti Ralabate, director, National Center on Universal Design for Learning
www.udlcenter.org

Friday Workshops
10 a.m.-noon

All workshop sessions run concurrently; choose one to attend.

Using Technology to Engage Your Students
Ballroom A

Add new technology tools to your teaching repertoire to engage your students and improve their learning. Designed to address the new Minnesota technology relicensure requirement, this session will challenge you to look at your curriculum and classroom practice in new ways, opening up exciting avenues for integrating technology.
Presenter: Joel Donna, lecturer, Learning Technologies, University of Minnesota

Making a Difference: Implementing Universal Design for Learning
Rooms 1-3
Every educator knows effective planning makes it easier for students to learn. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) offers educators the opportunity to proactively plan for the learner variability in their classrooms. In this session, participants will learn strategies for implementing UDL, including how to access free tools and resources that support the learning of all students.
Presenter: Patti Ralabate, director, National Center on Universal Design for Learning
www.udlcenter.org

Theater and Literacy: Bringing Reading Comprehension to Life
Rooms 4-6

SteppingStone Theatre will provide you with essential tools and resources from the theater for bringing literacy to life in all classrooms. We will explore tableau, character interviewing, story drama, and more in this interactive workshop. Discover how to enhance reading comprehension skills through the arts with practical, easy-to-implement strategies.
Presenter: Maggie Smith, education director, SteppingStone Theater; Kristi Johnson, incoming education director
www.steppingstonetheatre.org

Children’s Mental Health: The Basics for K-12 Personnel
Rooms 7-9

Child and adolescent mental health needs often reveal themselves first in the classroom to educators who are already overburdened with other responsibilities. This session highlights contemporary mental health issues prevalent in our schools, reviews basic diagnostic categories and provides simple tips for understanding and responding to many of these challenges. This workshop meets licensure requirements for continuing education units in understanding the key warning signs of early-onset mental illness in students.
Presenter: Dr. Walter Roberts, professor of counselor education, Minnesota State University, Mankato

October 17, 2011