ILASCD Pre-K and Kindergarten Conference 2023

Marilyn Blank

Kathy Brown Kathleen Conn Ruth Cormier

Judy Kmak

Tammy

Katherine Stengele Conference Coordinator

Bill Dodds Associate Director

Ryan Nevius Executive Director

Conference Schedule

Wednesday, March 1, 2023

5:30 - 9:30 p.m. Registration

6:00 - 8:00 p.m. Kickoff Party

Thursday, March 2, 2023

7:00 - 9:30 a.m. Registration

8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Session A

9:15 - 10:30 a.m. (KEYNOTE)

10:45 - 11:45 a.m. Session C

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Session D

1:30 - 2:30 p.m. Session E

3:00 - 4:00 p.m. Session F

5:00 - 6:30 p.m. Happy Hour

Friday, March 3, 2023

7:00 - 9:30 a.m. Registration

8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Session I

9:15 - 10:30 a.m. (KEYNOTE)

10:45 - 11:45 a.m. Session K

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. Session L

1:30 - 2:30 p.m Session M

WEDNESDAY EVENING

6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

V is for Voracious! Vocabulary Kickoff Party with Christina DeCarbo Wagers

THURSDAY EVENING

5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Teacher Happy Hour!

7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Free Concert! Koo Koo Kanga Roo

THURSDAY MORNING

KEYNOTE

9:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

The Educator’s ATLAS: Your Roadmap to Engagement with Weston Kieschnick FRIDAY MORNING

KEYNOTE

9:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Understand Where Your Students are Coming From! with Tommie Mabry

EXHIBIT HOURS

Thursday - 7:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Friday - 7:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

BREAKFAST

7:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. each morning in the back of the Expo Hall

LUNCH

Lunch stations run from 10:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

You may use Yummy Coupons at any food line or restaurant in the hotel. Watch for onsite instructions for exact locations and times.

Sessions

• All sessions will be 60 minutes in length.

• There will be breaks throughout the day for visiting the EXPO display floor.

• If you want to eat lunch, you need to eat during a break or leave a session open.

• Continental Breakfast Thursday & Friday until 9:30 a.m.

Session Target Audience

Administrators Attend Free

As a Pre-K, Kindergarten, or 1st Grade Teacher, bring along your school administrator as part of the team (four or more teachers) and he/she can attend FREE on the days the team attends. All registration forms must be submitted at the same time!

Graduate Credit

Yummy Coupons

Illinois ASCD is providing $15.00 discount lunch coupons! Yummy Coupons may be used all day at any of the food stations set up in the hallways, Exhibit Hall Food Court, the Rendezvous Café (second floor), the Gather Bar/Lounge, or Schaumburg Public House. The coupons cannot be used for gratuities.

1. Lunch will be available to all attendees from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

2. Yummy Coupons can only be used on the day printed on the coupon. Blue coupons will be accepted on Thursday and green coupons on Friday.

3. The food stations in the halls or east of the Schaumburg Ballrooms do not accept credit cards.

4. No cash refunds are available for unspent portions of Yummy Coupons.

5. Consider taking a session off to enjoy lunch.

Exhibition Hall

Plan to visit The Exploration Hall from 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Thursday and from 7:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Friday.

Get 1 hour of graduate credit for your attendance at the 2023 Conference through St. Francis University. A representative will be located in the hallway near Schaumburg East/West. Email Gina Korczak at GKorczak@ stfrancis.edu for more information.

Ticket Swap

If you are interested in exchanging your ticketed sessions for other sessions that may be available, check with the Ticket Swap at the conference registration table.

Handouts

Handouts will be available through the URL provided after registration closes in February.

Wireless Access

Bring your mobile devices! Free WiFi will be available in all meeting rooms, ballrooms, and the exhibition floor. Please note that there is a charge for WiFi use in the individual hotel sleeping rooms.

Tote Bags

We greatly appreciate Kaplan Early Learning Company for providing the conference tote bags. Please visit their exhibit booths 201 & 300.

Professional Development Hours

Earn 11 PD hours over the days of the conference. 2 additional hours can be earned at Wednesday evening’s event with Christina DeCarbo Wagers. 1.5 Hours may be earned at the Thursday Happy Hour. By attending all sessions you may acquire 14.5 PD hours.

In order to receive credit for Professional Development Hours, you will need to:

1. Sign in each morning by clicking the link in your welcome (sent each morning!) or scanning the QR code signs placed around the conference center

Attend Virtually!

2. Complete the Evaluation in your email for each day. You will receive a link to your email at the end each day.

3. Download your Evidence of completion at the end of the day.

4. Enter the earned hours into ELIS. Come to the show office in Schaumburg E with all PD questions..

T-Shirts

All in-person participants will receive a free conference T-shirt. Shirts have been ordered through the Wright Stuff Chics. Visit them at booth 206.

Featured Presenters

KIM ADSIT

Kim is a 2002 Teacher of the Year and has taught kindergarten for 30 years.

For nearly 20 years she has traveled to share her ideas and strategies with other teachers. Focusing on developing curriculum and strategies that incorporate child-centered activities, she emphasizes the fun of kindergarten by tapping into the curiosity of young children that plants the seed for lifelong learning. Kim has been selected as an Expert Teacher, and she served as a teacher mentor. She has a Specialist Degree in Early Childhood Education as well as an At-Risk Endorsement. Kim has authored many teacher resources that are available on the: TeacherPayTeachers website.

MARY AMOSON

Mary has enjoyed 17 years in the kindergarten classroom, where she enthusiastically uses technology and handson activities to engage her little learners. She loves sharing the ideas, activities, and tools that have worked with her own kindergartners to help teachers like YOU. She is committed to instilling passion in teachers because she believes that passion is truly the secret to increasing learning and achievement. You can connect with Mary at Sharing Kindergarten or on social media at Sharing Kindergarten on Facebook.

KERI BROWN

Keri is a kindergarten teacher in central Alabama and has been teaching over 14 years! She loves traveling, decorating her classroom, meeting other teachers and creating engaging resources for her students. She is obsessed with all things technology and loves teaching her kinders how to use it. Reading picture books, crafting in the classroom and enjoying being a classroom family are a few of her favorites.

CHRISTINA DECARBO-WAGERS

Christina (Miss DeCarbo) is a literacy coach, national presenter, and curriculum author from Northeast, Ohio. After teaching for over ten years, she currently works as her district’s PreK-5 literacy coach. Her research-based sessions are packed with engaging lessons and creative tools to help students reach their greatest potential as readers, writers, and problem-solvers. Christina is the curriculum author of best-selling literacy intervention materials, and loves collaborating with educators on Instagram @missdecarbo. As a mom of two, she enjoys spending time with family when she is not at school. You can learn more about Christina on her website at www.missdecarbo.com.

Featured Presenters

AMANY ELGENDY

Amany Elgendy is a kindergarten teacher in South West Florida, where she has been teaching for 7 years. She loves to utilize picture books in her classroom to ensure all of her students feel seen. In her roles, she advocates for students to be represented and heard; both inside and outside of the classroom. Amany is part of her local union, and participates heavily in her county, as she continues to amplify teacher voices and teacher rights. Amany is a frequently invited speaker at conferences to provide the unique perspective of being a Muslim teacher in public schools. Find her on Instagram @misselgendy.

MATT HALPERIN

Matt Halpern is a joyful educator who draws on almost two decades of experience as a classroom teacher and coach. He is passionate about making classrooms childcentered and putting the effort and work of students at the forefront. His love for teaching social-emotional skills and literacy often combines as he is always looking for new ways to help others become the best versions of themselves. Recently, Matt started his own educational consulting, presenting, and writing business. You can find more information about Matt at www. MattHalpernEducation.com

KIM JORDANO

Kim has incorporated over 30 years of teaching experience into her kindergarten classroom. A teacher in the Los Alamitos School District in California, Kimberly holds a master’s degree in English as a Second Language (ESL). Kimberly is a national teacher presenter and you can find her posts on both Instagram, and her Facebook pages Kinderbykim. You can find all of her creative teacher resource materials on Teacherspayteachers.com/kinderbykim Kimberly’s goal is to keep the joy in kindergarten while teaching the standards in a meaningful child-centered way!

WESTON KIESCHNICK

Weston Kieschnick is an award-winning educator, best-selling author, TEDx speaker, coach, husband, and father. He is the author of The Educator’s ATLAS, Bold School, Breaking Bold, co-author of The Learning Transformation: A Guide to Blended Learning for Administrators and the creator and host of the podcast Teaching Keating. Weston has worked in collaboration with innovative tech and publishing companies (Google, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Apple) to redefine teaching and learning in the digital age. As such, he’s

Featured Presenters

advised educators from every state in the US and more than 30 countries around the world. Districts where Mr. Kieschnick has designed content, implemented initiatives, and trained educational leaders have been recognized by the Learning Counsel as being among the top ten in the nation for their work in blended learning. You can find Weston’s work published in EdWeek, EdTech Magazine, The Spark, and featured on TED, the 10-Minute Teacher, Teaching Tales, Kids Deserve It, and LeadUp Teach.

JACKIE KOPS

Jackie is an enthusiastic preschool teacher with over fourteen years of classroom teaching experience in both fullday and half-day settings. She is from Missouri where she earned a Masters and Bachelors in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Maryville University. Her goal is to help you unleash your teaching superpowers! Jackie’s passion is to inspire you with play-based activities, themed centers, and supports that nurture and challenge little learners in a caring classroom community. In addition to teaching, she is the teacher-author and CEO behind Pocket of Preschool and loves to share her passion with other educators.

MARY PAT LAROCCA & CELINE HILL

Mary Pat and Celine have taught kindergarten for a combined total of more than 60 years. They work together on the kindergarten team in La Grange South School District #105. Mary Pat and Celine gave a presentation on “Teacher Agency” in 2018 at the national Learning Forward Conference in Orlando, FL. They are ardent advocates for developmentally appropriate practices for kindergartners and passionate about their profession. They continually adapt to the everchanging needs of today’s kindergartners even including meeting the needs of these young learners virtually. Mary Pat has presented at this conference for over 30 years.

JENNIFER LAROCQUE

Jennifer is a 12th year kindergarten teacher at LaGrange School District 102 and a national speaker. She is passionate about including diverse books in her classroom and providing a multicultural curriculum in her classroom. She started the social media movement #allarewelcomeinmyclassroom on June 20th, 2018. She is a presenter with Get Your Teach On and was honored to present the ISTE conference. She has spoken across the country about implementing culturally responsive teaching. You can follow her on Instagram @themulticulturalclassroom.

Featured Presenters

TOMMIE MABRY

Dr. Tommie Mabry grew up in poverty in Jackson, Mississippi. With no one to serve as a model for mainstream success, Tommie turned to life in the streets. He was expelled from numerous schools and by age 11, he was serving time for burglary. Things started to change for Tommie when he joined an AAU basketball team that traveled around the world. Although he was shot in the foot during his senior year, he received a full basketball scholarship to Missouri State University. After completing his undergraduate studies at Tougaloo College, he taught school in the same district where he had been expelled numerous times. Subsequently he has served as Director of Enrollment at Tougaloo College before founding the company that bears his name. He earned his Ph.D. from Jackson State University and has published two books, A Dark Journey to a Light Future and If Tommie Can Do It, We Can Do It.

MARSHA MCGUIRE

Marsha McGuire is a kindergarten teacher in Cadillac, Michigan where she has accumulated over 15 years of teaching in early childhood classrooms. Her undergraduate degree was completed at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and her graduate degree in Early Childhood Education with a focus on Differentiated Instruction at Grand Valley State University. Marsha is also the author and creator behind the blog, A Differentiated Kindergarten where she shares ideas, activities and products. Her blog has become an avenue to aide other instructors in developing practical, developmentally appropriate and differentiated instructional strategies in their own classroom.

KATIE MENSE

Katie has taught kindergarten for more than 14 years and has a passion for creating fun, hands-on lessons and to meet the needs of all students. As a student who struggled through school, she truly understands that every student has different needs and learning styles. Katie has an MA in Education and also earned an additional 24 hours through a STEM grant. She loves to share her ideas and teaching experiences on her award-winning blog, littlekinderwarriors.com or on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram .

Featured Presenters

CANDACE NEIL

Candace Neil is a passionate early elementary educator who has taught Kindergarten for seven years. She has also gained experience working at the third grade level. She holds a master’s degree in Educational Administration & Leadership. Ms. Neil excels at finding ways to make education fun and exciting for all learners and she has a deep passion for educating and inspiring underserved students and their families. She is a strong communicator and is invested in student success and collaboration with all stakeholders impacting the lives of her students. This internal value has been the inspiration for her goal to open an early learning center.

OLIVIA ODILEKE

Olivia Odileke loves making Ed Tech and teaching easier for teachers. For over 15 years she worked as an educator at Title 1 schools in Florida. She served as a national PBLTeacher Trainer for the online school Stride and has personally trained over 7500 teachers and continues to seek ways to innovate education. Olivia is a Certified Trainer for Nearpod and an HMH Instructional Coach, and has written over 30 published lessons for Cpalms.org, Nearpod, and Pearson and is the author of the Beginner’s Guide to Nearpod. Combining an M.Ed. in Instructional Technology and all

of her experience has led her to become an expert in best instructional practices and the tech tools educators can use to drive student learning and curiosity.

ADAM PETERSON

Adam Peterson is an educator, speaker, author, and vlogger most known for his YouTube channel, Teachers Learn Too. A kindergarten teacher with over 13 years in the classroom, Adam now dedicates his time to helping teachers create meaningful and engaging experiences for their students! He’s on a mission to make classrooms as fun as possible to ensure every day is the best day ever in school!

www.adampetersoneducation.com Adam Peterson Education on YouTube

GREG SMEDLEYWARREN

Greg has been teaching for 15 years. He spent a year teaching fifth grade, two years with second grade, and is now in his 11th year with Kindergarten, which he’s determined is his calling and passion. He received his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and ELL certification from David Lipscomb University. In 2015 he was selected as Teacher Of The Year. When not in the classroom, Greg enjoys blogging and doing all things teaching. His husband (known as The Mister online) is a large part of his blog, social media, and their

Featured Presenters

conference, ELEVATE. They recently added a daughter Adelynn to their family and complete the fam with their dog, Butters. thekindergartensmorgasboard.com

HILARY STATUM

Hilary Statum is a kindergarten teacher in Middle Tennessee with 15 years of experience at the school she attended as a child. She is the author of Pencils to Pigtails, a popular blog for parents and teachers. Her first published book entitled Solar System for Kids was released on May 26th, 2020. Hilary is also a Featured Presenter at regional and national educational events held around the country. She holds a master’s degree in Instructional Leadership and enjoys coordinating and teaching her school district’s, free, parent English class. Her favorite days are spent with her two young girls and baby boy, husband, parents, siblings, and the rest of her very large extended family. You can connect with Hilary on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.

CAROLE STEPHENS

Dubbed “the Pied Piper of children’s music,” “Miss Carole” Stephens is a nationally renowned music specialist. Her cross-curricular music and guidance techniques instantly invite all audiences from the

youngest child to the oldest adult to join in singing, dancing and rhythmic movement.

Miss Carole has been teaching music for children 1 - 6 years old since 1989. Through her company, Macaroni Soup!, she travels across the US presenting concerts for children and families, and workshops for teachers, librarians and parents. Her seven award-winning CD’s are treasured for their usefulness, appropriateness and simplicity.

Click for more info.

DEEDEE WILLS

Deedee began her teaching career in San Diego where she taught at a school with 96% second language learners. After several years of teaching second grade, she became her district’s literacy coach. She helped to train and implement balanced literacy to the K – 2 staff, but found she missed the classroom and returned to teach Kindergarten. She runs the popular blog www.mrswillskindergarten.com

Evening Events

Wednesday, March 1st. 6:00pm-8:00pm

V is for Voracious! Vocabulary

Kickoff

Party with Christina Decarbo Wagers

You’re invited to a vocabulary party! In this engaging, hands on session, Christina teaches you how to cultivate a classroom of students who love words! We’ll learn about best practices for vocabulary instruction, and discover the importance of oral language, direct and indirect instruction, morphology, context, word play, and more! You’ll walk away with a bag of party favors that includes lessons, activities, games, and strategies that will turn your students into voracious vocabulary experts! (Please bring a box of crayons to the party!)

Thursday, March 2 5:00pm-6:30pm

TEACHER HAPPY HOUR

In the unexpected, rapidly changing, and often frustrating atmosphere, teachers are experiencing more stress and pressure than ever! Join us for a parking lot discussion about School Culture, Climate, and Morale. How can we help ourselves and our co workers?

Registration includes snacks and one drink ticket.

Limited to 50 people, so reserve (page 70) your space/ticket as part of your registration! $30/$10 students

FOYER OUTSIDE ADVENTURE HALL CASH BAR

Thursday,

March

2nd

- SESSION

A01 Assess But Don’t Stress

UTOPIA A

P • K • 1

Mary Amoson

Does assessment and data collection drive you crazy? It won’t after you apply Mary’s tips and tricks for making it quick and fun. Explore how to organize your assessments without the stress while discovering engaging, interactive, and child approved ideas for using data to drive your instruction.

A02 Tackling Tricky Behavior Problems with Empathy and Kindness UTOPIA B

P • K • 1 Matt Halpern

Even with the best relationships and classroom management, ‘tricky’ behavior problems will arise. Join Matt as he walks you through scenarios and strategies to help children when they are experiencing challenging behaviors. Matt will guide you through steps to analyze and help children with empathy and kindness. You will leave with many ideas in hand to help you feel ready to tackle obstacles as they arise.

A: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

A03 Planning +

Tech = Gold

UTOPIA C K (Repeats L03)

Keri Brown

Are you tired of glancing at your teacher’s edition or running out of time for activities you have already planned? Let me teach you how to integrate tech with your planning and turn it into GOLD! My planning method uses all of your “need to do” components and makes them work flawlessly. You won’t miss any of your planned activities from start to finish throughout your day.

A04 Science of Reading 101

UTOPIA D

K • 1 (Repeats L05) Hilary

Statum

Are you overwhelmed when it comes to the Science of Reading? Hilary is in the trenches with you and will share about her classroom experience implementing Science of Reading strategies. You will gather engaging strategies to transform your small group instruction while learning what you are already doing that works! Discover low prep differentiated activities to keep children working independently while you meet with each group of students. Learn how to use supplies you already have on hand to surprise your students and get them excited to work on essential phonics, phonemic awareness, and spelling skills. Return to the classroom with helpful freebies, new activities, and confidence in your ability to rock the Science of Reading!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION A: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

A05 Getting in the Game!

EUPHORIA

P • K • 1 (Repeats K05)

Marsha McGuire

Students love game play. Whether it’s a game for your whole classroom or for a small group, you will love these games that keep your students engaged and excited to practice essential skills! Get ready to have some fun and gather great ideas for games to make and play in your classroom.

A06 Expedition: Engagement!

NIRVANA A

P • K • 1

Adam Peterson

Get your kids hooked into learning on day one and keep them hooked until the end! Adam shares his tried and true ways for creating the most engaging and exciting learning spaces for early learners. From games and activities, to thematic units that flip learning on its head, you’re sure to leave with ideas you can put into action right away in your own classroom. Addressing early learning standards has never been more fun!

A07 Math Centers that Matter

NIRVANA B

P • K • 1

Kim Adsit

In this session you will learn how to organize and run math centers that will turn your children into mathematicians

in no time! Kim will share her ideas for organizing math centers to ensure that math standards are taught and maintained throughout the year. She will share activities, games, and journal ideas that she uses in the different centers. Kim will also show you how math centers enable you to work with small groups and provide enrichment and tutorial activities for all learners!

A08 Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Fun Dollar Store Style!

NIRVANA C

P • K • 1 (Repeats M07) Kim Jordano

Learn how to take your Dollar Store finds and turn them into engaging Phonemic Awareness, Phonics and Sight Word activities that will keep your children captivated while learning in a hands on child centered way.

A09 Centers 101 CONNECTION K

Katie Mense

There are many ways to organize and manage your center times. Katie identifies the most effective. Discover lots of tricks and tips to keep your center time running smoothly. Experience the best kinds of activities to use in your centers and simple ways to differentiate them.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION

A10 Engage & Transform Your Teaching Experience with Nearpod IMAGINATION K

Olivia Odileke

Are you using or really want to use Nearpod more for your lessons? Are you tired of spending hours trying to plan engaging lessons? Come experience a Nearpod lesson designed for early learners. Learn how to quickly edit and adjust preexisting lessons so that you spend less time preparing and more time teaching.

A11 Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, and FUN! INNOVATION

K • 1

Christina DeCarbo-Wagers

In this jam-packed session, Christina shares her favorite phonemic awareness and phonics activities for your small group reading lessons and whole-group instruction. Learn how to use valuable assessments to identify what students know and need so that you can teach with intention. Discover researchaligned activities that will help students become skilled and confident decoders. Leave with tons of tried-and-true ideas, strategies, and tips that you can implement right away. You and your students will love these handson, multisensory activities for phonemic awareness and phonics!

A: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

A12 Transitioning to Inclusive Kindergarten KNOWLEDGE

P • K • A (Repeats K18)

Ann Kremer

Emily Ropars

Transitioning from inclusive pre-k to inclusive kindergarten is key for positive outcomes for children with disabilities and is most successful with planning. Teachers, administrators, and families can collaborate to bring the best of pre-k forward. We will review key strategies, resources and tools to plan for implementation within your program.

A13 Prepare The Others EPIPHANY

P • K • 1

Candace Neil

Self-care has become a major buzzword these days. What does it look like and how can it be realistic for you? Come discuss the importance of utilizing your sick and personal time effectively! Learn how to maximize strategies to help fill your own cup that you so generously use to pour into others! Let go of guilt and come learn more about the importance of having a healthy you so you can be the best version of yourself for your students and those around you.

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Kindergarten

A14 Early Childhood Trauma is Not Forgotten PROSPERITY

P • K • 1 • A

Josh Carlson

We hear it all the time: “They were so young! They don’t remember that! “ What we know however, is that trauma can impact every person, from the developing fetus, the newborn, the infant, the toddler and the child, all the way up to the adult. When we understand how trauma impacts the developing child, we can begin to decipher some of the most challenging behaviors educators face in the classroom and support the healing process. This presentation will provide you with fundamental knowledge of trauma and the complex ways it shows up in children’s behaviors in the classrooms.

A15 Intentional Use of Loose Parts to Promote Critical Thinking SERENITY

P • K • 1

Debra Honegger

Amanda Groves

The educational philosophy of loose parts is one that promotes inquiry- of allowing students the freedom to explore, collaborate, and discover theories and absolutes for themselves - so that the learning will stick. Explore multiple ways to use loose parts to encourage more complex play and move learning forward.

A: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

A16 Happy Baby! Breaking Down Poses through a Developmental Lens

SCHAUMBURG A/B

P • K • 1

Erin Bracco

Happy baby, child’s pose; even the name of these poses indicate yoga being innate to young humans. Movement is a powerful tool at all stages of life. In John Medina’s research on “Brain Rules,” we learn that exercise boosts brain power and we are powerful + natural explorers. In this session, we will break down traditional yoga poses specifically for babies and toddlers. Participants will learn benefits, cues, possible variations, and ways to encourage engagement in the pose.

A17 Leave Your Biases at the Door

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K • 1 • A

Kathleen Briseno Antonia Hill

If poverty continues to predict performance, we will never turn the corner on educating children to the fullest extent possible! Be part of an open dialogue about the ABC’s (Achievement, Biases, and Color) of teaching students of poverty.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION

A18 EXLORE. PLAY. LEARN! SCHAUMBURG D P • K • 1 • A

Lana Briggs Eduardo Pérez

You will be presented with research based definitions of what play based instruction can look like, the different misconceptions about it, and practical applications of play based learning in your classroom. The presentation will be conducive to enhancing your previous knowledge and welcoming for those who are new to this approach. Come and let your imagination explore different ways in which your lessons can come to life through play.

A19 Ensuring Continuous Improvement Through an Early Childhood Framework and Strategic Plan SCHAUMBURG F

P • A

Sara Latimer

Sarah Kuhlemeier

Learn the collaborative process of writing an Early Childhood Framework and strategic plan for a transformed Early Childhood Program.

This presentation will answer Why is a framework needed? What is the process of writing the early childhood framework including collaboration steps? Who are the stakeholders and how are they included and informed? What are the next steps to the plan to ensure and create transparency?

A: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

A20 All You Need-Kindergarten Counting & Cardinality

SCHAUMBURG G P • K • 1

(Repeats C08, I08, K08)

Mary Pat Larocca

Celine Hill

Counting and Cardinality standards are unique and critical for kindergartners for setting a strong math foundation to build on for years to come. For each kindergarten Counting & Cardinality CCSS, we will share with you our favorite proven strategies and tools for teaching these standards. We will also share with you our favorite centers, how we assess each of these, and the tips we send home to parents on how they can help their child with these counting and cardinality standards.

A21 The Scoop on Soil: Lessons, Activities, and Books to Get Students’ Hands Dirty SCHAUMBURG H P • K • 1

Kevin Daugherty

Introduce young learners to the super, special, and stunning soil underfoot. This fun, interactive presentation will provide background information on the wonders of soil, and include engaging books and exciting soil-based lessons and activities to help get your students’ hands dirty!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION B: 9:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Weston Kieschnick

The Educator’s

ATLAS: Your Roadmap to Engagement

Based on the critically acclaimed book, The Educator’s ATLAS offers a groundbreaking roadmap for capturing student engagement in the first moments of class, and sustaining it all the way to the last. In keeping with Weston Kieschnick’s mission and vision for education, ATLAS holds both learner needs and teacher wisdom in equal importance. Central to this is alignment and clarification of student engagement that—once and for all—offers teachers an actionable role. Educators will leave this session joyfully inspired, motivated, and with a plan in hand for cultivating curiosity, creating participatory classrooms, and nurturing a desire to persevere in all students. And as is always the case with Kieschnick’s keynotes, participants will laugh and have a lot of fun along the way.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C01 Phonics Phun UTOPIA A K • 1 (Repeats K01) Mary Amoson

Take advantage of researchsupported ideas for developing an awareness of sounds and words in our language, including the Science of Reading approach using A Fresh Look at Phonics. Learn how to meet the phonemic needs of your learners through movement, sensory activities, exciting technology and interactive FUN. Plus, gather kinder-approved games to support and extend your phonics lessons. (This session is a hands on make and take.)

C02 Teaching with Games: Learn to Play & Play to Learn UTOPIA B K • 1 (Repeats L02) Matt Halpern

What kindergartner doesn’t like to play games? Teachers love them, too—they’re fun tools for both academic and social learning. Matt demonstrates simple games to engage your students, reinforce concepts, develop problem-solving skills, build a growth mindset, and—best of all—make kids WANT to learn.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C03 The Science Box

UTOPIA C

K

•

1 (Repeats M23) Adam Peterson

Kim Adsit

C05

Fabulous Fine Motor Fun!

EUPHORIA P • K • 1 Marsha McGuire

So much to do and so little time for fine-motor activities? Come gather a bundle of ideas and activities that will have you building those oh-so-essential fine-motor muscles while addressing curriculum standards and objectives. Marsha demonstrates how to create fun and engaging activities to keep your students’ fingers working while they learn new math and literacy skills.

C04 Not Your Mother’s Reading - Science of Reading Instruction

UTOPIA D

K • 1 Deedee Willis

(Double Session - 2 hours) What if we have been teaching students how to read all wrong? What if we could move students away from intervention and instead focus our instruction for prevention? Join Deedee as she walks you through aspects of the science of reading and offers ideas for instructional modifications.

Ready to pump up your science time? Kim and Adam will share how a simple box is a game changer! They will share how to set the stage for an interactive science time in their weekly schedule that will support your literacy standards! They will also share some of their simple science experiments that will develop kids that “think” like scientists. Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten

Join us at the conference!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C07 Step “Write” Up to Kindergarten Writing!

NIRVANA B

P • K

Kim Jordano

Are you struggling with how to get your kinder’s writing without feeling overwhelmed? Kimberly will show you how to start with a scaffolded approach to writing which will make all children feel comfortable and successful. Kim will share simple tips on how to get your children to share thier thinking in preparation to kick start their writing. Lots of tried and true activities will be shared!

C08 All You Need-Kindergarten

Counting & Cardinality

NIRVANA C

P • K • 1 (Repeats A20, I08, K08))

Mary Pat Larocca Celine Hill

Counting and Cardinality standards are unique and critical for kindergartners for setting a strong math foundation to build on for years to come. For each kindergarten Counting & Cardinality CCSS, we will share with you our favorite proven strategies and tools for teaching these standards. We will also share with you our favorite centers, how we assess each of these, and the tips we send home to parents on how they can help their child with these counting and cardinality standards.

C09 Understanding Selective Mutism CONNECTION

P • K • 1 • A

Kathy Slattery

Selective Mutism is a confusing childhood anxiety disorder where children can speak at home and places they are comfortable, but often struggle to speak at school or in other group settings. Attend this session to learn more about this condition, which can be overcome, and leave with strategies and resources to support your student who has Selective Mutism.

C10 Working Together: Helping Families Understand Preschool Special Education Assessment and Eligibility IMAGINATION

P • A (Repeats I10)

Natalie Danner

Emily Dorsey

For parents, the journey from suspecting their child’s developmental delay to receiving special education services can be overwhelming and confusing. Illinois Early Learning (IEL) has tip sheets to guide families through this process. This session will explore ways that teachers can support families in understanding assessment and eligibility.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C11 Engaging Small Groups with Every Day Objects INNOVATION

P • K • 1 Vanessa Woof Jamie

Kanas

This session will give teachers ideas as to how they can implement every day objects into their Math and ELA small groups and bring student engagement to another level!

C12 A Closer Look: Joyful Action Research for Equity and Assessment KNOWLEDGE

P • K • 1 • A

Heather Duncan

How can teachers ensure they’re meeting students’ needs while also centering antiracism and equity? This session explores a method of both improving student assessment and evaluating the equity lens you should be using in your everyday teaching practices. Participants will get a curated overview of how to use an Equity Framework, learn steps to complete simple action research on their assessment practices with the Framework in mind, and engage in a Q & A with the presenter. This session first provides a catalyst for teachers to examine their own biases and remove barriers to their connections with students from varied backgrounds and belief systems. It then details steps to take to interrogate, analyze and improve student assessment practices viewed through an equity lens.

C13 Talkin’ About Trauma EPIPHANY

P • K • 1 • A Ashley

Comptom

All school staff will learn traumainformed interventions and ways to teach children how to use coping strategies that are designed to meet the complex needs of all children. Participants will walk away understanding the empowering principles to address physical needs and tips and tricks for connecting with our students. Staff will learns ways of correcting students that will disarm fear-based behaviors. Talkin’ About Trauma will leave teachers with a toolbox full of ways to connect, correct, and empower students within the classroom no matter their walk in life.

C14 Effective Volunteer Strategies- It’s Not Just Busy Work!

PROSPERITY

K • 1 • A (Repeats I11)

Shannon Hamm Tracy Anderson

This session will guide teachers and administrators in attracting and utilizing classroom volunteers in ways that will help improve and impact student performance while also providing them with 1:1 or small group adult attention.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C15 Navigating ABA in Classrooms

SERENITY

P • K • 1 • A

Sumita

Argianas

Applied Behavior Analyses

implement principles widely used for inhome/in-clinic therapy. These principles can be used in other settings to promote generalization. With an understanding of basic ABA principles, this can be helpful in the classroom, helping those students in need; while also providing support, tools and resources to teachers.

C16 Make + Move: A Yoga & Art Experience for Educators and Staff

SCHAUMBURG A/B

P • K • 1 • A

Erin Bracco

Caroline Tye

What is the condition of YOUR nervous system when you interact with children? Join Erin Bracco and Caroline Tye in an exploration of making and moving mindfully. This art making experience will provide staff with a moment to reflect while tapping into their own creativity to promote well-being. Staff will be guided through a mindful movement practice including traditional yoga sequences, empowering poses, accessible breathwork, and a sound experience suitable for all levels. Participants are encouraged to bring their own yoga mats and dress comfortably; however, some mats can be provided.

C17 Empowering Little Writers

SCHAUMBURG C K • 1

Sarah Howe

This session will focus on the implementation and essential components of kindergarten Writer’s Workshop. Ideas on how to maximize your writing instruction through the use of mini-lessons, morning messages, mentor texts, genre studies and much more will be shared. You will leave this session with instructional, organization and management strategies to help your young writers grow.

C18 Finding Success in Teaching Literacy Skills to Preschool Children

SCHAUMBURG D

P • K • 1 • A

Brenda Vishanoff Jen Billmeyer Monique Wodzinski

Come explore with us how we created and used a literacy rubric to strategically teach children early literacy skills in small group and read aloud settings. This literacy rubric, created by our program coaches, adapted from the American Reading Company “Read to Me” level, provides options for differentiation in the classroom. During the 21-22 school year, we increased the percentage of P5 children at Kinder readiness levels from 19% to 80%. We will share our journey of lessons learned along the way.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION C: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

C19 Connecting the Dots—Domino Math Games For Pre K - 1st. SCHAUMBURG F

P • K • 1

Lori Triplet

Come prepared to play games that incorporate the use of double-six dominoes, a student favorite. This manipulative is easy to incorporate into both whole class instruction or in differentiated centers. Concepts covered will include: subitizing, counting, numeration, early addition, place value, graphing and more. Handout will contain gameboards, ready for use first thing Monday.

C20 Brown Bear and Other Engaging Ways to Enrich Preschool Learning at Home SCHAUMBURG H

P • K Bev Schumacher

Embrace and empower families to supporting learning at home. Hands-on materials can invite and support families to nurture learning. Inviting home learning activities can be done on a LIMITED budget. Come explore learning prompts made from repurposed materials as well as low-cost interventions to welcome PARENTS to be learning PARTNERS!

C21 Less Is More SCHAUMBURG G P

• K Rebecca Rael

Looking for a way to get more assessment documentation without “skilling and drilling” your students? This session will give you a practical activity idea paired with several assessment standards. These engaging, fun, and standards-based activities can be used for circle time, small group, and large group.

Click HERE to register only for the VIRTUAL CONFERENCE option. Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

Thursday, March 2nd -

SESSION

D01 Building Builders and Engineers in the Blocks Center UTOPIA A P • K

Jackie Kops

Make the blocks center a place where little builders and engineers are engaged, working together, and learning through play. In this session, learn how to be intentional when setting up the environment, how to integrate various themes into the blocks center, and how to let students take the lead in their learning. Jackie teaches you new ways to seamlessly integrate STEM and literacy experiences throughout the center using photographs, books, and props that you can implement tomorrow!

D02 Diversity in Picture Books

UTOPIA B P • K • 1 Amany Elgendy

Picture books are always a strong tool to use within the classroom, but which diverse books exist out there to read with your students? In this session, Amany will share ideas and examples to utilize diverse picture books within each of your classrooms. At the end of our session, you will also receive resources Amany designed to take back and use in your own classrooms.

D: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

D03 Getting Digital with Seesaw and Boom UTOPIA C P • K

Keri Brown

Ready to dive into the world of tech with your students? I’ll teach you how to get started, integrate and master Seesaw and Boom Learning into your normal daily routine. With these quick tips and doable tips, you’ll know all the ins and outs of each platform in time for the new school year!

D04 Not Your Mother’s Reading - Science of Reading Instruction UTOPIA D K • 1

Deedee Wills

Double Session - See C04

D05

Sound Wall Secrets

EUPHORIA K • 1 (Repeats M05)

Hillary Statum

Are you ready to make the switch from Word Walls to Sound Walls but not sure where to begin? Hilary will share the research behind the importance of using Sound Walls in your classroom. See how she sets hers up and how she adds to it throughout the year. Leave with freebies that are full of best practice tips and everything you need to know to make a Sound Wall interactive and engaging.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION D: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

D06

Dollar Store Math

NIRVANA A K • 1 (Repeats L23)

Kim Adsit

Ever go to the Dollar Store and wonder how you can create fun games that will have your kiddos begging to play all while not breaking the bank? In this session, Kim will share how to use items from every section of the Dollar Stores to create engaging math activities to cover a plethora of standards. Kim will also give you all the support you need to know WHY conceptual learning is the BEST way to teach ALL of the math standards!

D07 Streamline Your Literacy Centers, and Learning Labs!

NIRVANA B K • 1 Kim Jordano

Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed trying to keep your Kinders engaged without constantly running to their assistance?

Kimberly will show you how she sets up her classroom for her literacy centers. Everything from organizational tips, and easy-to-prep hands-on activities that promote confidence and independence with your little learners.

D08 Music & Movement For Pre-K & K—WHY? HOW? WHAT?

NIRVANA C

P • K (Repeats L08)

“Miss Carole” Stephens

Making music lifts spirits, encourages engagement, and advances learning skills. Miss Carole will answer the 3 title questions and provide examples of developmentally appropriate songs you can easily use for active learners. Let’s uncover the early literacy, social and physical skills that are delivered automatically with rhythm and melody. Add manipulatives for engagement and focus—it’s win-win!

D09 Smooth Transitions from PreK to K - It’s a Process!

CONNECTION

P • K • A (Repeats I09)

Lynn Burgett

Michelle Escapa

Come and learn concrete ways to provide a smooth transition from Preschool to Kindergarten by creating a transition team, setting some goals, creating an action plan, implementing, and celebrating successes. You will be given the tools to go back and start your own plan for working collaboratively to provide what children and their families need to be successful as they move from Preschool to Kindergarten.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION D: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

D10 Supporting Access, Participation & Membership Through Adaptations

IMAGINATION

P • A

Emily Ropars

Talin Tokat Ann Kremer

D12 The Heart of Our Work KNOWLEDGE

P • K • 1 • A

Kathleen Briseno Peggy Snowden

In the midst of juggling lesson planning, teaching, toileting, standards, and a classroom of children bursting with energy, how do you find time to create connections with your students? Building relationships requires an intentional process, join us as we share research and tidbits on incorporating SE skills throughout the day.

D13 Read Local With Illinois Authors & Illustrators

D11 I Like to Count It, Count It

INNOVATION

K • 1 • A

Nikki Zolotar

Grace VanDerKolk

Do you have students still struggling with understanding the numbers 0-10? Are they not understanding how teen numbers work? After this session, you will be able to immediately apply strategies and activities you learned about in your classroom. Come and see tried and true methods that we have used in our classrooms that have helped our students strengthen their number sense.

Participants will leave with strategies to include and support each and every child in the preschool classroom. This presentation directly supports professionals that work with children ages 3-5 and is relevant to both educators and administrators. Click

EPIPHANY

P • K • 1 Jennifer Wagh

A dynamic book tour highlighting Illinois Authors and Illustrators with picture perfect reads for kindergarten & preschool classroom. Sponsored by SCBWI-IL https://illinois.scbwi.org/

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION D: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

D14 Brain-friendly Classroom Design & Instruction PROSPERITY

P • K • 1 • A

Yanina Jimenez

All the practical strategies in this session are based on the true science of teaching and learning. They are divided by brain-friendly classroom design, instructional strategies, and classroom atmosphere based on how they can engage/energize, focus, and calm your students’ brains.

D15 Relationships: The Key to Reaching Your Toughest Students SERENITY

P • K • 1 • A Kirsty

Ruggles

“Beyond simply meeting her unique needs... day after day, they dance with her” ( Hughes, 2017). Attachment is one of the most crucial emotional milestones of early childhood and without a secure attachment relationship a child can remain stuck in their their development, unable to learn and utilize other vital skills such as self-regulation, empathy, independence. As a result, the child is at risk for developing an adaptive attachment style which can cause lifelong social and emotional challenges. Without an attachment-focused lens, caregivers are left feeling hopeless and the child stranded. We must learn the steps to dance together.

D16 Once Upon A Rhythm SCHAUMBURG A/B

P • K • 1 • A

Quynn Johnson

I will share how the art form of tap dance and its elements (beat, choreography, and improvisation) can be used as a tool to strengthen literacy skills for early learners. Tap dance has the ability to communicate and express meaning. When this dynamic teaching tool is integrated into the classroom, it offers students a deeper learning experience for all learners to create physical and personal connections to academic subjects. This workshop is designed to highlight key aspects of tap dance that can be shared with—and used by—artists and non-artists alike to help drive the success of young learners.

D17 The Power of Interactive Read-Aloud

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K • 1 Jennifer

Durot

Interactive read-aloud provides a rich foundation of texts on which you can build much teaching and learning. All readers, regardless of their reading levels, experience rich, interesting texts that are age and grade appropriate. Intentional conversations embed teaching of specific behaviors and understandings you want children to develop.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION D: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

D18 Play-based Learning

SCHAUMBURG D

P • K • 1 • A

Amanda Garrey Beth Mueller Terry Kaus Susan Clark

An in-depth look at goals, strategies and tips for play-based learning. Presenters will share Tier 1 activities to meet the needs of all learners with a special emphasis on multilingual students.

D19 Science Time

SCHAUMBURG F

P • K • 1

Sherry Ann Wolfer

You don’t have to be a scientist to do or have science in your classroom. Learn how to incorporate science into all areas of the classroom. Explore this “hands-on” workshop that contains easy and inexpensive science experiments, science activities and science table top props that you can do with all age children.

D20 Igniting the Spark in our High-Ability Learners

SCHAUMBURG G

K • 1

Margeaux McReynolds

Have you ever struggled with how to ensure you are meeting the needs of your high-ability learners? Come discover ways to challenge and develop the talents and abilities of these learners using differentiated activities that spark inquiry and exploration.

D21 Let’s Get Personal, Personalizing Learning through Centers

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K • 1 (Repeats L22) Kerry Shilkaitis Kelly Folliard

Struggling with meeting the academic needs of your students? Personalizing learning is not as hard as it seems! Throughout this session, you will be involved in the process of customizing individual learning pathways for your students using data to guide purposeful centers/stations. Let’s get personal and achieve some student growth.

D22 Spark Student’s Learning with Quick Inquiry Tasks

SCHAUMBURG EAST K • 1

Olivia Odileke

If you are struggling to get students to think in any learning environment, come learn simple ways to integrate technology to facilitate inquiry-based tasks in less than 15 minutes. Learn how to spark students’ curiosity about your topic by facilitating discussions around inquiry-based tasks. Experience an inquiry task, review examples of simple tasks for all core subjects, and leave with ideas for your own classroom.

Thursday,

March 2nd -

SESSION

E01 Integrating Science and Social Studies

UTOPIA A K • 1 (Repeats M01) Mary Amoson

Replenish your supply of fresh ideas and hands-on activities for making science content and social studies topics meaningful to little learners. Attend this session to see how to integrate multiple content areas into science and social studies while making learning fun for your class. STEM activities, art projects, and games will help your students learn like never before!

E02 Play Dough: A MultSensory Tool UTOPIA B P • K Jackie Kops

Using playdough in the classroom can be a powerful and FUN learning tool for students! Playdough provides students a multi-sensory approach to learn and practice various learning concepts and skills. This session will highlight practical, easy ways you can incorporate playdough into various learning centers and activities including literacy, math, and STEM. You will also learn quick, easy recipes to make your own playdough as well as cleaning hacks to make using playdough in the classroom less of a mess.

E: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E03 Positive Peer Partnerships

UTOPIA C P • K • 1

Adam Peterson

Creating a family-like atmosphere from day one can be one of the most powerful things you can do for your students…and you! Adam shares his tips and tricks for building positive relationships between you and your students, you and your students’ families, and between your students and their peers. Best part…these ideas are things you can put into effect instantly with very little work on your end! Strong social skills and positive relationships can make your day-to-day routines run smoother than ever before. Get ready for some team building fun with Adam during this interactive session!

E04 Math in Picture Books UTOPIA D K

• 1

Amany Elgendy

Teachers hear the term “interdisciplinary”, and are often met with challenges for what resources to use. The best of both worlds is math in picture books! Which picture books are helpful in pre-k and kindergarten? Let’s dive right in!

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Thursday, March 2nd -

SESSION

E05 Making The Most of Math Stations

EUPHORIA

P • K • 1

Marsha McGuire

Make math stations your students’ favorite time of the day by introducing fun and engaging activities that address their interests, learning profiles, and readiness. Marsha introduces tips and techniques that will quickly take your math stations to the next level. Gather ideas for organizing materials and creating a classroom of independent and eager learners. Marsha also provides standards-based examples to illustrate counting, number recognition, counting on, decomposing, adding/ subtracting, and geometry.

E06 Jugando y creando transiciones NIRVANA A P

• K

Zahidee Marcano Martha Mancera

Los participantes tendrán la oportunidad de aprender, crear y llevar a su salón de clases actividades de transición preparadas durante la presentación.

Session numbers are in numeric order; however, missing numbers do not mean missing sessions.

E: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E07 Five Ways to SQUEEZE in Fine Motor NIRVANA B P • K

Katie Mense

Your standards are plenty and your curriculum is fast-paced. You know as a teacher that those little hands in front of you need to build fine motor skills, but there’s seemingly no time to teach it! Join Katie as she gives you five concrete, practical ways to “squeeze” fine motor skills into your day. From ways to integrate sensory bins to building a proper pencil grip, this session will give you tips of the trade from inside the trenches of a K-1 classroom to implement immediately back in yours!

E08 Puppets – Terrific Teaching Tools in Early Childhood NIRVANA C P

• K • 1 (Repeats M08)

“Miss Carole” Stephens

Are your puppets sitting in a bin when they could be helping you focus attention, model behavior and increase skills? This workshop will share 3 basic puppet skills for teachers and how to create a quick puppet activity in which young students will participate. Bring a hand puppet with a mouth that opens/closes so you may practice. Let a puppet friend diversify your lesson delivery methodology!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION E: 1:30

E09 Reading Alouds That Connect to Genres and Curriculum CONNECTION

P • K • 1 Marge Cox

Reading aloud provides hours of engagement for children. Come and learn about a variety of books that connect youngsters to genres and also support curriculum. You may see some old favorites, but you’ll also experience some great new children’s literature.

E10 Interaction Strategies for English Learners IMAGINATION

P • K • 1

Dominique Byrnes

One goal as those that serve Multilingual learners is to ensure that our students have ample opportunities to acquire language. This session will explore ideas that increase student interaction with academic language. Strategies and supports will be shared to continue your school year with students actively interacting!

p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E11 Stop! Collaborate and Listen! INNOVATION

K • 1

Rachelle Sikes

This is the ideal session for both general education and special education teachers who share students with special needs on their rosters! In order to ensure student success, these two teachers need to stop, collaborate, and listen to each other! This session offers tips, tricks, and problem solving for general education and special education teacher collaboration.

E12 Mindfulness in the Classroom KNOWLEDGE

P Cynthia Dressler

Deanne DeDominico

Do you want your students calm and ready to engage at their best self? Would it be ideal to have students present and able to manage conflict in the classroom? In this session you will add practical, in the now meditation and mindfulness tools that you can take back to your classroom tomorrow.

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION E: 1:30

E13 Promoting SEL during and after COVID EPIPHANY

P • K

Connie Boznos Emily Weyl

This session will focus on helping students regain appropriate social skills when interacting in and out of the classroom, specifically focusing on sharing, taking turns, and collaborating in groups. With COVID taking away so many cooperative experiences, this session will introduce strategies for teachers to use to support struggling learners.

E14 Building a Love for Learning PROSPERITY

P • K • 1 • A (Repeats I12)

Jonnia Jackson

How do you intentionally motivate your students to learn? This session will challenge educators and administrators to think outside the box when faced with these challenges. We will walk you through intentionality, embracing teachable moments, mindfulness, the social-emotional relationship-based approach to teaching, goal planning and future building.

p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E15 Elementary Equity Efforts: Content Integration and Belonging for All Students SERENITY

P • K • 1

Tiffany Lewis Elise Matsuura

This session will help practitioners enliven the ELA curriculum with relevant, innovative, differentiated learning experiences for students (PreK-5) with practical application of inquiry-based activities that demonstrate the progressions of culturally responsive content integration and foster a sense of belonging.

E16 Literacy + Movement: Transforming Your Read Alouds into Storybook Yoga

SCHAUMBURG A/B

P • K • 1 • A

Erin Bracco

“There’s no use expecting kids to sit quietly if we haven’t let them move loudly first.” -Mike Huber. Erin Bracco demonstrates ways to make your readalouds come to life with the magic of yoga. We develop yoga sequences to mirror children’s literature. This helps to engage students and allows children the opportunity to truly embody the story, providing more opportunities for recall and retelling. We enlist the help of music to enhance your storybook yoga experience.

Thursday, March 2nd

- SESSION

E17 The Playful Classroom: An Introduction to Play-based Learning SCHAUMBURG

C

P • K • 1 • A

Chris Kipp

Participants will learn what purposeful play looks like and how it can be implemented in the classroom. Research shows that children learn best through interactive and hands-on learning. Purposeful play allows for social-emotional growth, standards-based learning, student engagement, etc. Make your classroom a joyful place for you and the children!

E18 The Organized Classroom: Reflect, Revise, Rearrange, Reimagine SCHAUMBURG D

P • K

Tammy Haggerty Jones

This session will provide teachers with ideas to Reflect on teaching/ organizational skills that were successful. Revise whole and small group instruction, data collection and assessments. Rearrange the classroom for 2022-2023 with plans to maximize student access to Reading, Writing and Math Centers. Reimagine the learning adventure/possibilities for the year.

E: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E19 Math Shakers - There Will Be A Whole Lot Of Shaking Going On! SCHAUMBURG F

P • K • 1 Lori Triplett

Come prepared to play with the student’s favorite manipulative, a math shaker. The activities incorporate all learning channels and allows students to move and dance for 30 seconds, while they take a “math brain break”. When the music stops, the math begins! Concepts covered: subitizing, count on and back, matching, odd even, doubles, make ten, mental math including + 1, +2, -1, -2. Activities can be used whole class, in partners or in centers, are easy to differentiate and powerfully build number sense and operational fluency strategies and opportunities for assessment.

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION E: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

E20

Move and Groove towards Regulation

SCHAUMBURG G

P • K • 1 • A

Ashley Crompton

During this session teachers and school staff will learn fun active ways to teach students how to regulate their emotions. Teachers will walk away with several games or ideas to get students up and moving to practice ways to regulate their bodies. No more having students sit in their seats and taking deep breaths or counting to 10, students will instead take part in fun activities that bring their heart rate up and help them learn how to regulate or bring their self back down.

E21 Illuminate Your Brain: Sensory Tables in Action

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K • 1 Sara Friel

Maggy Fedak

E22 Journaling 2.0

SCHAUMBURG EAST P • K • 1 (Repeats L15) Candace Neil

Join us to explore how meaningful and impactful journaling can be for all learners! Journaling is a great way to capture student development and progression throughout the school year. The personal guided expression will be explained and demonstrated as a progressive method to utilize with all learners. From August to May, come learn the journaling way!

E23 3..2..1..Lift Off! With NASA STEM Engagement

SCHAUMBURG WEST K • 1 LaTina Taylor

Did you know that we’re going back to the Moon? In this session, we will explore NASA’s Artemis Missions to the Moon and Mars and learn how-to best guide STEM learning in the early grades (PreK-2) using literacy, teacher expert tips and strategies, engineering design processes and NASA’s educational resources. Discover hands on/ minds on NASA STEM resources to really engage your students. Take advantage of NASA’s free resources and encourage ALL your students to reach for the stars!

Come and learn how to make a DIY sensory table along with how to use it across the curriculum. Join us at the conference! CLICK here TO REGISTER NOW online

Each year, a number of volunteers are needed to collect session tickets, give directions, and help with conference procedures for participants

Volunteers must be willing to work one day of the conference (March 2 or 3, 2023)

Volunteers will be selected on a first come, first-served basis.

As a volunteer, every attempt will be made to assign you your first-choice sessions. However, if selected, your session schedule may be altered to fit the needs of the conference.

Thursday, March 2nd -

F01 Games Galore!

UTOPIA A

P • K • 1 (Repeats I01)

Mary Amoson

SESSION

Need some fresh, new ideas for games and activities kids LOVE to play and that teach the standards? Don’t miss this session! It’s loaded with kid- tested and approved games and quick assessment techniques for learning, practicing, and extending the content.

F02 Vocabulary Rocks

UTOPIA B K • 1 (Repeats K02)

Matt Halpern

A rich vocabulary is one of the foundational components of successful literacy learning. Deepening children’s vocabulary is critical to helping them read, write, and talk about ideas. How can we plan for vocabulary instruction across the day? What are the best ways to maximize vocabulary learning within the framework of what we’re already doing? Join Matt for some tips, strategies, and fun ways to grow your students’ vocabulary.

F03 From Nonsense to Number Sense: Math Matters

UTOPIA C K

Keri Brown

Let’s talk about why math matters for our primary students. We will cover how we can take a child from zero

F: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

awareness to full blown number sense mastery. I’ll also give you ideas and activities to take back into the classroom to implement.

F04 Phonemic Awareness High-Yielding Activities for the Classroom

UTOPIA D P • K • 1 Deedee Willis

If phonics is the racecar, phonemic awareness is the gasoline. Are all phonemic awareness skills created equally? Which skills and activities yield the best results? Deedee will demonstrate which activities, based on the science of reading, to focus on to help all learners become readers.

F05 #TeacherHacks: Top Tips

EUPHORIA P • K • 1 Hillary Statum

Discover the ah-ha moments of classroom teachers just like you! This session is jam-packed with top teacher tips from effective parent communication tools to classroom management techniques that work. First year teachers and veteran teachers alike will benefit from a wide variety of tips ranging from what to do with early finishers to how to run centers like a pro. Return to your classroom with a renewed sense of energy and a toolkit full of classroom tested and approved strategies!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION

F06 Promoting Children’s Deeper Thinking with Open-Ended Questioning NIRVANA A

P • K • 1

Debra Honegger

Explore the different types of open-ended questions we ask that move students to more complex levels of play and to deeper thinking about academic content. Lots of questions will be shared and brainstormed. You will leave with question stems that can be used with your students tomorrow to deepen your children’s thinking.

F07 Science Mash

NIRVANA B

P • K • 1

Katie Mense

The Science Mash-Kids are naturally curious about the world around them.Tap into that curiosity by blending Science into your literacy and math instruction. In this session, Katie will show you lots of fun, hands-on ways to integrate science into your daily learning by doing the “Science Mash”. Your students’ excitement and love of Science will catch on in a flash!

F08 SEL in Picture Books

NIRVANA C

K • 1

Amany Elgendy

We have heard of calm down corners, we have heard of taking deep breaths, and we have implemented some strategies. Have you used picture books in your classroom to help

F: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

students realize they are not alone when it comes to big feelings? Join me in our conversation of SEL in Picture Books, and how to utilize them in our classrooms.

F09 Decrease Stress and Increase Productivity CONNECTION

P • K • 1

Mica Ike

This workshop allows participants to explore decreasing stress in and out of the workplace, and increase productivity in the classroom and in their lives. Participants are given steps to take towards self-care, information that will ensure protection from the damaging effects of stress, and the opportunity to improve classroom performance and overall well-being.

F10 COVID 19 and Its Effects on the Social Emotional Needs of the Children in ECE IMAGINATION

P • K • 1

Dana Trummer-Imla Ashley Passfield

The last few years have shown educators how strong the effects of trauma in the home can be on the classroom setting. The children in early childhood classrooms were not given the chance to have a “normal” classroom experience. Come to our session to delve into the ideas on how the children coming into the classrooms in the next couple years might act or respond. Lets talk about how their experiences might differ from other children and how we as educators can help their transition into the classroom?

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION

F11 Self-Care: the Pathway to Inner Peace INNOVATION

P • K • 1 Carissa Jaminet Vanessa Witherell

Stressed by lesson plans, organization, difficult behaviors and more? Here are ways to help with self-care in and out of the classroom setting. Everyone needs a way to help them to calm and find a stress release. Discover new techniques to bring inner peace into your everyday life.

F12 Centros de Matemáticas que les encantaran / Math Centers They Will Love

KNOWLEDGE

K Maria de Lourdes Buchs Rocio Torres

Los centros de matemáticas se convertirán en la parte favorita de los estudiantes. Usando diferentes manipulativos, tecnología y juego aprenderán y disfrutarán las matemáticas. Organización de grupos y materiales accesibles es indispensable para facilitar el aprendizaje de los estudiantes. English Translation: The math centers will become a favorite part of the students. Using different manipulatives, technology and games they will learn and enjoy mathematics. Organization of groups and accessible materials are essential to facilitate student learning.

F: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

F13 It Starts With UsCreating Early Readers and Writers EPIPHANY

P • K • 1 • A Amy MacCrindle Paula Moan

Literacy instruction is crucial to ensuring students are successful as readers, writers, and thinkers. This session will provide you with some simple high-impact shifts to your instruction as well as provide the rationale behind the why it is important. Walk away with ready to implement ideas in the classroom tomorrow!

F14 Literacy + Math = WHOAAA!

PROSPERITY

P • K • 1 • A Kimberly Branch Quynn Johnson

No curriculum? This will help. Need to supplement your curriculum? This will help. Learn how to integrate literacy and math through fun, interactive read alouds. Explore developmentally appropriate literature that will engage, stimulate, and motivate your students. Lessons should never stand alone, but should always be connected to promote lifelong learning. Let’s start connecting!

Thursday, March 2nd - SESSION

F15 Connect, Engage, and Lead Your Students Before Back to School SERENITY

P • K • 1 Olivia Odileke

Create engaging connections with your students even before they enter your classrooms! How can you do it? Come learn how to create mini-Nearpod activities that can be texted or emailed to parents. Want to say their names correctly, know how they learn, introduce yourself, and build a positive culture that helps students feel safe and be prepared to meet your expectations? Let’s start a conversation that will help you get to know your students and learn how Nearpod can improve your relationship with your students before you ever meet them.

F16

Mindful Art and Yoga

SCHAUMBURG A/B

P • K • 1

Toni Wierig

There are many benefits to Kid’s Yoga and practicing Mindfulness! In this session you will learn mini yoga lessons to use in your classroom and Mindful Art activities to implement to promote mindfulness in every day life.

F17 Charts, Chants and Letters, Oh My!

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K

Tracy Cupolo

This session will provide participants with a fun way to teach the

F: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

alphabet’s letters and sounds through animal letter construction, chants and movement activities. Participants will be able to use these activities upon return to the classroom. These activities provide a fun, engaging way for children to learn their letters and sounds.

F18 Developmental Writing Centers: No More Pencils

SCHAUMBURG D P • K

Tammy Haggerty Jones

Designing Writing Centers independent from your district’s curriculum will focus on differentiation without stigma, building selfconfidence. The Centers will provide fine motor skill activities including cutting/tracing shapes, letters and words. They will offer ideas for drawing/labeling stories, adding letters/ words, incorporating sight words, punctuation, writing prompts and producing student books.

F19 Solving Addition & Subtraction Word Problems

SCHAUMBURG F

K • 1 • A

Jennie Winters

Marian Dowling

Participants will learn how to teach students to model real-world word problems based upon the underlying structures of the problems. Each participant will receive a set of mats that can be duplicated and used with kindergarten and 1st grade students. Participants will also receive a word bank and links to resources for supporing instruction.

Thursday, March 2nd

- SESSION

F20 Infusing Elements of Dual Language into Preschool Programming

SCHAUMBURG

P • K

Lisa Dallacqua Rita Guzman

G

East Aurora School District 131 provides district-wide dual language programming for all students in Kindergarten, first and second grades. This session illustrates how our district will begin to infuse elements of dual language programming into our preschools, beginning with a focus on oral language development.

F21 Don’t Bug Out!

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K • 1

Stephanie Hospelhorn

Get Past the Gross with Cool Lessons about the Creepy, Crawly World of Insects, Bugs, and Worms. Insects and worms play a vital role in agriculture and in our environment. These cross-curricular lessons, hands-on activities, and books recommendations will easily fit into your existing curriculum and help students wriggle with excitement as they learn about vermi- composting, various pollinator species, habitats and lifecycles, edible insects, and more!

F: 3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

F22 Teaching Social Skills: A Daily, Structured Approach

SCHAUMBURG

EAST P • K Jackie Kops

Discover strategies and ideas you can easily embed into your daily routine, classroom practices, and classroom environment to teach and practice social skills every day. In this session, you will reflect on your classroom and what small changes you can make to promote independence, problem-solving, and emotional self-regulation. Find out how to utilize circle time and class meetings using children’s literature to teach various social skills, behaviors, and routines. Research shows that both daily practice and explicit teaching of specific social skills are vital to mastering appropriate social skills and behavior. We will break down the learning stages (skill acquisition, fluency, maintenance and generalization) and then walk-through planning activities to teach specific social skills.

Session numbers are in numeric order; however, missing numbers do not mean missing sessions.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION I: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

I01 Games Galore!

UTOPIA A K • 1 (Repeats F01) Mary Amoson

Need some fresh, new ideas for games and activities kids LOVE to play and that teach the standards? Don’t miss this session! It’s loaded with kid- tested and approved games and quick assessment techniques for learning, practicing, and extending the content.

I02 Writing Conferences and Small Groups for the Early Ed Classroom P • K • 1 • A UTOPIA B Matt Halpern

The best way we can support our early writers is to sit next to them, one on one and in small groups to help support and lift the level of their writing. By studying our students as they write and then analyzing writing behaviors and work, we can take what we know about our writers and use that data to help bring their writing to the next level. Learn tips and strategies for making writing conferences and small groups work seamlessly in your classroom.

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

I03 Operation Organization & Effective Classroom Design

UTOPIA C P • K • 1 Hillary Statum

Get organized! Go “behind the scenes” of efficient classrooms and leave with easyto-implement tips. In this session, you will also consider classroom design and figure out flexible seating. Discover ways to shift your mindset, gather strategies to introduce new seating options to your students, and learn how to avoid potential pitfalls. Tackle your transformation on a budget with Hilary’s money-saving tips. Get your classroom organized into a beautiful and functional learning space using the advice of experienced teachers!

I04 Interactive Read Aloud in the Age of Science of Reading UTOPIA D K • 1 Deedee Willis

How do you teach emergent readers to become deep thinkers and engage in focused discussions? How do you scaffold them, support their attempts, and help them transfer their learning to new situations? It just doesn’t happen... it happens with deliberate instruction. Join Deedee as she walks you through the process of planning an interactive readaloud for deliberate instruction.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION I: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

I05 Start Your Day With Marvelous Morning Work Stations EUPHORIA K

Marsha McGuire

Morning work has kicked worksheets to the curb. Learn how to revamp your morning work routine with morning work bins that are hands-on and engaging. You will gather ideas for starting your year out with morning work bins that focus on fine motor and basic first days of school skills and that grow as your students are introduced to and master more complex skills in Math and ELA.

I06

Creative Crafts for Curious Kids

NIRVANA A P • K • 1

Adam Peterson

Let’s get crafty! Hands-on learning is such a powerful tool. From ELA to Math, Science to Social Studies, Adam will share some of his (and his students) favorite crafts to extend learning beyond the lessons. Take a walk through the crafts Adam creates with his students from day-to-day and you’re sure to find easy ways to incorporate crafts into your own classroom!

I07

I’m Done with Centers...Now What NIRVANA B K

Katie Mense

Having trouble keeping your students busy for the full 45 minutes of center time? Does your classroom get a little rowdy and chaotic with early finishers who don’t have anything to do? Katie gives you lots of ideas, tips and resources to use to keep your kids actively engaged for the entire time! Learn how to make the activities meaningful and manage them so that students don’t choose the same activity every day.

I08 All You Need-Kindergarten Counting & Cardinality

NIRVANA C P • K • 1

(Repeats A20, C08, K08)

Mary Pat Larocca

Celine Hill

Counting and Cardinality standards are unique and critical for kindergartners for setting a strong math foundation to build on for years to come. For each kindergarten Counting & Cardinality CCSS, we will share with you our favorite proven strategies and tools for teaching these standards. We will also share with you our favorite centers, how we assess each of these, and the tips we send home to parents on how they can help their child with these counting and cardinality standards.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION I: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

I09 Smooth Transitions from PreK to K - It’s a Process!

CONNECTION

P • K • A (Repeats D09)

Lynn Burgett

Michelle Escapa

Come and learn concrete ways to provide a smooth transition from Preschool to Kindergarten by creating a transition team, setting some goals, creating an action plan, implementing, and celebrating successes. You will be given the tools to go back and start your own plan for working collaboratively to provide what children and their families need to be successful as they move from Preschool to Kindergarten.

I10 Working Together: Helping Families Understand Preschool Special Education Assessment and Eligibility IMAGINATION

P • A (Repeats C10)

Natalie Danner

Emily Dorsey

For parents, the journey from suspecting their child’s developmental delay to receiving special education services can be overwhelming and confusing. Illinois Early Learning (IEL) has tip sheets to guide families through this process. This session will explore ways that teachers can support families in understanding assessment and eligibility.

I11 Effective Volunteer Strategies - It’s Not Just Busy Work!

INNOVATION

K • 1 • A (Repeats C14)

Shannon Hamm

Tracy Anderson

This session will guide teachers and administrators in attracting and utilizing classroom volunteers in ways that will help improve and impact student performance while also providing them with 1:1 or small group adult attention.

I12 Building a Love for Learning KNOWLEDGE

P • K • 1 • A (Repeats E14)

Jonnia Jackson

How do you intentionally motivate your students to learn? This session will challenge educators and administrators to think outside the box when faced with these challenges. This session will walk you through intentionality, embracing teachable moments, mindfulness, the social-emotional relationship-based approach to teaching, goal planning and future building.

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

Friday, March 3rd -

SESSION

I13 Not Just in February: Black History is More than 28 Days EPIPHANY

K • 1

Candace Neil

Join me as we discuss the importance of embedding Black History into our lessons all year long! Research tells us that it is key to expose all students to a variety of cultures throughout their education but how can we do that best? I will provide lessons, resources,strategies, and suggestions to help support the diverse learners found in your classroom and throughout the world. Join me to discover ways to make this multicultural vision a reality!

I14 Hands-On Experiences to Keep Students Actively Engaged During Read Alouds PROSPERITY

P • K

Suzi McLeod

Jill Rafter

As collaborative coteachers in a blended preschool classroom, our goal is to keep students actively involved in learning experiences. During this session, we will share over 20 read aloud stories paired with hands on activities to help students participate in meaningful ways. These activities will facilitate listening, comprehension and language skills while maximizing student engagement and decreasing challenging behaviors.

I: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

I15

Let’s Talk About Math!

SERENITY

K • 1

Celeste Rusin

Deanna King

Join us for a fun-filled, interactive session, as we share ideas and strategies for fostering collaborative conversations about Math in the kindergarten classroom!

I16 Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Early Childhood SCHAUMBURG A P • K • 1 • A

Cynthia Dressler

Adverse Childhood Experiences and trauma can have a life changing effect on a child. These experiences can change how the child views the world and more importantly, how they view themselves. This session will discuss what ACEs are and what early childhood teachers can do to support a child’s resiliency.

I17 Centers Made Simply DIY

SCHAUMBURG B

P • K

Greg Smedley-Warren

You’ll find inspiration to create your own DIY center or workstation activities as I show you all the fun and easy ideas I’ve come up with! You will learn how to elevate your center activities with everyday items. and engage your students during center time with these budget-friendly ideas!

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION I: 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

I18

Letters and Sounds the Alpha-edible Way

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K

Tracy Cupolo

Participants will be shown how to make edible letter/sound items to use as a culminating activity to letter/sound instruction. This session provides lots of inexpensive ways to create healthy, edible snacks that are connected with each letter of the alphabet. It provides another modality for teacher and reinforcing letters and sounds.

I19 All Hands On Pear Deck

SCHAUMBURG D

K • 1

Paul Uhler

Pear Deck is an amazing technology tool you can use to engage your students and meet the needs of all learners. Come learn some “tips and tricks” of using this in your classroom and you will walk away with several ideas of ways to use it in your classroom.

I20 Rolling Into MathUsing Dice in Your K - 1st Math Program

SCHAUMBURG F

P • K • 1

Lori Triplett

Come prepared to play our favorite dice games that incorporate the use of: double dice, 10 sided 0 - 9, subitizing 12 sided, 20, 30 sided dice, 0 - 5 dice. Who knew that so much math is embedded in these engaging

manipulatives. Games and activities are perfect for differentiated learning centers and will focus on the following concepts: subitizing, counting, comparing numbers to 10, 20, and beyond, mental math and early operations. Handout will contain gameboards. Ideas for math talk, journals and assessment will be shared.

I21 Leaping into Literacy and Kid-Friendly Math Centers

SCHAUMBURG G

P • K

Julie Torkelson

Find new ways to develop and enhance literacy with young children. We will be using music and movement and flannel board activities to reinforce readiness skills. Learn how to create math centers that really work and children will love.

I22 Lions And Tigers And Blocks Oh My!

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K

Sarah Friel Maggy Fedak

Learn why block play is so important for young children.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION J: 9:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Understand Where Your Students are Coming From! with Tommie Mabry

The factors that influence students’ beliefs and attitudes about the value of formal education are complex and expansive, especially with respect to marginalized student populations. Motivational speaker and master storyteller Dr. Tommie Mabry builds from personal experiences as a child labeled “at risk” to promote empathy and understanding in motivating the success of youth.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K01 Phonics Phun

UTOPIA A

K • 1 (Repeats C01) Mary Amoson

Take advantage of researchsupported ideas for developing an awareness of sounds and words in our language, including Science of Reading approach using A Fresh Look at Phonics. Learn how to meet the phonemic needs of your learners through movement, sensory activities, exciting technology and interactive FUN. Plus, gather kinder-approved games to support and extend your phonics lessons. This session also has hands on games to fall in LOVE with! (This session is a hands on make and take.)

K02 Vocabulary Rocks

UTOPIA B K (Repeats F02) Matt

Halpern

A rich vocabulary is one of the foundational components of successful literacy learning. Deepening children’s vocabulary is critical to helping them read, write, and talk about ideas. How can we plan for vocabulary instruction across the day? What are the best ways to maximize vocabulary learning within the framework of what we’re already doing? Join Matt for some tips, strategies, and fun ways to grow your students’ vocabulary.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K03 First 30 Days of Kindergarten UTOPIA C K

Keri Brown

With the school year coming to an end, I like to plan for the next school year to keep the stress and workload of a new year to a minimum. Let’s walk through my prepping time and what I focus on with my students in the first 30 days of school. Walk away with all my to-dos plus my checklist to help you teach routines and procedures in the first 30 days.

K04 Assessments and Student Portfolios with Less Stress UTOPIA

D

P • K • 1 Jackie Kops

Assessments and student portfolios can be stressful, a ton of work, and boring! Discover assessment and portfolio organization tools and strategies you can use to simplify assessments and portfolios plus ways to make it faster and easier for both you and your students! Learn tricks to make assessments into fun, hands-on activities that you can then keep for their student portfolio. Find out new ways to sneak assessments throughout your daily routine (circle, arrival, small group, and even transitions) that you can use to guide your instruction!

K05 Getting in the Game! EUPHORIA

P • K • 1 (Repeats A05)

Marsha McGuire

Students love game play. Whether it’s a game for your whole classroom or for a small group, you will love these games that keep you students engaged and excited to practice essential skills! Get ready to have some fun and gather great ideas for games to make and play in your classroom.

K06 Creating Confident Writers

NIRVANA A K • 1 Kim

Adsit

If you’ve ever wondered who is in charge of the writing in your room, then this session is for you. Come to Kim’s session on Kindergarten Writers to learn creative, fun ways to release gradual control of the writing to the children. You will learn ideas for all types of writing—modeled, shared, interactive, guided, and independent writing. Kim will also share writing mini lessons that will definitely put the children in charge!

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Kindergarten

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K07

Pave the Way for Scientific Literacy NIRVANA

B

P • K • 1

Katie Mense

Kids are naturally curious about the world around them. Tap into that curiosity by blending Science into your everyday instruction. In this session, Katie will show you lots of fun, hands-on ways to engage your little scientist and build their scientific understanding through authentic exploration.

K08 All You Need-Kindergarten

Counting & Cardinality

NIRVANA C

P • K • 1 (Repeats A10, C08, I08)

Mary Pat Larocca Celine Hill

Counting and Cardinality standards are unique and critical for kindergartners for setting a strong math foundation to build on for years to come. For each kindergarten Counting & Cardinality CCSS, we will share with you our favorite proven strategies and tools for teaching these standards. We will also share with you our favorite centers, how we assess each of these, and the tips we send home to parents on how they can help their child with these counting and cardinality standards.

K09 Observational Assessment of Student Learning CONNECTION

P • K • 1 • A

Jennie Winters

Participants will understand the role of observational assessment in a balanced assessment system and will practice using observational assessment with a variety of tools. Example rubics and checklists will be provided to use while viewing video clips of student performance in whole group, small group, and one-on-one settings.

K10

Mindfulness Room Exploration + Implementation IMAGINATION

P • K • 1 • A

Erin Bracco

This workshop is intended for teachers to learn more specifically about a Mindfulness Room (Calm Corner, Zen Den, etc) at your school or in your classroom. Join us in an exploration of movement, mindfulness, and sound! Our sensory journey includes singing bowls, binaural beats, Solfeggio Frequencies, and more. Learn visual and tactile ways to introduce breathing techniques. Absorb all the ways in which movement + mindfulness strategies will help your students identify and tend to their big feelings with kindness and curiosity. This interactive session addresses how movement, mindfulness, & sound boost cognition, produce positive effects on the mind & body, and can be integrated into your routine.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K11 Self-care Isn’t Selfish INNOVATION

P • K • 1 • A

Katie Maks

Tonya Boyle

It’s easy to SAY you are going to practice self-care… go to the nail salon, make that yoga class, take that walk. BUT, it is much harder to put those words into action. This presentation is part sounding board (who doesn’t love a good venting session!) and part tips/tricks to actually engage in that self-care you so desperately need. Not only will you walk away with ideas for selfcare, but you’ll also learn strategies for its continued implementation. In addition, you’ll see how you can teach your students about self-care as we walk you through the practical application and evolution of selfcare strategies in two preschool classrooms.

K12 Retelling Plus+ KNOWLEDGE

P • K

Rebecca Rael

This session will address standards and assessments that are addressed through retelling stories in the classroom. To do this, we will look at quality stories for retelling, creating props, and the keys to retelling well. Samples from the classroom will enhance understanding of the process as well as participating in the process during the session.

K13 Tools to Create a Positive Classroom Culture: A Curriculum-Based Approach

EPIPHANY

P • K

Leslie Pekarek

We will share ideas from the Tools of the Mind curriculum that everyone can use to create a positive classroom culture that increases all children’s engagement and motivation to learn.

K14 Teaching with Joy Factor PROSPERITY

P • K • 1 • A

Kimberly Branch

Quynn Johnson

How do educators engage students while teaching rules, procedures, expectations, SEL, AND academic standards? Is this even possible? Let’s find out as we reflect, rethink, reimagine, and re-explore!

Together, we’ll identify the most important part of our students’ day and the most difficult part of yours. We’ll liberally sprinkle joy factor and then sprinkle more! Join us at the conference!

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K15 “I’m not a costume” SERENITY

P • K • 1 • A

Maria DesJarlait

Meghan Falkenberg

A guide to culturally appropriate practices to celebrate indigenous culture in the classroom.

Pyramid Model provides our program the structure and resources to successfully align our practices and increase positive outcomes within our MTSS journey.

K17 Teaching Social Studies with Research Projects

SCHAUMBURG B

P • K • 1

Greg Smedley-Warren

K16 Implementing the Pyramid Model with Fidelity within the MTSS Framework

SCHAUMBURG A

P • K • A

Brenda Vishanoff

Melissa Diaz-Munoz

Melissa Favata

PreK programs throughout the nation are witnessing an increase in academic, socialemotional, and behavioral needs among their children. Attendees are invited to join our district’s journey, as we address these challenges through an integrated MTSS / Pyramid model approach. We will discuss implementation strategies to ensure Tier 1 is consistent and responsive across the program, tools to support Tier 2 interventions and the data collection process, and clarification on Individual Problem Solving steps and procedures. We will also share how the

I‘m going to show you a new and developmentally appropriate way to teach social studies standards. In this session, you will learn how to bring social studies to life and integrate ELA standards using research projects! You’ll learn how these research projects work and how they integrate research, writing, art, and literacy into each lesson.

K18

Transitioning to Inclusive Kindergarten

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K • A (Repeats A12)

Ann Kremer

Emily Ropars

Transitioning from inclusive pre-k to inclusive kindergarten is key for positive outcomes for children with disabilities and is most successful with planning. Teachers, administrators, and families can collaborate to bring the best of pre-k forward. We will review key strategies, resources and tools to plan for implementation within your program.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION K: 10:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

K19 Teaching With an Ala Carte Menu

SCHAUMBURG D

K • 1 • A

Lana Briggs Eduardo Pérez

You will be presented with different instructional strategies to help you organize your teaching while supporting your ELL and struggling students. Each strategy is designed to engage students’ participation, build background knowledge, and help them master the intended skills. At the end of this presentation, you will have a variety of options to choose from to enhance your already created or new lessons.

K20 Shuffling into Math

SCHAUMBURG F

P • K • 1

Lori Triplett

Come prepared to play games that incorporated easily found playing cards. Great for math centers and home practice. Concepts covered include our student’s favorites for practicing: comparing numbers, greater than/less than, early addition and subtraction, place value to 100. Gameboards, math journals, and assessment ideas will be shared. The games are super easy to differentiate and can be taught whole class or small groups. Games will make an awesome family games night for your class or school too!

K21 Science, Agriculture, and a Really Good Book SCHAUMBURG G P

• K

Karen Jones Carol Hepner

By using children’s books associated with agriculture, we will connect science and agriculture into an engaging presentation for any grades PreK-8th. We will read a selected book for each month and then do an activity which connects science and agriculture. The hope is for students to gain knowledge of the world they live in and show how Agriculture is a daily part of their lives regardless if they live in a city or the country.

K22 Top 5 Strategies for Language Development (Science of Reading Approach) SCHAUMBURG H

P • K • 1 • A

Joan Bendix

Use the Science of Reading approach to help all your students! A little bit of theory and a lot of science of reading with many learning experiences/activities and discussion included. We will explore the top 5 strategies for different areas of language development. Get ready for some new, some old; some for school, some for home.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION L: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L01 Pre-Writing , Fine Motor FUN using Fine Motor Journals UTOPIA

A P • K • 1 Jackie Kops

Fine motor journals are a quick, engaging way to strengthen students’ overall fine motor strength, pencil grasp, scissor skills, and handwriting foundations. In this session, you will learn how to implement fine motor journals and why they are a powerful tool in the classroom. This session will highlight various activities you can do in the journals based on your student’s needs and development.

L02 Teaching with Games: Learn to Play & Play to Learn

UTOPIA B K (Repeats C02) Matt Halpern

What kindergartner doesn’t like to play games? Teachers love them, too—they’re fun tools for both academic and social learning. Matt demonstrates simple games to engage your students, reinforce concepts, develop problem-solving skills, build a growth mindset, and—best of all—make kids WANT to learn.

L03

Planning + Tech

= Gold UTOPIA C K (Repeats A03)

Keri Brown

Are you tired of glancing at your teacher’s edition or running out of time for activities you have already planned? Let me teach you how to integrate tech with your planning and turn it into GOLD! My planning method uses all of your “need to do” components and makes them work flawlessly. You won’t miss any of your planned activities from start to finish throughout your day.

L04 Writers’ Workshop for Emergent Writers

UTOPIA D

P • K (Repeats M04)

Deedee Willis

(Double Session - 2 hours)

Imagine a classroom where students are writing every day with purpose and direction. That’s the beauty of the Writers’ Workshop! Join Deedee to learn how to create a Writers’ Workshop that engages every child and provides the framework for your writing instruction. See how easy it is to empower and involve your students in daily writing, conferencing, collaboration, and publishing.

Click HERE to register only for the VIRTUAL CONFERENCE option.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION L: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L05 Science of Reading 101 EUPHORIA K • 1 (Repeats A04) Hillary Statum

Are you overwhelmed when it comes to the Science of Reading? Hilary is in the trenches with you and will share about her classroom experience implementing Science of Reading strategies. You will gather engaging strategies to transform your small group instruction while learning what you are already doing that works! Discover low prep differentiated activities to keep children working independently while you meet with each group of students. Learn how to use supplies you already have on hand to surprise your students and get them excited to work on essential phonics, phonemic awareness, and spelling skills. Return to the classroom with helpful freebies, new activities, and confidence in your ability to rock the Science of Reading!

L06 Teach, Play, Learn! NIRVANA A

P • K • 1 • A

Adam Peterson

Ever feel like you’re bogged down with curriculum, standards, and new manuals? Well, never fear, Adam is here! Using tried and true methods, Adam will have you laughing, moving, playing, and learning as you explore ways to make your standards more fun than ever before. With simple tweaks and classroom hacks to board games, card games, and more, you can have your students of any age learning through play in so many ways!

L07 Steppin Into STEM Weather Style! NIRVANA B P • K • 1

Kim Jordano

Would you like to explore Weather with your Kindergarten class and incorporate the NGSS standards? Kimberly will share hands-on activities integrating the following topics: Investigating weather patterns and weather forecasting, how to make observations about the effect of sunlight on the earth’s surface, and how to use tools to build structures that will reduce the warming effect of sunlight on an area. Opportunities to use the Five E structure throughout your study (engage, explore, explain, elaborate, evaluate) will be shown!

L08 Music & Movement For Pre-K & K—WHY? HOW? WHAT? NIRVANA C P • K (Repeats D08)

“Miss Carole” Stephens

Making music lifts spirits, encourages engagement, and advances learning skills. Miss Carole will answer the 3 title questions and provide examples of developmentally appropriate songs you can easily use for active learners. Let’s uncover the early literacy, social and physical skills that are delivered automatically with rhythm and melody. Add manipulatives for engagement and focus—it’s win-win!

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION L: 12:00

L09 Saved by the Bell CONNECTION

P • K • 1 • A

Kathleen Briseno Tenika Pickens

Increase student growth mindset by using bell ringers. Learn how bell ringer activities can be used to improve student learning outcomes. It is a great way to calm students and engage the part of the brain needed to facilitate learning.

p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L11 All About Names INNOVATION

P • K Angela Williamson

L10

Through the Eyes of a Child: The Vision and Learning Link IMAGINATION

P • K • 1 • A

David Maze Alicia Wong

Students may have trouble coordinating their eyes as a team to properly track information or focus which can further translate into difficulty with visual processing. In this interactive workshop with Dr. Maze, a board certified developmental optometrist with a specialty in vision therapy, you will learn to recognize when a visual processing problem is present and accommodations to provide support to your students. Demonstrations will also be provided to allow you to experience the difficulties your student(s) may be experiencing.

In this session, I will share my ideas on teaching names in the classroom through literacy and math activities. These new and fresh ideas will engage students, help them with their fine motor skills, and immerse the students in everything about their name and the names of their new friends. Some ideas that will be discussed are; All About Me: Special Edition Names, a flipped classroom approach to name writing with individualized instruction, and using name cards during centers.

L13 Reimagined PreK- K Transitions: A CommunityCentric Model

EPIPHANY

P • K • 1 • A

Jaclyn Vasquez Fakelia Guyton

This session will engage the audience in an innovative model of transitions that engages both EC centers and public and private schools within and across a community in on-going, full year transition planning. The session will include an overview of the Altgeld - Riverdale Transition model , examples of innovation and lessons learned from other communities in Illinois, strategies, current pandemic considerations, community collaborator support possibilities, and an in-depth look at the Kindergarten Transition Advisory Council’s (KTAC) report released in 2019.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION L: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L14 Identity and Traditions: Incorporating Pieces of the Reggio Emilia Philosophy PROSPERITY

P • K

Debra Honegger

Explore the concepts of identity and traditions within the Reggio Emilia Philosophy. Develop a plan for building individual identity, community identity, and celebrating traditions within your classroom. Lots of photos will be shared as well as time to build your own identity panel.

L15 Journaling 2.0 SERENITY K • 1 (Repeats E22)

Candace Neil

Join us to explore how meaningful and impactful journaling can be for all learners! Journaling is a great way to capture student development and progression throughout the school year. The personal guided expression will be explained and demonstrated as a progressive method to utilize with all learners. From August to May, come learn the journaling way!

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

L16 Creating Inclusive and Intentional Play and Oracy Spaces for All Young Learners SCHAUMBURG A P • K • A

Lindsey Meeker

Amy

Mosquera Eduardo Pérez

Leslie Perkins

Throughout this workshop, early learning and primary educators will learn the academic, social-emotional, and linguistic benefits of all kinds of play and how to embed play authentically into their classroom while still meeting and exceeding standards. We will also discuss how to intentionally add inquiry and oracy building routines into centers, wholegroup play and mini lessons, as well as outdoor play opportunities. We will spend time understanding how to “fit it all in” considering tight elementary and preschool schedules, as well as how to utilize inquiry and play-based assessment to capture formative learning. The entire workshop will also work to develop strategies for culturally and linguistically responsive learning environments through a play-based/ pro biliteracy lens!

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION

L17 Exploring our Beautiful World through Play and Books SCHAUMBURG B

P • K • 1

Jennifer LaRocque

In this session, Jennifer will discuss how to integrate culturally responsive teaching naturally throughout the curriculum. She will also discuss why culturally responsive teaching is important; how it can impact learning and brain function. She will share ideas on how she incorporates global awareness in her kindergarten classroom through student led play and exploration. Finally, she will also be discussing how to incorporate “windows, mirrors and sliding glass doors” through books, play centers and STEM challenges.

L18 The Power of Shared Reading SCHAUMBURG C

P • K • 1

Jennifer Durot

Early literacy concepts are learned through shared reading. Using enlarged texts, you read to and with students and then students read or listen to the familiar texts. There are opportunities to examine any aspect of print or engage in various strategic actions of the reading process during shared reading.

L:

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L19 How Play-Based Learning with an Animatronic Can Transform Relationships and SEL in the Classroom

SCHAUMBURG D

P • K • 1 • A

Anita Compart

According to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Education, prior to the pandemic, approximately 13 to 22 percent of students experienced some mental health challenges. It’s estimated that the number has skyrocketed to 80 percent. This presentation will examine developing attachment and selfregulation skills for young learners through the use of an animatronic, or similar “security blanket,” as well as strengthening teachers’ effectiveness in teaching Social Emotional Learning Skills. This presentation will include background about early childhood as a critical time for developing foundational abilities such as secure attachment and self-regulation, both needed for success in academics and life, and how current deficits in these areas puts a child on a trajectory of negative later life and academic outcomes. Tools and play-based strategies will be shared that focus on the introduction of an animatronic and demonstrate how it, or a similar “security blanket” is utilized for relationship- building to develop a sense of increased safety, secure attachment and kinesthetic support for teaching rate of breath, through co- regulation.

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Kindergarten

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION L: 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

L20 Autism: A Few Things To Know

SCHAUMBURG F

K • 1

Renata Serpico

This session describes basics of Autism - breaks down stereotypes and gives a few strategies for k-1 teachers to use in their classrooms for children with Autism.

L21 Little Big Minds: STEAM For Our Youngest Learners

SCHAUMBURG G

P • K

Lindsey Herlehy

Cassandra Armstrong

STEAM-integrated activities are for all learners, including those in early childhood. Participate in a series of playbased activities that promote foundational math and science skills that foster curiosity, creativity, and innovation. Measure, graph, sort, categorize, argue, and defend your ideas while previewing a series of STEAM-integrated concepts featuring simple machines.

L22 Let’s Get Personal, Personalizing Learning through Centers

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K • 1 (Repeats D21)

Kerry Shilkaitis Kelly Folliard

Stuggling with meeting the academic needs of your students?

Personalizing learning is not as hard as it seems! Throughout this session, you will be involved in the process of customizing individual learning pathways for your students using data to guide purposefull centers/stations. Lets get personal and achieve some student growth!

L23 Dollar Store Math

SCHAUMBURG EAST K • 1 (Repeats D06)

Kim Adsit

Ever go to the Dollar Store and wonder how you can create fun games that will have your kiddos begging to play all while not breaking the bank? In this session, Kim will share how to use items from every section of the Dollar Stores to create engaging math activities to cover a plethora of standards. Kim will also give you all the support you need to know WHY conceptual learning is the BEST way to teach ALL of the math standards!

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION M: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

M01 Integrating Science and Social Studies

UTOPIA A

K • 1 (Repeats E01)

Mary Amoson

Replenish your supply of fresh ideas and hands-on activities for making science content and social studies topics meaningful to little learners. Attend this session to see how to integrate multiple content areas into science and social studies while making learning fun for your class. STEM activities, art projects, and games will help your students learn like never before!

M02 Raising Young Scientists: Investigating in the Science Center

UTOPIA B

P • K • 1 Jackie Kops

Dive into how to intentionally plan fun, hands-on science investigations at the science table. Get students investigating, interacting with each other, and problem solving even when the teacher is not by their side at the science center. Plus, learn the essential items you need to set up an amazing science center for your little scientists.

M03 Comprehend This! Read Alouds & Reading Comprehension

UTOPIA C

P • K • 1

Greg Smedley-Warren

In this session, you will discover how to take your read-alouds & reading comprehension instruction to the next level using researchbased, classroom-proven strategies & resources. You will see how a classroom uses research projects to focus informational texts, research & writing. You will discover how to use our Read It Up! creations to elevate your students’ comprehension skills! You will stock up on ideas for engaging students, meeting all their needs & challenging times to reach for higher order thinking skills!

M04 Writers’ Workshop for Emergent Writers

UTOPIA D

P • K (Repeats L04)

Deedee Willis (Double Session - See L04)

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION M: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

M05

Sound Wall Secrets

EUPHORIA K • 1 (Repeats D05)

Hillary Statum

Have you implemented a Sound Wall in your classroom yet? Are you ready to make the switch from Word Walls to Sound Walls but not sure where to begin? Perhaps you want to know WHY it’s time to do so. This is the session for you! Hilary will share the research behind the importance of using Sound Walls in your classroom. See how she sets hers up and how she adds to it throughout the year. Leave with a huge freebie full of best practice tips and everything you need to know to make an interactive and classroom transforming Sound Wall!

M06 Engaging Your Primary Students Through Invention Education/STEM Learning Strategies

NIRVANA A

P • K • 1

Kristin Thorsen

Fire up your passion for teaching, learning and inventing with this handson presentation that will provide specific and concrete ideas for making Invention Education and the Innovation Mindset and STEM learning concepts part of the primary classroom. Come dive in and experience these ready to go strategies that you can use in any content area to ignite the curiosity and problem-solving abilities of your students. Take these concepts and activities back to your staff, back to your classroom, or any

learning environment. Now, more than ever, our students need to be working in learning environments that use hands-on engaging activities and strategies to challenge them to use their talents. You will gain ready to use strategies and concepts to help students invent, problem solve, and make their learning visible.

M07 Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Fun Dollar Store Style!

NIRVANA B P • K • 1 (Repeats A08)

Kim Jordano

Learn how to take your Dollar Store finds and turn them into engaging Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, and Sight Word activities that will keep your children captivated while learning in a hands-on child-centered way.

M08 Puppets – Terrific Teaching Tools in Early Childhood NIRVANA C

P • K • 1 (Repeats E08)

“Miss Carole” Stephens

Are your puppets sitting in a bin when they could be helping you focus attention, model behavior and increase skills? This workshop will share 3 basic puppet skills for teachers and how to create a quick puppet activity in which young students will participate. Bring a hand puppet with a mouth that opens/closes so you may practice. Let a puppet friend diversify your lesson delivery methodology!

Friday, March 3rd -

SESSION

M09 Best Practices in an Early Childhood Classroom CONNECTION

P • K • 1

Lori Pulchrat

Best practices are essential for having a successful school year. This session will emphasize the steps to take to ensure that the Brain-Targeted Teaching Model and challenging behaviors are implemented. Join this session to learn more about how to be comfortable, confident, and ready for the school year!

M10 Think Like a Superhero! Utilizing “Whole Mind” Teaching IMAGINATION

P • K • 1 • A

Danielle Fazio

Dean Wilczynski

Learn the relationship between non-cognitive skills and growth mindset and how to use them in the ECE classroom in combination with a superhero classroom theme. You’ll see strategies work together to benefit students of all levels and learning types. Experience how beneficial their implementation will be, as education moves towards using more online platforms and incorporates e-learning into mainstream schooling. Learn research based information on both non-cognitive skills and growth mindset, see examples of classroom implementation, and be given a 5-step strategy to begin implementation from the first day of school.

M: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

M11 Active Readers are Active Learners INNOVATION

P • K • 1 • A

Tasha Thigpen

Participants will learn key intervention strategies that negate isolation of students. Participants will broaden their scholarship while acquiring tools, resources, and strategies focused on foundational reading skills. Teachers will learn how to personalize learning in the six areas of reading instruction, target skill gaps, and use resources for instruction.

M12 Out of the Box Fundraising for Pre-K Fun KNOWLEDGE

P • A

Samantha Pearse

Maggie Illyes

“Out of the box” fundraisers include student and family participation but show large profit margins. In this session, we will cover fundraising ideas that we have done with success, offer information on how to get started and utilize sponsors, explain where the money goes, and brainstorm upcoming fundraising opportunities!

Session numbers are in numeric order; however, missing numbers do not mean missing sessions.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION M: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

M13 Pyramid Implementation: Effective Workforce + Nurturing & Responsive Relationships = How to Respond to Big Emotions EPIPHANY

P • K

Carol Raimondi

Diane Jankowski

The Pyramid Model is only as strong as its base. What tools can we use with students to help them regulate their emotional state in the classroom? What simple mediation and breathing techniques can we use to help them become more in tune with their own emotional well being?

M14 Growing Up Wild P

M15 It’s Time for an Agventure: Bring Your Classroom to Life with STEM and Agriculture SERENITY P • K • 1 Chris Wyant Lee Deal

Connect STEM and inquirybased learning with realworld agricultural concepts to help young students better understand the exciting world of agriculture all around them. Engaging, hands-on activities, paired with excellent books, will give teachers bushels of ideas for STEM activities featuring pumpkins, dairy, renewable energy, baking, pollinators, bioplastics, construction, and more!

M16

Classroom

•

K PROSPERITY

Valerie Mulvenna

Research is showing us the cognitive, social/emotional, and physical benefits of young children playing and learning in the outdoors. This interactive session will touch on the importance of nature and the young child as we explore activities and curriculum that supports outdoor learning.

Management & Behavior

in

EC

Settings

SCHAUMBURG A P • K • A

Andrew Fruth

This dynamic, engaging session will examine problematic behavior in EC settings—why it drives us nuts, things we do as teachers that make it worse, and ways we can reduce it in our classrooms by effective classroom management.

conference!

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION M: 1:30 p.m. -

M17 Make Writing Fun! Bringing Play into your Writing Time

SCHAUMBURG B

P • K • 1

Jennifer LaRocque

Do you want to make your writing block more fun for your little writers? Jennifer will discuss different ways she integrates play and rooms transformations to inspire her students to love writing. These fun experiences will motivate your students to write quality writing pieces and see themselves as writers. She will provide ideas on how to excite your students to write throughout their day including play time. Jennifer will share engaging ideas that you can use in your classroom the very next day.

M18 Read Aloud, Think Aloud: Building Vocabulary and Comprehension with Rich Stories

SCHAUMBURG C

P • K • 1

Lia Preuss

Molly Ness

Read-aloud time is a beloved part of most teachers’ and students’ days, but it can also be academically rich. Join us as we share actionable strategies that transform an already treasured time of day into one that also builds critical comprehension, strengthens vocabulary, and encourages discussions that build emotional literacy.

2:30 p.m.

M19 More Super Centers

SCHAUMBURG D P

•

K

Tammy Haggerty Jones

Creating thematic centers provides students with experiences to practice, reinforce and enhance their learning. Centers develop an academic foundation, build confidence, help discover new interests and encourage personal connection. The new topics will include: Farm, Disney Magic, Ocean, Polar Adventure, Kindness, Dinosaurs, Seasons, Medieval Times, Dr. Seuss and Gingerbread.

M20 Exploring Outdoor Activies

SCHAUMBURG F

P • K

Amy Sussna Klein

This session focuses on the importance of being outside. Participants will experiment at stations with materials for outside activities with young children. During the hands-on experimentation attention will be placed on: curriculum design, areas of leaning, possible extentions for learning, and any overcoming any possible obstacles to learning.

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

Friday, March 3rd - SESSION M: 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

M21 Self-Care: What’s in your tool box??

SCHAUMBURG G

P • K • 1 • A

Shanette Gaston

A 60 minute workshop that allows educators/teachers to recognize and reflect on the source of stress in their teaching practices, connect with their passion for teaching , embrace their own unique strengths, examine steps and develop routines that create a clear plan of action that would decrease their stress levels and ultimately incorporate these self care tools in their everyday life!

M22 Using Sensory Bins in Small Groups to Teach All the Things

SCHAUMBURG H

P • K Jill Rafter Roseann Misheck

We will use our experiences as an Occupational Therapist and Preschool Special Education Teacher to share hands-on strategies to keep students actively engaged in small group instruction. During this session, we will demonstrate how we use sensory bins and activities to introduce and reinforce early learning cognitive, literacy, language, and math objectives.

M23 The Science Box

SCHAUMBURG EAST K • 1 (Repeats C03)

Adam Peterson Kim Adsit

Ready to pump up your science time? Kim and Adam will share how a simple box is a game changer! They will share how to set the stage for an interactive science time in their weekly schedule that will support your literacy standards! They will also share some of their simple science experiments that will develop kids that “think” like scientists.

Follow and share your 2023 Kindergarten experiences and pictures using our official Twitter and Instagram accounts.

2023

Pre-K & Kindergarten In-Person Conference and Virtual Conference Registrations Process

• Administrators attend FREE with a team of 4 or more teachers. The registration must come in all together or this will not be honored. This cannot be done online and must be done via the paper registration form.

• Hardcopy registrations must be accompanied by a credit card or signed copy of the purchase order (P.O.). Payment or signed P.O. must be included with mailed registration in order to be considered for registration.

• Complete the In-Person OR Virtual Conference Registration Form on the following pages and mail, email or fax as soon as possible.

• Online registration only accepts credit card payment.

• A “Group Registration” option is available again this year. Those attendees requesting the group rate MUST meet all three conditions below:

- Group pricing starts at 3 or more people

- Separate form must be used for each person in the group

- All group forms MUST be mailed or faxed together with payment

Graduate Credit Available!

Participants at the 42nd Annual Illinois ASCD Conference for PreKindergarten and Kindergarten can receive graduate credit for their attendance at this event. Educators can receive one hour of graduate credit through the University of St. Francis. Registration will take place on-site, with payment due during the registration process. (Note: the University of St. Francis does not accept VISA credit cards for payment). For more information, email gkorczak@stfrancis.edu

Interested in Being a Volunteer?

Please indicate such interest on the in-person conference registration form. Each year, a number of volunteers are needed to collect session tickets, give directions, and help with conference procedures for participants.

• Volunteers must be willing to work one day of the conference (March 2 or 3, 2023).

• Volunteers will have their total conference registration refunded.

• Volunteers will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis.

• As a volunteer, every attempt will be made to assign you your first-choice sessions. However, if selected, your session schedule may be altered to fit the needs of the conference. Please do not volunteer if this will become a problem.

NOTE: Participants requesting to be volunteers must submit registration payment which will be refunded if they are selected as a volunteer.

Conference confirmations will be emailed & session tickets will be picked up onsite.

Pre-K and Kindergarten Conference In-Person Attendee Registration March 2-3, 2023

The registration deadline is February 13, 2023. The deadline to make changes to how you are attending (in-person or virtually) will only be accepted through February 1, 2023. This form is for those wanting to attend in-person on March 2 – 3, 2023. If you want to attend virtually, complete the virtual form. Cancellation Policy: A full refund less a $25.00 processing fee will be provided for any cancellation requests received prior to February 13, 2023. No refunds will be provided after that date. Substitutions will not be allowed after that date. All cancellation requests must be submitted in writing via email to Meg at mdrhoa1@ilstu.edu. A confirmation email will be sent to the participant after registration and payment are received.

Select Sessions

On-Demand Access

Please view the online 2023

Kindergarten Conference program book for information regarding sessions. The virtual viewing will be available ondemand starting on March 27, 2023. * Non-member fees include a 1-year membership.

• Alive Studios www.alivestudiosco.com

www.boxcarsandoneeyedjacks.com

www.buddhabellykidsyoga.com

• Confidence Counts LLC namitaprasad.com

discoverytoys.com

www.dukesdesignscreations.com

www.agintheclassroom.org

illinois.gov/dnr

illinoisearlylearning.org

• IMSA’s Little STEAMers www.imsa.edu

www.kaplanco.com

lakeshorelearning.com

www.learningprops.com

www.letsdigin.com

www.savvas.com

www.tkcchaddock.org

www.thewrightstuffchics.com

f7681.myubam.com