Impact • Service • Advocacy
Quarterly Journal - Fall 2026
A Letter from the President
PD365 Leaders Amy Warke, President awarke2008@gmail.com Scott England, Past President esengland@umes.edu Amy MacCrindle, President-elect amy.maccrindle@central301.net Sarah Cacciatore, Treasurer sarahcacciatore@cary26.org Andrew Lobdell, Secretary lobdella@le-win.net Debbie Poffinbarger, Media Director debkpoff@gmail.com
Amy Warke ILASCD President Welcome to our Fall Journal for PD 365!
Ryan Nevius, Executive Director rcnevius@pd365.net
As autumn arrives, bringing a crisp turn
Bill Dodds, Associate Director dwdodds1@me.com
landscape, school communities experience
in the air and transformation across the the opening of a new school year. Autumn
Task Force Leaders:
is a season of quiet recalibration marked by
Membership & Partnerships Denise Makowski, Amie Corso Reed
the autumnal equinox—that moment when
Communications & Publications Belinda Veillon, Jacquie Duginske
across the earth, which offers a natural
Advocacy & Influence Richard Lange
and equity for every student who walks
daylight and dark stand in equal measure metaphor for education: establishing access through the school doors.
Program Development Jayme Bajer, Heather Bowman, Scott England, Amy MacCrindle, Ami Engel, Amie Reed, Dee Ann Schnautz, Belinda Veillon, Amy Warke, Doug Wood
The start of an academic year serves as our educational equinox. It represents a collective reset where every student arrives with potential and opportunity. Equity in education is not merely about opportunity; 2
Quick Links 10 Whole Child
it is about recognizing that each student is starting at a different place, and it is our job as an educator to provide the supports necessary to succeed. Just as nature adjusts to give every corner of the earth its share of the sun, an equitable learning community ensures that every student receives what they need to thrive.
Book Reviews 18
22 Resource Corner 26 Fire of Success 31 Metacognition
Just as a healthy ecosystem relies on interconnected networks to weather seasonal shifts, our schools thrive when educators, leaders, and students engage in continuous dialogue and collective inquiry. True collaboration creates structured spaces where every perspective is valued—where educators reflect together on instructional practice, and students exercise genuine agency in their learning. When we utilize collaborative protocols that intentionally invite all participants to step forward, share, and listen deeply, equity moves from a theoretical commitment to a daily habit of shared leadership. Autumn is also the season of harvest and transformation. A rich harvest depends on celebrating varied crops that flourish under different conditions. Similarly, our school communities are at their strongest when we 3
38 Coaching the Whole Teen
44 Cultivating Change 50 Stop Sorting 56 Extra-Curricular Programming
64 Upcoming Events
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honor diverse backgrounds, unique learning styles, and varied expressions of student voice. Fall invites us to encourage students and educators alike to shed old labels or limitations from previous years, preparing the ground for resilient, collective growth. In this edition of the journal, we explore actionable strategies, reflective practices, and collaborative frameworks designed to foster educational equity and nurture student leadership. As you engage with the insights ahead, may this season remind us of our shared responsibility to build learning communities where balance, belonging, collaborative wisdom, and equitable opportunities define the daily experience of every learner. Amy Warke, Ed.D. President, IL ASCD - PD 365
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A Letter from the Director
Ryan Nevius PD365 Executive Director rcnevius@pd365.net
Welcome Back, Educators! As I sat down to draft my annual back-to-school article for our fall journal, I kept thinking about my most recent read, Ron Chernow’s biography of Mark Twain. Chernow recounts countless Twain stories, letters, and observations, but one quote often attributed to Twain has always been a favorite of mine: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into small, manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” What a fitting reminder as new students walk through our doors, new goals take shape, and educators across Illinois begin another school year filled with possibility. Educators understand that sentiment better than most. By the time you’re reading this message, the excitement of welcoming students back—mixed with the inevitable nervousness and anticipation—has likely begun to settle, and you’re finding your rhythm again, doing what educators do best: teaching and inspiring. As we begin a new school year, I want to take a few moments to highlight some of the people, opportunities, and changes happening within PD365, formerly Illinois ASCD. A New Chapter for PD365 The 2026–27 school year marks our first full year operating under our new association name, PD365. 6
We’ve shared more about the reasons behind the rebrand on our website, but rather than focus on the mechanics of the change, I want to focus on what the new name represents. Illinois ASCD has a long and proud history of serving educators across our state. PD365 doesn’t replace that legacy—it builds upon it. Our new name reflects something we’ve long believed: meaningful professional learning isn’t confined to a conference, workshop, institute day, or date on the calendar. Educators learn, teach, lead, collaborate, reflect, and improve 365 days a year. Our name may be new, but our purpose is not. Today’s educators are being asked to navigate an increasingly complex landscape. District budgets are tightening. Student needs continue to evolve. New technologies, including artificial intelligence, are changing how we do everything! At the same time, the importance of strong relationships, effective instruction, and meaningful professional learning has never been greater. While we’re excited about our full range of professional learning events, journals, Education Briefs, and other resources planned for the year ahead, I want to highlight three opportunities in particular: First, we have redesigned our professional learning series for new and aspiring educational leaders. The LEAD Series is a five-part hybrid experience designed for educators stepping into leadership roles for the first time, as well as veteran leaders looking to refocus, refresh, and strengthen their leadership skills. Registration will open soon. Second, we’re excited to introduce a new Group Membership option for schools and districts. We know professional learning is most powerful when educators have opportunities to grow together, and our new group membership is designed to make it easier and more affordable for schools and districts to connect their teams with PD365. Group membership provides educators with access to member benefits, discounted professional learning opportunities, resources, and the broader PD365 learning community throughout the year. And third, our flagship event, Pump Up Primary, returns this spring. Pump Up Primary: The 46th Annual Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd Grade Conference will take place March 3–5, 2027, in Schaumburg, Illinois. While I can’t announce the full lineup just yet, 7
Director's Letter (cont.) I can share that two legendary names in early childhood and primary education—Jack Hartmann and Dr. Jean Feldman—will be joining us! Registration is scheduled to open in October. That’s only the start! Throughout the year, PD365 will offer professional learning opportunities featuring nationally recognized educators and authors, including George Couros, Jim Knight, Meghan Hargrave, Kristina Smekens, Carl Hooker, Dr. Ross Greene, Tim Rasinski, Jennifer Serravallo, and many others. There is a lot ahead, and we hope to challenge your thinking and reconnect you with the joy of learning. Welcoming New Leaders and Giving Thanks A new year also brings new voices and new leadership, and I’m excited to welcome two new members to the PD365 Board of Directors. Ami Engel joins our leadership team as Program Development Co-Chair. We look forward to her perspective and leadership as we continue developing professional learning opportunities that are responsive to the changing needs of Illinois educators. I’m also pleased to welcome Jayme Bajer, our new Area 4 Representative. Our Area Representatives provide an important connection between PD365 and educators throughout Illinois, and we’re excited to have Jayme join the Board and bring her perspective to our work. As we welcome new leaders, we also want to recognize two longtime members of our Board of Directors who recently concluded their service with PD365. Terry Mootz and Brenda Mendoza have both given generously of their time, expertise, and leadership to our organization. Their contributions have helped shape our work and strengthen our commitment to serving educators throughout Illinois. We are grateful for their years of service and wish them all the best in the chapters ahead. This new school year also begins with a sense of loss. Over the past year, we said goodbye to three longtime members of our Pump Up Primary Committee: Ruth Comier, Marilyn Blank, and Carol Owles. 8
Each gave generously of her time, energy, and talents to Pump Up Primary and to the educators we serve. Their contributions over the decades helped shape the conference into the special community it is today. Here’s to the Year Ahead As you begin this school year, I hope you remember to invest in yourself, too. Educators spend an extraordinary amount of time helping others learn, grow, and succeed. But your own learning and professional growth matter, too. And perhaps that brings us back to the thought that started this article. A new school year can feel overwhelming. There are new students to know, new initiatives to implement, and countless demands competing for your attention. You don’t have to tackle everything at once. Just get started. Thank you for the work you do every day for students, colleagues, families, and communities across Illinois. We are grateful for the opportunity to support your vital work. Cheers to a successful 2026–27 school year! Ryan Nevius PD365 Executive Director
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Whole Child Challenge Without Depletion: Moving Student Wellness From Self-Care to Schoolwide Responsibility Israel Espinosa Author’s note: Before sharing these experiences, I discussed the article’s purpose with my children and received their permission to include these reflections from our everyday conversations.
One evening, I asked my daughter about completing her chores. Her response initially sounded like something many parents have heard: an attempt to delay one more responsibility at the end of a long day. But as I listened, I realized that she was trying to tell me something more. She described the heaviness of her week and the exhaustion she felt when she came home. School was followed by homework, sports, band, household responsibilities, and preparation to begin again the next morning. She was doing well academically and participating successfully in the activities she had chosen. From the outside, she appeared to be thriving. Yet that success was coming at a cost. My son has described a similar experience as working two shifts. The first shift takes place at school. The second begins when he comes home and turns to homework and everything else awaiting him. There is no clear stopping point. Their experiences have caused me to consider how easily adults can interpret exhaustion as avoidance, particularly when a young person continues to perform well. 10
assume continued well-being. For some students, however, maintaining performance requires more energy than anyone around them realizes.
These conversations have not led me to believe children should be free from chores, homework, difficult experiences, or everyday responsibilities. Challenge is an important part of growth. They have, however, led me to ask whether we are helping students develop resilience or teaching them that resilience means functioning without limits. When young people are already overwhelmed, even self-care can begin to feel like another assignment.
Educational researchers commonly describe student burnout through exhaustion, detachment or cynicism toward school, and a diminished sense of academic efficacy (Madigan & Curran, 2021). In two studies of students at a U.S. university, burnout was associated with lower grade point averages and diminished cognitive functioning (May et al., 2015). Those findings challenge a comforting assumption: A student does not have to fail before burnout deserves our attention.
The Students Who Appear to Be Doing Well Burnout does not always announce itself through failing grades, absences, or obvious behavioral changes. In my professional work, I have encountered students who were meeting expectations but seemed increasingly disconnected. They did not always have the words to explain what was happening. After trust developed, some described exhaustion, the feeling of being overwhelmed by everything they were trying to hold together, and a growing fear of what might happen if they fell out of their carefully maintained system.
Burnout Is Not a Failure of Resilience Resilience is sometimes discussed as if it were a reserve students either possess or lack. We praise the young person who keeps going and worry about the one who cannot. Yet students do not enter school with equal resources, equal support, or equal freedom from responsibilities outside the classroom. Some are balancing caregiving, employment, health concerns, financial pressures, discrimination, language transitions, or learning differences that may not be visible to others.
This matters because the very behaviors adults often use to judge student wellness can conceal distress. The assignment is submitted. The grade remains high. The student arrives at practice or rehearsal. We see continued performance and
Resilience is not the capacity to absorb unlimited demands without 11
Whole Child (cont.) consequence. It develops through relationships, opportunities to recover, meaningful choices, attainable challenges, and experiences of asking for help without being diminished. Research based on self-determination theory similarly emphasizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in sustaining motivation and well-being (Ryan & Deci, 2020). These are not simply qualities located within a student. They are also conditions that classrooms and schools can either support or frustrate.
learn (Darling-Hammond et al., 2020). The lesson for educators is not that challenge should disappear. It is that challenge without adequate resources becomes depleting. When Resilience Becomes Another Assignment Schools increasingly recognize the importance of wellness. Students may be encouraged to practice mindfulness, organize their schedules, exercise, sleep more, limit screen time, use breathing strategies, ask for help, and maintain balance. Each suggestion may be worthwhile. Together, however,
The balance between demands and resources offers another useful way to
When every response to burnout asks the student to do something more, wellness itself can become another source of pressure. understand what students experience. Research with high-achieving U.S. high school students found that students in an International Baccalaureate program reported significantly more stress than their general education peers and that the ways they coped were related to their mental health (Suldo et al., 2008). A broader U.S. synthesis of learning and development research likewise emphasizes that relationships, environments, and developmental supports shape students' capacity to
they can communicate an unintended message: Remaining well is the student's responsibility, even when the surrounding conditions leave little room for wellness. When every response to burnout asks the student to do something more, wellness itself can become another source of pressure. A student who cannot sustain a new self-care routine may conclude that this is one more area in which they are falling short. We should teach 12
Sleep illustrates the problem clearly. We can tell adolescents to improve their sleep habits, but school schedules, homework, extracurricular activities, employment, and early start times also shape their opportunities to sleep. The American Academy of Pediatrics identified insufficient adolescent sleep as a public health concern and specifically noted that early start times and excessive demands on students' time require systemic attention alongside personal responsibility (Adolescent Sleep Working Group et al., 2014). Advice is most credible when the environment makes it possible to follow.
coping skills, but we must also ask what students are being asked to cope with and whether any of those conditions can be changed. Research from U.S. college-preparatory schools helps make the cumulative cost visible. Students have reported high levels of stress, chronic sleep deprivation, and other unhealthy responses in academically demanding environments (Feld & Shusterman, 2015). In another study of students attending highperforming U.S. high schools, greater homework time was associated with more academic stress, physical health concerns, and less balance in students' lives (Galloway et al., 2013). These findings do not suggest that students should never work hard. They suggest that schools should examine when the total load ceases to support learning.
A Whole Child Lens The Whole Child approach provides a practical framework for moving from isolated wellness activities to a culture of wellness. ASCD calls schools to consider whether each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged, shifting the definition of success beyond academic achievement alone (ASCD, n.d.). The power of this framework lies in the relationship among the five tenets. A student should not have to surrender health in order to be challenged, feel unsafe in order to demonstrate independence, or become depleted in order to prove engagement. Table 1 on the following page applies the five tenets to questions leaders can use when examining student burnout.
Individual skill building and schoolwide change should work together. The American Psychological Association (2024) encourages schools to integrate mental health promotion with academic success through supportive environments, early identification, and access to appropriate services. Coping strategies matter, but they are most effective when students do not have to use them alone or against preventable institutional pressures. 13
Whole Child (cont.) Table 1 Table 1 Whole Child Questions for Preventing Student Depletion Whole Child Questions for Preventing Student Depletion Tenet Tenet
A question for preventing depletion A question for preventing depletion
Healthy Healthy
Do our schedules, workloads, and routines protect students' Do our schedules, workloads, and routines protect students' physical and psychological need for rest and recovery? physical and psychological need for rest and recovery?
Safe Safe
Can students express frustration, make mistakes, or ask for Can students express frustration, make mistakes, or ask for help without shame or fear of being dismissed? help without shame or fear of being dismissed?
Engaged Engaged
Do students experience relevance, curiosity, purpose, and Do students experience relevance, curiosity, purpose, and meaningful opportunities for choice? meaningful opportunities for choice?
Supported Supported
Does every student have access to a dependable adult who Does every student have access to a dependable adult who notices changes and follows up? notices changes and follows up?
Challenged Challenged
Are expectations rigorous, attainable, equitable, and Are expectations rigorous, attainable, equitable, and matched with the resources students need to grow? matched with the resources students need to grow?
Note. The questions are the author's application of ASCD's (n.d.) Whole Child tenets to student burnout prevention. Note. The questions are the author's application of ASCD's (n.d.) Whole Child tenets to student burnout prevention.
Belonging deserves particular attention within this framework. Students are more likely to reveal Belongingdeserves deserves particular attention From Wellness Activities Belonging particular attention within this framework. Students are more likely to reveal difficulty when they believe an adult will listen without immediately judging, minimizing, or difficulty when they believe an adultare will listen without immediately judging, minimizing, or within this framework. Students to aPrevention Culture of Wellness redirecting them. The Centers for Disease Control and (2024) describes school redirecting The Centers forwhen Disease Control and Prevention (2024) describes more likelythem. toas reveal difficulty leaders do not need toschool eliminate connectedness the experience of being cared for,School supported, and valued by adults and peers, connectedness as adult the experience ofwithout being cared for,every supported, andofvalued by adults and peers, they believe an will listen source stress or create a pictureand identifies it as protective of students' mental health and well-being. Connection is not an and identifies itjudging, as protective of students' health and wellness well-being. Connection is not immediately minimizing, or Itmental program. They canan begin optional addition to academic learning. is one of perfect the resources that helps students remain optional addition to The academic learning. It is one of the resources that helps studentseveryday remain redirecting them. Centers for Disease by asking where the school's engaged when learning becomes difficult. engaged learning becomes Control when and Prevention (2024)difficult. describes practices align with its stated commitment From Wellness Activities to a Culture of Wellness schoolWellness connectedness astothe experience to student well-being. The following From Activities a Culture of Wellness of being careddo for, and valued School leaders notsupported, need to eliminate every source of stress create astarting picture-perfect actions areorrealistic points:wellness School leaders do not need to eliminate every source of stress or create a picture-perfect wellness by adultsThey and peers, andbyidentifies it as the school's everyday practices align with its stated program. can begin asking where program. They can begin by askinghealth whereand the school's everyday practices align withWhen its stated Listen before interpreting. protective oftostudents' mental commitment student well-being. The following actions are realistic starting points. commitment to student well-being. The following actions are describe realistic starting students being points. tired or well-being. Connection is not an optional Listen before interpreting. When students describe being tired or overwhelmed, adults can overwhelmed, adults can pause addition to academic learning. is one ofdescribe before interpreting. WhenItstudents being tired or overwhelmed, adultsbefore can Listen pause before labeling the response as avoidance, poor motivation, or weak time management. labeling the response as avoidance, poor the resources that helps students pause before labeling the response as remain avoidance, poor motivation, or weak time management. Listening does not remove expectations. It helps us understand what support or adjustment may or weak time management. engageddoes when learning difficult. Listening not remove becomes expectations. It helps usmotivation, understand what support or adjustment may be needed. be needed. 14
Listening does not remove expectations. It helps us understand what support or adjustment may be needed.
conversations can help identify students who appear successful but feel disconnected. The goal is not to make teachers therapists. It is to ensure that every student is known by someone who will notice and respond.
Examine cumulative demands. A homework assignment may appear
Schools can coordinate major deadlines, protect breaks, reconsider the routine use of weekends and holidays for large assignments, and examine whether schedules allow students to recover. reasonable when viewed by itself. The student's experience is the accumulation of assignments, tests, rehearsals, practices, household responsibilities, employment, and college preparation. Grade-level teams and departments can periodically map major demands across a typical week.
Teach resilience as a supported process. Students can learn to tolerate frustration, revise after mistakes, ask for assistance, and recognize when a strategy is no longer working. These capacities develop more readily in environments where mistakes are treated as part of learning and help seeking is understood as responsible rather than deficient.
Build recovery into the system. Schools can coordinate major deadlines, protect breaks, reconsider the routine use of weekends and holidays for large assignments, and examine whether schedules allow students to recover. Recovery is not the opposite of learning. It helps make sustained learning possible.
Make referrals relational and effective. Counseling, tutoring, disability support, and community services matter, but a referral should not become a handoff that ends the relationship. Schools should review whether resources are accessible, trusted, culturally responsive, and able to address the concerns students are actually bringing forward.
Make connection routine. Check-ins should not depend solely on a visible crisis. Advisory systems, relationship mapping, and brief individual
Design for student variability. Students differ in how they process information, 15
Whole Child (cont.) relationships, health, or sense of themselves along the way. The question before us is not simply whether students are resilient enough. It is whether we have created schools worthy of their resilience.
organize tasks, regulate attention, communicate distress, and recover from sustained effort. Flexible pathways, clear expectations, meaningful choices, and multiple forms of support can preserve rigor while reducing unnecessary barriers.
References
What Are We Teaching Students About Adulthood? My conversations with my children have also made me consider the model adults provide. Many adults struggle to step away from work, protect time for relationships, or rest without feeling guilty. When young people experience school as one shift and home as another, we may be preparing them for an adult culture in which work never truly ends. Our words may encourage balance while our systems teach continuous availability.
Adolescent Sleep Working Group, Committee on Adolescence, & Council on School Health. (2014). School start times for adolescents. Pediatrics, 134(3), 642–649. https:// doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-1697 American Psychological Association. (2024, August 6). Promoting mental health and academic success. https:// www.apa.org/education-career/ k12/promoting-mental-healthacademic-success
The goal is not to ensure that students never feel tired, disappointed, frustrated, or stretched. Meaningful growth requires effort, and learning will sometimes be difficult. Our responsibility is to ensure that challenge occurs within conditions that allow students to remain healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and capable of recovery.
ASCD. (n.d.). The Whole Child approach to education. https://www.ascd.org/ whole-child Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024, December 3). Enhance connectedness among students, staff, and families. https:// www.cdc.gov/mental-healthaction-guide/strategies/enhanceconnectedness.html
A successful school should not be measured by how much pressure its students can endure. It should be measured by how fully they can learn and grow without losing their curiosity,
Darling-Hammond, L., Flook, L., CookHarvey, C., Barron, B., & Osher, D. (2020). Implications for educational 16
practice of the science of learning and development. Applied Developmental Science, 24(2), 97–140. https://doi.or g/10.1080/10888691.2018.1537791
determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 61, Article 101860. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. cedpsych.2020.101860
Feld, L. D., & Shusterman, A. (2015). Into the pressure cooker: Student stress in college preparatory high schools. Journal of Adolescence, 41, 31–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. adolescence.2015.02.003
Suldo, S. M., Shaunessy, E., & Hardesty, R. (2008). Relationships among stress, coping, and mental health in high-achieving high school students. Psychology in the Schools, 45(4), 273–290. https://doi.org/10.1002/ pits.20300
Galloway, M., Conner, J., & Pope, D. (2013). Nonacademic effects of homework in privileged, highperforming high schools. The Journal of Experimental Education, 81(4), 490– 510. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220 973.2012.745469 Madigan, D. J., & Curran, T. (2021). Does burnout affect academic achievement? A meta-analysis of over 100,000 students. Educational Psychology Review, 33(2), 387–405. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648020-09533-1
Dr. Israel Espinosa is a humanistic leader and transformative educator dedicated to fostering academic excellence, equity, and integrity across higher education. As Chair of the Humanistic Psychology Department at Saybrook University, he brings decades of experience in mentoring doctoral students, developing interdisciplinary programs, and advancing inclusive pedagogical practices. His leadership is rooted in compassion, clarity, and a deep commitment to empowering learners to think critically, live authentically, and engage meaningfully with their communities. Contact Info: iespinosa@saybrook.edu
May, R. W., Bauer, K. N., & Fincham, F. D. (2015). School burnout: Diminished academic and cognitive performance. Learning and Individual Differences, 42, 126–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. lindif.2015.07.015 Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2020). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self17
Book Reviews Click the covers to view on Amazon.
Grading Visible Learners by Dave Nagel and Bruce Potter challenges educators to rethink traditional grading practices and focus more intentionally on what grades communicate about student learning. Nagel and Potter provide practical strategies for creating grading systems that are accurate, consistent, and aligned to clearly defined learning expectations. A strong connection throughout the book is the importance of teacher clarity, ensuring students understand what they are learning, what success looks like, and where they are in the learning progression. Grading Visible Learners provides a practical framework for schools looking to create meaningful and consistent grading practices that keep student learning and feedback at the forefront. Review by Jacquie Duginske, Ed. D. Chief Academic Officer, McHenry School District 15
The Standard: Winning Every Day at Your Highest Level by Ben Newman focuses on personal accountability, discipline, and consistently bringing your best effort each day. Newman challenges readers to establish a personal standard for how they work, lead, respond to adversity, and pursue their goals. The book emphasizes that success is not created by occasional extraordinary efforts, but by the daily choices and habits that become your standard. It encourages readers to take ownership of their results, eliminate excuses, stay focused on what they can control, and push through challenges. Key Takeaway: Your standard is the level of performance you consistently demand from yourself—not just when things are going well, but especially when they aren't. 18
For school leadership, this message translates well to setting high expectations, modeling consistency, holding yourself and others accountable, and creating a culture where excellence is practiced every day—not just when an evaluation, event, or crisis occurs. Review by Debbie Poffinbarger, Ph. D. Administrator, North Mac School District
From Empathy to Action: Empowering K-6 Students to Create Change Through Reading, Writing, and Research by Chris Hass, Katie Kelly, and Lester Laminack. This book still lingers in my thoughts, and I am sure it will have a profound impact on both my professional and personal life, and is a MUST-READ for educators who are advocating for the U.S. educational system to be reimagined. Unlike traditional curriculum and instruction, where students learn skills and strategies to pass a test or earn a grade—often presented as binary outcomes on a multiple-choice assessment in isolated content areas—this book walks readers through a process that is grounded in authentic, integrated, inquiry/project-based learning experiences: (1) develop empathy; (2) amplify awareness; (3) engage in meaningful discussion; (4) conduct critical research; and (5) take action. It supports educators through a process for purposeful learning geared toward a real audience, which means there is an increased level of rigor, higher expectations, and motivation is often intrinsic, leading to action. The learning experiences outlined in this book improve critical thinking skills, retention, and student agency. We can empower all students by affirming the fact that their voice matters. Review by Cindy Gerwin, Ed. D. Bridging Perspectives, LLC Educational Thought Partner. Innovator. Advocate
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Book Review (cont.) 6 Essentials: Playbook for Schools by Brian Prybil & Robert Thornell. provides a practical framework for school leaders to create stronger schools through intentional leadership, culture, relationships, and consistent practices. Thornell emphasizes that successful schools are built through clear expectations, strong relationships, staff alignment, and a shared commitment to student success. The playbook encourages leaders to focus on the essential practices that have the greatest impact, rather than becoming overwhelmed by the many demands placed on schools. It is designed to help educators move from ideas to specific, actionable strategies that can be implemented and sustained. Great schools don't happen by accident—they are built through intentional leadership, consistent practices, strong relationships, and a relentless focus on what matters most for students. This would pair particularly well with your work around school improvement, collective efficacy, school culture, and Tier I instruction. Review by Cassie Burgess, Ed.S. Assistant Superintendent of Schools, Herrin, IL
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On Your Mark: Challenging the Conventions of Grading and Reporting (2015) by Thomas R. Guskey. This book will not be popular. This book will touch some nerves. This book will be controversial. Traditional grading practices have remained largely unchanged since their onset in the 1940s. Educators, students, families, and society at large share a sense of familiarity with what an A, B, C, D, or F means. Despite limited research supporting many traditional grading practices, efforts to change them have proven difficult. In On Your Mark, Guskey challenges longstanding traditional practices such as percentages, bell-shaped curve distributions, class rank, and the use of a single grade. Instead, he presents research-based strategies for aligning grading practices in ways that more accurately reflect student learning and support student goal setting. This book has been especially helpful as our district transitions to a competencybased system. It has prompted us to think about the why behind our practices. Guskey provides a strong and persuasive argument for schools to take a hard look at the true purpose of grading. Review by Kristen Holly, Ed. D. Assistant Superintendent for Student Services Charleston Community School District #1, Charleston, IL
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Resource Corner
HOW COLLABORATION PROMOTES DEEPER LEARNING One teacher has found that focusing on both the individual and the group in lesson planning helps create a solid foundation for learning. READ MORE...
NURTURING INTRINSIC MOTIVATION IN STUDENTS Enabling students to experience accomplishments and improvement builds their feeling of competence—a powerful intrinsic motivator. READ MORE...
WHEN THE TEACHER-STUDENT RELATIONSHIP BREAKS DOWN These strategies will help teachers reset boundaries and repair relationships if classroom dynamics have become dysfunctional. READ MORE...
22 FUN WAYS TO SPARK CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS These engaging, low-stakes, and teacher-tested activities can help students quickly warm up to each other—and to you. READ MORE...
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BOUNCING BACK FROM EVERYDAY DISAPPOINTMENTS | CALM AND CONNECTED CLASSROOMS Everyday disappointments are a normal part of learning
and growing. Resilience isn’t something students are born with; it’s built through experience, practice, and supportive teaching.. WATCH THE VIDEO...
A KID'S GUIDE TO METACOGNITION
Click HERE to read more! 23
Resource Corner (cont.)
METACOGNITION AND YOUR STUDENTS Are your
students sometimes mystified by their grades, or perhaps lacking motivation to take ownership of their learning? WATCH THE VIDEO...
HOW TEACHERS CAN USE A COACHING APPROACH TO EMPOWER STUDENTS IN THE CLASSROOM Teachers can benefit from using coaching principles in
the classroom to increase engagement and empower students in their learning. READ MORE...
CO-CURRICULAR PROGRAMMING BENEFITS, ACTIVITIES & BEST PRACTICES When designed well, the
non-classroom activities your institutions engage students in on campus or online aren’t superfluous fun. They’re co-curricular programs, not extracurriculars. In other words, they complement the academic curriculum and directly increase student retention, wellness, and success. READ MORE... 24
EXTRACURRICULARS THAT WILL ACTUALLY GET YOU INTO YOUR DREAM SCHOOL
Advice from an admissions essay editor. WATCH THE VIDEO...
METACOGNITION IN THE CLASSROOM: MORE THAN THINKING ABOUT THINKING Metacognitive strategies foster self-regulation by allowing students to take control of their learning and adapt strategies as needed. READ MORE...
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Article Fueling the Fire of Success
Kathleen Meyer
Campfire at New River Gorge National Park & Reserve
What is Success? Success comes in many shapes and forms. What may be a success for one person may be a routine and everyday activity for another. Merriam-Webster defines “success” as a degree or measure of success or as a favorable or desired outcome (Merriam-Webster, 2026). Progress towards and successful accomplishments of something new are happening all day and all around each one of us. Sometimes we simply need the time to slow down and appreciate the growth of these components in our classrooms and schools. Encouraging and Nurturing Success Students are taking tests, and a lot of them. For students who have special needs or for students who are classified as English language learners, the number and the importance of those tests can be rather overwhelming for the students and for the teachers. Couple that with the regular stressors faced by students learning a variety of new topics and subject areas, and the whole scenario can be daunting. The goal through this process is to ignite a passion for learning for our students and not to extinguish their flames. When time is taken to celebrate the successes that students experience over the course of a day, small or large, there is a collective culture 26
of success igniting that starts to impact everyone in a building. Integrating the perceptions and feelings of students into the discussion of what creates a successful learning environment can provide insight into how to best support the students. Do the students feel like
The newness of a place or familiarity with a content area does wear off, and the daily struggles do emerge, just like a fire can struggle to stay lit when conditions are not right. For some students, the increasing number of challenges is easy enough to overcome.
How are students being reminded that they are capable and that they are valued members of the school community? As challenges arise, these small wins are just as important as the larger ones. For example, when given a set of challenging math problems, students who had some easier problems to build their confidence before working through the more difficult ones experienced greater motivation in attempting the more challenging problems because they already felt like they could do it (Tutt, 2025). The small accomplishment of solving easier problems successfully ignited the students to achieve greater results on problems that otherwise may have seemed unattainable.
they are known and seen during the school day, or do they feel like they are invisible? How are students being reminded that they are capable and that they are valued members of the school community? Most importantly, how can students see that they are growing, even when they feel like they are struggling? Now that the school year is underway, another group of sixth graders are working on navigating life as a junior high school student. For some students, something as seemingly simple as having access to a locker that they can independently open is one of their first tastes of junior high school independence and success. Finding a set of classrooms in an unfamiliar building and having to ask for help from people they often do not know yet allows students to grow and to find their place in the world, even if that world is just a larger building.
For some students, the scaffolds needed to get them to a point of success are an integral part of their learning experience. Some of the scaffolds a student may utilize include language scaffolds, cues to help them socially and emotionally, or simply an acknowledgement that they are making progress, even when they feel like 27
Fire of Success (cont.) things are too hard. Additionally, providing immediate feedback has shown benefit in increasing the feelings of success among students (Smith et al., 2026). Sometimes acknowledging the first step taken towards solving a challenging problem becomes the catalyst to keep going and do hard things.
• small extrinsic motivators (like stickers) • the opportunity to visit a preferred staff member to share positive news with them • recognition through building-wide programming Additionally, it is important to ask students to share how they want to be recognized for their successes, as some students want a big deal to be made where they are exuberantly verbally recognized, while other students prefer subtle and meaningful connections or objects to recognize their success without the pressures of their peers.
The day-to-day routine can be mundane, or it can be a mountain of challenges. As educators, it is important that we recognize that a basic task for one student may be a seemingly impossible barrier for another student. With the additional stressors of consistent progress monitoring and testing, we do not want to extinguish the flames of our students but allow them to experience growth and to feel success as they work towards improving their skills. Acknowledging achievements and success builds these students up and when students are built up, they can reach greater heights.
The Adults in the Room The pressures of ensuring that students are making adequate yearly progress are immense not only for the students, but for all the educators, including paraeducators, support staff, teachers, related service providers, and administrators, within a school. It is the nature of most educators to focus on the needs of others and to forget about themselves as the daily tasks become overwhelming obstacles. However, taking the time to identify how educators are promoting success continues to build a school culture of implementing and recognizing success. These acknowledgements can be a kind word, a quick email, or a handwritten card. When the culture of support is built for
Simple Ways to Encourage and Recognize Success There are many ways to promote opportunities for success among our students to ensure that they do not get burned out over the course of a school year. Some practical ways to acknowledge success in the moment and with the student include: • positive praise 28
When the culture of support is built for adults, it inevitably will positively impact the students. environment of a school and being among other educators from around the country can truly unpack the hidden successes that educators create for students each day that are seldom acknowledged during the school year. Educators who feel valued and supported can more easily infuse these attributes back into their school environments.
adults, it inevitably will positively impact the students. For teachers, the daily demands can feel like a raging inferno. There are options available for teachers to get their needs met and to feel like they are making a difference, no matter how small. Locally or in the digital world, there are often teacher support groups and professional educator organizations available to support educators. Even an informal network of colleagues who are there to celebrate one another can build the fire towards a network of positivity.
At the beginning or at the end of a day, it is important to ask yourself, what made today a success for a student and what made today a success for me? When you can build day after day on successes, this culture becomes an integrated, integral, and natural part of the learning environment.
There are also amazing programs like STEAMinthePARK that bring educators together in National Parks and focus not only on instructional strategies to bring back to the classroom to build students up, but practical strategies to ensure that the educators are also being cared for and to continue to provide the light to ignite their passion for teaching.
References Expeditions in Education. (2026). STEAMinthePARK. https://www. steaminthepark.net/
This program is built on more than just learning and promotes the building of a community that strengthens the passion for education, nature, and making a positive impact on the environment and on others (Expeditions in Education, 2026). Getting away from the daily
Merriam-Webster. (2026). MerriamWebster dictionary. https://www. merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ success Smith, H., Ottmar, E., Ngo, V., Closser, A. H., Yun-Chen Chan, J., Vanacore, 29
Fire of Success (cont.) K., & Sales, A. (2026). Math Problem Supports in an Authentic Classroom Context: Unpacking the Effect of Immediate Feedback and ReAttempts in Online Problem Sets on Middle School Students’ Math Achievement. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 19(2), 667– 692. https://doi.org/10.1080/19345 747.2025.2534377 Tutt, P. (2025). 13 ways to celebrate students’ small wins and build motivation. https://www.edutopia. org/article/celebrate-studentssmall-wins-and-build-motivation/ Kathleen Meyer is a sixth-grade mathematics co-teacher and eighth-grade special education resource teacher at Indian Trail Junior High School in Addison, Illinois. She has taught a wide range of
subjects, including STEM, language arts, math intervention, instructional math, instructional language arts, and co-taught math, language arts, science, and social science. Kathleen is a regular participant in the STEAMinthePARK program through Expeditions in Education. Kathleen earned her bachelor’s degree from Butler University, where she studied history, education, music, and geography. She completed a master’s degree in effective teaching with a concentration in special education at Butler University. She earned a second master’s degree in curriculum and instruction with a focus on supporting English language learners from Concordia University, along with becoming bilingually certified in Spanish. She is pursuing another degree through the American College of Education in curriculum and instruction.
Article Metacognition: The Hidden Learning Superpower
Sam Rhodes
Rita Della Valle
Kelly Reigle
Artice Appling
As teachers, we thought we were helping our students the best we could. We explicitly covered instructional standards, sought out effective instructional practices, gave high-quality feedback to our students, and ensured alignment between our curriculum, instruction, and assessments. Despite this, we felt like something was missing. Every new unit and standard was like starting all over from the beginning. Every class, we spent time reteaching previously covered skills and asking questions to help students break down complex problems or passages. But why was this the case? Why couldn’t our students take the skills they learned in one unit and apply them to other units? Why weren’t our students aware of whether they had mastered a concept? Why could they solve problems if we asked them the right questions but couldn’t ask themselves those same questions? We have since realized that the answer is metacognition. Metacognition is that internal voice we use to ask ourselves questions like “Did I understand the paragraph I just read?” or “Is the strategy I am using working?” Metacognition helps us regulate our thinking, self-assess our learning or comprehension, adapt our approaches, and become more effective and efficient learners. Metacognition is, in fact, a learning superpower. 31
Metacognition (cont.) in utilizing this superpower and in becoming more metacognitive.
Research has continually shown that metacognition plays a critical role in supporting students across grade levels, content, and ability. Explicitly teaching students to be metacognitive or embedding metacognitive prompts within assignments positively impacts reading comprehension (Ferdiyanto,
1. Metacognitive Modeling The first strategy is being explicit in modeling our internal thinking and selfquestioning to students. We realized that we often did this implicitly through
The first strategy is being explicit in modeling our internal thinking and self-questioning to students. 2024), academic writing (Teng, 2021), science achievement (Antonio & Prudente, 2022), math achievement (Lee et al., 2018), and even general elementary learning (Eberhart et al., 2024). Moreover, the effects of metacognitive training may be highest for special education students and for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds (Donker et al., 2014).
the questions we would ask the class (e.g., Would somebody tell me what strategies we could use to solve this problem?). Making our thinking explicit, however, helped our students realize that effective learners ask themselves questions and consciously consider and regulate their thinking as they learn. For example, when modeling a problem in math, a teacher might say, “I am realizing that I am having a hard time picturing what is happening in the problem in my head. So, I think I am going to try to draw a picture of it to help me better understand what is happening and to look for mathematical relationships I can use to solve the problem.” A reading teacher might pause and say “I know that effective readers periodically stop to reflect on their understanding of what they have read. So, I’m going to pause and try to summarize what I just
In addition, training students to be metacognitive can actually lead to stronger impacts over time (de Boer et al.,2018). In other words, rather than starting over every unit, students strengthen their abilities to think and learn, making them more equipped to take on subsequent challenges and become more resilient, self-regulated, and strategic. Given these benefits, we share five strategies to support your students 32
read and consider how this section connects to what I previously read and to what I already know.” In other words, by explicitly focusing student attention on how we thought through a problem or approached a task, we create opportunities for our students to take ownership of their reflective processes in future problems.
to collaboratively develop questions that are meaningful to the student and that are generally effective across a domain. For example, effective historians generally pause to reflect on questions such as “What have I learned from this source?” or “What biases might the source's author have that are important to consider here?” These questions can help us evaluate sources and balance evidence from multiple primary and secondary sources when seeking to understand or analyze historical events.
2. Question Generating Asking effective questions to ourselves is a key aspect of metacognition. One way to improve this skill is by having students generate a list of questions on a given task or topic. Students can then evaluate those questions to reflect on what information would be provided by answering the questions, how useful they are for the specific task at hand, and how they could reframe questions in order to understand a task, make connections between concepts, think through a strategy, or reflect on their learning processes. We have found that the Question Formulation Technique can be a powerful tool in teaching students to ask good questions to themselves while learning or problem-solving.
Although questions such as these are often commonly asked of students in the classroom, the key is to transfer the ownership of asking the questions to the students. Writing the questions on cards (A math example is shown in Figure A on the following page), or putting them on anchor charts (An example is shown in Figure B on the following page), can provide students with visual reminders and prompt them to self-question, rather than relying on the teacher to do the metacognitive thinking for them. 4. Goal Setting/ Self-Assessment Setting learning goals and reflecting on our progress toward those goals is an essential part of learning. It helps us focus our attention and thinking, and allocate cognitive resources as needed to master concepts. However, we are not always accurate in our self-assessments
3. Question Cards/ Anchor Charts When students are learning how to selfquestion, providing them with visual reminders of sample metacognitive questions can scaffold the process. Teachers and students can work together 33
Metacognition (cont.)
Figure A (above): Question Cards for Student Desks Figure B: Metacognitive Questions Anchor Chart
of our learning and may think we have mastered a skill only to flounder when we are put to the test. Thus, encourage students to set goals for themselves and for their community of learners. Then, have students selfassess their progress and completed work. This can be done as informal daily self-assessments or as more formal assessments by having students predict how well they will do on key learning objectives prior to taking a test. They can then compare their actual performance to predicted performance to become more accurate in their self-assessments of their learning over time. 5. Metacognitive Reflection Continually reflecting on our learning and our learning processes can help us make connections between concepts and ideas, can lead to more connected and holistic understanding, and can help us become more effective and efficient learners over time. This can be done through journaling, targeted writing prompts, or concept mapping. Sample journal prompts may be:
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References
• Pick one thing you learned today that you believe is important. Write a journal explaining what the concept is, how it connects to things you already knew, and why you believe it is an important concept to remember.
Antonio, R. P., & Prudente, M. S. (2022). Effectiveness of Metacognitive Instruction on Students' Science Learning Achievement: A MetaAnalysis. International Journal on Studies in Education (IJonSE), 4(1).
• Reflect on one challenge you encountered today. Write a journal about what the challenge was and how you overcame it. If you haven’t overcome the challenge yet, write about what strategies you plan to use to overcome the challenge and why you think those strategies will work.
De Boer, H., Donker, A. S., Kostons, D. D., & Van der Werf, G. P. (2018). Long-term effects of metacognitive strategy instruction on student academic performance: A metaanalysis. Educational Research Review, 24, 98-115.
Activities such as these promote the reflexive and reflective work of metacognition for students, leading to deeper learning and understanding.
Donker, A. S., De Boer, H., Kostons, D., Van Ewijk, C. D., & van der Werf, M. P. (2014). Effectiveness of learning strategy instruction on academic performance: A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 11, 1-26.
Conclusion Metacognition is a hidden superpower because it helps students become truly self-regulated learners who are able to monitor their thinking, adjust their strategies, and transfer ideas across standards and domains. We have found that explicitly teaching students to be metacognitive through these strategies leads to remarkable outcomes. We invite you to try them in your own classrooms!
Eberhart, J., Ingendahl, F., & Bryce, D. (2025). Are metacognition interventions in young children effective? Evidence from a series of meta-analyses. Metacognition and Learning, 20(1), 7. Ferdiyanto, F. (2024). The Role of Metacognitive Skills in Improving Reading Comprehension Among High School Students. J-Shelves of Indragiri (JSI), 6(2), 149-160.
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Metacognition (cont.) Lee, Y., Capraro, M. M., Capraro, R. M., & Bicer, A. (2018). A Meta-Analysis: Improvement of Students' Algebraic Reasoning through Metacognitive Training. International Education Studies, 11(10), 42-49.
chair, instructional coach, and classroom educator. She is passionate about educational equity. Kelly Reigle, Ed.D., currently serves as the K-12 Mathematics Coach within the Exceptional Children Department of Union County Public Schools, a large public school district in North Carolina. Kelly values education and lifelong learning. She believes that all students should have equitable access to high-level learning opportunities through inclusive learning environments. She believes that all teachers and students should experience the joy, connectedness, creativity, and wonder of learning.
Teng, M. F. (2021). The effectiveness of incorporating metacognitive prompts in collaborative writing on academic English writing skills. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 35(3), 659-673.
Sam Rhodes, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of mathematics education at Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Rhodes researches and speaks about developing problem-solving and metacognitive skills.
Artice Appling serves as the Middle School Mathematics Specialist for Henrico County Public Schools in Virginia. Artice is committed to creating learner-centered math classrooms that honor student thinking and position every student to justify their ideas, make connections, and reason through math.
Rita Della Valle works as a consultant for school districts to support student growth. She has previously served as a district leader for mathematics, department
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Dr. Emily Wassell is an award-winning educator and holistic college coach with more than 25 years of experience helping students thrive inside and outside the classroom. She holds a BAS, MAT, and PhD in Educational Leadership, Research, and Policy from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. A former teacher, principal, and visiting professor, Dr. Wassell is the founder of a global coaching practice that guides ambitious teens toward their dream colleges while prioritizing wellbeing, leadership, and long-term success.
Emily Wassell
Article Coaching the Whole Teen: A Holistic Response to the Adolescent Wellbeing Crisis
Adolescents today are facing unprecedented challenges. Academic pressure, mental health struggles, identity confusion, and social media stress are colliding during one of the most critical periods of development. Traditional school systems, with their focus on test scores and performance, often fail to address these interconnected issues. A holistic coaching approach—one that nurtures both academic and emotional growth—can offer the support teens truly need. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (2022), about 20% of U.S. adolescents experience a major depressive episode annually. The CDC (2023) reports that nearly half of teens feel persistently sad or hopeless. Despite being more digitally connected than ever, many teens report feeling isolated and anxious. Social media fuels unrealistic comparisons and curated identities, while academic competition fosters fear of failure and burnout (Twenge et al., 2019). High-achieving teens are especially vulnerable. Research by psychologist Suniya Luthar and colleagues (2012) shows that youth in affluent communities often experience high levels of stress, anxiety, and 38
Coaching that emphasizes “flow” and intrinsic motivation (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) can help students experience deeper engagement in school and extracurriculars. Coaching that emphasizes “flow” and intrinsic motivation (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) can help students experience deeper engagement in school and extracurriculars.
perfectionism. These teens may appear to be thriving, but beneath the surface, many are struggling with emotional exhaustion and a loss of purpose. Additional research by Leventhal and Brooks-Gunn (2000) confirms that both economic disadvantage and affluence can negatively impact adolescent mental health through different but equally harmful mechanisms.
Neuropsychiatrist Daniel Siegel (2013) emphasizes that adolescence is a time of great neuroplasticity—the brain is wired for exploration, risk-taking, and identity formation. Coaching aligned with this understanding can channel teen energy into productive self-discovery rather than self-sabotage. Moreover, this developmental window provides a unique opportunity for interventions that build long-lasting habits and character strengths (Steinberg, 2014).
A Proactive Solution A holistic coaching model offers a proactive solution. It integrates support for academics, social-emotional development, and identity formation. Rooted in positive psychology, adolescent brain science, and socialemotional learning (SEL), holistic coaching helps teens develop resilience, clarity, and confidence.
Social-emotional learning research reinforces the value of coaching. A major meta-analysis by Durlak et al. (2011) found that SEL programs significantly improve students’ academic performance and reduce emotional distress. Similarly, Jones et al. (2017) found strong evidence linking SEL skills with long-term outcomes, including career readiness and well-being. The Developmental Assets Framework, created by the Search
Positive psychology, pioneered by Martin Seligman and Ed Diener, focuses on cultivating strengths, optimism, and well-being rather than simply fixing problems (Seligman, 2011). When applied to teens, this approach empowers them to build on what’s working and envision a meaningful future. 39
Coaching the Whole Teen (cont.) Institute (2018), outlines 40 essential supports—such as adult relationships, positive identity, and personal responsibility—that teens need to thrive. Holistic coaching strengthens many of these assets by building personalized, consistent relationships that model emotional intelligence and agency.
Many teens today also struggle with negative self-talk and internalized pressure. Integrating tools like Positive Intelligence—a framework developed by Shirzad Chamine (2012)—can help them identify and weaken their inner critics ("saboteurs") while building mental fitness through mindfulness and positive framing.
Adolescents need non-parental mentors to help them navigate identity development, and coaching can fill that gap (Rhodes, 2002). A strong holistic coaching model includes:
Programs such as MindUP and the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence’s RULER program demonstrate how cognitive reframing and emotional literacy can measurably reduce stress and increase focus (Schonert-Reichl et al., 2015; Brackett et al., 2019).
• Academic alignment: Helping teens identify strengths, values, and career interests to support meaningful college and career decisions. • Emotional support: Teaching coping strategies, mindfulness, and stress management techniques.
Consider Ava, a high school junior with a 4.0 GPA who feels paralyzed by college decisions. She’s anxious, overwhelmed, and uncertain about what she wants to study. Weekly coaching sessions help her break down goals, explore her interests, and build coping strategies. She learns to shift from perfectionism to curiosity and from burnout to balance. Within months, her confidence grows, and she begins to envision a future aligned with her authentic self.
• Identity development: Creating space for teens to explore who they are becoming, beyond labels and expectations. • Relationship skills: Building communication and conflict resolution skills for family, school, and peer relationships. • Executive functioning support: Time management, goal-setting, and planning strategies to reduce overwhelm.
Holistic coaching is not therapy, but it’s deeply therapeutic. Coaches act 40
strategies to build digital literacy, set healthy boundaries with technology, and reclaim their attention for more nourishing offline pursuits.
as trusted adults outside the teen’s family or school system—someone who listens without judgment, asks powerful questions, and encourages self-reflection. This kind of support can be transformative (Van Nieuwerburgh, 2017). Adolescents need non-parental mentors to help them navigate identity development, and coaching can fill that gap (Rhodes, 2002).
To increase access to coaching: • Schools can partner with certified teen coaches for SEL initiatives and futureplanning support. • Parents can seek coaches who use evidence-based practices and are trained in adolescent development.
Technology Risks Emerging research increasingly highlights the role of technology, especially smartphones and social media, in the adolescent mental health crisis. Excessive screen time has been associated with increased rates of depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbances among teens (Keles et al., 2020). Social media platforms often expose youth to cyberbullying, unrealistic beauty standards, and a constant stream of curated content that can fuel comparison and insecurity. A study by the American Psychological Association (2023) found that adolescents who use social media more than three hours a day face twice the risk of experiencing poor mental health outcomes. Moreover, neuroscientific studies suggest that social media activates reward circuits in the adolescent brain, contributing to compulsive use and emotional dysregulation (Crone & Konijn, 2018). Holistic coaching provides teens with
• Policymakers and funders can invest in coaching models that prioritize underserved youth. Adolescents today don’t just need academic support—they need adults who understand the complexity of their world and can guide them through it. Holistic coaching meets teens where they are and helps them move forward with purpose, resilience, and hope. In a time of rising youth mental health concerns and declining connection, coaching the whole teen is not just helpful—it’s essential. References American Psychological Association. (2023). Health advisory on social media use in adolescence. https:// www.apa.org/news/press/ releases/2023/05/health-advisorysocial-media-use 41
Coaching the Whole Teen (cont.) functioning and public health: The relationship between kindergarten social competence and future wellness. American Journal of Public Health, 105(11), 2283–2290.
Brackett, M. A., Elbertson, N. A., & Rivers, S. E. (2019). Emotionally intelligent classrooms: A 10-year longitudinal study of the RULER approach to social and emotional learning. American Psychological Association.
Keles, B., McCrae, N., & Grealish, A. (2020). A systematic review: The influence of social media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 79–93.
CDC. (2023). Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report. https://www.cdc.gov/ healthyyouth/data/yrbs/index.htm Chamine, S. (2012). Positive intelligence: Why only 20% of teams and individuals achieve their true potential and how you can achieve yours. Greenleaf Book Group Press.
Leventhal, T., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2000). The neighborhoods they live in: The effects of neighborhood residence on child and adolescent outcomes. Psychological Bulletin, 126(2), 309.
Crone, E. A., & Konijn, E. A. (2018). Media use and brain development during adolescence. Nature Communications, 9(1), 588.
Luthar, S. S., & Becker, B. E. (2002). Privileged but pressured? A study of affluent youth. Child Development, 73(5), 1593–1610.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. Harper & Row.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2022). Major depression. https:// www.nimh.nih.gov/health/ statistics/major-depression
Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D., & Schellinger, K. B. (2011). The impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of schoolbased universal interventions. Child Development, 82(1), 405–432.
Rhodes, J. E. (2002). Stand by me: The risks and rewards of mentoring today's youth. Harvard University Press. Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Oberle, E., Lawlor, M. S., Abbott, D., Thomson, K., Oberlander, T. F., & Diamond,
Jones, D. E., Greenberg, M., & Crowley, M. (2017). Early social-emotional 42
A. (2015). Enhancing cognitive and social–emotional development through a simple-to-administer mindfulness-based school program for elementary school children: A randomized controlled trial. Developmental Psychology, 51(1), 52.
Twenge, J. M., Spitzberg, B. H., & Campbell, W. K. (2019). Less in-person social interaction with peers among US adolescents in the 21st century and links to loneliness. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 36(6), 1892–1913.
Search Institute. (2018). Developmental assets: A profile of your youth. https:// www.search-institute.org/ourresearch/development-assets/
Van Nieuwerburgh, Christian. Introduction to Coaching Skills: A Practical Guide. Sage Publications, 2025. Dr. Emily Wassell has spent over 20 years teaching and leading in education across multiple countries. She holds a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) and a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership. After teaching at the college level, she went on to design and found a school dedicated to leadership and student well-being. Today, she works as a teen academic and college coach, helping students build confidence, balance, and clarity as they prepare for college and life beyond.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press. Siegel, D. J. (2013). Brainstorm: The power and purpose of the teenage brain. TarcherPerigee. Steinberg, L. (2014). Age of opportunity: Lessons from the new science of adolescence. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
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Article Boldly Dreaming & Passionately Cultivating Change
Cindy Gerwin
Boldly dreaming means being a changemaker, which is a mindset. It is someone who imagines a better reality and then leads by collaborating to achieve that new reality within a community. Changemaking is civic literacy in action. As an educator, we can give every student the gift of passionately cultivating change. There are four changemaking qualities that all students can learn— empathy, teamwork, leadership, and changemaking (action) (First Book, 2026). As teachers, we can develop agency in our students, empowering them to find and use their voices. My endeavor to explore the effectiveness of inquirybased passion projects to grow the qualities and habits necessary to become a changemaker began with five professional books. These books compelled me to dream boldly and provided the inspiration and information necessary for me to be a little rebellious by making some minor adjustments to the scope and sequence, curriculum resources, and schedule. • Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Gholdy Muhammad—the five pursuits: (1) identity, (2) skills, (3) intellectualism/knowledge building, (4) criticality, and (5) joy 44
• Engaging Children: Igniting a Drive for Deeper Learning K-8 by Ellin Oliver Keene—defining compliance, participation, motivation, and engagement, which is compromised of the four pillars: intellectual urgency, emotional resonance, perspective bending, and the aesthetic world
planning. The framework, planning tools, and models can be found on the website under “Time For Change: Dream, Act, Change the World,” sponsored by First Book, Audemars Piguet Foundation, Ashoka, and Teach for All. After digesting the concepts presented in these professional books, I began to explore the elements of projectbased inquiry by beginning with passion projects. I used the scheduled 30-minute intervention block and worked with specialists to incorporate the projects within the interventions. Students could also work on their project if they completed classroom assignments early.
• Project Based Teaching: How to Create Rigorous and Engaging Learning Experiences by Suzie Boss with John Larmer—the seven essential project design elements and teaching practices • Project-Based Writing: Teaching Writers to Manage Time and Clarify Purpose by Liz Prather—project-based writing: a seven step framework: (1) discovering, (2) framing, (3) planning, (4) doing, (5) reframing, (6) finalizing, and (7) revealing.
Student Passion Projects During the week, a small portion of our literacy block was used to highlight specific instruction connected to the projects. Using a combination of the various frameworks, practices, and processes from my reading, kids began researching topics of particular interest to them with the goal of sharing what they learned during a “Celebration of Learning” event held in our classroom. The event, which included peers, administrators, family, friends, and various community members, provided purpose, urgency, and an authentic audience—elevating the level of thinking, learning, and outcomes.
• From Empathy to Action: Empowering K-6 Students to Create Change Through Reading, Writing, and Research by Chris Hass, Katie Kelly and Lester Laminack—changemaking process: (a) developing perspectives and empathy, (b) creating awareness of community (issues), (c) engaging in research and discussion, and (d) acting The First Book website was another great resource that bolstered my 45
Cultivating Change (cont.) instructional/learning experiences that expanded the research process and included the following steps.
For example, several students chose passion projects to create their own businesses. The district’s Director of Public Relations came to the classroom to teach the kids how to generate a business plan beginning with naming their business and creating a tagline that supported their business’s mission, goals, and marketing plan. One student utilized what she learned through this process the next year to run for class president. Admittedly, the first year was a little overwhelming because every student worked on a different passion project. For both my sanity and to improve learning outcomes, I quickly learned it was better to have kids work in teams, which also supported collaboration skills.
First, we began by utilizing picture book read-alouds to engage in meaningful discussions, building empathy. We also used the picture books to articulate, define, and compare key vocabulary terms like debate, advocacy, activism, and more. These are just a few of my favorite picture books that sparked our conversations: • Caring written by Kobi Yamada and illustrated by Elise Hurst • Noticing written by Kobi Yamada and illustrated by Elise Hurst • Trying written by Kobi Yamada and illustrated by Elise Hurst
The next year, students completed inquiry-based passion projects in the fall. In the spring, during our final literacy unit, “Argument and Advocacy” (which includes debates), the processes and skills learned during those fall projects were applied to showcase inquiry-based advocacy projects that were presented at the local village hall in front of a mock village council, which included nine representatives—classmates, parents, administrators, and village representatives—critiquing and scoring their projects.
• One Small Spark: A Tikkun Olam Story written by Ruth Spiro and illustrated by Victoria Tentler-Krylov • No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History edited by Metcalf, Dawson, & Bradley and illustrated by Bradley • Say Something written and illustrated by Peter Reynolds After introducing the concept of advocacy and strengthening the idea that they are never too young to start using their voice, we explored various “texts” amplifying awareness of what
Expanding the Research Process The advocacy projects entailed 46
They were surprised to find that a menu item our class did not like was actually popular throughout the rest of the
was happening within our school and in the surrounding community. As students compared our community’s
As students compared our community’s culture to their values, kids were asked to brainstorm possible changes they believed would improve our community. school. The playground and sporting fields team surveyed all the students in grades 2-5. Data gathered supported the playground additions they thought kids would enjoy. Additionally, they incorporated an idea from a third grader to construct a shelter with picnic tables next to the playground area.
culture to their values, kids were asked to brainstorm possible changes they believed would improve our community. We collected every idea and then voted to narrow our list to ten. Next, each student selected the top three ideas of importance to them, and teams were formed. Six teams prioritized the following: (1) changing the school’s breakfast and lunch menus, (2) adding more items to the menu for variety, (3) enhancing the playground and fields for sports, (4) embedding field trips in the curriculum across the district, (5) improving traffic safety during arrival and dismissal, and (6) creating a more inclusive community (diverse staff and curricula).
Another team believed every class should be able to go on a field trip. They interviewed teachers and researched local points of interest connected with various curriculum units. To make it easier for teachers, more cost-effective, and ensure consistency across the district, they curated a list of field trips for the district staff to manage. The fifth team collected data on traffic infractions during arrival and dismissal, putting together a plan that included a budget to reduce the number of violations and improve safety. Lastly, team six interviewed the Deputy Superintendent of Human Resources asking pointed questions about why the demographic
Teams used the processes presented earlier in the year to plan for building background knowledge, conducting research, and determining how to best present their proposals for change. The first two teams utilized ordering data for the year obtained from the Food and Nutrition Services department. 47
Cultivating Change (cont.) throughout the school. The most viable projects could be brought for a community vote, then implemented. Perhaps an annual community-wide fundraising event could be organized to raise money for the projects.
of the staff did not match the student demographic and asking what was being done to change that dynamic. I must confess, I was awestruck by what these students observed, and the tenacity with which they asked pointed questions challenging the status quo during their research. I was inspired by the innovative solutions in their imagination. I was encouraged by witnessing kids who selfproclaimed “not being good at math”
Community Collaboration Finally, leading through collaboration within a community is an integral part of inquiry-based projects with an eye on change. Classrooms do not need
That is truly empowering work that leads to a strong sense of agency, deeper, more powerful learning, and better communities. to be bound by the four walls of a school; ideally, students can spend time in the community learning and shaping the culture. When students cannot go out into the community, then the community can be invited into the classrooms to share in this work. These projects, and the changemakers who imagined and researched them, would receive more than temporary recognition through grades—they would bear witness to the legacy of the change they imagined. That is truly empowering work that leads to a strong sense of agency, deeper, more powerful learning, and better communities.
demonstrating numeracy skills, including the ability to analyze data and calculate complex budgets. Create a Changemaking Culture Schools can create a culture where every student and staff member can learn the process of changemaking and be given the opportunity to develop the skills and grow the habits of a changemaker until it becomes a mindset. Creating a changemaking culture would involve incorporating inquiry-based projects into the curriculum and the corresponding professional development—at all grade levels. A system could be set up for presentations of the advocacy projects— from classroom to grade levels, then 48
Reynolds, P. (2019). Say Something. Scholastic.
References Boss, S. & Larmer, J. (2018). Project Based Teaching: How to Create Rigorous and Engaging Learning Experiences. ASCD.
Spiro, R. (2024). One Small Spark: A Tikkun Olam Story. Dial Books.
Hass, C., Kelly, K., & Laminack, L. (2026). From Empathy to Action: Empowering K-6 Students to Create Change Through Reading, Writing, and Research. Routledge.
Time For Change: Dream, Act, Change the World. (2026). Retrieved from the First Book website https://firstbook. org/us/marketplace/time-forchange
Keene, E.O. (2018). Engaging Children: Igniting a Drive for Deeper Learning K-8. Heinemann.
Yamada, K. (2025). Caring. Compendium. Yamada, K. (2023). Noticing. Compendium.
Metcalf, L., Dawson, K., & Bradley, J. (2020). No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History. Charlesbridge.
Yamada, K. (2021). Trying. Compendium. Dr. Cindy Gerwin is passionate about building equitable and inclusive literacy communities full of curious, joyful learners. She shares her passion for lifelong learning by creating authentic literacy experiences and by designing professional development workshops that build upon current research and theory to provide practical, realistic applications in today’s classrooms.
Muhammad, G. (2020). Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. Scholastic. Prather, L. (2017). Project-Based Writing: Teaching Writers to Manage Time and Clarify Purpose. Heinemann.
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Article They Were Always Capable: What Happens When We Stop Sorting Students?
Stacey Gorman
Andrew Hirshman
No one had ever told Lucía she was an honors student. So, when a teacher recommended her for an honors course during a freshman parent-teacher conference, both Lucía and her mother were stunned. The student looked shocked, and her mother started to cry. She said no teacher had ever recommended her daughter for an honors class. Lucía went on to succeed in seven honors and AP courses before graduation. She was always capable of high-level work. Traditional gatekeeping had simply kept her from accessing those opportunities. Her story reflects what we have learned through several years of detracking. Expanding access can change students’
Our advanced level and honors classes did not reflect the diversity of our student population. academic pathways. Sustaining that access requires us to rethink what rigor, support, and opportunity look like in the classroom. The Challenge and Our Solution At Mundelein High School, where over half of our students are students of color, experiences like this forced us to re-examine our practices. Our advanced 50
level and honors classes did not reflect the diversity of our student population. These classrooms did not look like our hallways. We therefore understood detracking not simply as changing course placement, but as interrupting
Our first year of Earned Honors showed what could happen when more students were given access to honors-level work. We started the model in World Studies, our required freshman social studies course. The percentage of students of
This shifts access to honors from how students are placed before they walk through the doors of the high school to what they demonstrate once they are here. color earning honors credit more than doubled. Students who may not have been identified for honors under our previous placement system now had the opportunity to demonstrate advanced academic performance. These results gave us the confidence to expand Earned Honors to freshman Biology and English 1.
trajectories established earlier in students’ educational careers. We had to ask ourselves a fundamental question: Who are we leaving out, and how often are our own systems the reason they never get in? Our solution to this challenge was to detrack ninth-grade English, science, and social studies through an Earned Honors model. Instead of using placement tests to separate students into honors and core-level courses, all students learn together in the same classroom. Every student has the opportunity to earn honors credit by demonstrating above-grade-level academic performance. This shifts access to honors from how students are placed before they walk through the doors of the high school to what they demonstrate once they are here.
Opening Doors Earned Honors did more than increase the number of ninth-grade students receiving honors credit. It opened the door to advanced coursework for students who may not have previously seen themselves on that path. In English, 54 percent of students who earned honors credit would not have been placed in honors under our old tracking system. Of those students, 90 percent enrolled in Honors English 2, where 82 percent earned an A or B. We saw a similar pattern in science. Ninety 51
Stop Sorting (cont.) more than tripled during the same period, and 96 percent of students who took these courses received college credit on their local community college transcript. Expanding access did not
percent of students who earned honors in Biology enrolled in Honors or AP Chemistry the following year, and 94 percent earned an A, B, or C. For many students, earning honors credit freshman
…detracking changed the way students saw their own academic potential. lower our standards. It proved how capable our students are.
year changed what they believed was possible. More students chose to enroll in advanced courses and demonstrated that they could be successful.
What We Learned The quantitative outcomes only tell part of the story. We also conducted a series of interviews with Professional Learning Community leaders, classroom teachers, and administrators who served in departmental, school, and districtlevel roles during implementation. One of the most important outcomes we heard was how detracking changed the way students saw their own academic
Between 2021 and 2026, we significantly expanded access to advanced coursework while student outcomes also improved. As AP enrollment and the number of exams taken increased, our AP pass rate rose from 66 percent to 90 percent, with 90 percent of students earning scores that could qualify for college credit. Dual Credit enrollment
Historical Advanced Placement Exam Scores 2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
Total AP Students
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479
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Number of Exams
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1,289
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AP Students with scores 3+
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341
382
451
507
542
% of Total AP Students with Scores of 3+
66%
78%
80%
83%
85%
90%
What We Learned
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rigor; that’s time on task.” Across the interviews, rigor was described in terms of deeper thinking, things such as making connections, applying knowledge in new contexts, synthesizing ideas, and constructing meaning. The process gave teams valuable time to examine and define what rigor meant in their courses. One department administrator explained, “Your ability to think and apply is where we set the bar.” A PLC leader from the same course similarly described rigor as “what can they actually do” rather than what they can memorize. These conversations became central to implementing Earned Honors. As teams developed common expectations for honors credit, they had to define what rigor looked like in their discipline and how students could demonstrate it. The interviews showed that teams did not always agree, but the process pushed teachers to examine their beliefs about rigor and clarify what advanced academic performance should look like.
potential. One PLC leader said, “Let’s stop telling kids who they are or what they should be,” implying we should let them tell us what they are capable of through their performance. Removing the ninth-grade “ability tracks” for the core courses we learned created opportunities for students to experience high academic expectations, rigorous coursework, and classmates that had previously been out of reach. One educator observed, “our classrooms began to look like our hallways” rather than separating students into groups reflecting assumptions made about their ability years before. Educators recalled students changing judgments about themselves. One teacher remembered a student who had previously not found success in school but was now thriving in the detracked course and said, “Wait a minute, I am just as smart.” Students developed new beliefs about what they and their classmates could achieve. We learned that expanding access required educators to reconsider what “rigor” had traditionally meant. Teachers and administrators distinguished intellectually demanding work from more traditional definitions of honors courses, such as faster pacing, heavier workloads, more content, or simply knowing how to play the game of school. One educator stated that just assigning more reading, quizzes, or writing “isn’t necessarily
Creating multiple pathways to success in differentiated classrooms required purposeful supports. Educators described using flexible grouping, collaborative learning, responsive scaffolding, and co-teaching to support students with different needs. They also emphasized designing curriculum with multiple entry points so that all students could engage with rigorous content. One teacher said 53
Stop Sorting (cont.) the goal was for “every kid, regardless of their background, to have an entry lane into our content.” Another teacher
who are engaged in similar work. While each district implements strategies differently based on its students and
...teachers have to consistently work to deliberately create opportunities for students with different academic histories to learn with and from each other. cautioned, however, that detracked classrooms alone did not produce belonging. We learned that teachers have to consistently work to deliberately create opportunities for students with different academic histories to learn with and from each other. We learned that detracking cannot be reduced to simply eliminating course levels. It also requires changes to curriculum, instruction, assessment, and the supports we provide teachers and students.
community, sharing lessons learned and new ideas has been invaluable. Districts learn from one another about course structures, instructional practices, professional learning, and challenges that emerge along the way. We also wrestle with common questions about maintaining rigor, supporting teachers, and measuring whether these changes are creating greater opportunities for students. There is no single blueprint for this work, but we have learned the value of not doing it alone.
Collaboration and Commitment The de-leveling and de-tracking work has also sparked new collaboration opportunities for our district. Supported by the Illinois Education Association Opportunity Coalition and funded through the National Education Association’s Community and Partnership Engagement Center, Bridges of Opportunity is a multi-district collaborative that brings together educators from more than 20 districts, serving approximately 200,000 students,
The Work Continues For Mundelein District #120, the work remains unfinished. Participants described team disagreements about what constitutes rigor, uneven implementation practices, ongoing needs for staffing and other professional supports, and the ever-present danger that fixed “high” and “low” groups can reappear inside formally detracked classrooms. We do not take these tensions as evidence that the detracking 54
Stacey Gorman is the Assistant Principal of Teaching and Learning at Mundelein High School in suburban Chicago. She co-led the launch of the school’s earned honors model and continues to support its implementation across departments. Stacey co-leads the Bridges of Opportunity cohort, a multi-district collaboration focused on equitable academic pathways.
and deleveling work has failed. Instead, they reveal the ongoing opportunities for organizational growth. As one educator reflected after several years of implementation, “it is continual work.” Detracking can open the door to opportunity, but sustaining that opportunity requires educators and leaders to continually examine what rigorous, inclusive learning looks like in practice. The goal is not to make the path easier, but to make sure more students have a path to get there. Simply raising the bar is not enough. We must create a pathway for students to reach it.
Andrew Hirshman is a Social Studies Teacher at Mundelein High School in Mundelein, IL. He serves as the Director of the IL Education Association’s Opportunity Coalition. Andrew was among the first to implement the earned honors model, leading the shift to a unified freshman course. He also co-founded Bridges of Opportunity, a multi-district collaboration advancing equity through detracking.
If your district is interested in joining the Bridges of Opportunity coalition, please contact Andy Hirshman (ahirshman@ d120.org) and Stacey Gorman (sgorman@d120.org). The authors used generative AI for brainstorming, editing, organizing data, and summarizing interview responses. The authors reviewed the original interview data and developed the ideas, interpretations, and conclusions presented in the article.
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Article Robust Extra-Curricular Programming Fosters Students’ Sense of Belonging
Erin Roche
My eyebrows shot up. “You’re going to accept all the applicants for cast and crew?! Without cuts, you could get more than 50!” In our little school of 480 Kindergarten8th graders, that would be more than 1 in 10 students involved in the play. Ms Hazelip, veteran 1st grade teacher and annual play co-director, nodded confidently and beamed, “There were 57 who tried out for roles or signed up for crew. We accepted them all. I’m posting the list this afternoon.” Her enthusiasm was infectious and I grinned, “Congratulations! This is wonderful for our 4th-8th graders. What an experience you’re creating with them!” “The play is called “The Day the Internet Died” she announced. “The Drama Club officers selected it last month and we ordered scripts.” She winked, “Can you imagine our students living without the internet?” With co-director Ms. Styka and Crew Director Mr. Occhipinti, as well as her twelve years of experience and expertise in directing plays, Ms. Hazelip could handle the organization, communication, rehearsals, props, tickets, stress, and the hundreds of details. The annual play was 56
parents witnessed their daughters’ selfassurance, team cohesion, and public performance grow, thanks to Ms. Farley and this after-school program.
a sought-after, fun, social experience for so many of our very diverse students. It provided a unique social entry to students with Individualized Education Programs and English Learners. From showboats to introverts, everyone had a place in the play.
Connecting extra-curricular activities with a supportive environment Extra-curriculars provide a significant opportunity for teachers and staff to further cultivate a Supportive Environment, which is one of the 5 Essentials to school improvement, according to the Consortium on Chicago School Research. Over 25 years of research shows that schools strong in three of the five essentials are ten times more likely to improve than schools that are weak in three of the Essentials (Bryk, 2010). One of the 5 Essentials, Supportive Environment, comprises three specific constructs: student-teacher trust, peer support, and student sense of school safety. The researchers further define each of these constructs into subareas, which can be actualized by robust before and after-school programs.
Ms. Hazelip’s Drama Club exemplifies the robust, fun, engaging, and varied before and after-school programs that can transform students’ sense of belonging and school community. When Anita (student names are all pseudonyms) read that she got the lead and Ahmed saw that he would be in charge of the sound system, both students felt their importance to the play’s success. They felt needed and wanted. With a no-cuts policy in place for 5-8th grade sports across the district, all students know they are welcome. Last year, over 40 girls joined the 5-8th grade Cheer Teams. With caring coaches such as Ms. Farley, the teammates bonded as they worked on routines in afterschool practices and informally at recess. Some 8th grade girls took 7th graders under their wings to help with timing, confidence, and physical stance.
Student-teacher trust matters in before and after-school programs • Mutual respect: Drama Club, Mathletes, Future Problem Solvers, and girls soccer all provide ways for students to see caring adults who want more for them in non-evaluative, elective, fun settings.
Give me a “P-R-E-S-C-O-T-T!,” the girls called to the crowd who roared back. In sync, the cheerleaders beamed and punched the air. A score of proud 57
Extra-Curricular Programming (cont.) • Reliability and consistency: Khalil, Sammy, Micky, and Francisco knew that coaches always started and ended on time the practices for boys basketball and co-ed flag football.
backgrounds, not to mention grade differences; yet they forged a team goal to read all 21 books and win the Battle of the Books championship to a raucous crowd of peers.
• Personalized attention: Eli, Donnie, and Joe felt supported when teachers and staff positively called out their names as they and other 5th and 6th grade cross country runners whizzed around Washington Park. Likewise, Future Problem Solvers looked for Ms. Hainsfurther’s individualized writing feedback in preparation for their upcoming competition.
School safety in before and afterschool programs • Psychological safety: Without the pressures of grades, Stassi and Billie tried for the first time guitar in Mr. Dimas after-school modern guitar. • Physical security and predictable routines: In the transition from their classroom to the Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA) weekly lunch meeting, Esperanza, Faith, and Harri felt safe. They knew that their classmates supported them, because teachers often guided discussions about GSA in the Advisory period.
Peer support in before and afterschool programs • Collaborative engagement: The power of choral music emanated from Evan, Twandi, Oliviana, and 31 other 3rd-5th graders as they crammed into the main office to sing through the school microphone for the whole school to hear during morning announcements.
Well-run after-school programs foster student-teacher trust, peer support, and school safety which ultimately leads to a more supportive environment. In turn, a strong supportive environment is a condition for students to trust and care about each other. When they know that peers and adults will help them when they make mistakes, students are more likely to take social, academic, emotional, and psychological risks.
• Inclusivity: In practice before an upcoming 6-8th grade Mathletes competition at Lane Tech High School, the crack 8th graders showed the concepts and shortcuts to the upand-comers. • Shared identity: Yakov, Millie, Etsi, and Jonny all came from different racial, linguistic, and religious
Similarly, social capital, a critical component of school improvement (Bryk, 58
2010), grows exponentially as a result of robust student extracurricular activities. Girls soccer, our Get Up and Go Dance, and tutoring foster teacher-student trust, peer support, and school safety,
described a rich list of their classroom activities to foster friendship-building as well as small group instruction to close academic gaps. The interventions would surely work, given enough time, but Sebi
...social capital, a critical component of school improvement (Bryk, 2010), grows exponentially as a result of robust student extracurricular activities. which in turn results in increased social capital. Social capital is widely known as a currency that both accelerates opportunities and staves off problems (Putnam, 2000). Extracurricular activities can fill in gaps of social capital. When Callie didn’t have a way to get home after basketball practice or get to games, the bonds of his basketball teammates and coach gave them the comfort and confidence to find solutions for transportation.
needed social connections right away. He needed a social anchor to feel connected to daily school. We landed on recruiting him to the choir, where the low social risk would allow his voice to be one with many without calling him out if he didn’t know the words. Roughly at the end of each sports season (November, March, and May), we transform the school rosters into a datastuffed spreadsheet. We look at every student’s participation in extracurriculars both at school and out of school to see what they’re involved in. We gather percentages of student involvement according to grade level, classroom, gender, race, and income. We check this initial data set and percentages with homeroom teachers and seek their input just as Ms. Phares and Ms. Stefan made suggestions for Sebi. If a student doesn’t have friends or seemed isolated, we asked ourselves: What program should
An internal feedback loop for continuous improvement After combing over the 1st-8th grade extracurricular rosters in November, 3rd grade teachers Ms. Phares and Ms. Stefan saw that super-shy newcomer Sebi wasn’t involved in any activities. His English was nascent and growing but his peer relationships were nil, his social skills were poor, and he had at least a two-year learning gap. Ms. Phares and Ms. Stefan 59
Extra-Curricular Programming (cont.) We knew that 3rd-4th grade participation was lower simply because there were no district-organized supports for them. We made it a goal to increase sports offerings to 3rd-4th graders next year via a soccer program Urban Initiatives.
we recruit them to? Who will talk to the student? Who will talk to the parent to explain the situation and solicit their input and ensure enrollment?
By repeating this feedback loop two more times in the school year, we can In the GLTsschool (Gradeyear, Levelwe Teams), we provide a social safety net that helps By repeating this feedback loop two more times in can provide a social dove into individual students (other students feel cared about and connected safety net community that helps students cared about and connected to the community tabs in this spreadsheet) to see iflike we Sebi in to the like Sebi feel in choir. The should be concerned about particular data offer rich insights into our students. choir. The data offer rich insights into our students. students' connectedness as a function From these tables, we can see that of extracurricular activities. The BOY middle school students (6-8th graders) analysis was most important to catch From these tables, werates can see thatallmiddle studentssense (6-8th participate at high participate at high across three school students’ ofgraders) belonging earlier in the seasons: BOY (Beginning of the Year), school year. Then we still had two-thirds rates across all three seasons: BOY (Beginning of the Year), MOY (Middle of the Year), and MOY (Middle of the Year), and EOY (End of the school year to recruit students or of(End the Year). create new programs to their interests. EOY of the Year).
BOY= Beginning of the Year
MOY=Middle of the Year
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EOY=End of the Year
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6
In GLTs (Grade Level Teams), we dove into individual students (other tabs in this spre
the hallway to sip on juice, munch on We also carefully examined student toparticipation see if we should be concerned about particular connectedness chips, andstudents' view the Art Club’s annual as a func across race and age groups Family Art Show. Student-artists showed for the same purposes-- recruitment and extracurricular activities. BOY analysis most and important catch students’ se offwas to family friends,to including program creation. We askedThe ourselves if rockstar Lonnie, their framed artwork we were enticing interest across student belonging earlier in the school year. Thencomplete we still had of the and school year to withtwo-thirds artist’s reflection backgrounds and not excluding groups hung on gallery-quality cables along the due to our own biases. We also carefully examined stude students or create new programs to their interests. walls or on easels. Rockin’ student extracurricular participation across race and age groups for the same purposes-- recruitment and pr engagement for everyone The thunderous parent and student creation. We asked ourselves if we were enticing interest across student background References applause didn’t die down, so the student Rock Bandgroups just started song.biases. The excluding due its to next our own Bryk, A., Sebring, P. et al (2010) air was electric as Lonnie hit the notes, Organizing Schools for Improvement Johnny strummed, and Evan crashed (UChicago Press). the drums. After their third song, the Rockin’ student extracurricular engagement everyone crowd wanted more, so the Rock Band Davis, L,for Kheraj, N., Young, C., et al. (2021) delivered. The 127 year-old building 5 Essentials Survey in CPS (UChicago so the student Rock Ba The thunderous parent and student applause didn’t die down, vibrated with their song and energy. Consortium on School Research) The crowd in the 2nd floor hallway and 5Essentials Survey in CPS | UChicago started its next song. The air was electric as Lonnie hit the notes, Johnny strummed, Consortium on School Research stairwell cheered and then melted down
crashed the drums. After their third song, 61 the crowd wanted more, so the Rock Band
Extra-Curricular Programming (cont.) Erin Roche has served for eighteen years as principal of Prescott School, which won the Blue Ribbon School Award in 2025 (Governors) and 2019 (National). He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy and a school administrator representative to the Illinois Balanced Accountability Metrics Committee. He completed his Ed.D. at Vanderbilt University and is a National Board Certified Teacher. He can be reached at eroche@cps.edu.
Mitchell, R. Kensler, L, et al (2016) Student trust in teachers and student perceptions of safety: positive predictors of student identification with school May 2016 International Journal of Leadership in Education 21(2):135-154 Putnam, Robert D. (2000). Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
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PD365 Area Representatives Our Area Reps are led by members of our PD365 Board of Directors, Denise Makowski and Amie Corso Reed.
Denise Makowski
Chicago 618.203.3993 dmkowski224@gmail.com
Amie Corso Reed
O'Fallon School District 618.203.3993 amie.corso@gmail.com
Current Area Reps AREA 1: (Green) AREA 2: (Dark Blue) AREA 3: (Yellow) AREA 4: (Pink) AREA 5: (Light Blue) AREA 6: (Gold)
April Jordan Jennie Winters Stacy Stewart Jen Pollack Chad Dougherty Heather Bowman Jayme Bajer Mica Ike Michelle Martin
Contact information for them can be found HERE.
The roles of the PD365 Area Representatives are: •
Encouraging PD365 membership to educators in their local areas;
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Assisting with professional development;
•
Attend board meetings and the annual leadership retreat, when possible;
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Disseminating information from PD365 board meetings or other sanctioned PD365 activities to local school districts or other regional members
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Being a two-way communication vehicle between the local PD365 members regarding PD365 or any educational issues.
•
Keeping PD365 Board of Directors apprised of pertinent information regarding personnel issues (e.g., job vacancies, job promotions) and district program awards/recognition within the local area.
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Communicating regularly with PD365 Executive Director and the Co-Leaders of the Membership and Partnerships Focus Area. 63
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SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL & BEHAVIORAL MTSS: Building a Trauma Informed System of Support presented by Ricky Robertson October 22 | 8:30am - 3:00pm NIU Naperville Participants will learn how to build a coherent, schoolwide system of support that is proactive, practical, and trauma-informed.
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ZENgaged: Effective Approaches for Teaching the Anxious Generation presented by Carl Hooker November 3 | 10:00 - 11:30am Online and On-Demand Now more than ever, educators need to be equipped with strategies to address student anxiety through mindfulness, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) techniques, and effective classroom management.
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What Your Phone Policy Cannot Do: The Friction Audit with Micah Miner October 27 | 9:00am - 12:00pm Online and On-Demand Senate Bill 2427 requires Illinois districts to manage student devices, but restricting phones alone does not ensure engagement or learning.
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It's the Little Things: Build the Culture you Need to Get the Good Ones to Stay. Presented by Jennifer Farnsworth and Tricia Burke November 5 | 9:00am - 3:00pm District 218 Come explore how intentional culturebuilding, both through the big decisions and the small everyday gestures, creates an environment that attracts and keeps talented professionals.
TAKING a DEEPER & ARTFUL DIVE into KEY SCIENCE-BASED READING COMPETENCIES: Word Decoding, Vocabulary, & Fluency presented by Timothy Rasinski October 28 | 9:00am - 12:00pm Online and On-Demand The science of reading has identified proficiency in word decoding (phonics), vocabulary, and fluency as essential
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THE SCIENCE OF WRITING presented by Kristina Smekens 9:00am - 3:00pm November 10: Gateway Center, Collinsville November 12: IEA Springfield Professional Development Center November 13: NIU Naperville November 17: Live Streaming Online Great writing instruction isn't built on intuition. It's grounded in science and brought to life through explicit instruction.
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You will be equipped with practical, concrete strategies to move from feeling overwhelmed by the threat of AI to confidently redesigning your assignments and assessments so AI helps build student thinking instead of replacing it.
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Forward Together: Moving Schools From Conflict to Community in Contentious Times presented by George Couros December 1 | 9:00am - 3:00pm NIU Naperville In this workshop, learner, educator, and leadership expert George Couros shares practical strategies for creating stronger, more connected communities in any environment.
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FALL PRE-K AND KINDERGARTEN CONFERENCE Purposeful Play: Building Strong Literacy Skills Through Play-Based Learning presented by Jackie Kops November 17 | 9:00am - 3:00pm NIU Naperville and Online Join us for the day and explore how playbased learning can intentionally support and strengthen early literacy development.
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IEP Mastery: From Foundations to Future Success presented by Shelley Kenow Dec. 3, Jan 21, Feb. 18 | 10:00 - 11:00am Online and On-Demand 3-Part Series. Explore a fundamental overview of IEP components, history, and best practices for developing compliant beginning plans.
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Custom Chatbots and Revised Assessments: A Proven Framework for Integrating AI Without Students Taking Cognitive Shortcuts presented by Arpan Chokshi November 18 | 9:00am - 12:00pm Online and On-Demand
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EXPERIENCE ALIGNED INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES WITH THE SCIENCE OF READING & ILLINOIS LEARNING STANDARDS presented by Donna Whyte January 14, 2027 | 9:00am - 3:00pm ISU Alumni Center and Online Discuss current practices, identify aligned work and expand practices to reach more students.
new leaders as they build thriving classrooms, schools, and learning communities. Experienced leaders seeking a powerful reboot are also welcome to attend.
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Fast-Track Coaching for LEADERS WHO COACH with Jim Knight January 26, 2027 | 9:00am - 3:00pm Medinah Shrine Fast-Track Instructional Coaching is a practical approach designed to promote meaningful change through four focused coaching conversations.
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LEAD: Leadership for Educators, Administrators and Decision-Makers presented by Steve Oertle January 19, 2027 | 9:00am - 3:00pm Oak Lawn and Online LEAD is designed to prepare and support
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OUR MISSION “To build the capacity of educational leaders to enhance the quality of teaching and learning”
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President—Amy Warke (Bolingbrook) President-Elect—Amy MacCrindle (Burlington Central Unit SD 301) Past-President—Scott England (University of Maryland Eastern Shore) Treasurer—Sarah Cacciatore (Cary SD 26) Secretary—Andrew Lobdell (Lena-Winslow SD 202)
FOCUS AREA LEADERS Membership and Partnerships Denise Makowski (Chicago) Amie Corso Reed (O'Fallon SD 90) Communications and Publications Belinda Veillon (Nippersink SD 2 & Richmond Burton SD 157) Jacquie Duginske (McHenry SD15) Advocacy and Influence Richard Lange (National Louis University) Program Development Jayme Bajer (ROE 9), Heather Bowman (Washington GSD 52), Scott England (University of Maryland Eastern Shore), Amy MacCrindle (Central Unit SD 301), Ami Engel (Aurora 131), Amie Reed (O'Fallon SD 90), Dee Ann Schnautz (Spur Us On), Belinda Veillon (Nippersink SD 2 & Richmond Burton SD 157) Amy Warke (Bolingbrook), Doug Wood (Springfield) 69
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