The Willows Professional Development Program 2011-2012

Learning

2•Inspire

Teaching

2•Inspire

The Willows Community School Dedicated to

Life-Long Learning

Professional Development

@ The Willows

Cover Art - a collaborative design by art teachers Susannah Funnell and Kristy Waidner illustrating the rhythm of repetition in art for students

Expanding the vision of educators

“ Being a lifelong learner is essential for all human beings.

We simply need to grow,” states Lisa Rosenstein, Head of School. “Professional development is vital to teachers. Ongoing learning opportunities give educators encouragement and inspiration.

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Learning together in a collaborative culture

Inspiration at work in the classroom Teaching Practices “It is so important to be reflective about our teaching practices,”

explains Jo Ben Whittenburg, 1st grade teacher. “To be professional we need to constantly improve our practices; discussion with our peers is one of the best ways to grow and perfect our classroom teaching.”

The Art of Meaningful Questions – Why focus on questioning? Questions provide launching points for student learning in any discipline. Teaching with openended and stretch questions promotes critical thinking, creative problem solving, reasoning and student understanding. The 2011-12 focus of our Professional Development Committee, comprised of teachers, is examining the questions asked in the classroom. This study, designed and implemented by our teachers, will gather the questions through peer observations. Teachers will collect and analyze the data, reflect, and then, implement the best classroom practices to teach students to ask their own relevant questions.

Inspirational learning ongoing education “Filling a teacher’s cup . . . the act of giving teachers the time to learn, explore, reflect and to dig deeper into curriculum is a spark that ignites creativity, “ Amy Dugre, Director of Technology points out.

Acclaimed Speakers and Educators Connecting teachers to educational, technological pioneers and innovators 2011-12 scheduled and most recent speakers include:

• Alfie Kohn • Gary Stager, Ph.D. • Allan Yu, Mathematics Consultant

Conferences, Workshops and Courses Teacher knowledge and networking is advanced through attendance at national conferences including: CGI (Cognitively Guided Instruction) Institute at UCLA Math courses and on-campus workshops with Allan Yu, math consultant. Teachers are implementing the CGI problem-solving approach to learning math in classrooms.

CMK (Constructing Modern Knowledge) A “minds-on” institute for educators committed to creativity, collaboration and computing. Teachers work with the world’s leading educational, tech-ed experts engaging in intensive, computer-rich projects with peer educators from around the globe.

NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools) • CUE (Computer Using Teachers) • ISTE (International Society of Technological Educators) • Learning and the Brain Conference Higher Education Updating teacher credentials and earning advanced degrees

Sharing inspiration Teachers teaching teachers “I can’t wait to use the Lily Pad Arduino programming software that we discovered at the CMK conference,” reports Katie Berman, 5th

grade teacher. “I shared the information with my 5th grade level team, and we will be using this technology – sewing conductive threads to make LED lights light up – when our class studies circuits in science.”

Our curricular-based professional development program, which began in 1998, offers teachers the opportunity to share ideas, information, techniques and new discoveries throughout the year.

Topics include: • Primary sources and artifacts in English and history – helping students differentiate original and secondary resources to develop critical thinking • Collecting, representing and analyzing real-world data to build real-world word problems in math • Utilizing blogs and wikis • Use of interactive white boards in mathematics • Problem solving, programming and building with We-Do LEGOS and Logo and Scratch software • Build, solve and discuss the language of math word problems • Science and Animation-ish – graphically representing cycles, concepts and predictions • Discovery Education – United Streaming • Textiles – Lily Pad Arduino technology

The inspiration of experience mentoring “Learning from experienced peers in a supportive, nurturing environment is an excellent way for Willows teachers to grow, develop and hone their teaching skills,” explains 3rd grade teacher Jen Hoyt.

By leading and sharing their expertise, our more experienced teachers build a teaching community of trust, unity and innovation. Our mentoring program fosters collaboration, assists teachers in setting goals and identifying strengths, and provides tips and strategies from our most experienced teachers.

“I am still learning.”

Michelangelo – Italian sculptor, painter, architect and poet 1475-1564

“[The Willows] teachers are curious, determined to improve and challenge themselves, and the school funds the growth.

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Heather Wolpert-Gawron, Educational Blogger, The Huffington Post

Visit Us at: http://www.thewillows.org