Welcome to the San Diego County
Independent and Private School Network
Keynote speaker, Donna Hicks: Applying the Dignity Model to Education This workshop will be a follow up to the keynote presentation, “Educating for Dignity.” It will engage participants in a conversation about how to apply the concepts in the Dignity Model in their schools. All Welcome - Assisi Lecture Hall
Knot Theory: The Writer’s Notebook and The Link Between Writer, the Madman, and Infinite Possibilities: Writer’s Notebooks allow for living, breathing intersections between writer and content. Under the influence of irresistible mentor text, participants will summon their authentic voice and actively tangle with the myriad potential threads of a writer’s notebook. We’ll look at student examples and explore seed planting (lists/heartmaps), writing fluency (quickwrites), craft/grammar dives (writer’s moves and sentence level mentor text). Mess-making and sharing will ensue. Middle School, Grade 6-8 - Room AH 104
Spirituality in the Classroom: How to Respond to Tragedy: Hate based shootings are a part of our reality. Fear is rampant among our students and ourselves, yet we are often looked on to be the guides and champions of hope for our learners' futures. Yet how can we be those champions, if we ourselves feel so fragile and uncertain about our own futures? This session is about creating an authentic space in our classrooms for sharing our own fragility and having the courage to have conversations that may bring us outside our own comfort zones, especially when it comes to the "where is G!d" question. High School - Room AH 106
Playing at the Next Level; Notes for the College-Bound Athlete: Both Bishop's and La Jolla Country Day School have been conducting a College-Bound Athlete/Playing in the NCAA Night for a number of years. The panel will discuss each school's approach to the subject and the process used to inform student-athletes and parents alike on a successful approach to being able to compete at the next level of play and doing so at a college best suited to each player. Middle & High School - Room AH 107
Celebrating Student Voice Through Project Based Learning: "Project based learning (PBL) is a vehicle that allows students to take ownership over their studies and develop a strong voice through meaningful academic endeavors. PBL provides a curricular framework that considers student voice, choice and connection to the greater community. This workshop highlights a case study in project based learning from The Grauer School, where student and teacher share the ingredients that are key to creating a successful project. The project was featured in The San Diego Tribune article, ""Unsung Hero No More: Encinitas student writes song about civil rights protester." High School - Room AH 108
Using Adobe Photoshop Draw to Enhance Student Projects on an iPad: Digital Media Creation can be an energizing tool students can use to vitalize their printed work in science, language arts, and social studies. This program is intuitive for students, and is terrific for both your hesitant learners as well as the most creative. Grades 5-11. Room AH 201
Teaching Humanities with Historical Empathy: In this workshop, we will share strategies for teaching history and literature with historical empathy, specifically through the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. Middle & High School - Room AH 203
Blogging to Boost Curiosity and Creativity: The presentation will share practical ideas from a two year blogging project piloted in Philosophy, French 3 and AP French classes. Participants will see a wide variety of styles, in which the blogs transform traditional assignments into creative and eye-catching posts. In addition to seeing student work, participants will explore three different blogging platforms and initiate their own blogs. Discussion will include ways to share and showcase the blogs both with students in a different cultural context or through an exposition on campus. Blogging encourages student engagement, collaboration, research skills, and creates a remarkable digital portfolio. High School - AH 207
Getting the most out of your Blackbaud Topic Boards for your classes and libraries: "Blackbaud’s OnCampus LMS is a one-stop-shop for many schools in our area, but can be very underutilized. Come work with us to learn how to create Topic Boards that can replace other subscription tools you are already using. “Topics” can be shared among faculty, used year after year, and are multi-media. Create Topics specific for research, how-to guides, student work examples, entire units and more! Topic Boards can also be created for groups such as advisory, college counseling and school clubs. Faculty: Use the topic boards to bolster your class and group toolsets. Topics are an easily accessible way to provide thoughtful resources for your students. Librarians: Topic Boards can take the place of LibGuides and other path-finders, reducing the amount of clicks needed to access subscription databases and other digital tools. Lower, Middle, & High School - Room AH 209
Faculty Led Initiatives to Enhance Collaborative and Creativity Teaching: In traditional academically-driven independent schools, most courses and graduation requirements fall under a specific department. This can lead to “the silo effect” where departments and faculty experience limited interactions with their colleagues across the entire community. Faculty at The Bishop’s School are trying to tackle this issue by embarking on several faculty led initiatives aimed at increasing communication, dissemination, and collaboration within our community. We feel strongly that interactions with colleagues in other fields allows for a gain in knowledge and insight that can lead to both personal and professional development. This workshop will highlight two faculty-led initiatives: a completely voluntary peer-to-peer observation program aimed at increasing faculty communication and collaboration, and a faculty creativity showcase to help disseminate creative teaching approaches used across disciplines. Middle & High School - Room CH 101
The Making of Citizens: When leaving this session, attendees should have a better set of tools for effectively incorporating research-based practices for increasing students' civic proficiency at a school site and in the classroom. To set the stage for a discussion about each of these practices, this presentation will open with a review of the history of citizenship education in the United States and examine current issues that are driving the evolution of citizenship education. Lastly, I will share my research findings, which analyzed changes to teachers' concerns and pedagogical practices as a high school in San Diego adopted an initiative to improve civic education in the social studies department. All Grades - Room CH 102
Sharing High School Passions through Team Teaching: Can high school students do more than just be a TA in a course? Learn how we explored this question by developing a new type of teaching model for one of our middle school elective courses. Two high school students took their passion for origami and co-taught an elective on math and origami with their high school math teacher. All Welcome - Room CH 103
Girls on Guard - PART 1 of 2: This is the first half in a TWO PART SERIES of a self-defense workshop designed to empower women. It provides the safest and most effective way to survive and escape a physical and or sexual assault. The attendees will be able to actively participate or just observe. The techniques used in this workshop can be implemented as a unit in Physical Education. The main goal of this unit is to equip girls to defend themselves. The activities will build confidence – both in physical self-defense skills as well as mental toughness. This workshop utilizes realistic scenarios which may induce stress -- equipping the girls to respond powerfully in real-life situations. It teaches girls to proactively avoid potentially dangerous situations. It also trains girls to react powerfully to an attempted sexual assault and to understand the importance of reporting perpetrators. Attendees should wear clothing suitable for activity. High School - Room CH 104
Design Research - A hands-on process to identify the RIGHT problems to solve: As society changes and evolves rapidly, being able to solve problems is becoming only one piece of the larger complex puzzle of life and success. In order for our students to make a difference and have an impact on the world, they must not only know how to solve problems, but also know how to properly identify the right problems to solve. Design Thinking was created not as a tool for deeper understanding but as a tool to uncover unobvious and novel problems that people want to solve. Companies such as P&G, Facebook, IDEO, Stanford’s D School and others leverage the Design Thinking process to develop solutions to problems that matter to them. This hands-on workshop given by Design professionals turned educators will dive into the most important part of the Design Thinking methodology – Design Research. After an in-depth training session, you will be teamed up with others to analyze ethnographic interviews around “pill management” and identify hidden insights that point to the right problems to solve in this intriguing space. You will then create actionable problem statements and develop impactful solutions to the problems you identified. When you leave, you will take with you a new skill that will forever change how you approach problem identification. You might even uncover the next big startup! All Grades - Room CH 105
Operation: MATH! Family Night Program: Are you looking to help students, parents, and teachers connect to form a strong community of math learners? Research shows that there are two pillars of a positive math identity: the belief that you can do math and the belief that you belong. Come learn about the purpose, benefits, and design of the Operation: MATH! Family Night Program. You will engage in a simulation of a typical session. Start-up materials will be provided. 5th-8th Grades - Room CH 107
Middle School Harkness: In this session we will explore Harkness- the discussion based teaching style- and specifically what it looks like in middle school at Pacific Ridge. We will look at a few areas specifically, including the scaffolding of skills needed for good harknessing (these also apply to or overlap discussion, writing and critical thinking skills), the length and variety of different Harkness activities (diversifying is key!), equity around the table and covering content while letting go. Please join us whether you are new to this style of teaching or an experienced Harkness or discussion-based teacher. We will share contact information and resources after the session. Middle School - Room CH 108
Assessing our Grading Systems: An Interactive Session for Collective Wisdom: Share your effective grading practices in the World Language classroom and leave with a better understanding of how to design your language instruction and student assessment. We propose an honest conversation about: Making the Grade: Standards and Expectations in our WL classrooms, Documenting Evidence of Learning: Assessments that Allow Students to Demonstrate True Language Ability, Offering Effective Feedback: What´s in a Grade? Middle & High School - Room CH 201
Leadership Development for Student-Athletes: Are you interested in developing leaders on campus? Would you like some guidance on how to create a championship culture for your athletic teams? Then this is the workshop for you. We will go through the leadership work that we do with our student-athletes at La Jolla Country Day School. We will discuss what it means to be a leader on campus and how to develop a positive, championship team culture. This workshop is appropriate for anyone who is involved in athletics or leadership development on campus. High School - Room CH 202
Exeter Humanities Institute (EHI) Alumni Workshop: The Exeter Humanities Institute (EHI) Alumni Workshop welcomes any past EHI participant. We will discuss our progress integrating Harkness teaching and learning at our respective San Diego schools. This session will be a great place to ask questions, discuss challenges, share approaches, and reconnect with friends. Middle & High School - Room CH 204
Teaching & Learning: Providing Clarity and Making Learning Visible: When learning goals and targets are clear, students can achieve mastery. This workshop will focus on how educators can be intentional in their practice by providing clear benchmarks, "I can" statements, and learning targets at the outset of a lesson/unit. In addition, the workshop will focus on how we can align lessons, objectives, and outcomes most effectively. In addition, we will touch upon how we can grade for equity. Middle & High School - Room CH 206
Curriculum Topics and Ideas, K-12 Music: What kind of music program do you have at your school? What works (and doesn't)? Join us for a open share of what we do, why we love it, and pick up some new perspectives and ideas. All Grades - Room CH 207
Student Success Skills: The Student Success Skills program is a comprehensive, school-wide effort to teach student skills and learning strategies. Cathedral Catholic High School’s Student Success Skills initiative centers around connection building, personal growth and academic success. Our student-centered, holistic strategy focuses on the student as a whole and aims to support areas of strength while identifying and addressing areas for growth. As a result, we are better able to support all students with one goal in mind — student success! 9th-10th Grades - Room CH 208
Philanthropy in 4th Grade: The La Jolla Country Day School Philanthropy program in the lower school takes place in 4th grade. Students have the opportunity to learn about the integral role that philanthropy plays in bettering our community and the world at large. Students hone research skills and learn to use formulas in Google Sheets and Excel to analyze revenue and expenses. While critically engaging with the knowledge they acquire about local non-profits, students begin to understand that intent and impact must match in order for organizations to make the biggest difference. Students analyze three local nonprofits and donate to one organization based on presentations from representatives and their extensive research and analysis. Students will carry this knowledge into their futures as leaders in their communities who seek to inspire greatness for a better world by leading with dignity. Lower & Middle School - Room AH 104
Using iPad Apps to Amplify Student Creativity and Collaboration: This session will explore various apps that allow students to express their individual creativity and/or enhance collaboration with others. Some apps that we will be exploring include Clips, Flipgrid, Keynote, Notability, Pages, and ThingLink. Through creative and collaborative apps, students gain a voice, gain confidence, and connect with others! Middle & High School - Room AH 106
Post Concussion Return to Learn Management for Educators: Have you ever had a student come into your classroom needing accommodations after sustaining a concussion? During this workshop you will learn the ways a Concussion can affect the brains ability to function and how that translates to a student’s participation in your class. We will discuss techniques to help your students stay involved, get caught up, and most importantly recover. Middle & High School - Room AH 108
Librarians Round Table: Join us for the opportunity to share with each other the unique joys and challenges of being a Nursery-12th grade school librarian. We can start the sharing with offering one particularly effective way we educate with dignity or promote ways to actively engage our students in living the dignity model by sharing a lesson, collection development decisions, creating safe places or other ideas you have implemented. All Welcome - Room AH 111
Math and Mixed Media-Creating Student Narratives through Art: Learn how you can make math come alive for your students and school community! Challenge your students to express their voice by viewing the world through a math lens. In this session you will learn how your students can creatively use math (transformations and functions), technology, and art as a story telling tool. See examples of students' projects and how they transformed the feeling on campus. Lower & Middle School - Room AH 202
Direct Drawing and Use of Document Camera: This workshop will focus on guided or “direct” drawing method and the use of document camera in elementary art education. This method, inspired by such important art educators as Mona Brooks and Betty Edwards, helps build children’s confidence and allows children to begin to see differently, to begin to awaken an artist within. Students are taught how to approach drawing by breaking seemingly hard subjects into lines and shapes that are familiar to young children. When students, some of whom emphatically declared that they “cannot draw that!”, look at what they have accomplished, their confidence soars and they are glowing with the sense of accomplishment and joy in their creation! Lower School - AH 204
Student-centered learning in Performance Ensembles: Many teacher/performing artists have been taught from a top-down methodology, where the singers, instrumentalists, dancers, actors or performers follow the direction of "sage on the stage" conductor, director, or choreographer. Current educational philosophies challenge this notion and methodology, encouraging students to explore and express their artistic voice as a productive and contributing member of the performance ensemble. Ideas and methodologies will be presented, discussed and shared. Middle & High School - Room AH 210
Teaching Religion Through Interfaith Cooperation in Secular Education Systems: While religion is a unifying, global experience as people look for answers to parallel fundamental, existential questions, how we are taught about religion alienates today’s youth with the increasing standardization and secularization of education. For interfaith understanding to really take root, schools and communities must approach each religion utilizing discovery based learning methodologies and through engagement with interfaith members and community elders in an interactive curriculum. Unpacks the secrets of a refined, secular curriculum that embraces faith through relationship-driven education inherent in the independent schools movement. High School - Room AH 213
AsPIring Mathletes: This workshop focuses on how to teach math using a project-based learning and hands on approach. The demo lesson will give an informal derivation of the relationship between the circumference and area of a circle, which is a 7th grade standard, however, the teaching technique can be applied in any grade level. "Students" will discover the relationship between the radius and diameter in a circle and the relationship between the diameter and perimeter (circumference) in a circle. 5th-10th Grades - Room CH 101
Phenomena Based Interdisciplinary Projects: Bringing phenomena based projects from NGSS standards to other subject areas, this workshop will look at how tying big topics in science can work with other content areas and curriculum. Get your students to engage in learning specific topics in a big picture that will pull all together. Focus will be on changes in the local oceans, and overall climate change, and how that can play out in many subjects. All Welcome - Room CH 103
Girls on Guard - PART 2 of 2: This is the second half of a TWO PART SERIES self-defense workshop designed to empower women. It provides the safest and most effective way to survive and escape a physical and or sexual assault. The attendees will be able to actively participate or just observe. The techniques used in this workshop can be implemented as a unit in Physical Education. The main goal of this unit is to equip girls to defend themselves. The activities will build confidence – both in physical self-defense skills as well as mental toughness. This workshop utilizes realistic scenarios which may induce stress -- equipping the girls to respond powerfully in real-life situations. It teaches girls to proactively avoid potentially dangerous situations. It also trains girls to react powerfully to an attempted sexual assault and to understand the importance of reporting perpetrators. Attendees should wear clothing suitable for activity. High School - Room CH 104
When Students Lead the Class: Three years ago we removed the textbook from our eleventh grade US History and American Studies curricula. Ditching the textbook was scary. The structure on which I had relied was gone. Ditching the textbook was also absolutely liberating. Not only do we seek farther afield for secondary sources, not only do we dig deeper into primary source documents so students can draw their own conclusions about history, but we also reach out to guest speakers and performers more readily. My exuberance was not matched by the students and their parents, initially. Just as I was poised on the cusp of something new, ready to let go of my control of the narrative and thrust the mantle of knowledge into my students very capable hands, I discovered that many weren't ready for this change. I had to reconfigure my course, to teach the students how to be active learners and create a student centered learning environment while simultaneously alleviating their fear about “is this on the test?” This study examines the attempts, failures, and successes of the first three years of this adventure. I still think the kids are inclined to play it 'safe' with a textbook; the message of any medium or technology is the changing pattern that it introduces into human affairs. Textbooks did not teach learning. And while they are helpful at keeping us on track, giving us a framework that teachers and students alike can follow, the textbook’s message limits us. 8th-12th Grades - Room CH 108
Building High Functioning Teams: You've made the jump from teaching to administration and are responsible for a department/team, now what? Come explore strategies to build a highly functioning team, including inspiring a shared vision, mentoring, collaboration, building trust, goal setting and team building. Learn how to encourage your team's professional and personal development. High School - Room CH 202
8th Grade Capstone Project: The workshop will explain an 8th grade Capstone Project. You will leave the workshop with a break down of all the project components so that you may replicate the project in your class/school. This is a two month long research project. In the end, each student completes a 40 minute long "Ted Talk." During the talk, students submit their 10 page expository papers, share their completed Capstone projects and reflect on their interviews. The presentations are insightful, impactful and stimulating. Each year, I learn from my students and these Capstone projects are a fantastic way to wrap up their Middle School learning in an academic and emotional manner. Because the students each select their individual topics, the projects are varied and always interesting. Middle School - CH 203
Ideas, Instagram and Revolution: How can teachers engage their student’s more passionately into the process of studying the French Revolution? Post it on Instagram! This workshop will explore one teacher’s journey to seek advice from our resident innovation specialist on how to make a study of the French Revolution more relevant for students. From tying our studies of the Enlightenment to modern ways in which students spread information, to hearing a guest speaker talk about his involvement in PACs, to dividing students into social groups who responded to every stage of the French Revolution from the perspective of that group, our studies culminated in an Instagram test in which students engaged in a 70 minute social media discussion about the direction France should go after the fall of Napoleon. This exercise highlighted how differently students today process, transmit, and fully engage in the dissemination of ideas. Join in to share your insights on how to bridge the gap between the need for student relevancy in the midst of academic rigor. High School - Room CH 206
