PD That Works.
cHow many times have you been to a conference, left with excitement only to be bogged down by your routine? The excitement you felt after the session never amounted to any real change in your teaching because you didn't have embedded support as your worked to implement change. In an effort to support you in working toward real change for your student and school, the Directions Conference has teamed up with TeachIllinois to take two sessions and extend them onto the online space over the summer and into the fall. This way, you have a cohort of like-minded people with whom you can share ideas as well as the presenter from the conference session mediating your growth and eventual implementation. Just $99 for 3 months of support (plus an additional 6 hours of PD!).
Mindfulness in Education
with Alice Hein
Everyone has had the experience of our emotions making us feel out of control and then saying or doing something that we later wish we could take back. The only reason this happens is because there wasn’t enough present moment awareness before the action for us to discern whether or not we actually wanted to do or say that. Mindfulness empowers people to respond rather than react. Our students are facing challenges we never encountered in our youth such as social media, excessive screen time and a dependence on devices. Mindfulness is a life skill that can help our kids lead a more balanced life. This session will give you information on how I use Mindfulness in school. There will be lecture/presentation, discussion, ideas for your classroom and two mindful meditations. The Summer Extension will focus on developing your own Mindfulness Practice, a plan for Classroom Implementation, and support during the first month of school as you start back with students. Create an account for free on TeachIllinois. Course is 6.0 PDH, $99
Alice Hein has a Master's degree in Counseling, 34 years experience as a school counselor, completed Mindfulness courses in Mindful Education, Difficult Emotions, Mindful Fundamentals, and Mindful Communication. In addition, she will complete a Year-Long Mindful Certification Course July 2018.
Twitter to Tell Your School's Story
with Amber Heffner
Come learn what all this Twitter talk is about! Are you looking for ways to get your message out? Want to celebrate great things happening in your district? It's time to get off your island and explore the new worlds you can find by being on Twitter. Share your story, grow your PLN, find creative classroom strategies and get out of your comfort zone! Let's chat...via Twitter! The Summer Extension will take a deeper look at the power and limitations Twitter itself, Twitter chats, online tools to help with automation, as well as a discussion about how to work smarter as you take your first steps to using social media as your school's news source. Create an account for free on TeachIllinois.
Course is 6.0 PDH, $99
Course is 6.0 PDH, $99
Amber Heffner is the Executive Director of Illinois Computing Educators (ICE) a non-profit organization dedicated to providing professional opportunities to educators throughout Illinois. ICE is the Illinois affiliate of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®), the premier nonprofit organization serving educators and education leaders committed to empowering connected learners in a connected world. Amber has a Bachelor of Science in Education, a Master of Science in Counseling and a Master of Science in Educational Leadership. Her background as a coach, a teacher, a counselor, and a school administrator created experiences from which she draws from in her role today. Amber strives to empower educators with support, valuable professional development, resources and networking opportunities that support their personal growth to be the best they can be for students.