ESU 4 Professional Development
Empowering educators to improve student learning.
Contact Mitzi Hoback, Suzanne Whisler, or Sue Knickman
Professional Development Workshops
Nebraska Science Kicks2 Summer 2013 Institutes - Build your science content knowledge and develop your instructional repertoire to better serve all students. Attend a KICKS (Keep Improving Content Knowledge and Skills) Institute. Teacher stipends are available. For additional information or to register, please visit the KICKS web site. Registration deadline is March 15, 2013.
- K-5 Institute: June 17-20 and June 24-27 at ESU 10, Kearney OR July 8-11 and July 15-18 at Henry Doorly Zoo, Omaha.
- 6-8 Institute: June 18-21 and June 24-27 at Cedar Point Biological Station, Ogallala
- 6-12 Institute: June 10-13 and June 17-20 at Millard West High School
Social Studies Curriculum Alignment Workshop - May 1, 2013 from 9 AM - 3 PM at ESU 4. As you know, the revised Nebraska Social Studies Standards have officially been adopted by the State Board of Education. This means it is time to align your social studies curriculum to the new standards. Mitzi and Suzanne have a busy day planned for you which will include a process for curriculum alignment that will be used during the workshop and can be replicated back into your district. We recommend that you send a team to the workshop that includes an elementary teacher, middle school teacher and a high school teacher. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline: April 26.
Explicit Instruction: A Tool to Maximize Student Achievement with Dr. Anita Archer - May 28-29, 2013 from 9 AM - 3 PM at Peru State College's Live Oak Room. Are you looking for a "tool" to implement into your classroom that will maximize student achievement, engage students and promote student success? Join Dr. Archer to learn about one of the best tools available to educators: explicit instruction. Explicit instruction is a structured, systematic and effective method for teaching academic skills at all grade levels. Dr. Archer will provide participants of this workshop with clear guidelines and tools for designing and delivering effective and effecient instruction at any grade level and in any content area. This workshop is designed for all teachers in grades K-12. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18. Non ESU 4 schools should contact Sue to register.
A Day with Dr. Anita Archer for Elementary Teachers - Grades K-4 - May 30, 2013 from 9 AM - 3 PM at Peru State College's Live Oak Room. Establishing writing skills at an early age is critical for all students. In this workshop, Dr. Archer will be focusing on the foundations of writing as an well as instructional strategies for sentence and paragraph formation. This workshop is designed for K-4 teachers. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18. Non ESU 4 schools should contact Sue to register.
A Day with Dr. Anita Archer for Secondary Teachers - Grades 4-12 - May 31, 2013 from 9 AM - 3 PM at Peru State College's Live Oak Room. As students progress through school, they are exposed to more and more informational text. Making sense of informational text and the vocabulary associated with the text is essential for academic success in ALL content areas. Dr. Archer will be sharing a variety of effective instructional strategies that ALL secondary teachers can incorporate inot their classrooms to assist students with comprehension of informational text and acquisition of content vocabulary This workshop is designed for ALL teachers grades 4-12. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18. Non ESU 4 schools should contact Sue to register.
ESU 4 Data Retreat - "Hit it out of the Park" - June 6 (9 AM - 3 PM) and June 7 (9 AM - noon) at Johnson County Central, Cook, NE. All districts are encouraged to send a team to Data Retreat. It's time to put together your data team, collect your stats, and prepare for the ESU 4 Data Retreat. Come and warm up with the ESU 4 team for two days of analyzing and interpreting data. Make effective data informed decisions to guide and strengthen your continuous improvement efforts and improve student achievement. Your team should include representative teachers from elementary, middle, high school, vocational ed, and special ed, as well as a counselor and administrator. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
ESU 4 Literacy Cadre - June 10, 2013 at the ESU 4 Learning Center - 9 AM to 3 PM. You won't want to miss this summer's ESU 4 Literacy Cadre. Our featured guest presenter is literacy expert April Kelley from ESU 6. Join other teachers from the ESU 4 area for a fun-filled day of learning and sharing. Topics include: effective instructional strategies, technology tips and tools, as well as the latest information regarding the Common Core standards. Previous cadre attendees are welcome to attend along with those who were unable to attend during the school year. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
ESU 4 Science Cadre - June 12, 2013 at the ESU 4 Learning Center - 9 AM to 3 PM. Our featured guest presenters are ESU 5 science gurus Derek Niss and Dave Henning. Derek and Dave have a fun-filled day planned for you that includes hands-on activities you can incorporate into your science classroom. Be ready to participate in an active day of learning and sharing! Previous cadre attendees are welcome to attend along with those who were unable to attend during the school year. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
ESU 4, 5, 6 Principals' Retreat - June 13, 2013 (9 AM - 3 PM) and June 14 (8:30 AM - noon) at Embassy Suites, Lincoln. On June 13, Dr. Phil Warrick will explore the research and provide strategies for school leaders to engage in practices that help the school as a whole, and individual teachers, grow their pedagogical skills through evaluation, teacher reflective practice, and a structured framework for coaching pedagogical growth. As part of this training, school leaders will use a leader self-reflection format to guage their current status in different aspects of leading the continuous improvement of instruction. This self-reflection tool will allow participants to select specific areas of focus they can strategically address to improve instructional practices in their school. On June 14, the ESU 4, 5, and 6 staff will provide an update on the Teacher/Principal Pilot Project, Round Table discussions on principal evaluations, and Technology Tips and Tools for Principals. Registration deadline is April 15. Contact Sue to register.
ESU 4 Social Studies Cadre - June 17, 2013 at the ESU 4 Learning Center - 9 AM to 3 PM. Join the ESU 4 team and featured guest presenter Harris Payne from NDE for a fun-filled day of learning and sharing. Topics include: effective instructional strategies, technology tips and tools, as well as time to network with your fellow social studies teachers. Previous cadre attendees are welcome to attend along with those who were unable to attend during the school year. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
Don't Worry, Be "Appy" - June 18, 2013 at the ESU 4 Learning Center - 9 AM to 3 PM. I have an iPad, now what? I have an iPad, but how do I use it in my teaching? What do I do if I only have one iPad in my classroom? My students have iPads, but I need some ideas for using them in my classroom. If these are questions you've asked yourself or others, then this workshop is for you. This hands on workshop is designed for beginning and more advanced iPad users. Participants will break into groups during the workshop to meet the needs of ALL learners. So don't worry, be "appy," there will be something for everyone! Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
Strategies to Build Understanding of Fractions for Young Mathematicians - June 19, 2013 at the ESU 4 Learning Center - 9 AM to 3 PM. This workshop will feature Lenny VerMaas from ESU 6. It is geared towards teachers in Grades 2-8. We will develop meaning and understanding of fractions so that students can learn and enjoy mathematics. Teachers will learn strategies and participate in activities to develop understanding, flexibility and adaptability in their students' fraction skills. Strategies to reinforce and strengthen students' vocabulary will be shared. In addition, a variety of alternative homework strategies will be shared to engage students and keep them interested in learning. Feel free to register online. Registration deadline is May 18.
"From L to J" with Dr. Lee Jenkins - August 5-6 from 9 AM - 3 PM at ESU 5 in Beatrice, NE. For the past twenty years schools have been implementing a continuous improvement model, "L to J" (starting with the L-curve, moving quickly to a "bell-curve" and ending the year with a "J-curve"). L to J is a process, not a program, that works equally well in all grade levels from kindergarten through high school and on to the university. Seminar cost is $150 per person for ESU 4, 5, 6, and 9 educators. Seminar material is $6.25 per booklet per person. Please register with Peggy Crawford (pcrawfor@esu5.org) or call 402-223-5277. Registration deadline is May 1.
Feel free to register online for any of the above workshops held by ESU 4.