Professional DevelopmentAdditional Highlights

PARCC● Language Arts Lead Teachers, Basic Skills Teachers and Reading

Specialists 6-12 Attended monthly PARCC workshops at William Paterson University.

● Jeanne Clements, President of the Association of Language Arts Teachers of NJ

Presented two PARCC in-district workshops for turnkey trainers; one for Humanities teachers, the other for

Science and Math teachers.

● Ongoing PD in the Research Simulation Task, Literary Analysis Task and answering text-dependent multiple choice questions throughout this year.

● Four teachers attended Morris-Union Jointure Commission’s “Preparing for the Common Core State Standards.”

PARCC● Ongoing PD on CCSS and PARCC in the Grades K-12 classrooms

● Peer to peer curricula alignment Grades 3 -12 teachers

● Presentation to Grades 6-12 teachers, Informational Guides for PARCC

● AMTNJ Presentation Preparing Students for PARCC Grades 6-12 teachers

● Ongoing opportunities for 3-12 teachers to analyze and review PARCC like tasks/Practice Tests in Language Arts and Mathematics.

NEXT GENERATION SCIENCE STANDARDS

NGSS: Preparing for the new phase in Science Education!● Improved, research-based approach to Science instruction

● Emphasis on “What is STEAM?” & “What does STEAM look like in a classroom?”

● 5 E’s & NGSS: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate

● 3 dimensional standards, integrating Practices, DCI’s & Crosscutting concepts

● Presentation by NJDOE expert Lisa Solmose

● Closely aligned to Common Core practices for English & Math, providing an integrated education for our students

TECHNOLOGY ● Individual and/or Group Professional Development available to all staff

from Supervisor of Educational Technology

● Online - On Demand Virtual PD Training

Google Apps for Education and a variety of web based technologies

offered to all district staff. ● 3D Printer Training

The district now has 3D Printers in the middle and high school libraries, and one in each middle school technology department. Teachers & Librarians received training on how to use them and incorporate them into the classroom & libraries.

TECHNOLOGY ● Integrating iPads into the Curriculum

Teachers shared and explored best practices for using iPads to manage classrooms and enhance instruction.

● Parent Communication & Outreach Shared teacher examples of how to use digital platforms (Google Classroom, Moodle, SMORE etc.) to increase parents

student engagement. ● Technology Tools for the Classroom

Google Classroom, Genesis, Flipped Classroom,Google Forms, Google Drive, My Big Campus, Edmodo,Google Hangout, iPad best practices, Reflector, Ibooks, Ibook Author,Turnitin.com, Newsela, Blackrocket Game Design, Scratch & Coding

● NJECC Training (NJ Educational Computing Cooperative)Through our membership with the organization we were able to send teachers from multiple disciples to a variety of technology trainings.

PROFESSIONAL SPEAKERS/TRAINERS, Slide 1 of 4

● Andrew Martini-Houghton Mifflin HarcourtShared with middle school and high school Social Studies teachers effective ways to use textbook resources.Provided PD on how to use the online resources for instruction and assessment in the middle school and high school Mathematics classroom.

● Phyllis Dobbins - SentieriPresented Italian teachers with the different levels of the Italian book, “Sentieri” and how the online resources best support speaking, writing, listening and reading skills in the Italian language.

● Cynthia Coleman- Pearson RealidadesProvided Spanish teachers an overview of the interactive activities the textbook series has available and how to best incorporate them in language acquisition.

best practices for using the interactive textbooks

and resources for middle school and high school Spanish

PROFESSIONAL SPEAKERS/TRAINERSSlide 2 of 4● Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System

Trained kindergarten, first and second grade teachers on district-wide reading assessment to create consistency across the district.

● Creative Curriculum GOLDTeaching Strategies Trainer presented to all preschool teachers and class paras. Online observation and assessment for skill development aligned to NJ Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards.

● American Red Cross - CPR AED Training Trained district teachers provided certification training for middle/high school coaches. Training met the requirements of Janet’s Law, and NJSIAA regulations.

● Elaine Russo - Author and Certified Dyslexia SpecialistPresented on Dyslexia to K-3 Teachers, BSI, Reading Specialists, All Special Ed Teachers, CSTs, Speech & Language. Exceeded state requirements for reading disabilities PD.

PROFESSIONAL SPEAKERS/TRAINERS, Slide 3 of 4

● Samantha Morra, Technology Integration SpecialistTrained English Teachers on using Digital Storytelling in the Classroom and Technology Teachers on using Scratch and Coding in the Classroom.

● Paul Tarantiles, Apple iPad Trainer and Development ManagerContinued training High School Teachers on incorporating best practices relating to iPads in the classroom.

● Richard Kiker, Top Google Education Trainer Trained Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers on using Google & Web 2.0 Teachers

● Shannon Miller, Award Winning Librarian & Technology SpecialistPresented a full day K-12 librarians on technology integration in the media centers.

● Lisa Solmose, New Jersey Department of Education Science ConsultantProvided training to K-12 teachers in the history and innovations associated with the implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards.

PROFESSIONAL SPEAKERS/TRAINERS, Slide 4 of 4

● Dr. Thomas McCauley - Music ProfessorPresented an all day music symposium on delivering music education and conducting

● Dr. Fernando Naiditch - Asst. Professor of Curriculum and TeachingProvided training to teachers of all High School content areas to help address the needs of their ESL/ELL Learners

● Dr. Margaret Freedson - Professor of Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education

Provided training on close reading strategies for all 6-8 teachers in Family and Consumer Sciences, Industrial Arts, Language Arts, Mathematics, Physical Education/Health, Science, Social Studies, and World Languages.

BEST PRACTICES

● Lunch and Learns at all elementary schools Used to promote student-centered instruction

● K-12 Teacher Collaboration and Sharing SGOs, Quarterlies, Instructional Strategies

● K-12 Teachers sharing and turn-keying the good ideas they have used in their classrooms

● K-12 New Teacher Orientation

● Monthly, K-12 Teacher Academy

Thank you!

The Office of Academics continues to seek opportunities to provide the district’s K-12 teachers with professional experiences that will enhance instruction and improve student learning.