yachad development conference 2013 regular education
DESCRIPTION
The International Jewish Resource Center for Inclusion & Special Education New Jersey Association of Jewish Day Schools Divisions of Yachad/NJCD Proudly Present: Two Conferences in One! National Special Education Professional Development Conference and New Jersey Statewide Professional Development Conference “Blended Learning: Towards New Frontiers” Tuesday, November 5th ,2013 at Yeshivat Noam Paramus, New Jersey 8:00 am-3:15 pm Workshop concentrations in Special Education, Early Childhood, Elementary, and Junior High School levels, Mental Health, and Administration. For pricing, further information, and to register, contact Batya Jacob at 212-613-8127 or [email protected].TRANSCRIPT
Conference
STATEWIDEPROFESSIONALDEVELOPMENT
ConferenceElementary/Junior High School/Special Education Levels
Election Day, November 5, 2013Keynote Speakers:
Dr. Jason Ohler Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman Special Education Keynote Speaker: Richard EllensonEarly Childhood Keynote Speaker: Dr. Clarissa Willis
Featured Presenters:Dr. Bill Atwood Dr. Karen Gazith
“BlendedLearning:
Towards NewFrontiers”
“BlendedLearning:
Towards NewFrontiers”
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 1
Statewide Professional Development Conference2
THE NEW JERSEY ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH DAY SCHOOLS
Announces
Professional Development ConferenceElementary/Junior High School /Special Education Levels
“Blended Learning: Towards New Frontiers”
Tuesday, Election Day, November 5, 20138:00 a.m.- 3:15 p.m.
At
Yeshivat Noam70 West Century RoadParamus, New Jersey
Fee: $80.00 per educator
Please contact our office for pricing for attendance of 3 or more professionals from the same institution at 551-404-4447 or 212-613-8127 or [email protected].
Collaboration to provide the best possible Jewish, general, and special educationfor its students; serving children with special needs; providing educational advocacy;
providing leadership in staff and curriculum development, teacher recruitment and training; and developing programs of inclusion.
The New Jersey Association of Jewish Day Schools is affiliated with Yachad, the National Jewish Council for Disabilities (NJCD),
an agency of the Orthodox Union.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 2
New Jersey Association of Jewish Day Schools 3
WORKSHOP 1: First Choice10:45-12:15 P.M.
W01 W02 W03 W04 W05 W06 W07
W08 W09 W10 W11 W12 W13 W14
W15 W16 W17 W18 W19 W20 W21
W22 W23 W24 W25 W26 W27 W28
W29 W30 W31 W32 W33 W34 W35
W36
WORKSHOP 1: Second Choice10:45-12:15 P.M.
W01 W02 W03 W04 W05 W06 W07
W08 W09 W10 W11 W12 W13 W14
W15 W16 W17 W18 W19 W20 W21
W22 W23 W24 W25 W26 W27 W28
W29 W30 W31 W32 W33 W34 W35
W36
LUNCH AND LEARN: First Choice12:15-1:45 P.M.
L01 L02 L03 L04 L05 L06 L07
L08 L09 L10 L11 L12 L13 L14
L15 L16 L17 L18 L19 L20 L21
L22 L23 L24 L25 L26 L27
LUNCH AND LEARN: Second Choice12:15-1:45 P.M.
L01 L02 L03 L04 L05 L06 L07
L08 L09 L10 L11 L12 L13 L14
L15 L16 L17 L18 L19 L20 L21
L22 L23 L24 L25 L26 L27
WORKSHOP 2: First Choice2:00-3:15 P.M.
W37 W38 W39 W40 W41 W42 W43
W44 W45 W46 W47 W48 W49 W50
W51 W52 W53 W54 W55 W56 W57
W58 W59 W60 W61 W62 W63 W64
W65 W66 W67 W68 W69 W70
WORKSHOP 2: Second Choice2:00-3:15 P.M.
W37 W38 W39 W40 W41 W42 W43
W44 W45 W46 W47 W48 W49 W50
W51 W52 W53 W54 W55 W56 W57
W58 W59 W60 W61 W62 W63 W64
W65 W66 W67 W68 W69 W70
Principal’s Breakfast8:15-9:00 A.M.
_______ YES
Keynote Address9:00-10:30 A.M.
Dr. Jason Ohler Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman
Early Childhood Keynote Address
9:00-10:30 A.M.
Dr. Clarissa Willis
Special Education Keynote Address
9:00-10:30 A.M.
Richard Ellenson
Professional Development Conference Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Registration Form
Name: ______________________________________________________________________________________
School: _______________________________________________________ Grade: ________________________
Phone: _______________________________________ E-mail: _______________________________________
For each session, please circle only one workshop for your first choice and only one workshop for your secondchoice. Thank you.
Please return completed registration form by October 20th.
All participants are asked to bring a laptop and/or an iPad.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 3
Statewide Professional Development Conference4
Workshops at a Glance: Tuesday, November 5, 2013
8:00-9:00 a.m.Principal’s Breakfast
Cyber Safety- A Critical Concern for our Children Captain John Rampolla
9:00-10:30 a.m.Keynote Addres
“Keeping the Neshama in 21st Century Learning” Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman
“New Media, New Students; New Literacies, New Citizens” Dr. Jason Ohler
“He Brain, She Brain” – Early Childhood Keynote Address Clarissa Willis
“My Child Left Behind:
Why Inclusion is So Difficult” – Special Education Keynote Richard Ellenson
Workshop I- 10:45-12:15 p.m.W1 Mind Body Hebrew Part I (EC) Anat Maimon-Reznik
W2 Story Telling for Young Children (EC) Dr. Patricia Cooper
W3 Fun with Early Childhood Mathematics (EC) Dr. Mary Foote
W4 Using the Classroom Environment as a Teaching Tool (EC) Tammie Roth
W5 Apps for Speech and Language (EC, ES) Lori Roth
W6 Worth the Work! Hebrew Literacy Part I (EC, ES) Basya Woolf
W7 Supporting ALL Students (EC, ES) Shira Richman
W8 Jewish Montessori: Nuts and Bolts But No Computers (ES,JH) Rivky Ross
W9 Authentic vs. Traditional Assessment: Where do we go from here? (ES) Mindy Lidsky
W10 Building Blocks for Effective Classroom Instruction (ES) Dr. Karen Gazith
W11 Digital Community, Digital Citizen (ES) Dr. James Ohler
W12 The Connected Educator: Tearing Down Classroom Walls (ES) Smadar Goldstein
W13 The Power of Frequent Assessment (ES, JH) Dr. Bill Atwood
W14 Making Chumash Come Alive (ES, JH) Rabbi Naphtali Hoff
W15 Meaningful Reading of Tephillah (ES, JH) Tova Shimon
W16 Integrating SMART Board Games into Your Judaic Studies
Curriculum (ES, JH) Jackie Leifert & Rahel Grebler
W17 Beyond Self-Esteem: Developing Motivated Students (ES, JH, ADM) Rabbi Elie Tuchman
W18 Blended Learning in Limudei Kodesh Subjects (JH) Gershon Tave
W19 Benjamin Netanyahu Meets Oskar Schindler (JH) Amy Wasser
W20 Using iPads as a Tool for Writing and Digital Publishing (JH) Dr. Kristine Scharaldi
W21 A New and Effective Way to Teach about the Palestinian State and
Issues Facing Israel Today (JH) Rabbi Dr. Nachum Amsel
W22 Einstein to Apple: Harnessing Technology to Engage Students in Science (JH) Ovi Jacob
W23 Can SMART Boards make Better Neshamot? (JH) Rabbi Menachem Leibtag
W24 Vocabulary Instruction: Opening the Door to Better Communication (JH) Dr. Jill Slansky
W25 Creating a Social Life through Social Action: Gateways and
Mitzvah Mentsches (JH) Nancy Mager
W26 Using Station Rotation to Promote Personalized Learning (ES, JH) Rabbi Tavi Koslowe &
Aliza Chanales
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 4
Election Day, November 5, 2013 5
W27 Literacy Lessons with Special Needs Adaptations (SE) Dr. Clarissa Willis
W28 Make a Difference: CARE! (SE, MH) Dr. Robert Miller
W29 Integrating the Timeless Wisdom of the Torah into the Contemporary
Classroom (SE) Rabbi Yaakov Aichenbaum and
Rabbi Dovid Freeman
W30 Otiyot Midabrot: Fundamentals of Hebrew Reading and Writing (SE, EC) Zehava Kelner
W31 Effectively Integrate SMART Boards into your Math Instruction (SE) David Dickman
W32 Reading Comprehension and Schema Strategies (SE) Rivke Gutkind
W33 Diagnostic Prescriptive Teaching Part I (SE, ES) Dr. Joel Dickstein
W34 If Tech is so Easy at Home, Why is it So Hard in Schools? (SE) Richard Ellenson
W35 Reframing the Difficult Family (SE, ADM) Deborah Berman
W36 Keeping Israel in the Hearts and Minds of the New Generation (ADM) Gloria Gordon, Suzanne Weilgus,
& Rochelle Zupnick
Lunch and Learn - 12:45-1:45 p.m.L1 Multimodal Approaches to Children's Literature (EC) Dr. Theodore Kesler
L2 Mind Body Hebrew Part II (EC) Anat Maimon-Reznik
L3 Worth the Work! Hebrew Literacy Part II (EC) Basya Woolf
L4 Boys will be Boys! (EC) Tammie Roth
L5 Supporting ALL Students Part II (EC, ES) Shira Richman
L6 Key to Success in School: Background Knowledge (ES) Dr. Bill Atwood
L7 Integrating the Timeless Wisdom of the Torah into the Contemporary
Classroom (ES) Rabbi Yaakov Aichenbaum &
Rabbi Dovid Freeman
L8 Teaching to Our Student’s Intelligence (ES, JH) Rabbi Naphtali Hoff
L9 Tech in 20 X 3 (ES, JH) Chani Lichtiger,
Claire Hirschhorn & Tova Burack
L10 Encouraging Student Writing Using 21st Century Skills (JH) Nomi Schneck
L11 Diagnostic Prescriptive Teaching Part II (SE, ES) Dr. Joel Dickstein
L12 Making Your Course an Experience to Remember (ES, SE) Rebecca Schrag
L13 Creating the Brain Friendly Classroom (JH) Dr. Karen Gazith
L14 Effective Use of Technology in the Hebrew Language and Jewish Studies
Classroom (JH) Tova Shimon
L15 Writing to Get it Right (JH) Mindy Lidsky
L16 Engaging Students through Technology (JH) Sharon Sherman &
Karen Tannenholtz
L17 Make a Difference! CARE (MH) Dr. Robert Miller
L18 Comprehension Instruction to Meet the Needs of Struggling Students (SE) Dr. Jill Slansky
L19 Does the Torah Treat Individuals with Disabilities Fairly? (SE) Rabbi Menachem Leibtag
L20 Technology and Pedogogy: Are they Mutually Exclusive or Inclusive? (All) Nachum Ganor & Yoel Ganor
L21 iPads for ALL Learners (SE) Dr. Kristine Scharaldi
L22 The Use and Importance of Music Therapy in Special Needs and
Inclusion Classrooms (SE) Dr. Ian Ash
L23 Functional Speech and Language Techniques for ALL Learners (SE) Susan Paul
L24 Otiyot Midabrot: Developing Hebrew Reading Accuracy (SE, EC) Zehava Kelner
L25 A Boston Area Model of Inclusion (ADM) Liz Offen
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 5
Statewide Professional Development Conference6
L26 A Whole New School (ADM) Amy Wasser
L27 Middle School Reading and Writing (JH) Tamara Tallman
Workshop II- 2:00-3:15 p.m.W37 Let’s Try it Again! Cooperation in the Early Childhood Classroom (EC) Dr. Patricia Cooper
W38 Otiyot Midabrot: Developing Hebrew Reading Fluency (EC, SE) Zehava Kelner
W39 Learn Every Day: Incorporating Math, Science, Social Studies, Literacy,
Creativity and Social Emotional Development into Multi-Sensory Learning
Environments for All Children (EC) Dr. Clarissa Willis
W40 Poetry in Preschool?(EC) Tsippi Cantor & Elana Kessler
W41 The Use and Importance of Music Therapy in Special Needs and Inclusion
Classrooms (EC) Dr. Ian Ash
W42 Documenting Learning in the Early Childhood Classroom (EC) Tammie Roth
W43 numerical EXPRESSion YOURSELF: Integrating Language, Technology,
and Math (ES, JH) Adrienne Shlagbaum
W44 Blended Learning through iPad Usage (ES) Deena Wertman
W45 Using the iPad as a Tool to Support Elementary School Math (ES) Dr. Kristine Scharaldi
W46 The List is Here! A Systematic Method to Teach Chumash (ES) Rabbi Yaakov Aichenbaum and
Rabbi Dovid Freeman
W47 Multimodal Approaches to Children’s Literature (ES) Dr. Theodore Kesler
W48 Reading Comprehension and Schema Strategies (ES) Rivke Gutkind
W49 Functional Speech and Language Techniques for ALL Learners (ES) Susan Paul
W50 Deep Reading of Torah in Hebrew (ES) Tova Shimon
W51 Learning Strategies that Engage the Heart and Mind of our Students
(ES, JH, SE) Mindy Lidsky
W52 Look Ma, No Books! (JH) Meryl Rubin
W53 Assessment in Limudei Kodesh (JH) Rabbi Naphtali Hoff
W54 Jewish Khan Academy: A New Project for you, your students, your school
(JH, ADM) Rabbi Nachum Amsel
W55 New Media Narrative (JH) Dr. James Ohler
W56 Creating Podcasts as a Learning Tool (JH) Linda Gans & Lynn Bloom
W57 The Connected Educator: Using Online Learning (JH) Smadar Goldstein
W58 The Short Research Project: Little Project = Big Educational Return (JH) Dr. Bill Atwood
W59 Memory! There is RAM, the CPU, and Google. Now What? (JH, SE) Dr. Joel Dickstein
W60 Take Care of Yourself! (MH) Deborah Berman
W61 Direct Vocabulary Teaching for Better Comprehension (SE) Dr. Jill Slansky
W62 Managing Students with ADHD in the Classroom (SE) Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman
W63 Special Tools for Special Needs (SE) Gershon Tave
W64 Mind Body Hebrew (SE) Anat Maimon-Reznik
W65 Fun with Mathematics (SE) Dr. Mary Foote
W66 The Brain and Reading (SE) Dr. Karen Gazith
W67 SMART Boards and Differentiated Instruction (SE) David Dickman
W68 Parents, Teachers, Administrators: Why Can’t We All Just Get Along (SE) Richard Ellenson
W69 Setting Appropriate Goals for Students (SE) Dr. Deborah Mann
W70 Meaningful Professional Development (ADM) Linda Stock
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 6
Election Day, November 5, 2013 7
Registration, Coffee, and Shacharit8:00-9:00 a.m.
Vendor Display will open at 8:00 a.m. and remain open until 3:00 p.m. Educational Vendors will be open in the Elementary School Atrium throughout the day.
Shacharit: Elementary School Beit Medrash
9:10-9:30 a.m. – Keynote Address“Keeping the Neshamah in 21st Century Learning”
DR. JEFFREY LICHTMANNational Director, Yachad
The importance of technological expertise is becoming more critical as we strive to ensure that our students are 21stCentury Learners. Many of our schools are utilizing on-line learning, distance learning, and technological software toenhance the classroom experience for their students. However, as teachers in day schools and yeshivot, we have pledgedto develop children not simply as “book learners” but as “neshamot learners,” developing their midot and sense ofchesed. The question we must pose is how do we balance the two and still keep up with other educational systems inthe United States and the world today.
8:15-9:00 a.m. – Principal’s Breakfast“Cyber Safety – A Critical Concern for our Children”
CAPTAIN JOHN RAMPOLLA
9:00-9:10 a.m. – WelcomeBATYA JACOB
Director, International Jewish Resource Center for Inclusion and Special Education & The New Jersey Association of Jewish Day Schools
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 7
Statewide Professional Development Conference8
9:20-10:40 a.m. – Special Education Keynote Address“My Child Left Behind: Why Inclusion is So Difficult”
RICHARD ELLENSONSpecial Education Technology Consultant
People may hold differing beliefs about the importance of inclusion in our educational system. But the real issue is notphilosophical; it is operational. Inclusion is difficult. It requires thoughtful up front preparation and a deep experiencebase to define elements that can make it successful. It can only take hold if it grows from a detailed and shared visionon the part of a large number of people: school districts officials, school administrators, teachers, students, parents, andassociated professionals. As much as we’d like to think that concepts such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL) andDifferentiated Learning can lead to success, they are simply a framework for understanding needs – not a deliverablein and of themselves. And far too often, inclusion starts with the belief that “it’s the right thing to do,” not with the train-ing to make it an experience that can benefit everyone. When you hear about inclusion, stories are more often aboutchallenges than successes. And when you look at almost any study on inclusion, you will find that the thing people con-tinually give as feedback is “I wish we had been better prepared.” Why does this still happen? And how can we changethings? Drawing on experiences ranging from sitting on advisory boards for the Assistive Technology Industry and theNIH to sitting in the classroom with his son, Richard will help break down the specific challenges we all face – start-ing at an institutional level and narrowing down to the individual and will try to provide a context and framework foradvancing what we are all trying to accomplish.
9:40-10:40 a.m. – Keynote Address“New Media, New Students: New Literacies, New Citizens”
DR. JASON OHLERAuthor & Cyber Culture Researcher
What are some of the key issues that define leading and learning in the digital age? Digital literacy, new media partic-ipation and digital citizenship. Without digital literacy, digital citizenship is not possible. Therefore, we need to help stu-dents become truly literate by helping them become active media creators, critical media consumers and engaged dig-ital citizens. This includes helping them cultivate their new media talents, adopt art as the 4th R and use research andnarrative to convey their ideas in rich, compelling ways. We need to help them create media stories and projects that arearticulate, academically sound and transformative so they can collaborate and share their work and talents within thecommunity of the social web. Above all, we need to help them learn how to use their tools to imagine the world theywant to create, as students, workers, neighbors, and citizens. This presentation includes showing examples of studentmedia production and digital citizenship projects. It is based on Jason’s latest book, Digital Community, Digital Citizen(Corwin Press, 2010) and best-selling Digital Storytelling in the Classroom: New Media Pathways to Literacy, Learningand Creativity (Corwin Press, 2008).
9:40-10:40 a.m. – Early Childhood Keynote Address“He Brain, She Brain”
DR. CLARISSA WILLISProfessor, University of Southern Indiana
Learn about how to apply the latest brain research in your individual setting, while discovering the differences betweenthe “he-brain” and the “she-brain.” In addition to hearing about brain research, participants will learn how the social-emotional health of all children is impacted by a brain-based environment.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 8
Election Day, November 5, 2013 9
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
W1 Mind Body Hebrew Part I (EC)ANAT MAIMON-REZNIK
AUTHOR, MIND BODY HEBREW
In this workshop, educators will first review theresearch about the academic and social challenges fac-ing students studying Hebrew language. Anat will thenintroduce a new innovative method to teach Hebrewcalled Mind Body Hebrew. Educators will practicenew ways to teach the Hebrew aleph-bet. They willlearn the Hebrew vowels and corresponding imageryand body movement. Educators will have the opportu-nity for group practice of this technique. They willmove from single vowel words to multi-vowel words.Ample time for questions and answers will be given.
W2 Story Telling for Young Children (EC)DR. PATRICIA COOPER
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE-CUNY
This workshop discusses the benefits of storytellingand story acting for all young children. Based on theresearch of Vivian Gussin Paley, the workshop will dis-cuss the interaction of storytelling and emerging liter-acy skills.
W3 Fun with Early ChildhoodMathematics (EC)DR. MARY FOOTE
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE- CUNY
In this workshop educators will explore methods forteaching the number and operations strand in earlychildhood mathematics. They will learn about chil-dren's mathematical thinking from a developmentalpoint of view. The workshop will examine these in away that addresses a range of learners.
W4 Using the Classroom Environmentas a Teaching Tool (EC)TAMMIE ROTH
ADVANCED TEACHING AND BEYOND
Would you like an additional teacher in your classroomevery day? You can have one if you set up your class-room environment in a way that informs the childrenhow to interact in the space. The classroom environ-ment can also set the tone for how children act in theclass and it can be busy teaching children while youare busy working with others. Come prepared to seeclassrooms that are designed for self-expression anddiscovery. A well set up classroom can reduce con-flict while increasing the depth of learning for eachchild. Come and learn about the educational environ-ments of "Reggio Inspired Schools.” The classroomenvironments will amaze you and the ideas you seecan and will enrich the children you teach.
W5 Apps for Speech and Language(EC, ES)LORI ROTH
PRIVATE PRACTICE, SPEECH AND LANGUAGE
PATHOLOGIST
Technology is rapidly taking over pencil and papertasks and doing a better job at keeping children’s atten-tion in repetitive tasks. One of the hardest things withusing the iPad in the classroom is finding the time togo through all of the apps in the iTunes Store listedunder the education banner. This workshop willattempt to give the participants therapy techniques andapp sites that work on various speech, language and lit-eracy areas. Bring your iPads with you and try someout. Some sites are free. Other may cost you. But allare rated 4 star or more.
W6 Worth the Work! Hebrew LiteracyPart I (EC, ES)BASYA WOOLF
FACULTY, BAIS YAAKOV OF QUEENS
Get ready for a new experience of creating books inHebrew for young children. Activity based on theorythat works! Familiarity with basic Hebrew vocabularynecessary. Photos of your students are a plus!
Workshop I10:45-12:15 p.m.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 9
W7 Supporting the Special NeedsStudent in a Regular EducationClassroom (EC, ES)SHIRA RICHMAN
CONSULTANT, INSTITUTE FOR
CHILDREN WITH AUTISM
This workshop will provide a brief history of inclu-sion, some behavior management techniques, theimportance of prompt-fading, an overview of support-ing transitions, organizational skills, social integrationand proper use of support staff. It will also touchupon problem-solving difficult behaviors, and newdevelopments in Positive Behavior Support Plans.
W8 Jewish Montessori: Nuts and BoltsBut No Computers (ES, JH)RIVKY ROSS
HEAD OF SCHOOL, YESHIVAT NETIVOT
Over the past decade, the Jewish Montessori move-ment has exploded across the globe because it incor-porates all of the key elements needed for a continual-ly joyful and rich educational environment. Built intothe Montessori Method are solutions to all of the hot-button issues so frequently discussed in educationtoday: differentiated instruction, freedom of move-ment, choice-driven learning, and project-based study.This interactive session will offer an overview of themethod as well as opportunities to sample materialsused in Jewish Montessori classrooms. And while weare considering the theme of blended learning and newfrontiers, we will talk about why Montessori lower ele-mentary classrooms tend to be computer-free!
W9 Authentic vs. TraditionalAssessment: Where do we go fromhere? (ES)MINDY LIDSKY
PRINCIPAL, ILAN HIGH SCHOOL
Define, compare and contrast the benefits and limita-tions of both assessment models with ways that theparticipant will adopt both models into his/her reper-toire. Explore ways in which to modify the traditionalassessment to meet the needs of students who needaccommodations and/or modifications.
W10 Building Blocks for EffectiveClassroom Instruction (ES)DR. KAREN GAZITH
DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, BRONFMAN JEWISH EDUCATION CENTRE
Diversity and heterogeneity are givens in today’s class-rooms. With this reality, it is critical for teachers tolearn specific hands-on strategies to support all learn-ers. In this workshop we will focus on five specificstrategies: pre-assessment, on-going assessment, entrypoints, authentic assessment, tiered learning and skills-based instruction to meet the needs of all learners.
W11 Digital Community, Digital Citizen(ES)DR. JAMES OHLER
AUTHOR & CYBER CULTURE RESEARCHER
Imagine this as a school district mantra: “Students willstudy the personal, social and environmental impactsof every technology and media application they use inschool so that they can develop the skills, literacies andperspectives they need to use technology not onlyeffectively and creatively, but also responsibly, safelyand wisely.” Digital citizenship is an idea whose timehas come. So many of the issues and opportunities stu-dents will face for the rest of their lives have their rootsin technology, from genetic transformation to digitalfootprints to cyber safety and radical social reorgani-zation. That’s why schools need to do more than pre-pare students to be capable work force members. Theyneed to prepare students to be good neighbors,informed voters and participatory citizens so they caneffectively balance technology’s opportunities and lim-itations in light of its value to the human community.This presentation is based on Jason’s books, DigitalCommunity, Digital Citizen (Corwin Press, 2010).
W12 The Connected Educator: TearingDown Classroom Walls (ES)SMADAR GOLDSTEIN
JETS ISRAEL
With the advent of the internet and social networkingin the 21st Century, students generate much of theirown learning and socialization beyond the classroom.The internet, iPad, and apps have opened up a vastresource of possibilities to engage our students in thelearning process and greatly enhance their classroom
Statewide Professional Development Conference10
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 10
Election Day, November 5, 2013 11
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
experience. The interactive “connected educator” ses-sion familiarizes participants with easy to use technol-ogy and online learning tools that enable them to har-ness the power of the internet in order to maximizetheir students’ learning. Participants will becomefamiliar with ways in which to enhance student partic-ipation and assessment through the use of written andoral feedback instruments, LMS (LearningManagement Systems such as Haiku, Edmodo,Wikispaces, etc.) e-portfolios, etc. They will all learnhow to connect their students to the global Jewishcommunity and to the State of Israel through a varietyof virtual and real experiences by means of distanceand online leaning and accessing experts in the field.
W13 The Power of Frequent Assessment(ES, JH)DR. BILL ATWOOD
COLLINS EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATES
In this age of the Iowa Test, the Stanford 10, DIBELS,Common Core, PARCC, SAT, SATII, ACT, AP Examsand on and on… How can one possibly advocate formore testing? Doesn’t testing take up valuable classroomtime and just confirm what we already know about stu-dent progress? In fact, research is showing that short, fre-quent assessments are powerful tools that drive bothlearning and teaching. In this workshop, teachers willlearn how to design simple but effective assessments thatcan make a powerful difference in the classroom.
W14 Making Chumash Come Alive (ES,JH)RABBI NAPHTALI HOFF
CONSULTANT, LIMUDEI KODESH EDUCATOR
This session will help educators think about ways toactively engage their students in the study of Chumashby focusing on themes and textual analysis, utilizingcooperative learning, integrating technology, assigningchallenging, innovative projects, and varying lessonsfor different types of learners.
W15 Meaningful Reading of Tephillah(ES, JH)TOVA SHIMON
PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TAL AM
In this workshop we will work on deep reading of twoTephillot – the Amidah and Birkat Hamazon. We will
prepare outlines of lessons for the study of Tephillahfor elementary and junior high school classes.
W16 Integrating Smart Board Gamesinto your Judaic StudiesCurriculumJACLYN LEIFERT & RAHEL GREBLER
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
Learn how to enhance your Judaic Studies curriculumby creating a variety of interactive games in Notebook.Use these games on your Smart board for pre-teaching,teaching, and reviewing. See your students becometotally engaged in your classroom.
W17 Beyond Self-Esteem: DevelopingMotivated Students (ES, JH, ADM)RABBI ELIE TUCHMAN
PRINCIPAL, YESHIVA AT THE JERSEY SHORE
Student self-efficacy, a student’s belief in their ownability to learn, has been repeatedly linked, in studyafter study, to student success in school. In this session,we will introduce some of the basic research in thefield of self-efficacy and explore the connectionbetween self-efficacy beliefs, internal motivation, andstudent learning. We will then discuss ways in whichteachers can help foster these beliefs in their students.Practical examples from the participants’ classroomswill be used to illustrate.
W18 Blended Learning in LimudeiKodesh Subjects ( JH)GERSHON TAVE
TEQSMART CERTIFIED TRAINER
Learn to use a variety of SMART, Web and otherEducational Technology tools. Our session willdemonstrate how to integrate these E.T. tools to rein-force fundamental skills beyond the classroom walls.Manage classroom time more efficiently by providingengaging activities for students to review vocabulary,grammar and reading skills at home.
W19 Benjamin Netanyahu Meets OskarSchindler ( JH)AMY WASSER
PRINCIPAL, HILLEL ACADEMY OF TAMPA
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 11
Imagine....a classroom of students; each one engaged,speaking, writing and researching....while having fun.Come learn how to implement an element of play intoyour history or Judiacs curriculum. This rich programcombines serious research, learning how to utilize pri-mary source documents, public speaking and technol-ogy. It is prime for interdisciplinary teaching andallows children who do not always shine to find theirvoice and strengths. Come prepared...to play with us!
W20 Using iPads as a Tool for Writingand Digital Publishing ( JH)DR. KRISTINE SCHARALDI
PROFESSOR, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
In this session, educators will discover ways of usingthe iPad to support student writing across the curricu-lum. Participants will see demonstrations of apps usedduring the writing process from brainstorming ideas todigital publishing. Learn about how technology canprovide opportunities for collaboration and onlinecommenting. Educators will leave this session withideas for using the iPad as an integral tool for writing!
W21 A New and Effective Way to Teachabout the Palestinian State andIssues Facing Israel Today ( JH)RABBI DR. NACHUM AMSEL
DESTINY FOUNDATION
Studies show that our Day School students believemost of the half-truths and misrepresentation about theState of Israel that they see and hear on CNN and in themass media. This workshop will teach the teachershow to present the truth with new and original videoclips that can be accessed by students and teachersfrom the internet from the school’s central computer.In addition to the videos, students (from grades 6 andabove) and teachers can also access information abouteach of the eleven topics in this new DestinyFoundation curriculum, including the West Bank-Yesha, how to determine the “real” facts, the potentialPalestinian State and the Peace Process. Teachers willwalk away with actual Lesson Plans and materials thatcan be used immediately and respond to current eventsand future events.
W22 Einstein to Apples: HarnessingTechnology to Engage Students inScience ( JH)OVI JACOB
LATE NITE LABS, MACMILLAN PUBLISHING
Teachers across the world are going beyond the classicscience curriculum by using educational technology toengage students and enrich the learning environment.With safe and inexpensive online tools, students canharness the power of technology. This course willexplore how a teacher can institute practical methodsof online and mobile learning, in curriculum and as anenrichment vehicle. We'll explore some easy to usetools, such as virtual chemistry and biology labs (withexplosions!), underwater and space exploration, practi-cal applications for physics, dissections models andmuch more. We will also discuss how to keep studentsin tune outside of the classroom, with educationalvideo games, mobile learning applications and by set-ting up a class blog or wiki. Whether you are using avirtual crime scene to teach DNA (think CSI) or video-chatting with a class in Brazil to learn about the rain-forest, learn how your class can take advantage of tech-nology to make science a richer and more engagingsubject.
W23 Can SMART Boards Make BetterNeshamot? ( JH)RABBI MENACHEM LEIBTAG
FOUNDER, TANACH STUDY CENTER
This workshop will discuss spiritual challenges [andopportunities] of long distance learning & global com-munities. As we all know, emerging technologies pro-vide new opportunities to enhance education; however,they also come with a 'price-tag'. Our session willbegin by discussing the meaning of the word"neshama," and how that understanding affects thegoals of Jewish Education. Afterward, we will differ-entiate between using the SMART Board as a “tool,”and as a “toy,” and then discuss how technology can beharnessed to develop spirituality, in both real and vir-tual classrooms.
Statewide Professional Development Conference12
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 12
Election Day, November 5, 2013 13
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
W24 Vocabulary Instruction: Openingthe Door to Better Communication(JH)DR. JILL SLANSKY
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND
An extensive vocabulary enhances reading compre-hension and writing excellence. This workshop willengage the audience with practical strategies to applythe elements of effective vocabulary development inmiddle school classrooms.
W25 Creating a Social Life ThroughSocial Action: Gateways andMitzvah Mensches ( JH)NANCY MAGER
GATEWAYS, BOSTON
In 2005, Gateways introduced Mitzvah Mensches, aninclusive teen youth group fostering social justice andteen philanthropy. Creating a social life through socialaction teens with and without special educational needsjoin Mitzvah Mensches for a variety of reasons, but theystay because they think it is fun, they feel like theybelong, and they all have a voice that is heard and count-ed. The overt curriculum is about philanthropy andsocial action. Teens decide what topics (e.g. animals,music, the environment) they are interested in and inturn, the staff at Gateways identifies charities that arealigned with their interests. As a group, the MitzvahMensches learn about the charities in fun and creativeways. Sometimes, they learn through formal education(reading and writing, or watching a video about the char-ity), but they also play games and have team challenges.The games have a secondary purpose: through them, theinstructors work on social skills and building relation-ships among the participants. As an inclusive program,some of the participants have disabilities and others donot. In the beginning of the year, the teens may feel likethey do not share interests or have much in common, butas the year progresses and the program creates uniqueshared experiences, the teens bond and have plenty totalk about. Eventually those connections grow strongerand friendships are forged. In this presentation, partici-pants will learn about the Mitzvah Mensches program,and be guided through a sample lessons that incorporatesformal education and social skill which also facilitatesfriendship between teens with and without disabilities.
W26 Using Station Rotation to PromotePersonalized Learning (ES, JH)RABBI TAVI KOSLOWE & ALIZA CHANALES
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL & FACULTY, YESHIVAT NOAM
Participants will be exposed to various ways that cre-ating a rotation of meaningful stations in both Generaland Judaic studies can promote more personalized andadaptive learning. We will discuss various protocolsthat can enable this to occur more seamlessly, somechallenges to anticipate and ways that technology canfacilitate its smooth operation.
W27 Literacy Lessons with SpecialNeeds Adaptations (SE)DR. CLARISSA WILLIS
PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN INDIANA
This interactive session is designed to help participantsprovide literacy lessons and classroom environmentsthat encourage all learners to be active participants.Strategies that encourage collaboration and communi-cation will be provided. In addition, participants willlearn about simple adaptations for children with spe-cial needs as well as strategies for enhancing the liter-acy development of all students.
W28 Make a Difference: CARE! (SE,MH)DR. ROBERT MILLER
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, RICHARD STOCKTON COLLEGE
As a Chaplain for Hospice, consultant for a nursinghome, Professor, Principal and teacher, I am able toutilize my research on “Caring” to connect with mystudents and others on a variety of levels and assistthem in looking at their experiences through differentlenses. Attendees will learn how to make a differencein another person’s life through 26 caring behaviors.These behaviors impact students’ grades and behaviorin the classroom. The results are real and significant!The research and stories are amazing! You too canmake a difference in your students’ lives!
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 13
W29 Integrating the Timeless Wisdomof the Torah into theContemporary Classroom (SE)RABBI YAAKOV AICHENBAUM & RABBI DOVID FREEMAN
DIRECTOR, LIMUDEI KODESH RESOURCE ROOM,SCRANTON HEBREW DAY SCHOOL & FACULTY,CHEDER OF MONSEY
The Torah is the ultimate source of all wisdom.Accordingly, the Torah contains a wealth of informa-tion about chinuch methodology and techniques. Thisworkshop will present a wide range of Torah-basededucational techniques and demonstrate their applica-tion to the contemporary classroom without deviatingfrom our mesorah. Among the topics that will be dis-cussed are the following: automaticity theory and over-learning, addressing multi-modalities, mental imagery,mnemonics and other memory aids, graphic organiz-ers, and processing time. In addition, the Torah appli-cation of Bloom’s taxonomy and developing higherorder thinking skills will be addressed. Finally, it willbe shown how to use these techniques in variouslimudei kodesh subjects including kriah, Chumash,dinim, yedios klaliyos, and more. Participants in thisworkshop will gain a new appreciation for the incredi-ble wisdom, depth and insight that chazal had aboutchinuch and educational methodology. It will alsoempower and motivate them to employ many of theseideas in their lessons. While this workshop is a com-plete and independent presentation in itself, it will alsolay the foundation for and establish the theoreticalbasis for the groundbreaking Chumash program thatwill be developed in our second workshop (THE LISTIS HERE! AN EFFECTIVE, SYSTEMATIC, ANDUSER-FRIENDLY PROGRAM FOR TEACHINGCHUMASH).
W30 Otiyot Midabrot: Fundamentals ofHebrew Reading and Writing (SE, EC)ZEHAVA KELNER
DIRECTOR, OTIYOT INSTITUTE
Numerous studies have demonstrated that good phono-logic awareness is a prerequisite for success in theacquisition of reading. The “Otiyot Medabrot”approach teaches the foundations of reading while cre-ating a high degree of phonologic awareness. Themethod, which was developed in Israel, is based on the
dissection of 25 one-syllable word into isolatedphonemes. Students use mirrors to develop visual andmotor recognition of the sounds of the consonants andvowels, while incorporating writing from the earlystages. This session will experientially present theprinciples of the Otiyot Medabrot method, including avideo that demonstrates its implementation, and thepresentation of related learning materials used in Israeland adapted for use in English speaking settings. Thesession will be conducted in Hebrew accompanied byan English power point.
W31 Effectively Integrate SMARTBoards into your Math Instruction(SE)DAVID DICKMAN
TEQSMART CERTIFIED TRAINER
Explore examples of how the interactive whiteboardcan be successfully integrated into your curriculum,with this content specific course. See research-sup-ported evidence on how the board can influence yourstudents' participation and expand their learningopportunities. Gain the skills necessary to begin inte-grating the interactive whiteboard into your mathinstruction, and further discover the possibilities of theboard's technology.
W32 Reading Comprehension andSchema Strategies (SE)RIVKE GUTKIND
ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, FORDHAM UNIVERSITY
How do schema strategies help us understand the waystudents comprehend printed text? This workshopwill explore overall reading comprehension strategiesas well as various types of comprehenders based ontheir ability to "schema strategize.” Included in thisworkshop are interactive activities for methodologyand educational interventions. This workshop willstress metacognitive skills and visible thinking con-cepts.
W33 Diagnostic Prescriptive TeachingPart I (SE, ES)DR. JOEL DICKSTEIN
SENIOR CONSULTANT OF THE NATIONAL
EDUCATION RESOURCE CENTER OF P’TACH
Statewide Professional Development Conference14
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 14
Sometimes as teachers we are driven by the curriculumrather than the student’s primary learning needs.Teachers often go to the second or third base issueslike course content or curriculum based assessment;however there are often first base impediments tolearning that are assumed to have been learned “alongthe way.” In this workshop we will take a step back andinvestigate what these essential first base issues areand how to address them for students with specialneeds. This is a two part workshop and will continueduring lunch and learn.
W34 If Tech is So Easy at Home, Why isit So Hard in School? (SE)RICHARD ELLENSON
SPECIAL EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANT
Today, assistive tech (AT) in the classroom includeseverything from Smart Boards to complex individualdevices that let hearing impaired individuals listen viaInfrared receivers to helping non-verbal children com-municate. The good news is that AT allows many morepeople to be included. The bad news is that, despitehow pervasive tech is in our everyday life, it’s usuallyharder to get things to work efficiently in the class-room. There are very specific reasons for that. Andmost can be addressed. In this talk we’ll discuss how tobetter integrate AT into a student’s life and workflow,looking at everything from the balance between sup-ports and independent learning, doing adaptations vs.providing access, balancing workloads for studentswho need more time with appropriate levels of study,and teaching other students how to work with childrenwho are different. AT has evolved at an amazing pace– and here’s how we can make it work for us.
W35 Reframing the Difficult Family (SE,ADM)DEBORAH BERMAN
DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL WORK, YACHAD/NJCD
Learn practical, easy-to-use clinical techniques andinterventions to understand, empower, and ally fami-lies that have challenges, resistance, and oppositionalattitudes. Each family is unique and their percep-tions of their children’s needs and the role of the spe-cial education system are directly informed by anunspoken set of values, expectations, cultural norms,past and present stressors and trauma, health and men-tal challenges, and complicated histories that may notbe readily apparent to educators. By learning thebasics of clinical/family systems interventions, youcan absolutely establish good or even great workingrelationships with the toughest parents and most com-plicated families, and sooner than you might think.Your special education students will reap the immeas-urable benefits of the school-family alliance that youhave seemingly effortlessly created.
W36 Keeping Israel in the Hearts andMinds of the New Generation(ADM)GLORIA GORDON, SUZANNE WEILGUS, &ROCHELLE ZUPNICK
ACHI
Teaching Israel is not for Yom Haazmaut alone. Learncreative and innovative ways to instill in your studentsa love for Israel throughout the academic year.Integrate teaching Israel in all curricula; LimudeiKodesh, General Studies and Specialties. Participantswill leave this session with many easy and diverseideas and programs to implement in their classroomsand school wide. These programs have been met withsuccess in day schools in the tri state area. “Israel onYour Table” and “Teaching Israel with the Five Senses”are just two examples of the many new approaches youwill bring back to your classes to impact your Israelcurriculum. The tone and spirit you create in yourclassroom will be a catalyst for a love of Israel in thehome and community as well.
Election Day, November 5, 2013 15
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 15
Statewide Professional Development Conference16
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
L1 Multimodal Approaches toChildren’s Literature (EC)DR. THEODORE KESLER
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE-CUNY
Multimodality is a hot topic in education nowadays,especially with the increasingly prevalent use of digi-tal tools in classrooms, even though great educatorshave long used multimodal approaches, such as draw-ing, dance, music, and role playing, to expand the wayschildren might express understanding. Multimodalapproaches are especially supportive of special needsstudents who might be challenged by oral and writtenlanguage. In this workshop, Ted Kesler will exploresome powerful ways to share great children’s literaturewith participants and provide fun and practical multi-modal approaches that teachers could implementimmediately to support their students’ responses anddeepen their comprehension. Dr. Kesler will also sug-gest ideas for using these approaches for formativeassessment to guide teachers’ instructional decisions.
L2 Mind Body Hebrew Part II (EC)ANAT MAIMON-REZNIK
AUTHOR, MIND BODY HEBREW
In this workshop, educators will first review theresearch about the academic and social challenges fac-ing students studying Hebrew language. Anat will thenintroduce a new innovative method to teach Hebrewcalled Mind Body Hebrew. Educators will practice
new ways to teach the Hebrew aleph-bet. They willlearn the Hebrew vowels and corresponding imageryand body movement. Educators will have the opportu-nity for group practice of this technique. They willmove from single vowel words to multi-vowel words.Ample time for questions and answers will be given.
L3 Worth the Work! Hebrew LiteracyPart II (EC)BASYA WOOLF
BAIS YAAKOV OF QUEENS
Get ready for a new experience of creating books inHebrew for young children. Activity based on theorythat works! Familiarity with basic Hebrew vocabularynecessary. Photos of your students is a plus!
L4 Boys will be Boys! (EC)TAMMIE ROTH
ADVANCED TEACHING AND BEYOND
So let’s teach them in the way they learn best! Everwonder why boys are more likely to be diagnosed withADHD than girls? Is it genetic? Is it environmental?Either way ... It’s our job to find solutions to this ageold problem. Come learn the differences in learningstyles of boys and girls. Current brain research has pro-vided new information to guide you in teaching boyseffectively. Let’s put it to work! Understanding howboys really learn best and acknowledging that boysmature at different rates will help you to apply yourknowledge in the classroom. Handouts highlighting
Lunch and Learn Workshops12:45-1:45 p.m.
(Please note: Lunch and Learn Sessions are only 60 minutes in length. Please pick up your lunch and proceed immediately to the room assigned.)
Lunch, Vendor Exhibition, and Lunch and Learn Sessions 12:15-1:45 p.m.
Please pick up your lunch in the cafeteria and proceed to your Lunch and Learn Session.
Visit our vendorsEducational Vendors will be open throughout the day. Raffle drawing will take place at 12:15
and 1:45 p.m. You must be present in the Vendor Area to win.
Mincha will take place in the Elementary School Beit Medrash at 1:45 p.m.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 16
the learning differences of boys and girls will be givenout and examples of how we can reach out best andteach our boys will be discussed.
L5 Supporting ALL Students Part II(EC, ES)SHIRA RICHMAN
CONSULTANT, INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN WITH
AUTISM
This workshop will provide a brief history of inclu-sion, some behavior management techniques, theimportance of prompt-fading, an overview of support-ing transitions, organizational skills, social integrationand proper use of support staff. It will also touchupon problem-solving difficult behaviors, and newdevelopments in Positive Behavior Support Plans.
L6 Key to Success in School:Background Knowledge (ES)DR. BILL ATWOOD
COLLINS EDUCATIONAL CONSULTANTS
Research from Robert Marzano suggests that studentswith more academic background knowledge have ahuge advantage in school. Without background knowl-edge, the key ideas and facts stored in long-term mem-ory, critical thinking is difficult. Cognitive scientist,Daniel Willingham said that critical thinking, reason-ing, and problem solving are intimately intertwinedwith background knowledge. But, how can teachersbuild and draw out the kind of extensive factual knowl-edge so essential to academic success? In this presen-tation, teachers will learn strategies to activate, build,and reinforce academic background knowledge, andschool leaders will learn how to support staff in thisendeavor.
L7 Integrating the Timeless Wisdomof the Torah into theContemporary Classroom (ES)RABBI YAAKOV AICHENBAUM & RABBI DOVID FREEMAN
DIRECTOR, LIMUDEI KODESH RESOURCE CENTER
SCRANTON HEBREW DAY SCHOOL & FACULTY
CHEDER OF MONSEY
The Torah is the ultimate source of all wisdom.Accordingly, the Torah contains a wealth of informa-
tion about chinuch methodology and techniques. Thisworkshop will present a wide range of Torah-basededucational techniques and demonstrate their applica-tion to the contemporary classroom without deviatingfrom our mesorah. Among the topics that will be dis-cussed are the following: automaticity theory and over-learning, addressing multi-modalities, mental imagery,mnemonics and other memory aids, graphic organiz-ers, and processing time. In addition, the Torah appli-cation of Bloom’s taxonomy and developing higherorder thinking skills will be addressed. Finally, it willbe shown how to use these techniques in variouslimudei kodesh subjects including kriah, Chumash,dinim, yedios klaliyos, and more. Participants in thisworkshop will gain a new appreciation for the incredi-ble wisdom, depth and insight that chazal had aboutchinuch and educational methodology. It will alsoempower and motivate them to employ many of theseideas in their lessons.
L8 Teaching to Our Students’Intelligence (ES, JH)RABBI NAPHTALI HOFF
CONSULTANT, LIMUDEI KODESH EDUCATOR
Learn more about the eight identified intelligences thatwe possess and ways in which we can use this infor-mation to better meet our students’ needs. Teacherswill also learn how their personal set of intelligencesmay impact the way in which they present classroommaterial.
L9 Tech in 20 X 3 (ES, JH)CHANI LICHTIGER, CLAIRE HIRSCHHORN, & TOVA BURACK
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
Learn about some fabulous apps and resources thatwill enhance teaching and excite learners. Cross cur-ricular ideas harness the iPads learning potential.
L10 Encouraging Student’s WritingUsing 21st Century Skills ( JH)NOMI SCHNECK
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
Take the written form into the future. Learn how tomake writing relevant to today’s students. Experiencethe incorporation of resources including VoiceThread,Blogger, and StoryBird while developing strong, solid
Election Day, November 5, 2013 17
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 17
skills. We will also explore ways to encourage studentwriting through online publications such as Amazon.
L11 Diagnostic Prescriptive TeachingPart II (SE, ES)DR. JOEL DICKSTEIN
SENIOR CONSULTANT OF THE NATIONAL
EDUCATION RESOURCE CENTER OF P’TACH
Sometimes as teachers we are driven by the curriculumrather than the student’s primary learning needs.Teachers often go to the second or third base issueslike course content or curriculum based assessment;however there are often first base impediments tolearning that are assumed to have been learned “alongthe way.” In this workshop we will take a step back andinvestigate what these essential first base issues areand how to address them for students with specialneeds.
L12 Making Your Course an Experienceto Remember (ES, SE)REBECCA SCHRAG
DIRECTOR OF SENIOR NEW YORK
YACHAD/NJCD
Research supports that students are more likely toremember material experienced over what they aresimply lectured. In this session, come brainstorm waysto bring out the character of your classroom by creat-ing an experiential playground for your educationalcoursework. Educators will leave this session withfreshened programmatic ideas, techniques and energy.
L13 Creating Brain Friendly Classrooms(JH)DR. KAREN GAZITH
DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, BRONFMAN JEWISH
EDUCATION CENTRE
With the advent of 21st century technologies, it isbecoming increasingly clear to researchers that thereare certain teaching practices that are highly effectivefor all students. In this session teachers will learn thesespecific and practical teaching practices that willengage all students and ensure their success in theinclusive classroom.
L14 Effective Use of Technology in theHebrew Language and JewishStudies Classroom (JH)TOVA SHIMON
PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TAL AM
In this workshop we will: explore several types of dig-ital games and activities; view lessons in which digitalprograms are utilized; use a rubric to assess the digitalmaterials and identify the characteristics of effectiveversus non-effective digital programs; and discuss bestpractices in using technology for learning.
L15 Writing to get it Right! ( JH)MINDY LIDSKY
PRINCIPAL, ILAN HIGH SCHOOL
Using pen and paper, workshop participants will learnhow to employ the written word in any discipline tofacilitate student understanding and improve studentperformance in both Judaic and General Studies. Theworkshop is appropriate for teachers of elementaryschool (3-8), as well as high school and is largelybased upon the research and work of Dr. John Collinsof Harvard University. In addition, participants will beexposed to a number of writing assessments that short-en teacher grading time as they increase student per-formance.
L16 Engaging Students throughTechnology ( JH)SHARON SHERMAN & KAREN TANNENHOLTZ
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
See how we have engaged our students by enablingthem to create avators, video book trailers, blogs,online comic books, trading cards, and more, usinginformation available at their fingertips with today’stechnology.
L17 Make a Difference! CARE (MH)DR. ROBERT MILLER
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, RICHARD STOCKTON
COLLEGE
As a Chaplain for Hospice, consultant for a nursinghome, Professor, Principal and teacher, I am able toutilize my research on “Caring” to connect with mystudents and others on a variety of levels and assist
Statewide Professional Development Conference18
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 18
Election Day, November 5, 2013 19
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
them in looking at their experiences through differentlenses. Attendees will learn how to make a differencein another person’s life through 26 caring behaviors.These behaviors impact students’ grades and behaviorin the classroom. The results are real and significant!The research and stories are amazing! You too canmake a difference in your students’ lives!
L18 Comprehension Instruction toMeet the Needs of StrugglingStudents (SE)DR. JILL SLANSKY
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND
High quality language arts instruction consists of sixessential blocks of learning: 1. Daily independentreading; 2. Daily independent writing; 3.Reading:Learning Skills and Strategies; 4. Reading: ApplyingSkills and Strategies; 5. Writing: Learning to Write; 6.Writing: Developmentally Appropriate Writing.Intervention instruction must be in addition to thesecore blocks. This workshop will explore the instruc-tional design and PRACTICAL implementation of acomprehensive reading program.
L19 Does the Torah Treat Individualwith Disabilities Fairly? (SE)RABBI MENACHEM LEIBTAG
FOUNDER, TANACH STUDY CENTER
Many laws in Sefer Vayikra appear to discriminateagainst certain people whose bodily features are “lessthan perfect.” Our session will discuss those sourcesin an attempt to ascertain their meaning, and theirapplication in a society that strives to provide ‘equalopportunity’ and develop social sensitivity.
L20 Technology and Pedagogy: arethese mutually exclusive, or mutu-ally inclusive? (All)NACHUM GANOR & YOEL GANOR
DIRECTORS, ULPAN-OR
“Will two walk together, except they have agreed?...”With the new opportunities of improving the learningprocess enabled by the technology advancements,adoption of technology by schools is becoming moreubiquitous within the institutions around the world.
More and more U.S. schools are now asking not ifthey should incorporate more technology, but howshould they do it. Technology is an integral part of thecurrent generation students’ realm. Current generationof students naturally adopts new technology as it ispart of their realm. Students nowadays are used toobtaining and sharing information via the internet.They gladly use mobile devices such as phones ortablet computers (as all in one device) to create multi-media items and collaborate with their friends to do so.Applying Ulpan-Or’s unique RLA – Rapid LanguageAcquisition methodology for school curricula In mostcases, due to objective circumstances Hebrew is taughtin the US as a “Foreign Language”, where students donot have an opportunity to use or practice it outside oftheir schools. Similarly to a “foreign body”, which isexpelled from one’s body, being a “Foreign Language”Hebrew is “expelled” from one’s mind. By using newtechnology platforms and mobile devices Ulpan-Or’sRLA methodology expands Hebrew learning beyondthe classroom and creates an immersion environment,which provides vast opportunities for students to con-tinue practicing and using their Hebrew almost every-where.
L21 iPads for ALL Learners (SE)DR. KRISTINE SCHARALDI
PROFESSOR, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
During this session educators will explore how iPadscan be used to customize learning experiences for stu-dents of all needs and abilities. We will share ways theiPad can support skill and language development,communication, and content area learning. A demon-stration of some built-in accessibility features will bepresented that will include voice-over, zoom, and vari-ous keyboards and input options. A showcase of appswill be presented to share the exciting potential of thisdevice to support learning in a variety of contexts.
L22 The Use and Importance of MusicTherapy in Special Needs andInclusion Classrooms (SE)DR. IAN ASH
DIRECTOR, MUSIC THERAPY RESOURCES
This course covers 3 parts: Part I: Participants in thiscourse will first learn about the history of music ther-apy as a profession and its development in special edu-cation and inclusion programs. Participants will then
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 19
Statewide Professional Development Conference20
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
learn about the current working definition of musictherapy and how this definition is utilized in specialeducation and inclusion programs. Part II: Severalmusic therapy special education activity demonstra-tions will be presented to participants. Participantshave the opportunity to participate in demonstrationsby playing instruments. Part III: There will be a dis-cussion on current music therapy and special educa-tion/inclusion research and its implication for futurepractice. The presenter will also discuss his first handobservations of how music therapy benefits studentsthat he treats in special education/inclusion programs.
L23 Functional Speech and LanguageTechniques for ALL Learners (SE)SUSAN PAUL
DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATION IMAGING
Communication is Behavior and Behavior isCommunication. We learn how to learn through com-munication and every individual learns differently.This workshop will focus on how the environment canfoster a child’s attention and emotional regulation, thusfacilitating a child’s ability to learn. Functional verbaland non-verbal strategies will be demonstrated in allareas of speech and language. The workshop will focuson general strategies to foster emotional regulation,understanding typical speech development, learninghow to foster an increase in speech intelligibility,understanding typical language development, learninghow to foster and increase receptive and expressivelanguage, and learning how to foster social communi-cation.
L24 Otiyot Midabrot: DevelopingHebrew reading Accuracy (SE, ES)ZEHAVA KELNER
DIRECTOR, OTIYOT INSTITUTE
Many students who develop basic Hebrew readingskills do not develop accuracy in their reading. Thissession will present the importance of precision inreading, and will familiarize participants with a varietyof tools and techniques for fostering accuracy inHebrew reading, including: relating to the “shva” asan impediment or an aid for accurate reading, worddivision, and reinforcement of precision with vowelsounds. The session will include a short video thatdemonstrates the implementation of these and other
methods. The session will be conducted in Hebrewaccompanied by an English power point.
L25 A Boston Area Model of Inclusion(ADM)LIZ OFFEN
DIRECTOR, BOSTON YACHAD/NJCD
This workshop and discussion will present a model ofinclusion in supplemental Jewish education currentlytaking place in the Boston area, but applicable to dayschools as well. We will also explore the benefits andchallenges of technology in the inclusive classroom(netbooks, iPads, class websites, remote access, inter-net use, apps & programs, online resources, etc.).This model integrates at an approximately 50/50 basisstudents with special needs and neurotypical peers,though some years the ratio changes. The workshopwill address applying Universal Design for Learning(UDL) methodology, best practices, behavior manage-ment, and modifying lessons for individuals and cre-ating multi-modality lessons that work for everyone.Liz will present new trends in the classroom includingthe use of technology and experiential, hands-on learn-ing. This is primarily a classroom based learningmodel, though there has been a successful servicelearning component (field trips). Discussion is encour-aged and attendees are welcome to ask questions andshare their experiences.
L26 A Whole New School (ADM)AMY WASSER
PRINCIPAL, HILLEL ACADEMY OF TAMPA
Have you ever dreamed that visitors would open up thedoors of your building and say “WOW?” With a bit ofcreativity, vision and leadership willing to take calcu-lated risks, you can turn your old, dull halls and wallsinto a vibrant environment to match your 21st centuryteaching. Imagine natural light pouring in throughyour new windows, students engaged with one anotheraround the comfortable furniture in one of the learningsuites, and teachers collaborating in their work room.This is all possible and relatively affordable as well!Come and hear how we turned a 40 year old concretewall into a beautiful professional learning community.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 20
Election Day, November 5, 2013 21
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
L27 Middle School Reading andWriting ( JH)TAMARA TALLMAN
FACULTY, HILLEL YESHIVA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Looking for a way to ‘amp’ up your middle school
Language Arts curriculum? Why not try mini-units?This workshop focuses on mini-units in:Creative/Technical Writing; Research and InformativeWriting; Persuasive and Narrative Writing; Poetry andResume Writing that the students both enjoy and ben-efit from!
1:45 p.m. – Mincha Mincha will take place in the Elementary School Beit Medrash.
Raffle drawing to take place in the Elementary School Vendor Area.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 21
W37 Let’s Try it Again! Cooperation inthe Early Childhood Classroom(EC)DR. PATRICIA COOPER
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE-CUNY
This workshop will explore the misdeeds and misbe-havior of young children in a classroom and discuss arestorative approach to behavior and classroom man-agement in early childhood grades.
W38 Otiyot Midabrot: DevelopingHebrew Reading Fluency (EC, SE)ZEHAVA KELNER
DIRECTOR, OTIYOT INSTITUTE
Many children who achieve accuracy in their Hebrewreading, do not achieve fluency. This session will dis-tinguish between accuracy and fluency, will demon-strate several types of integrated reading, and willpresent a variety of tools and techniques for fosteringfluency in Hebrew reading, including: reading in“meaningful phrases”, transition to reading of non-vocalized texts, and silent reading. The session willinclude a short video that demonstrates the implemen-tation of these and other methods, and will presentreaders that have been written specifically for this pur-pose. The session will be conducted in Hebrew accom-panied by an English power point.
W39 Learn Every Day: IncorporatingMath, Science, Social Studies,Literacy, Creativity and SocialEmotional Development intoMulti-Sensory LearningEnvironments for All Children (EC, SE)DR. CLARISSA WILLIS
PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN INDIANA
This presentation uses a strengths based approach todiscuss how to plan developmentally appropriate activ-
ities that respect individual differences, honor everychild’s culture and recognize that family members areequal partners in a child’s education. Research baseddevelopmentally appropriate practices and creatingnurturing environments that support all learners willbe the basis for this presentation. Each participant willreceive a packet of activities to take back and imple-ment in the classroom.
W40 Poetry in Preschool? (EC)TSIPPI CANTOR & ELANA KESSLER
FACULTY, YESHIVAT NOAM
Have you ever wondered how to appropriately usepoetry in your preschool classroom? Believe it or not,poetry teaches many new skills as well as reinforcesthose you have already implemented in your class-room. This workshop will be investigating useful andskill-building ways of integrating poetry into your cur-riculum. Poetry does not have to be a theme of its own!It can enhance any curricula and inject a level of liter-acy and other concepts (math!!) into any activity. Wewill be building interactive lessons that can be used forany theme such as Mother’s Day, spring, winter, nature,and more. Our goal is for children to understand andappreciate different forms of poetry as well as createtheir own. Be ready to build your own ideas, add toour’s, and most of all contribute to a hands-on look intoteaching poetry!
W41 The Use and Importance of MusicTherapy in Special Needs andInclusion Classrooms (EC)DR. IAN ASH
DIRECTOR, MUSIC THERAPY RESOURCES
This course covers 3 parts: Part I: Participants in thiscourse will first learn about the history of music ther-apy as a profession and its development in special edu-cation and inclusion programs. Participants will thenlearn about the current working definition of musictherapy and how this definition is utilized in specialeducation and inclusion programs. Part II: Severalmusic therapy special education activity demonstra-tions will be presented to participants. Participants
Statewide Professional Development Conference22
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
Workshop II2:00-3:15 p.m.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 22
Election Day, November 5, 2013 23
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
have the opportunity to participate in demonstrationsby playing instruments. Part III: There will be a dis-cussion on current music therapy and special educa-tion/inclusion research and its implication for futurepractice. The presenter will also discuss his first handobservations of how music therapy benefits studentsthat he treats in special education/inclusion programs.
W42 Documenting Learning in the EarlyChildhood Classroom (EC)TAMMIE ROTH
ADVANCED TEACHING AND BEYOND
Learning and technology can complement each otherin the classroom in many ways. Come explore as welearn to document children’s learning, making thislearning visible throughout your classroom and school.This approach makes use of computers and cameras toenhance classroom reflection and learning. Classroomdocumentation can help teachers and children toexpand learning by reflecting on topic of learning andmapping out how to proceed with each topic. Helpchildren get involved in active participatory learningthrough trial and error by hypothesizing theories, put-ting theories into practice and expanding knowledgeby testing out theories of others in the group and doc-umenting their discoveries, which can be posted forparents and other classroom visitors! The learningprocess will be enhanced right before your eyes!
W43 numerical EXPRESSion YOUR-SELF: Integrating Language,Technology, and Math (ES, JH)ADRIENNE SHLAGBAUM
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
In this workshop you will learn how to use the newesteducational technology systems in order to presentmath and language arts to your students. Explore howyour students can use their strengths and talents to helpthem become creative thinkers in the curricula areas ofmath and language.
W44 Blended Learning through iPadUsage (ES)DEENA WERTMAN
FACULTY, YESHIVAT NOAM
iPads are redefining the educational experience forboth teachers and students. This interactive workshop
will demonstrate the practical use of iPads in anElementary School classroom. We will explore appsand web tools that will provide a meaningful and effec-tive blended learning experience. Participants will alsolearn about helpful management tools for teachers.
W45 Using the iPad as a Tool toSupport Elementary School Math(ES)DR. KRISTINE SCHARALDI
PROFESSOR, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY
This workshop will focus on using the iPad to supportmathematics at the elementary level. Participants willdiscover apps to practice and reinforce math concepts,access math content, and to write, draw and recordmathematical ideas. Come and see how this device canmotivate and engage learners and advance mathemati-cal thinking.
W46 The List is Here! A SystematicMethod to Teach Chumash (ES)RABBI YAAKOV AICHENBAUM & RABBI DOVID FREEMAN
DIRECTOR, LIMUDEI KODESH RESOURCE ROOM,SCRANTON HEBREW DAY SCHOOL & FACULTY,CHEDER OF MONSEY
Today’s presentation elevates our classic Chumashworkshop to a new league. If you are searching forways to upgrade yourself to be a top-notch mechanechand to insure that every child in your classroom willacquire the skills that are necessary to learn Chumashindependently, you will reap tremendous gains fromthis workshop. The goal of this workshop is to insurethat all students will have the ability to translate andunderstand passukim independently and we thereforedevote the majority of the workshop to solutions. Inorder to accomplish this goal, we rely upon many time-less chinuch principles that are found in the words ofchazal. We will present a system that is 100% loyal toour mesorah and that incorporates state-of-the-art,research-based methodologies as well. We will alsoshow you our new teacher’s manual (THE LIST). Thisgroundbreaking manual contains a summary of themain points of this workshop and it serves as a refer-ence book for teachers to refer to as they begin toimplement the various components of our program. Anexciting aspect of this manual is a comprehensive,research-based list of all the frequent words thatappear in Chumash. This 980-word list contains
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 23
approximately 87% of all the words in Chumash (prop-er nouns comprise another 9% and only 4% of less fre-quent Chumash words remain). A unique aspect of thislist is that it is organized according to the order of theChumash. Each word is referenced according to thefirst time it appears in Chumash and each word istranslated into English and Yiddish. This facilitatessystematic and organized vocabulary instruction andreview. Our new student workbook series(HAMAFTEACH L’CHUMASH) will also be dis-played. HAMAFTEACH L’CHUMASH contains reviewexercises that are arranged according to the parshiyos.The exercises reinforce the frequent words and the pre-fixes/suffixes that appear in THE LIST and train thestudent to identify these words in the Chumash.Teachers will learn how to implement this system in avariety of educational settings in a way that will bene-fit average students as well as gifted and special needstudents. In addition, this program will encourage stu-dents to look inside the Chumash and actively partici-pate in class. As a result, teachers can expect substan-tial quantitative and qualitative gains in their class-room curriculum from this program. In the long-term,students will become empowered to learn Chumashindependently. This system can be implemented in avariety of educational settings and it will benefit aver-age students as well as gifted and special need stu-dents. Finally, this program promotes authentic assess-ment of students’ skills.
W47 Multimodal Approaches toChildren’s Literature (ES)DR. THEODORE KESLER
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE-CUNY
Multimodality is a hot topic in education nowadays,especially with the increasingly prevalent use of digi-tal tools in classrooms, even though great educatorshave long used multimodal approaches, such as draw-ing, dance, music, and role playing, to expand the wayschildren might express understanding. Multimodalapproaches are especially supportive of special needsstudents who might be challenged by oral and writtenlanguage. In this workshop, Ted Kesler will exploresome powerful ways to share great children’s literaturewith participants and provide fun and practical multi-modal approaches that teachers could implementimmediately to support their students responses anddeepen their comprehension. Dr. Kesler will also sug-gest ideas for using these approaches for formativeassessment to guide teachers’ instructional decisions.
W48 Reading Comprehension andSchema Strategies (ES)RIVKE GUTKIND
ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, FORDHAM UNIVERSITY
How do schema strategies help us understand the waystudents comprehend printed text? This workshop willexplore overall reading comprehension strategies aswell as various types of comprehenders based on theirability to “schema strategize.” Included in this work-shop are interactive activities for methodology andeducational interventions.
W49 Functional Speech and LanguageTechniques for ALL Learners (ES)SUSAN PAUL
DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATION IMAGING
Communication is Behavior and Behavior isCommunication. We learn how to learn through com-munication and every individual learns differently.This workshop will focus on how the environment canfoster a child’s attention and emotional regulation, thusfacilitating a child’s ability to learn. Functional verbaland non-verbal strategies will be demonstrated in allareas of speech and language. The workshop will focuson general strategies to foster emotional regulation,understanding typical speech development, learninghow to foster an increase in speech intelligibility,understanding typical language development, learninghow to foster and increase receptive and expressivelanguage, and learning how to foster social communi-cation.
W50 Deep Reading of Torah in Hebrew(ES)TOVA SHIMON
PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TAL AM
In this workshop, we will: Read for meaning a chapterof Torah utilizing the tools of the digital era and usingan array of tools and processes that enable comprehen-sion of the messages embedded in the Hebrew textsuch as critical textual analysis, inferential and deduc-tive reasoning, analogical skills, reflection and insight.We will also design lesson plans aligned to the stan-dards of learning Torah and adjustable to differentlearning needs and styles.
Statewide Professional Development Conference24
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 24
W51 Learning Strategies that Engagethe Heart and Mind of OurStudents (ES, JH, SE)MINDY LIDSKY
PRINCIPAL, ILAN HIGH SCHOOL
This workshop involves many facilitated learningstrategies that move the center of instruction from thatof the teacher to the student. The adage “Never workharder than your students” is a guiding principle in thisworkshop whose core is a high school mini-Chumashlesson (which is easily adaptable to younger students).In this workshop, teachers will have an opportunity toexperience the delight that stems from discovery that isassociated with a host of tried instructional settingsand techniques.
W52 Look Ma, No Books! (ES, JH)MERYL RUBIN
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
See the world come alive at your fingertips using pods,ipads, interactive websites, green screen, and more.This session will explore how elementary classroomsare using 21st century skills to teach Social Studies inan engaging and motivating way.
W53 Asssessment in Limudei Kodesh: IsThere a Better Way? ( JH)RABBI NAPHTALI HOFF
CONSULTANT, LIMUDEI KODESH EDUCATOR
Testing represents the classic educational “product”associated with the completion of a unit of study.Though well designed tests accurately assess studentson a variety of levels, they are still rooted in a student’sability to recall and apply information, rather than hisor her ability to display skills and concepts they havelearned. For students who struggle with memorizingdetails, or with learning strengths in other areas, teststend to accentuate their weaknesses while downplayingtheir strengths. This session will introduce educators toalternative forms of assessment, which teach studentshow to apply their skills, including analytical skills, totasks and projects.
W54 Jewish Khan Academy: A newProject for You, Your Students andYour School ( JH, ADM)RABBI DR. NACHUM AMSEL
DESTINY FOUNDATION
Imagine if the best teacher you ever saw and experi-enced could teach you and your students any Jewishsubject for any grade level in Limudei Kodesh (grades1-12) at any time? That is the goal of this new andamazing project that will touch every Jewish studentand adult as well as unaffiliated Jews. Finally, aftersixty years of trying, a model has emerged where twomillion children voluntarily learn effectively eachmonth and love it. This model is now being brought toJewish education for all subjects by the DestinyFoundation: Chumash, Nach, Mishna, Gemara,Halacha/Dinim, Jewish History, Jewish Philosophy/Jewish Values and Tefillah. If you and/or your schoolwant to get in on this project that will change Jewisheducation forever and for the better, then come to thissession and learn how to involve yourself and your stu-dents on the ground floor.
W55 New Media Narrative, MovieMaking and Digital Storytelling inthe Classroom: From Tools toAssessment to Social Media ( JH)DR. JASON OHLER
AUTHOR & CYBER CULTURE RESEARCHER
Jason demonstrates practical tools and processes forimplementing student-created new media narrativeprojects - including digital stories, movies, mash-upsand other media-based projects - in exciting, creativeways. He addresses a number of topics, includingmedia assessment, “media grammar” and the role ofresearch-based digital stories and media developmentin the curriculum. This presentation features examplesof student and teacher media production, and offerspractical and conceptual ways for students to partici-pate in the world of Web 2.0 using new media narrativethey create for school projects. This presentation isbased on Jason’s best-selling book, Digital Storytellingin the Classroom: New Media Pathways to Literacy,Learning and Creativity (Corwin Press, 2008).
Election Day, November 5, 2013 25
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 25
W56 Creating Podcasts as LearningTools ( JH)LINDA GANS & LYNN BLOOM
FACULTY, YAVNEH ACADEMY
Discover podcasting, an exciting way to create, pub-lish, and distribute educational content in the class-room. Using iPhoto, Garage Band, Safari, and iTunes,students can create educational podcasts for learningand sharing. You will be able to implement this inno-vative technology into your curriculum the next day!Learn how easy it is to get started in the exciting worldof educational podcasting.
W57 The Connected Classroom:Inclusion and Engagement in theClassroom (JH)SMADAR GOLDSTEIN
JETS ISRAEL
With the advent of the internet and social networkingin the 21st Century, students generate much of theirown learning and socialization beyond the classroom.The internet, iPad, and apps have opened up a vastresource of possibilities to engage our students in thelearning process and greatly enhance their classroomexperience. The interactive “connected educator” ses-sion familiarizes participants with easy to use technol-ogy and online learning tools that enable them to har-ness the power of the internet in order to maximizetheir students’ learning. Participants will becomefamiliar with and experience a number of online toolsthat incorporate educational goals that utilize technol-ogy in a meaningful way, using computers or iPads thatinclude: fostering student-centered; inquiry drivenlearning; creating a collaborative classroom; differen-tiating instruction; developing research-based projects;using social networking to expand the learning com-munity; using social networking and the internet toconnect students to Israel and the global Jewish com-munity; increasing and enhancing teacher interactionwith the whole class; improving the quality and col-laborative nature of homework assignments; andenhancing student facility with technology.
W58 The Short Research Project: LittleProject= Big Educational Return(JH)DR. BILL ATWOOD
COLLINS EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATES
According to the new Common Core State Standardsstudents should: “Write routinely over extended timeframes for research” and “Conduct short as well asmore sustained research projects.” However, the skillsinvolved in research are complex and challenging:Finding appropriate reading materials, note-taking,organizing, using one’s own words, creating cleverintroductions and conclusions, crafting body para-graphs, and linking ideas with transitional devices. Inthis workshop, teachers will learn strategies to helpovercome these challenges and help ease students intoshort research projects.
W59 Memory! There is RAM, the CPU,and Google. Now What? ( JH, SE)DR. JOEL DICKSTEIN
SENIOR CONSULTANT OF THE NATIONAL
EDUCATION RESOURCE CENTER OF P’TACH
So much of school and life is remembering things. Evenwhen imparting critical thinking skills, the base knowl-edge must be “available.” It is therefore a conspicuousomission that we often do not teach the skills that stu-dents need to become better “rememberers.” In thisworkshop, we will be sharing specific techniques andstrategies for maximizing both active working memoryand long term retrieval in this age of information.
W60 Take Care of Yourself ! (MH)DEBORAH BERMAN
DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL WORK, YACHAD/NJCD
Practical and realistic techniques for relaxation, reju-venation, and healthfulness for the hardest workingpeople in the world: Special Educators. Nobody is ascommitted to taking care of others’ development andwellbeing as you are. In order to maintain profession-al longevity, keep going at the speed and intensityrequired of special educators, and to remain emotion-ally and spiritually engaged, you must also give your-self permission to take care of YOU. Fatigue, emo-tional exhaustion, irritability, poor sleep, low motiva-tion to go to medical appointments and to exercise,strained personal relationships, or generally feeling
Statewide Professional Development Conference26
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 26
underappreciated and unsupported are signs of profes-sional burnout, a very real and widely-researched con-dition that effects people in the helping professions. Ifyou are already feeling the symptoms of burnout, orwant to acquire practical skills to avoid the pitfalls thatcan lead to burnout, attend this session and leave feel-ing revitalized and with a tangible and manageableplan to keep yourself healthy, happy, and ready to walkinto the classroom at the top of your game each morn-ing.
W61 Direct Vocabulary Teaching forBetter Comprehension (SE)DR. JILL SLANSKY
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND
The goal of teaching vocabulary is to improve stu-dent’s overall reading comprehension. There are twoimportant questions to consider when thinking aboutdirect teaching of vocabulary: 1. Does it improve com-prehension? 2. If direct teaching is used, how and whenshould it be done? This workshop will examine andmodel teaching strategies for effective vocabularyinstruction for special education students.
W62 Managing Students with ADHD inthe Classroom (SE)DR. JEFFREY LICHTMAN
NATIONAL DIRECTOR, YACHAD/NJCD
This presentation will identify the characteristics ofADHD and will suggest strategies for working effec-tively with students who have ADHD. Through casestudies the teacher will better understand the child whohas ADHD, and what the teacher should and should notdo to provide meaningful instruction within the con-text of the mainstream classroom.
W63 Special Tools for Special Needs(SE)GERSHON TAVE
TEQSMART CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR
Remediate special needs students in an engaging,kinesthetic, self-paced program that emphasizes devel-opment and application of basic reading skills. Usetechnology to create simple materials that reinforceskills needed in the classroom. Employs multiplemodalities and fosters student expression of process
rather than just product while encouraging independ-ent work.
W64 Mindy Body Hebrew (SE)ANAT MAIMON-REZNICK
AUTHOR, MIND BODY HEBREW
In this workshop, educators will first review theresearch about the academic and social challenges fac-ing students studying Hebrew language. Anat will thenintroduce a new innovative method to teach Hebrewcalled Mind Body Hebrew. Educators will practicenew ways to teach the Hebrew aleph-bet. They willlearn the Hebrew vowels and corresponding imageryand body movement. Educators will have the opportu-nity for group practice of this technique. They willmove from single vowel words to multi-vowel words.Ample time for questions and answers will be given.
W65 Fun with Mathematics (SE)DR. MARY FOOTE
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, QUEENS COLLEGE-CUNY
In this workshop educators will explore methods forteaching the number and operations strand in earlychildhood mathematics. They will learn about chil-dren’s mathematical thinking from a developmentalpoint of view. The workshop will examine these in away that addresses a range of learners.
W66 The Brain and Reading (SE)DR. KAREN GAZITH
DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION THE BRONFMAN
JEWISH EDUCATION CENTRE
Neuroimaging techniques of the past decade have ledto a wealth of understanding about how children learnto read. In this session, we will examine currentresearch on reading: how children learn to read, andwhy learning challenges occur. We will then highlightspecific strategies to support students who experienceearly struggles in reading.
W67 SMART Boards and DifferentiatedInstruction (SE)DAVID DICKMAN
TEQSMART CERTIFIED EDUCATOR
Discover how technology, specifically your SMART
Election Day, November 5, 2013 27
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
JH- Junior High SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 27
Board, can help you address the diverse strengths andweaknesses of the students in your classroom. We’llprovide background information on differentiatedinstruction, along with strategies and resources to helpyou differentiate planning, instruction, management,and student assessment.
W68 Parents, Teachers, andAdministrators: Why Can’t We AllGet Along? (SE)RICHARD ELLENSON
SPECIAL EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANT
For inclusion to be successful, the relationships ofthese three key groups involved must be successful. YetParents, Teachers, and Administrators often haveextremely different issues. Balancing the needs of thestudent with the needs of the system – particularly infinancially tight times – can quickly evolve into a con-tentious battle where all the stressed parties react toissues with fear, rather than with vision. Productiverelationships are hard fought – but without them, thestudent, for whom all this is being done, has a hardtime being understood, supported, and educated. In thissession we will look in detail at the conflicting forcesthat create discord in the inclusion process, and look atways to work toward positive forward movement.
W69 Setting Appropriate Goals for ourStudents (SE)DR. DEBORAH MANN
DIRECTOR OF SCHOOL PROGRAMS, IVDUSCHOOLS, YACHAD/NJCD
Setting appropriate goals for students helps to ensureboth academic and social-emotional growth through-out the school year. However, it’s often a challenge toset goals and expectations that promote a student’sgrowth yet account for limitations. Establishing cleargoals allow for the monitoring of progress and helpidentify areas of concern and measure students’progress. This session will provide teachers with tech-niques necessary for setting clear goals for students.
W70 Meaningful ProfessionalDevelopment (ADM)LINDA STOCK
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, YESHIVAT NOAM
Professional Learning Communities are a leading suc-cessful model for professional development in schoolstoday. This interactive workshop will defineProfessional Learning Communities (PLCs). Whileour schools are devoted to student learning, success isdependent on the nature of the learning of the adultswho lead the community. PLCs are a self-directedmodel for reflective learning. This session will provideexamples, protocols that can be used as well as allowparticipants to begin the conversation and thoughtprocess of implementation of PLCs in their schools.
Statewide Professional Development Conference28
KEY:EC- Early ChildhoodES- Elementary School
MS- Middle SchoolMH- Mental Health
Adm- AdministrationSE- Special Education
All- All levels
All Participants are asked to bring a laptop and/or iPad.ANY SCHOOL THAT WOULD LIKE A PRIVATE MEETING TIME TO MEET AS A UNIT,
PLEASE CONTACT BATYA JACOB TO SET THIS UP.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 28
Election Day, November 5, 2013 29
DR. JASON OHLER is a professor emeritus,speaker, writer, teacher and cyber cultureresearcher. He is also a lifelong futurist and dig-ital humanist. Three decades ago at theUniversity of Alaska he helped create one of thefirst educational technology programs in the U.S.devoted to teacher and student empowerment,and has been involved in the world of digitallearning ever since. He has worked both onlineand in classrooms at home and internationallyduring this time, helping students develop thenew media literacies they need to be successfulin the digital age. He was a pioneer in the “blended learning” move-ment, helping to craft individualized educational solutions usingdistributed learning technology. He is a passionate promoter of “Artthe Next R” and of combining innovation, creativity and digitalknow-how to help reinvent teaching and learning. He is also anenthusiastic champion of the need for students to learn how to usetechnology wisely and safely, with awareness and compassion, sothey can become informed and productive citizens in a global digi-
tal society. Jason has appeared on many radio sta-tions, including ABC, CBS and Clear Channelaffiliates, as a special commentator for issuesrelated to people and technology. Commentariesare sometimes funny, sometimes serious, andalways original. He has won numerous awards forhis work and is author of many books, articles,and online resources. He continues to be a regu-lar contributor to Educational Technology maga-zine, providing insight about the “3Ds”: digitalliteracy, digital storytelling, and digital citizen-ship. His current book, Digital Community,
Digital Citizen, explores the issues of helping our students blendtheir digital and non-digital lives into one integrated approach toliving. His previous book, Digital Storytelling in the Classroom – aCorwin Press Best Seller – reminds us that he is first and foremosta storyteller, telling tales of the future that are grounded in the past.“The goal is the effective, creative, and wise use of technology . . .to bring together technology, community, and learning in ways thatwork. And while we are at it, to have fun.”
DR. JASON OHLER
DR. JEFFREY LICHTMAN is NationalDirector of Yachad, The National Jewish Councilfor Disabilities (NJCD), Dean of IVDU Schools,Director of the NJ Association of Jewish DaySchools and a consultant to schools and agenciesworking with individuals who have specialneeds. A school psychologist with many years ofexperience in both regular and special education,Jeff has masters’ degrees in school psychologyand education from St. Johns University andNYU. He received his undergraduate and rab-
binical training from Yeshiva University, wherehe completed his doctorate as well. His areas ofexpertise include individual & group counseling,social skills training, and facilitating Inclusion &Teacher training. Jeff is a member of the NewJersey Department of Education Non PublicSchool Advisory Commission and Past Presidentof the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy. Heresides in West Orange, NJ with his wife Helen,their three children, and two grandsons.
DR. JEFFREY LICHTMAN
OUR KEYNOTE PRESENTERS
DR. CLARISSA WILLIS has been involved inearly childhood education for over 30 years. Herexperience includes public school, early interven-tion, curriculum development, and teacher train-ing. As an author, trainer, teacher, special educa-tor, grant administrator, and parent, Dr. Willisoffers a unique perspective on issues related toearly childhood development and early childhood
special education. She is the author of ninebooks and has been involved in writing specialneeds adaptations for twenty-five other publica-tions. In addition, she has written early child-hood curriculum for three major curriculumcompanies. She is available to customizekeynote presentations or full day seminars thatmeet the needs of your program.
DR. CLARISSA WILLIS
EARLY CHILDHOOD KEYNOTE
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 29
Statewide Professional Development Conference30
RICHARD ELLENSON is one of today’s lead-ing figures in the world of Assistive Technology.His work has helped innumerable individualswith disabilities better reach their potential andhas helped the world at large better understanddisabilities – by fostering a spirit of inclusion,innovation, and joy across diverse environments.Richard began his career in advertising, eventu-ally starting his own agency and creating highprofile work for clients like American Express,Remy Martin and HBO. His line “It’s Not TV. It’sHBO.” remains one of the industry’s most endur-ing. However, in 1997 when his son was born with severe CerebralPalsy, Richard began thinking about the issues facing individualswith the challenges his son had – both in terms of perceptions andtechnology. In 2004, Richard founded Blink Twice, a company thatbrought energetic new thinking to the world of AssistiveTechnology. The company’s Speech Generating Device, the Tango,helped redefine how individuals without speech could communi-cate. Said Ed Donnelly, the CEO of DynaVox, which acquired BlinkTwice in 2009, “Blink Twice’s innovative approach to AAC foreverchanged the way speech-generating devices are viewed by the spe-cial needs community and the general public.” For this work,Richard and his son Thomas were honored as 2006 Persons of theYear by ABC World News Tonight. After serving as CEO/Presidentof Blink Twice for 6 years and as Chief Vision Officer at DynaVoxfor the year after the companies merged, Richard chose to take timeoff to focus on the more immediate needs of improving his son’seducation. For two years, he spent a day a week in class, supportingThomas, and also gaining a detailed understanding of the systemicchallenges encountered by students with a diverse range of disabil-ities. Those experiences led to the formation of a new company.Panther Technology, launched in late 2012, offers UniversallyDesigned apps to support ability and inclusion in everything fromwriting to math to controlling computers. The company is leverag-ing the extraordinary advances in today’s technology to lower barri-
ers to inclusion and learning for a much widergroup of individuals with disabilities. Within itsfirst few months, the company has been featuredon the cover of Exceptional Parent magazine andas the lead story for the Family Center onTechnology and Disability, a program funded bythe U.S. Office of Special Education. It is alsodeveloping partnerships with many key organiza-tions, both in education and mass media, tospread its message of improving access andinclusion. In addition to this work, Richard isalso a tireless voice for bringing change to the
way society perceives and interacts with individuals with disabili-ties. His efforts to include his son and children with disabilities inthe NYC Public School System was a cover story in the New YorkTimes Sunday Magazine. His work as an advocate, inventor, andmarketer has been covered in media such as CBS, Fox News, CNNSquawk Box, and in newspapers and magazines. He and Thomashave also been celebrated by the New York Yankees as part of the2009 HOPE Week. To quote Alan Brightman, Founder of AppleComputer’s Worldwide Disability Solutions Group and now VicePresident for Global Accessibility at Yahoo, “The mass marketmentality Richard Ellenson brought to this market was unprece-dented in the history of augmentative communications.” Richardhas been honored with the 2012 Visionary Leadership Award byResources for Children with Special Needs, as a Caregiver of theYear by United Cerebral Palsy of New York City, and by numerousgroups within the world of disabilities. He has received an NIHGrant and has served on the Boards of the Center on Disabilities atCalifornia State University at Northridge, the United States Societyfor Alternative and Augmentative Communication, and theAssistive Technology Industry Association. He currently serves onthe Advisory Council of the National Institute of Health’s Instituteon Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, and is Co-Chairof the UJA’s Task Force on Mental Health and Wellbeing.
RICHARD ELLENSON
SPECIAL EDUCATION KEYNOTE
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 30
Election Day, November 5, 2013 31
FEATURED PRESENTERS
DR. BILL ATWOOD is a CollinsEducation Associate who has over 20 yearsof experience in public and private schoolsand is a recipient of a Presidential Award forexcellence in Math and Science Teaching.His books, How Did You Get That?Improving Open Responses in Math (CollinsEducation Associates published 2011), Tell aStory About a Time: Improving NarrativeWriting (to be published 2014), ConvinceMe: Lessons to Improve Opinion and
Argument Writing (2014) and a dynamic DVD, MathWords In Motion: Improving Math Vocabulary(2013), describe strategies that improve both thinkingand writing skills. Bill is a national presenter knownfor his sense of humor, enthusiasm, and ability tofocus on practical ideas that teachers can implementeasily. Bill is part of the graduate faculty at SalemState College, Endicott College, and Worcester StateCollege in Massachusetts. Bill lives in Milton,Massachusetts with his wife and three children.
DR. BILL ATWOOD
DR. KAREN GAZITH taught in a numberof special needs institutions and schoolstaught in a number of special needs institu-tions and schools, including the InstrumentalEnrichment Institute with Dr. Feuerstein,before receiving her doctorate inEducational Psychology from McGillUniversity. She then served as theCoordinator of Special Education at theBronfman Jewish Education Centre. She is
now the Director of Education at the BronfmanJewish Education Centre and an adjunct professor inthe department of Educational and CounselingPsychology at McGill University where she hastaught for the past twenty years. She has presented ontopics related to meeting diverse needs in the class-room in many cities in Canada (including theCanadian Arctic,) the U.S., England, Israel andAustralia.
DR. KAREN GAZITH
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 31
About Our Presenters:
Statewide Professional Development Conference32
RABBI YAAKOV AICHENBAUM isthe Director of the Limudei KodeshResource Room in the Scranton HebrewDay School. He also maintains a privatepractice as an educational consultant andlecturer. He has presented workshops onvarious topics at national conventions aswell as in individual schools. He is alsothe co-developer (together with RabbiDovid Freeman) of the “Laying theFoundation for a Lifetime of LearningTorah Independently” workshop series.Rabbi Aichenbaum and Rabbi Freemanare the authors of THE LIST teacher’smanual and The Key to Chumash work-book series. Rabbi Aichenbaum is thedeveloper of The Chumash VocabularyTest©. This test is a diagnostic tool whose purpose is to assess individual and school-wide chumash vocabularyachievements. Rabbi Aichenbaum hasconducted extensive research about thesubjects of vocabulary acquisition andretention, overlearning and automaticitytheory, and the effective use of flashcards.Most recently, he started The OnlineLimudei Kodesh Resource Room wherehe provides remedial help for studentswho do not have local services available.Rabbi Aichenbaum learned in YeshivasBais Moshe of Scranton and its Kollel formany years and he later earned hisMaster’s degree in special education andin elementary education from FelicianCollege. He also trained under the inter-nationally known special education con-sultant, Rabbi Shaul Klein. Many of hisprojects including workshop videos canbe found on chinuch.org.
RABBI DR. NACHUM AMSEL cur-rently works with Rabbi Berel Wein andthe Destiny Foundation as the Director ofEducation, whose mission is “to bringJewish history to life in an exciting, enter-taining and interactive way.” The founda-tion has developed new materials and amethodology to teach Jewish history in anew and exciting way using digital mate-rials that can be used for distance and iPadlearning. Rabbi Amsel has been a teacher,a school principal, has taught in universi-ty and has also taught over 1000 teachers
how to teach more effectively. RabbiAmsel has worked in all areas of formaland informal Jewish education and hasdeveloped numerous curricula including amethodology on how to teach JewishValues using mass media. Recently, hefounded a program, STARS (StudentTorah Alliance for Russian Speakers),where more than 3000 students in 12Russian speaking countries learn abouttheir Jewish heritage for five hours eachweek. Before that, he was the EducationalDirector of Hillel in the Former SovietUnion. He lives with his wife and fourchildren in Jerusalem.
IAN ASH is a board-certified music ther-apist who earned his Masters of MusicTherapy degree from Temple University.Ian has treated many diverse populationswith music therapy. These populationsinclude children and adolescents withlearning disabilities, developmentaldelays, pervasive developmental disor-ders, emotional disturbances, trauma,abuse, psychiatric illness, physical illness,physical disabilities, and addictions. Ian is the owner and operator of MusicTherapy Resources, LLC. Music TherapyResources, LLC is a private practice andcontracting service that provides musictherapy services to youth with specialneeds. Ian currently provides music therapy services to several special educa-tion/inclusion students in public schooldistricts as well as special education cur-riculum private schools throughout thePhiladelphia metropolitan area. All spe-cial education music therapy services areutilized to help students improve cogni-tion, social skills, communication skills,language skills, gross/fine motor skills,and overall quality of life.
DEBORAH BERMAN, LCSW,Director of Social Work of Yachad/National Jewish Council for Disabilitiesserved as the Chief of the AdultOutpatient Behavioral Health Program atInterfaith Medical Center. Deborah holdsa Master’s degree from the ColumbiaUniversity School of Social Work. Shetrained at Yachad’s Day Hab and IVDU
programs and at The Jewish Board ofFamily and Children’s Services. Sheearned a B.A. in Jewish Studies fromHunter College, with an academic focusin Jewish-led social justice movements ofthe Twentieth Century, for which sheauthored a thesis entitled “Shtetl to SocialAction: Jews and the Evolution of theAmerican Disability Rights Movement.”Deborah’s accomplishments in the fieldof international mental health includeappointment as Health & HumanitiesScholar-in-Residence with the ORTZAInstitute in Northern Spain. Deborah hasserved as a family, marital, and individualpsychotherapist at Brooklyn Center forPsychotherapy in Park Slope, InterfaithMedical Center, and New York CityHealth and Hospitals Corporation. She isthe proprietor of a private psychotherapypractice in Greenwich Village dedicatedto working with individuals and families,as well as providing clinical supervisionto rabbis and seminary students fromdiverse Jewish stripes. Deborah lecturesextensively in the U.S. and abroad onorganizational management, professionaldevelopment, clinical practice, multidisci-plinary and cross-cultural treatment plan-ning, and ethics.
LYNN BLOOM graduated fromBrooklyn College with a degree inComputer Science. She worked a numberof years as a technologist in New YorkCity. After a hiatus from the professionalworld to raise her children, Lynn earned aNJ teacher’s license via the NJ AlternateRoute Program. She has been teachingthird and fourth grade secular studies atYavneh Academy since 2001. She uses theSmart Board, Mac books and ipods wher-ever possible to bring technology into theclassroom and enhance her teaching.
TOVA BURACK has worked in theTechnology Department at YavnehAcademy for the past four years. She ispassionate about educating others on theimportance of technology in the class-room. Her enthusiastic and energeticapproach to learning and teaching providemotivating and engaging opportunities for
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 32
Election Day, November 5, 2013 33
students as well as educators. She focusesher efforts to keep up with current tech-nology and creating a positive learningexperience for all. She studied Marketingat Sy Syms School of Business.
TSIPPI CANTOR has been a preschoolteacher for 13 years. She has been part ofYeshivat Noam’s Buds grade since itsinception in 2001 and has implementedmany different types of curricula in manydifferent types of ways in that time. Shetruly loves teaching four and five yearolds and enjoys learning more about themevery year! Tsippi has an Undergraduateand Graduate degree in Early ChildhoodEducation. She has lived in Teaneck, NJfor 13 years and has three daughters, all inYeshivat Noam.
ALIZA CHANALES teaches sixth grademath and science at Yeshivat Noam inParamus, NJ. She has a master’s degreein middle school education from BankStreet College of Education in NY.During the summer, Aliza works at CampMoshava Ba’ir.
DR. PATRICIA COOPER is an associ-ate professor of early childhood educationat Queens College, CUNY. She is theauthor of The Classroom All YoungChildren Need: Lessons in Teaching fromVivian Paley, as well as numerous articleson early literacy, children’s literature andeffective teaching. A former school direc-tor and classroom teacher, she is a fre-quent presenter to professional, schooland parent groups on early literacy devel-opment, curriculum and behavior man-agement.
DAVID DICKMAN is an InstructionalTechnology Specialist with TEQ. He pro-vides professional development to teach-ers in the integration SMART products,iPads, and other technologies. He has aMaster’s degree in Education from LongIsland University and a Bachelor’s degreein Mathematics from BinghamtonUniversity. Before working for TEQ, heworked at Mill Neck Manor School forthe Deaf for seven years. At Mill Neck heworked as a Teacher Assistant and HighSchool Mathematics teacher, for studentswith various needs and abilities.
DR. JOEL DICKSTEIN is an associateprofessor at Touro College, and currentlyserves as the Senior Consultant of theNational Education Resource Center ofP’TACH. Previously, he was instrumentalin establishing, and was ProgramCoordinator of, the Yeshiva UniversityHigh School - P’TACH Program. Dr.Dickstein has also served as a consultantand teacher trainer for various organiza-tions, yeshivas and day schools. He is anadvocate for effective teaching strategiesand practices to address the differentneeds and learning differences of allJewish children in an inclusive classroom.
DR. MARY FOOTE is a mathematicseducator with a long history of school-based practice. She is currently anAssociate Professor in the Department ofElementary and Early ChildhoodEducation at Queens College-CUNY. For14 years she was a classroom teacher atPS84M in New York City, a Title I schoolserving a population of children 55% ofwhom were Latino and 35% of whomwere African American. She spent two years engaged in developing and con-ducting district wide ProfessionalDevelopment in Community SchoolDistrict #3 in Manhattan, a districtencompassing parts of the Upper WestSide and Harlem. Her research interestsfall broadly within issues of teacherknowledge. More specifically her inter-ests are in teachers’ content knowledge, aswell as cultural and community knowl-edge and practices, and how they mightinform mathematics teaching practice.
RABBI DOVID FREEMAN was the2nd and 5th grade rebee in the ScrantonHebrew Day School for sixteen years. Herecently became the third grade rebbe inThe Cheder of Monsey. He has developedinnovative methods to teach chumash andgemara in order to insure that studentswill acquire the core vocabulary that isneeded for both subjects. He has alsoauthored several workbooks on both chu-mash and gemara vocabulary. He has pre-sented workshops on the subject of vocab-ulary acquisition at several national con-ferences and he has also been invited toshare his methods at various yeshivas andschools. He is the co-developer (togetherwith Rabbi Yaakov Aichenbaum) of the
“Laying the Foundation for a Lifetime ofLearning Torah Independently” workshopseries. Rabbi Freeman learned in the baismedrash and kollel of Yeshivas BaisMoshe in Scranton for many years beforehe started teaching in the ScrantonHebrew Day School.
NACHUM GANOR is Director of insti-tutional Hebrew programs at Ulpan-Or.Over the last 10 years Nachum gainedvast experience in developing, coordinat-ing and facilitating Hebrew programs atUlpan-Or. Over the past 4 years he hasbeen influential in dissemination ofHebrew curricula based on Ulpan-Or’sunique RLA (Rapid LanguageAcquisition) methodology for schools inthe U.S., Australia and New Zealand.Nachum’s specialty is training Hebrewteachers in using new technology forSmart Boards, iPads, and iPhones in orderto engage students in Hebrew studies andIsraeli culture. Nachum has trained teach-ers all over the globe, helping them bringHebrew closer to the hearts of their stu-dents.
YOEL GANOR, director of Ulpan-OrInternational, a center for Hebrew studiesand Israeli culture, is a graduate of theTechnion and Henley Business School,and holds degrees in electronic engineer-ing and business administration. Over theyears Yoel has supported his wife, Orly, inconducting research in the area of lan-guage learning, providing technologicalaspects to the research. Together theyhave developed a unique RLA – RapidLanguage Acquisition – method. He is anavid student of Torah, and publishes hisHebrew insights on the Torah portion(parashat hashavuah) online on a weeklybasis. Together with Orly, he recently pub-lished a book on Torah insights, Hebrewfrom Insight Out, which he also designedas an iPad App.
LINDA GANS has been teaching atYavneh Academy for 18 years, the major-ity of which has been as a fourth gradegeneral studies teacher. Her three childrenare all graduates of Yavneh Academy.Linda holds a BA from Goucher Collegein Maryland along with a teaching degree.For the past several years, Linda has beenusing technology extensively in the class-
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 33
room in order to enhance her students’education.
SMADAR GOLDSTEIN is quicklybecoming recognized as one of the mostdynamic and successful online teachers inthe world of Jewish education. She servedas a classroom teacher at Hillel Torah Dayschool in Chicago and the Yeshivah ofFlatbush in New York before makingaliyah in 1998. In Israel, Smadar madethe transition from classroom instructionto online instruction. She taught a varietyof online courses for the Lookstein Centerof Bar Ilan University and for DLS,Distance Learning Solutions, before cre-ating her own company – JETS,Jerusalem Ed Tech Solutions. Smadar haspresented many professional developmentsessions in the United States, Canada,England, and Israel. She has been invitedto be a regular contributor to “ Voices”, anonline professional development tool ofPLP (Powerful Learning Practice).
GLORIA GORDON, MSW, ACSW, aspecialist in working with youth and families, is active in communal servicesand served as president of communal and Zionist organizations. As one of the coordinators of ACHI, AmericanCommunities Helping Israel, she bringsher technical expertise to creative proj-ects. Her professional and communityexperience enhance her powerful presen-tations.
RAHEL GREBLER grew up in Israel.During her army service she taughtHebrew to illiterate immigrants fromundeveloped countries. After completingthe army, she was an elementary schoolprincipal for six years before moving tothe USA. She has been teaching in YavnehAcademy for 16 years where she co-teaches a transitional first grade class.She holds a BS of Education and JewishHistory from Haifa University, an Ma.S.for Special Education from Bank StreetCollege and an LDTC certification fromMontclair University. Technology plays asignifiicant role as she integrates it intoher multi-sensory curriculum.
RIVKE GUTKIND is the former direc-tor of the Rabenstein Learning Center atYeshivat Darchei Torah. She is presently a
learning consultant in private practice andan Adjunct Professor at FordhamUniversity.
CLAIRE HIRSCHHORN has beenteaching at Yavneh Academy for 18 years,the majority of which have been with theTechnology Department. Her three chil-dren are all alumni of Yavneh Academy.Claire holds a BS from University ofMaryland, an MBA from FairleighDickinson University, and post-graduatestudies in education from WilliamPaterson College (now William PatersonUniversity). Claire is a technophile wholoves to work with colleagues to integratetechnology into their curricula.
RABBI NAPHTALI HOFF, M.ED.,provides professional development andconsulting services to day schools andyeshivot throughout the country, includ-ing PD workshops on a wide range ofeducational topics and mentoring support,as well as guidance for teachers, adminis-trators, and lay leaders. He is an accom-plished educator and sought after lecturerwith over fifteen years of experience inthe field, including more than a decade asan administrator. Rabbi Hoff holds twomaster’s degrees and is presently a doctor-al candidate in human and organizationalpsychology, which studies successfulindividual or organizational change anddevelopment.
RABBI OVI JACOB is the GeneralManager of Late Nite Labs, a leadingonline science learning company, wherehe is responsible for strategy and opera-tions. In 2013, he led a successful acqui-sition of the company by Macmillan. Ovihas experience as a venture capitalinvestor and is the former Assistant Rabbiof the Boca Raton Synagogue.
ZEHAVA KELNER, director of theOtiyot Institute network, holds an M.A. inEducation from the Hebrew University inJerusalem. Her expertise derives fromlong years of experience as a languageteacher for children, as a remedial teach-ing practitioner and as a lecturer at theDepartment of Education at the DavidYellin College in Jerusalem. The OtiyotInstitute has developed innovative cur-riculum and teacher training programs on
Hebrew reading and writing based onproven methods of phonetic languageinstruction. The Otiyot Medabrot coursesare appropriate for regular classroominstruction, for remedial instruction, andfor special education frameworks.
DR. THEODORE KESLER a formerstaff developer with the Reading andWriting Project has his Ed.D. fromColumbia University Teachers College.He holds his National Board ofProfessional Teaching Standards license.Ted taught grades K, 1, 3, and 4 for 13years in the New York City public schools.In 1996-97, Ted was the featured teacherin a nine-part, year-long series of articlesin The New York Times called “Class 3-223: Mr. Kesler’s Struggle.” In 1998, hereceived the prestigious Bank StreetCollege Early Childhood Teacher of theYear Award. Ted currently is an assistantprofessor in literacy at Queens College,CUNY. His published work has appearedin The Reading Teacher, Language Arts,The Elementary School Journal, Readingand Writing Quarterly, The Journal ofAdolescent and Adult Literacy, Languageand Literacy, among other journals.Please visit www.tedsclassroom.com orcontact Ted at [email protected].
ELANA KESSLER has been a teacher ofearly childhood for 13 years. She beganher early childhood career in HackensackHospital as a Child Life Therapist andthen continued on to teaching in a PublicSchool resource room. Elana has been ateacher in Yeshivat Noam for 11 years.She loves working with four and five yearold children, allowing them to exploretheir creativity and think outside the box.Elana has a B.A. in Early ChildhoodEducation from Stern College and is in the process of attaining her Master’s degree in Early ChildhoodAdministration.
RABBI TAVI KOSLOWE is the assis-tant principal for middle school Judaicstudies at Yeshivat Noam in Paramus, NJ,where he also teaches 6th grade Gemara.He is currently writing his dissertation foran Ed.D at the Azrieli Graduate School ofJewish Education and Administration.
RABBI MENACHEM LEIBTAG,
Statewide Professional Development Conference34
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 34
Election Day, November 5, 2013 35
founder of the Tanach Study Centerwww.tanach.org, is an internationallyacclaimed bible scholar and pioneer ofJewish Education on the internet. Hisessays on Parshat ha’Shavua reflect hisvibrant thematic-analytical approach,blending the methods of modern scholar-ship with traditional approaches. As arebbe at Yeshivat Har Etzion, he is bestknown for his ability to teach studentshow to study Tanach. Rabbi Leibtag alsoteaches at Yeshivat Shaalavim, &Midreshet Lindenbaum; and routinelylectures around the globe, primarily as aScholar in Residence in communities inNorth America.
JACKIE LEIFERT is a second gradeJudaic Studies teacher at YavnehAcademy in Paramus. Her specialty is dif-ferentiated instruction with an emphasison special needs. She has incorporatedappropriate technology in her classroomusing teacher made programs and web-sites to enhance classroom instruction.Her integration of the SmartBoard assistsin keeping her students focused andengaged in their learning.
CHANI LICHTIGER is Director ofEducational Technology at YavnehAcademy, She is a passionate advocate forinspiring and informing teachers andadministrators about how to reach thisgeneration of learners. With many yearsof experience in education and technolo-gy, she has developed and integrated tech-nology into grade level curriculum. Herresponsibilities include designing andimplementing technology into the K-8classroom and offering professionaldevelopment workshops to the faculty toenable access to cutting edge technologyand social media applications. She contin-ues to keep Yavneh Academy at the fore-front of the constantly developing andgrowing world of academia, always keep-ing up with emerging trends and culturalchanges. She holds a B.A. from BrooklynCollege, an M.A. in Education from NewYork University and is certified inTechnology Education from Bank StreetCollege.
MRS. MINDY LIDSKY, a graduate ofStern College for Women and Beth JacobJerusalem (BJJ), is a veteran educator
who has taught and supervised elemen-tary and high school Limudei Kodesh andgeneral studies for over thirty years. Hergraduate and post-graduate studies haveearned her an M.A. from New YorkUniversity and have included mentortraining with the Jewish New TeacherProject. Mrs. Lidsky presently serves asthe principal at Ilan High School for Girlsin Deal, New Jersey and directs theHadrechaini Advanced Teacher TrainingInstitute.
NANCY MAGER is the Director of theGateways Jewish Education Programs atGateways: Access to Jewish Education inNewton, MA. (the central agency inBoston for Jewish special education serv-ices). Nancy has degrees in psychology(B.S) and special education (M.S.ed)from Boston University and SimmonsCollege. Nancy is an experienced class-room teacher, educational/behavioral con-sultant and public speaker. Nancy hasexpertise in supporting individuals withautism spectrum disorders, behavior chal-lenges, and learning disabilities. As theDirector of the Gateways JewishEducation Programs, among otherresponsibilities Nancy supervises a self-contained special education Sundayschool program, and b’nei mitzvah prepa-ration program, as well as an inclusiveeducational teen youth group.
ANAT MAIMAN-RESNICK was born inTel Aviv Israel and is a native Hebrewspeaker. She completed her undergradu-ate studies in Semitic languages at TelAviv University. Anat has been teachingHebrew in New York City for the lasteighteen years. She taught at the Park EastDay School, Park Avenue Hebrew School,The Rodeph Shalom School, and in thelast four years is a coordinator and a Hebrew teacher at the ManhattanSephardic Congregation. In the pursuit ofcreating the most efficient way of teach-ing Hebrew vowels (nekudot) Anat creat-ed The Mind Body Hebrew, a multisenso-ry teaching method that engages all threeperceptual systems; visual, auditory andkinesthetic. This method has been provento be particularly successful in teachingstudents with learning disabilities. She isthe author of the upcoming book Israel islearning Hebrew, the inspiration for The
Mind Body Hebrew method.
DR. DEBORAH MANN is the Directorof School Programs and SchoolPsychologist at IVDU, a special educationschool in Brooklyn, NY run through theNational Jewish Council for Disabilities.She received her Psy.D. in School andCommunity Psychology from HofstraUniversity and her B.A. from BarnardCollege. Her specific areas of interestinclude cognitive-behavioral therapy andcollaborative school-based interventionsfor behavior management.
DR. RABBI PROFESSOR RICHARDM. MILLER holds an Ed.D. and Ed.S.from Seton Hall University. He is a certi-fied principal, superintendent, andteacher in both New York and New Jersey.He is presently an Assistant Professor atRichard Stockton College in the areas ofethics, gerontology, holistic health, andJewish studies. He has served as principalfor both k-12 schools and special educa-tion schools. In addition, Dr. Miller is anursing home consultant and HospiceChaplain. He regularly writes articles forthe Argo Newspaper in New Jersey.
LIZ OFFEN has been teaching in theJewish community for over 30 years.She recently became the Director of theNew England region of Yachad/NationalJewish Council for Disabilities. Liz alsoteaches at Gateways: Access to JewishEducation. Previously Liz taught for 14years at Temple Shalom of Newton, MA.For 2012-2013 Liz held a CJP Teachingand Technology Fellowship, and alsoreceived a secondary fellowship fromPELIE to attend the International Societyfor Technology in Education (ISTE) con-ference in San Diego. This past summer,Liz returned to Camp Ramah (Palmer,MA) as an Inclusion Specialist. She hasan active private practice coaching andtutoring children and families in B’NaiMitzvah preparation and Hebrew. She hastaught hundreds of students one-on-one,many with a variety of special needs. Lizhas piloted her own methods to reach chil-dren who do not respond to traditionalBar Mitzvah/Hebrew educational meth-ods and individualizes their study plansbased on each child’s unique set of skillsand needs. Liz holds a Master’s in Politics
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 35
from MIT, and a Bachelor of Arts inEnglish and Women’s Studies fromMount Holyoke College. Formerly Lizworked as a political economist and sen-ior program manager for state and federalagencies, as well as domestic and interna-tional non-profit organizations.
SUSAN PAUL is an ASHA certifiedspeech/language pathologist with over 25years of experience. She attended theUniversity of Maryland and received herB.A. and M.A. from Temple Universityand received her teaching certificate fromthe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As aprivate practitioner, Susan has consultedwith child growth and development cen-ters, schools, and early intervention pro-grams, and has provided individual andgroup therapy, including social communi-cation groups. In her private practice,Communication Imaging, she prides her-self in fostering effective and functionalcommunication techniques by utilizing ateam approach while drawing on individ-uals’ strengths. As a consultant to schoolsand preschools, Susan has developed ther-apy programs to include social communi-cation therapy groups as well as individ-ual therapy programs for all populationsincluding those who are on the autismspectrum as well as severely-emotionallydisturbed children. Susan, in her capacityas an expert in the field of autism, wasfeatured on Friendly Neighborhoods, acable television program produced byLaSalle University. Susan has presentedworkshops to both professionals andlaypeople on the topic of autism and earlylanguage, learning and literacy develop-ment. Susan married her childhood crushwhile in graduate school and is the proudmother of three sons. She and her familyare active members of their synagogue,Congregation Or Ami in Lafayette Hill,PA.
CAPTAIN JOHN RAMPOLLA hasbeen a law enforcement officer for 17years for a suburban police department inthe NY/NJ Metropolitan area. In 2003 hewas assigned to a regional computercrimes task force in Northern New Jersey.He is a nationally recognized speaker onthe topics of cyber-crime, augmentedreality, virtual worlds, counter-terrorism,cyber-bullying, and undercover Internet
Relay Chat (IRC) investigations. He hastaught international law enforcement atMicrosoft in Redmond, WA, in theOntario Canadian Providence, and taughtcyber-crime topics to all levels of lawenforcement for the National InternetCrimes Against Children Task Force. Inhis spare time he teaches in variousdiverse communities as an outreach coor-dinator for homeland security interests.John serves as a consultant for variousorganizations across the United States andpresents for the National DistrictAttorney’s Association (NDAA) and FoxValley Technical College.
SHIRA RICHMAN attained her MA inPsychology at New York University. Sheis currently working as a Consultant withThe Institute for Children with Autism.She works in various Long Island PublicSchool Districts, training all staff and psy-chologists in Behavior Management andInclusion as well as conducting parenttrainings. She has a private practice dedi-cated to consulting in private school set-tings as well as creating and supervisingIn-Home Behavior Management and SkillAcquisition programs along with the par-ents using Applied Behavior AnalysisTechniques, and acting as a parent/schoolliaison for children with special needs.Her experience includes work with chil-dren on the autism spectrum as well aswork with children diagnosed with ADD,Hyperactivity, Dyslexia, and other devel-opmental disabilities, in both English andHebrew Subjects. Shira Richman isauthor of Raising A Child with Autism: AGuide to Applied Behavior Analysis forParents, JKP 2001, and EncouragingAppropriate Behavior for Children on theAutism Spectrum: Frequently AskedQuestions, JKP 2006.
RIVKY ROSS holds a B.A. in JewishStudies and English Literature from SternCollege, Yeshiva University, and complet-ed the Bruriah Scholars fellowship inTalmud at Midreshet Lindenbaum inJerusalem. She has worked in the field ofalternative Jewish Education for 20 yearsthrough organizations including Melitz-Centers for Jewish Zionist Education, thePardes Institute of Jewish Studies, and theOrthodox Union’s Jewish LearningInitiative on Campus. She began her
Montessori journey as a parent, falling inlove with the method while her childrenattended Montessori schools in Ithaca,NY. Convinced that Montessori could beapplied to yeshiva day school curriculumfor an optimal educational experience,she trained in Montessori elementary edu-cation at the Princeton Center for TeacherEducation. Morah Rivky joined the staffof Yeshivat Netivot as Director in 2006and became Head of School in 2009. Sheis considered one of the world’s leadingauthorities on Jewish Montessori educa-tion and lectures widely on this topic.
LORI ROTH is a Speech-LanguagePathologist and Oral Motor Specialistwith over thirty (30) years of experience.She is licensed in New Jersey and has aSpeech Specialists Certification from thestate. She received her Bachelor of Artsand Science in Psychology from GeorgeWashington University in Washington,DC in 1972. In 1974 she was awarded herMasters of Speech and Audiology fromThe Catholic University of America. Loriwas first employed by Baltimore Countyand then Queen Anne’s County Board ofEducation to work with children withauditory processing and learning disabili-ties. Lori Roth has also been employed byhome health agencies both in Marylandand in New Jersey where she worked withchildren with traumatic brain injuries,strokes and swallowing difficulties. From1988 to 1998, Lori Roth was employed bythe Summit Speech School, a school forhearing impaired infants and preschool-ers, as the Coordinator of Speech. Since1998, Lori has had a private practicefocusing on speech and oral motor thera-py for children with hearing impairments,oral and verbal apraxia, autism and swal-lowing disorders. As a frequent workshoppresenter, Lori has had the experience ofpresenting at the Alexander Graham BellAssociation’s National convention, aswell as numerous County Speech andHearing Associations and specific schoolteacher training events.
TAMMIE ROTH is the creator of“ENHANCED TEACHING &BEYOND” Specializing in CustomizedStrategic Staff Training for EarlyChildhood Educators. Tammie is an edu-cational consultant and “REGGIO
Statewide Professional Development Conference36
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 36
Election Day, November 5, 2013 37
INSPIRED” Educator. With over 17 yearsof teaching and directing experience,Tammie continues to be a leader in thefield of early childhood education today.Tammie has been active in the early child-hood field both nationally and interna-tionally where she participated in theinternational delegation to the schools ofReggio Emilia in Italy. She is also co-author of THE JEWISH KEHILLAHACCREDITATION MANUEL FOR JEW-ISH EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS.
MERYL RUBIN has been teaching atYavneh Academy for 16 years. For thepast 7 years she has been teaching thirdgrade English. She is the mother of threedaughters, all of whom are Yavneh gradu-ates. Meryl holds a BBA from BaruchCollege (CUNY). She is a graduate ofthe New Jersey Alternate Route forEducation. She is a voracious reader,who loves instilling this love into her stu-dents. Her newest passion is infusingtechnology in the classroom.
KRISTINE SCHARALDI is an experi-enced classroom teacher and staff devel-oper. She earned a Master’s Degree inComputers and Education from TeachersCollege, Columbia University. She hasassisted teachers with technology integra-tion in the curriculum for over ten years.Kristine Scharaldi is a SMART CertifiedMaster Trainer and has used the SMARTBoard to support learning in all grade lev-els and subject areas.
NOMI SCHNECK is a middle schoolEnglish teacher at Yavneh Academy.Aside from teaching, she runs a numberof literature initiatives in the school, suchas an enrichment writing workshop and aliterary magazine. Nomi has a BA inEnglish Literature and an MA in BibleStudies. Before coming to Yavneh, shetaught at the Ramaz Upper School andSAR High School.
ADRIENNE SCHRAGBAUM is a pas-sionate educator and math coach atYavneh Academy. A life-long learner,Adrienne relishes opportunities for pro-fessional growth. Happiness is gettingeverything organized!
REBECCA SCHRAG, MSW, Director
of Senior Yachad, organizes inclusive edu-cational and recreational programs forYachad’s teen and young adult clients,together with partnering Jewish highschools in the New York metropolitanarea. Rebecca supervises Yachad’s YouthLeadership Council, comprised of activehigh school representatives who strive tobring inclusion to their respective com-munities. Rebecca also serves as the pro-gram director for Yad B’Yad Israel, a sum-mer leadership program for individualswith and without disabilities, which toursIsrael. Rebecca obtained a Master ofSocial Work degree from New YorkUniversity. She also received herBachelor of Social Work degree, withminors in Psychology, Hebrew and JudaicStudies, from New York University whereshe graduated with honors and receivedone of the university’s PresidentialService Awards. Rebecca devotes much ofher time to informal Jewish communitywork, as well as to formal Jewish educa-tion. She has taught in schools in NewJersey, Connecticut and Israel. Clinically,Rebecca sees clients through Yachad’scounseling center and she has a specialclinical interest in the siblings of thosewith developmental disabilities.
SHARON SHERMAN embarked on hersecond career after completing her postbaccalaureate degree in education atFelician College. She has been teachingfifth grade at Yavneh Academy for 6years. Prior to joining Yavneh Academy,she was a substitute teacher and girls’ bas-ketball coach at the Joseph KushnerHebrew Academy. Preceding her moveinto the field of education, Sharon was atax attorney at Weil, Gotshal and Mangesin New York. She earned a BA inAccounting from Queens College, passedthe CPA exam and earned both a JD andLLM in Taxation from New YorkUniversity. Sharon lives in West Orange,New Jersey with her husband Jonathanand has 3 wonderful children. It is withthe assistance of, and prodding by, herchildren that Sharon continues to developand expand the technological knowledgethat she incorporates into her curriculum.
TOVA SHIMON is the President andExecutive Director of TaL AM, an organ-ization dedicated to the development and
implementation of curricula for Jewishstudies. TaL AM serves over 400 Jewishday schools on six continents. Tova is theoriginator and main author of the TaL AMHebrew and Jewish Heritage Curriculum,its predecessor the TaL SeLA HebrewLanguage Arts Curriculum and numerousLeadership and Teacher TrainingInstitutes. Tova brings to this position adiverse educational background, whichincludes over 20 years experience inteaching Hebrew and Jewish Studies inelementary, junior high and high schoolsand in teacher training programs. Tovareceived the Yaacov Zipper Award for out-standing professional contribution toJewish education in 1987, the SafraAuthors Award from the Educators’Council of America in 1989, the CovenantAward for Exceptional Jewish Educatorsfrom the Crown Foundation in 1992, andthe Community Service Award from theMontréal FEDERATIONCJA in 2007.Tova is the mother of three children andgrandmother of ten, all of whom live inJerusalem.
SHIMON SIEGEL is a TeqSMARTCertified Trainer and is currently workingin the capacity of Sales Specialist andConsultant for Jewish Day Schools withTequipment. Rabbi Siegel receivedsmicha from Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim;Queens NY and a Master’s Degree inEducation from Adelphi University NYC.Prior to working with TEQ Rabbi Siegelwas a Rebbe for grades 5 – 8 in Boston,St. Louis and NY. At the Epstein HebrewAcademy in St. Louis Rabbi Siegelbecame involved with curriculum devel-opment. He was part of focus groupcharged with the responsibility of leadingthis K – 8th grade school in creating aChumash Curriculum. During RabbiSiegel’s time at the Hebrew Academy ofLong Beach, NY he was able to effective-ly integrate technology across theLimudai Kodesh curriculum. Rabbi Siegelbecame a master at developing interactivelessons for the SMART Board in hiseveryday teachings. Rabbi Siegel wasbrought on to the TEQ ProfessionalDevelopment Team as their Judaic expert.In this role he is instrumental in guidingmany teachers of all subjects to under-stand and integrate SMART Technologyinto their lessons. In his present capacity
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 37
Statewide Professional Development Conference38
as Sales Representative and Consultant tothe Jewish Days Schools, Rabbi Siegelcontinues to advance the integration ofSMART Technology within the JewishDay Schools, nationwide.
DR. JILL ANN SLANSKY ofVancouver, Washington provides profes-sional development to many school dis-tricts across the United States. Priorresponsibilities include National ReadingConsultant for Houghton MifflinCompany and serving on the faculties ofThe University of Portland, Portland StateUniversity and the College of Idahowhere she taught courses in ReadingMethods, Language Arts and Children’sLiterature. She received her B.A. fromJersey City State College and her M.A.and Ed.D from the University ofColorado. Jill is an author of Literacy:Helping Children Construct Meaning,Cengage Learning, 9th Edition. Herstrong knowledge of practical classroomtechniques comes from her experience asan elementary teacher, a junior highschool remedial reading teacher and ateacher of special education children.
LINDA STOCK is the AssistantPrincipal of the Elementary School atYeshivat Noam in Paramus, NJ. With a degree in K-6 Education and a Mastersin Administration, Curriculum andSupervision she has lead Yeshivat Noaminto the forefront of progressive educa-tion. Both students and teachers need tolove the learning process for students toreach their potential. Linda believes insupporting her faculty in order that theycan facilitate each of their student’s great-est growth. Through strong professionaldevelopment that relies on self-reflectivepractice, PLCs (Professional LearningCommunities) have helped YeshivatNoam faculty grow each year to becomestronger educators.
MRS. TAMARA TALLMAN has over 15years of experience in the educationalfield. She received her B.S from TheCollege of New Jersey; her M.P.A fromSeton Hall University and will be gradu-ating in December of 2013 with her Doctorate in Education fromNortheastern University in Boston. She isthe recipient of the Siegler Family
Outstanding Lesson Award for HolocaustEducation, both in 2007 and 2010 and the2010 winner of the National BotanicalGardens Science Fellowhip. Her studentshave received numerous awards for theirwriting as well as their HolocaustResearch projects. She is currentlyemployed at Hillel Yeshiva in Deal, NewJersey under the direction of Dr. RuthKatz.
KAREN TANNENHOLTZ completedher 16th year at Yavneh Academy. Sheholds both a BS in Early Childhood andElementary Education and an MA inSpecial Education in the field of LearningDisabled/Neurologically Impaired fromNew York University. Karen has workedin Special Education at Yavneh Academywhere she taught in various types of class-room settings. Currently, Karen is a fifthgrade teacher and a seventh gradeLanguage Arts teacher. She enjoys inte-grating technology into her grade levelcurriculum and having her studentsinvolved as active participants on a dailybasis. Karen lives in Teaneck, New Jerseywith her husband and has four delightfuldaughters.
GERSHOM TAVE is an InstructionalTechnology Specialist at Teq and theJudaics Expert in the ProfessionalDevelopment Department. He is a formerclassroom teacher in the United Statesand Israel with experience teaching bothsecular and Hebrew subjects from pre-school through high school.
RABBI DR. ELIE TUCHMAN is theHead of School of Yeshiva at the JerseyShore. He holds a Doctorate in Educationfrom the Azrieli Graduate School ofYeshiva University, Semicha from theRabbi Isaac Elchanan TheologicalSeminary, and an MS in ComputerScience from New York University. Anactive Head of School for more than 15years, Elie is also a public speaker and hasmentored student teachers for Azrieli. Hisrecent research in self-efficacy was pub-lished in Educational Psychology. Hisareas of expertise include teacher trainingand support, school leadership, self-effi-cacy, and motivation.
AMY WASSER is a graduate of the
Davidson School of Education at JTS.Amy Wasser has been at the HillelAcademy in Tampa for 18 years, servingas Head of School for the past 10. An avidbeliever in combining formal and infor-mal education, she spends part of eachsummer at Ramah Darom. Her day schooland camp experiences allow her to createa program infused with a variety of learn-ing modalities and environments. She has3 children, all graduates of Hillel.
DEENA WERTMAN is a fourth gradeGeneral Studies teacher at Yeshivat Noamin Paramus, NJ. She received herBachelor’s Degree in ElementaryEducation from Stern College for Womenand a Master’s Degree in Literacy fromHunter College. While working atYeshivat Noam, Deena developed a pas-sion for incorporating technology in theclassroom. In 2012, Deena received theMarcia Hirt Initiative Award for her pro-gressive work using iPads with her stu-dents. This interest motivated her to get aCertificate in Educational Technologyfrom Yeshiva University Institute forUniversity-School Partnership. Deenastrongly believes that technology is a toolthat breeds creativity, leads to furtherengagement, allows for greater collabora-tion and provides information that makesteaching the whole child even truer.
SUZANNE WEILGUS, a licensedteacher and MBA in health care adminis-tration, is an active businesswoman andpast president of philanthropic organiza-tions. As the founder of ACHI, AmericanCommunities Helping Israel, she bringsexciting educational ideas that are easy toimplement in schools and communities.Suzanne, as an innovative planner andmotivational speaker, is a catalyst forchange.
BASYA WOOLF is a Judaic studiesteacher for 5s and the Hebrew Curriculumcoordinator for early childhood classes inBais Yaakov Academy of Queens. Shetaught first grade Hebrew for 7 years andhas been working with 5s for over 25years. Basya mentors new teachers ingrades k-5 of both Judaic and secularclasses with the Jewish New TeacherProject in Brooklyn, Queens, and LongIsland.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 38
Election Day, November 5, 2013 39
ROCHELLE ZUPNICK, M.S., is anaward winning professional educator withpast experience in day schools, congrega-tional schools and the BJE ResourceCenter. Her specialty is in innovative
Jewish curriculum development. She is anexperienced lecturer for BJE and otherJewish National organizations. She is aformer V.P of Sales and Marketing in asoftware development company. Rochelle
is active in communal activities and as a coordinator of ACHI, AmericanCommunities Helping Israel, brings cre-ative approaches to learning.
Notes:
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 39
Statewide Professional Development Conference40
Notes:
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 40
Election Day, November 5, 2013 41
Notes:
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 41
Statewide Professional Development Conference42
Notes:
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 42
Election Day, November 5, 2013 43
ACHIPO Box 556 Monsey, NY [email protected]
THE DESTINYFOUNDATION386 Route 59Monsey, NY 10952212-444-1656www.jewishdestiny.com
JETS ISRAELJerusalem, Israel011-972-52-365-6867 (Israel)917-310-6759 (USA)www.Jetsisrael.com
LATE NIGHT LABS33 Irving Place10th FloorNew York, NY 10003866-262-1930www.Latenitelabs.com
“THE LIST”: Rabbi Yaakov Aichenbaum729 Monroe AvenueScranton, PA [email protected]
MIND BODY HEBREW241 E 86th St Apt 15-ENew York, NY [email protected]
OU PRESS, the Publishing Division ofthe Orthodox Union11 Broadway, 12th FloorNew York, NY 10004212-613-8385www.oupress.org
SADLIER87 Beech StreetRutherford, NJ 07070201-935-2770www.sadlier.com
TAL AM4600 Thimens Blvd Ville St. Laurent Quebec, H4R 2B2Canada514-333-1818www.talam.com
TEQ7 Norden lane Huntington Station, NY 11746877-455-9369www.teq.com
ULPAN-ORINTERNATIONAL43a Emek Refaim St, 2nd FloorJerusalem, Israel 93141011-972-2-561-1132516-252-4914www.ulpanor.com
ZERACH129-20 18th AvenueCollege Point, NY 11356866-888-8740www.zerach.com
Participating Vendor Information:
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 43
Contact Information
THE NEW JERSEY ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH DAY SCHOOLSDr. Jeffrey Lichtman, Director
Mrs. Batya Jacob, Associate Director
National Office New Jersey Office11 BROADWAY, 13TH FLOOR 31 LAKEVIEW DRIVENEW YORK, NY 10004 WEST ORANGE, NJ 07052212-613-8127/8229 551-404-4447FAX: 212-613-0796 973-669-3483
Email: [email protected]
YACHAD IS AN AGENCY OF THE ORTHODOX UNION
Directions to: YESHIVAT NOAM
70 West Century RoadParamus, NJ 07652
FROM MANHATTAN:Take George Washington Bridge to Route #4 West. Continue to Route #17 North. Keep right at the fork, following the signs to Route #17 N and merge onto NJ-17NTake Century Road exit towards Fair Lawn. Keep left at the fork, follow signs for Paramus Road.Turn left onto Century Road.Go .03 miles to school on your left.
FROM SOUTH NEW JERSEY:Take the Garden State Parkway North to Exit 161 to Route 4 East.Keep left at the fork to continue toward NJ-17NKeep right at the fork, follow signs for NJ-17 NKeep left at the fork, follow signs for NJ-17 N/MahwahKeep right at the fork and merge onto NJ-17NTake the Century Road exit toward Fair Lawn.Keep left at the fork, follow signs for Paramus RoadTurn left onto Century Road.School will be .03 miles on the left.
10136-OU-DevelConf-RegEd_p3 7/8/13 1:56 PM Page 44