Open to teachers in their first, second, or third year of teaching, this seminar supports motivated beginning teachers by strengthening their knowledge base and classroom expertise. Through experiential learning, teachers will explore pedagogical concerns including differentiated instruction, brain-compatible teaching, assessment, the effect of poverty on achievement and behavior, and classroom management. Come prepared to build professional competence and confidence, improve student achievement, and reinforce your commitment to this critically important profession.

Learn research-based methods for using the natural human desire to be involved in “play” to enliven and enrich your classroom outcomes. Games and play can be powerful educational tools. Learn to meet your curricular goals by empowering students to collaboratively design solutions in an environment that encourages intellectual risks and deep engagement. In this two-day workshop, facilitated by the Institute of Play, you will learn the fundamentals of game-based learning that engages students in core subject areas and master the art of centering teaching on the learner. Experience game-based learning practices as we create, modify, prototype, and play/test non-digital games of our own designs. Be ready to leave the workshop with workable play-based activities tailored to the needs of your students.

Learn research-based methods for using the natural human desire to be involved in “play” to enliven and enrich your classroom outcomes. Games and play can be powerful educational tools. Learn to meet your curricular goals by empowering students to collaboratively design solutions in an environment that encourages intellectual risks and deep engagement. In this two-day workshop, facilitated by the Institute of Play, you will learn the fundamentals of game-based learning that engages students in core subject areas and master the art of centering teaching on the learner. Experience game-based learning practices as we create, modify, prototype, and play/test non-digital games of our own designs. Be ready to leave the workshop with workable play-based activities tailored to the needs of your students.

The NCCAT Research and Development Teams program offers educators an opportunity to meet in a residential setting devoid of distraction to create and advance departmental, school, or district-wide projects. These projects might consist of new programming, research, planning, or curricula. Gather a team together to create or refine your own innovative approaches to early grades literacy or digital learning. Early grades literacy or digital learning projects will be given preference. All projects will be considered. Come prepared to share your knowledge and progress with other teams from around our state. Single rooms, meeting space, internet access, and meals for the participants will be provided by NCCAT. Travel and the cost of substitute teachers are not covered. Teachers, administrators, central office personnel, and district coordinators are encouraged to apply.

The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2013 has charged teachers with the responsibility of integrating arts education across the curriculum. How can we use that challenge to super-charge early grades literacy instruction? While most teachers are aware of the research showing that children exposed to drama, music, and dance do a better job at mastering the core subject areas, many feel ill-equipped to bring the power of arts education into reading and writing. Where do the North Carolina Educational Standards connect and intersect with arts integrated learning? Join a group of dedicated colleagues as we explore ways to engage our students through visual, musical, dramatic, verbal, and movement arts. Discover how art can motivate, build persistence, improve memory, increase attention span, strengthen abstract thinking, and prepare students to deal productively with complexity, ambiguity, and frustration.

Two days of substitute teacher reimbursement will be covered for this four-day program.
Never in our nation’s history has ability to produce and comprehend written information been more necessary. Unfortunately, literacy instruction is as difficult as it is essential. This program will provide early grades teachers with a complement of research-based tools and strategies to help answer some of their more burning questions: How do I teach “close reading” to students who don’t yet know the alphabet? What level of writing can I attain from children who are still learning to spell? How do I simultaneously provide enrichment for advanced readers and remediation for delayed readers? Finally, how can I integrate reading and writing instruction into all other subject areas? Preference will be given to teachers of grades K–3.

Open to teachers in their first, second, or third year of teaching, this seminar supports motivated beginning teachers by strengthening their knowledge base and classroom expertise. Through experiential learning, teachers will explore pedagogical concerns including differentiated instruction, brain-compatible teaching, assessment, the effect of poverty on achievement and behavior, and classroom management. Come prepared to build professional competence and confidence, improve student achievement, and reinforce your commitment to this critically important profession.

“Flipping” instruction is a method of shifting lecture and explanation to a controlled video or mixed-media format so that time in class can be spent most productively. When done properly, flipping can be of great benefit to teachers and students by allowing for more finely attuned differentiation and more class time for one-on-one instruction and meaningful learning experiences. With help from working teachers and educational technologists, this course will give you the tools and confidence you need to approach flipping your own classroom in ways that are meaningful and engaging for your students and that give you new tools for assessment and interaction.

Reading and writing instruction has moved into every classroom. Changes in the standard course of study require that students read much greater amounts of non-fiction and construct viable written arguments using reason and evidence. Literacy instruction at the secondary level is a challenge even to those who were trained to do it; it can be downright terrifying to anyone else. This seminar will help secondary level teachers support their students’ reading comprehension. Techniques for using writing as a formative and summative assessment—and how to grade it—also will be included. This session is intended primarily for social studies teachers at the secondary level but would be appropriate for any teachers who are working with reading and writing across the curriculum.

In the time between a total implementation of 1:1 technology and the present, many teachers are faced with a charge to integrate technology into the curriculum and the reality that the technology supplied by their schools is not the same sort of technology that their students are using on a daily basis. One answer to this dilemma is that the technology that the students want to bring with them to school can be used as a way to engage them more fully with the materials and the processes. Come and join us to learn more about how a teacher, a school, or a district can more effectively leverage BYOT (sometimes also called BYOD—Bring-Your-Own-Device) in order to meet goals on a budget and to meet your students on common ground.