Alaska Staff Development Network

Working Together To Make Schools Better

PD for Alaska's Educators...

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Fall Webinar Series

How to Teach Vocabulary Across Content Settings

Presenter: Dr. Pam Kastner
Dates: September 13, 27 and October 10, 25
As a secondary teacher, what can you do to help develop proficient readers in middle and high school? Effective strategies and resources are available to support secondary teachers to teach reading in their content areas. The focus of this webinar series will be on vocabulary instruction, but the series is designed for any secondary teacher who is concerned about their pupils’ reading abilities but does not feel equipped to support them. 
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Fishing, Basketball, and Amazon Reviews: Making Math More Relevant

Presenter: BobbiJo Erb
Dates: September 18, 25 and October 2, 9
Dig into practices that will build classroom collective efficacy where students see themselves as important contributors to a classroom community of learners. We will learn strategies to be effective and efficient math teachers, to lessen learned helplessness, and to identify resources to build shared understanding.  We will look at all the best practice information with an eye for how it fits with our own experiences in classrooms working with students across Alaska, and explore the unique opportunities we have to engage in project-based learning.
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Are You Doing School TO Families or WITH Families?  MTSS for Effective Family Engagement

Presenters: Dr. Jill Handley & Dr. Lara Donnelly
Dates: Sept. 20, 27, Oct. 11, 25
Although research shows family engagement can positively impact student achievement, school leaders and teachers have so much on their plates that they have a difficult time creating sustainable systems and structures for family engagement.  This webinar will provide participants with an opportunity to assess their current family engagement systems, strategies to enhance two-way communication, and tools to build funds of knowledge for equitable family support.
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Preventative Strategies to Reduce Challenging Behaviors and Increase Student Engagement – Tier 1

Presenters: Amanda Wilson & Danielle Gonyea
Dates: Sept. 21, 28, Oct. 5, 12
Challenging behaviors in the classroom can lead to decreased student engagement, academic skill gaps, and the need for intensive interventions within multi-tiered systems of support. However, more-often-than not, inconsistently implemented tier 1 strategies play a role in this. This webinar series will outline easy to implement, yet highly effective, preventative strategies which increase student engagement and decrease challenging behaviors.
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PLC’s At Work

Presenter: Dr. Eric Twadell
Dates & Times: October 18, November 8, November 29
The Professional Learning Communities at Work® process is increasingly recognized as the most powerful strategy for sustained, substantive school improvement. This series gives you and your team  the knowledge and tools to implement this powerful process in your school or district. This webinar series is aligned to the Solution Tree PLC conference offered in Anchorage this fall. Team members who can not attend the Anchorage conference will benefit from this webinar series.
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Leader Ready: The Roots of School Leadership

Presenters: Vince Bustamante and Dr. Tim Cusack
Dates: Oct. 17, 24, Nov. 7, 14
The best way to prepare aspiring school and district leaders is to offer hands-on opportunities to develop the skills they’ll need when they’re in charge. Being an educational leader calls for originality, innovation, and the ability to work under pressure. Join us to explore a framework to build strong and independent leadership by using a mix of professional knowledge, modeling, coaching, guided experiences, and mastery experiences.
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How to Leverage MTSS to Support Special Education

Presenter: Sharon Azar
Dates: October 21, 28
Many educators consider a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) to be a framework that’s only applicable to a general education setting, while Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are reserved for special education settings. But is this actually the case? Do MTSS and special education go together? Is there an important connection between them? In this webinar series, we will discuss how MTSS fits into both general and special education settings. We will also explore how MTSS can and should be used by all students—even/especially those with learning disabilities.
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Learn to Teach Computer Science K-12

ELEMENTARY EDUCATORS: Registration is open for virtual and in-person spring workshops–no cost to you. One optional credit available. These workshops are designed for K-5 educators new to teaching computer science who want to explore how to begin teaching the CS Fundamentals curriculum.
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SECONDARY EDUCATORS: You don’t have to be a software developer to teach computer science! Our intensive and highly supportive summer professional learning programs are designed to prepare any secondary educator to provide high-quality computer science instruction.
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Upcoming Online Classes

AI for Teachers: What You and Your Students Need to Know

3 credits
Start Date: September 11, 2023.
Last day to register: September 17.
End Date: November 19, 2023.
This course is for K-12 teachers of all subjects who are curious about integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their current curriculum. Absolutely no prior AI background is needed! The course will focus on practical applications of AI in education, ethical considerations, and hands-on experience with AI tools and resources.
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Multicultural Studies for Alaska’s Teachers with Dr. Panigkaq Agatha John-Shields

Weekly live online sessions . September 20, 27, October 4, 11, 18, 25, November 1, 8, 15.
Time: 4:00-6:00 p.m.

This course provides a framework for understanding multicultural education in the context of the classroom, community, and society. The class focuses on ways to build relationships within classrooms that support multicultural learning; presents an overview of Alaska Native cultures, historical events, and worldviews; and explores contemporary education issues. This 3-credit Course is approved through the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development to meet the Multicultural/Cross-Cultural Communications requirement for teacher certification, and is approved in the Anchorage School District’s MLP system.
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Science of Reading Leadership Course

Education leaders with responsibility for K–3 literacy instruction:
Applications are open for a no-cost, DEED-approved SOR Leadership Course.
Apply now for your preferred term: Fall (closed), Winter (closed), or Spring.
In partnership with NWEA®, the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development (DEED) is offering a joint learning, collaboration, and coaching opportunity that will empower Alaska education leaders to understand effective literacy instruction. The leadership course provides participants with fundamental knowledge in effective standards-aligned and research-based reading instruction and assessment practices for all learners to support their school and district plans in the Science of Reading, as required by the Alaska Reads Act.
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