innovate25: Full Schedule

7:40pm CST

Take What You Do Seriously, But Don't Take Yourself Too Seriously

Sunday February 23, 2025 7:40pm - 8:30pm CST

Learn: Explore the importance of balancing passion for your work with humor and lightheartedness. Understand how this balance can prevent burnout, reduce stress and foster a more positive, resilient mindset.
Engage: Participate in interactive and fun activities such as "Would You Rather" and role-playing exercises where you'll exaggerate your professional roles for a good laugh. This playful experience will help break down barriers and demonstrate the value of incorporating humor into daily work life.

Apply: Reflect on how taking yourself less seriously can improve your well-being and effectiveness in the workplace. Use the prompts to identify areas where humor could enhance your routine and challenge yourself to create or find one humorous moment each day. Gain actionable strategies to infuse more joy into your professional journey.

Objective: Help participants balance passion for their work with humor and lightheartedness to avoid burnout and stress.

Speakers

Erin Lawson

Education Plus

Erin serves EdPlus member districts by developing tailored learning opportunities and professional development programs. Erin has 20 years of education experience in a variety of roles including 6th-grade teacher, district technology coach and Director of Professional and Program... Read More →

Sunday February 23, 2025 7:40pm - 8:30pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Keynote Activity

8:40am CST

Students Leading Their Learning

Monday February 24, 2025 8:40am - 9:30am CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover how to design, implement and teach students to create their own personal learning hubs. These hubs can focus on a single content area or serve as a tool across multiple subjects, empowering students to organize and manage their learning.

Engage: Actively explore the structure and benefits of a learning hub, with dedicated time to develop your own hub template. Collaborate with peers and experiment with different components to create a model tailored to your classroom needs.

Apply: Gain a completed or partially developed hub, along with the knowledge to guide students in building their own. Be equipped to implement this tool in your classroom, fostering student ownership and supporting independent, organized learning.

Speakers

Marie Schroeder

2nd Grade Teacher, Orchard Farm School District

Join us for a beginners lesson on getting a classroom podcast started. We will go through the basics of using Garage Band, setting up Spodify Creators to setup your podcast, and how to best start the process with your students. Bring your iPad and device so you can build with us and... Read More →

Monday February 24, 2025 8:40am - 9:30am CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Design Technology

Audience Classroom teachers, Specialist / Encore
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Orchard Farm

10:10am CST

From One-Size-Fits-All to Learner-Centered: Using Your LMS to Support UDL

Monday February 24, 2025 10:10am - 11:00am CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover how to harness the features of your learning management system (LMS) to support Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and create more inclusive, accessible learning experiences. Explore insights from a district collaboration with the DESE AEM Cohort, demonstrating how UDL principles were translated into actionable goals to make the LMS a tool for diverse learners.

Engage: Explore district-created UDL resources and experiment with tools in an Open Canvas Course designed around UDL principles. Gain insights into how other districts are addressing barriers to learning and making their LMS more inclusive.

Apply: Put UDL into action by mapping UDL principles to your LMS, adapting shared Canvas examples, and developing personalized implementation goals that make your LMS a dynamic platform for learner-centered education.

Speakers

April Burton

Francis Howell School District

April Burton is the instructional technology content leader and the World Language content leader in the Francis Howell School District.

Monday February 24, 2025 10:10am - 11:00am CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Technology Design

Audience All K-12 Educators
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Francis Howell School District

11:10am CST

Supercharge Learning with a Professional Mindset

Monday February 24, 2025 11:10am - 12:00pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Explore key elements of career readiness that have proven successful in diverse educational settings. Identify modules and mini-lessons that connect curriculum to profession-based relevance, tailored to fit your unique classroom context.

Engage: Collaborate with shoulder-partners to practice various strategies, contribute questions that guide the workshop’s direction, and co-create a list of valuable resources and ideas. This collaborative approach will enable you to expand on resources shared while addressing real-world applications.

Speakers

Drew McAllister

John Omoresemi

Monday February 24, 2025 11:10am - 12:00pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Design Culture

Audience All K-12 Educators
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Parkway School District, St. Charles County CAPS

12:10pm CST

Rounding Revelations: Navigating Instructional Rounds

Monday February 24, 2025 12:10pm - 1:00pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Delve into the practice of Instructional Rounding as implemented in the Mehlville and Affton school districts, and discover its positive impacts in special education. Discover how Instructional Rounding can foster a culture of continuous learning, strengthen educator capacity and promote a community of personalized professional growth.

Engage: Participate in hands-on activities, partner and group discussions, and interactive Q&A session. Through these collaborative experiences, gain deeper insight into how Instructional Rounding supports educator and student development.

Apply: Reflect on the impacts of Instructional Rounding and begin planning how to incorporate this practice in your own setting. Gain actionable ideas for implementing Instructional Rounding to cultivate a supportive and growth-oriented culture within your educational community.

Speakers

Jennifer Ferguson

Missy Roux

Lindsay McCracken

innovate 25 Instructional Rounding.pptx pdf

Monday February 24, 2025 12:10pm - 1:00pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Leadership Culture

Audience Building Principals, Classroom Teachers, Curriculum Coordinators, Instructional Coaches
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Special School District, Special School District

2:30pm CST

AI Tools for Teachers: Boosting Student Engagement and Learning

Monday February 24, 2025 2:30pm - 3:20pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover the latest AI resources and how to leverage them to streamline daily tasks, enhance instructional practices and engage students meaningfully, prioritizing effective learning outcomes.

Engage: Actively explore and utilize AI tools to design a classroom-ready lesson that incorporates practical applications, enabling students to engage actively with an AI platform.

Apply: Gain a ready-to-implement lesson plan that integrates AI, enhancing student engagement and facilitating deeper learning experiences in the classroom.

Speakers

Lindsey Weatherby

Owner, Ctrl + Alt + Teach Professional Development

Lindsey Weatherby is a dedicated special education teacher with a passion for creating engaging, well-developed, and effective lesson plans that support all learners. With expertise in fostering critical thinking, she designs instructional activities that challenge students to infer... Read More →

Monday February 24, 2025 2:30pm - 3:20pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Technology

Audience All K-12 Educators
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Special School District

8:40am CST

Passports, Playlists and Passions... Personalized Learning Projects

Tuesday February 25, 2025 8:40am - 9:05am CST

Salon 2

Learn: Explore three innovative personalized learning projects designed to foster connection and belonging within your classroom community. Discover the importance of these projects in promoting empathy and engagement among students.

Engage: Review templates developed from real classroom experiences, including creation tools and grading rubrics. "Stop and jot" your ideas and then collaborate with peers from similar grade levels or subject areas (e.g., high school social studies, high school ELA, or third grade) to brainstorm how to adapt these projects for your own classrooms.

Apply: Customize the provided templates to suit your specific content area and identify how these projects can integrate into your curriculum, ultimately creating a classroom environment that nurtures belonging and empathy while actively engaging students in meaningful learning experiences.

Speakers

Lori Rejent

Unified Arts Curriculum Coordinator, Music Specialist, Brentwood School District

Tuesday February 25, 2025 8:40am - 9:05am CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Design Belonging

Audience All K-12 Educators, Classroom Teachers, Library Media Specialists
Session Type Spark
School / Company Brentwood Schools
Resource Page https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1GBmj1ahrhp5u3_PvQqsGr_Rwv3G5XFIkhQ8VDC7ZsNo/edit?gid=0#gid=0

9:10am CST

Embracing the Mess: Transforming Classroom Chaos into Student Engagement

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:10am - 9:35am CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover how creative play can boost student engagement and recall by embracing messy, hands-on learning experiences. Explore effective classroom management strategies to maintain order while fostering a productive and stimulating environment.

Engage: Participate in discussions and activities that demonstrate how messy projects encourage deeper student reflection. Discover how these approaches inspire students to talk, write and think critically about their learning experiences.

Apply: Gain practical methods to integrate messy, creative projects across core subjects like science, history and language arts. Gain tools to connect art and creativity to academic goals, reinforcing the educational value of hands-on, interdisciplinary learning.

Speakers

Bryson Reid

Premier Charter School

Tuesday February 25, 2025 9:10am - 9:35am CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Culture

Audience All K-12 Educators, Building Principals, Classroom Teachers, Curriculum Coordinators, Specialist / Encore
Session Type Spark
School / Company Premier Charter School

10:10am CST

Feeding the Learning Brain

Tuesday February 25, 2025 10:10am - 11:00am CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover how teachers can leverage their unique position to positively influence students' brain development. This session will explore research in mind, brain, and education, providing practical strategies to enhance learning, memory, critical thinking, and confidence in the classroom.

Engage: Participants will be actively involved through movement, curiosity, humor, play, music, and interactive discussions, making the learning experience enjoyable and memorable.

Apply: Walk away with a wealth of immediately applicable, low-cost strategies to nurture every student's brain and engage their interest daily. Understanding how the brain learns will transform your teaching practice and enrich your own learning experience as well.

Speakers

Denise Ford

Gifted Teacher, Kirkwood School District

Passionate about Gifted Education, innovation, creativity, and learning.

Tuesday February 25, 2025 10:10am - 11:00am CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Design Wellness

Audience All K-12 Educators
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Kirkwood School District

11:10am CST

MTSS with the Head and the Heart

Tuesday February 25, 2025 11:10am - 12:00pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover how the SSD MTSS Facilitator Team has effectively embedded cognitive, affective and tangible aspects of Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) into their coaching and learning practices. Gain insights into how to support leaders in fostering a holistic approach to MTSS implementation.

Engage: Engage in exploration of the crosswalk matrices, MTSS playbook and other resources, plus, have meaningful conversations with peers and facilitators to explore practical ways to incorporate effective tips, strategies and practices into your own work. Collaborative dialogue will enhance understanding and inspire actionable ideas.

Apply: Gain information and resources that best fit contextually into your school systems to make data based decisions around equitably supporting all students within their settings ensuring that both cognitive and emotional aspects are considered in their MTSS systems.

Speakers

Breeya Perry

Trish Diebold

Tuesday February 25, 2025 11:10am - 12:00pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Leadership Culture

Session Type Ignite
School / Company Special School District

2:30pm CST

Is AI Transformational?

Tuesday February 25, 2025 2:30pm - 3:20pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Discover the latest AI tools and their potential applications in the classroom. Discover cutting-edge technology and showcase how AI can create new learning opportunities, sparking innovation for both educators and students.

Engage: Actively experiment with AI tools while engaging in thought-provoking discussions on the broader impact of AI on education. Collaborate with peers to explore AI's role in transforming the learning experience.

Apply: Gain practical ideas and strategies for leveraging AI in your classroom. Be prepared to create transformative learning experiences that harness AI's potential to engage and inspire students.

Speakers

Bob Deneau

Chief Information Officer, Rockwood School District

Tuesday February 25, 2025 2:30pm - 3:20pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Leadership Technology

Audience All K-12 Educators, Classroom Teachers, Curriculum Coordinators, Technology Directors
Session Type Ignite
School / Company Rockwood School District

3:30pm CST

#IYKYK: Supporting Students Who Already Know What You're Teaching

Tuesday February 25, 2025 3:30pm - 4:00pm CST

Salon 2

Learn: Explore the challenge of engaging students who have already mastered the content. Discover research-based strategies for repurposing materials and designing enrichment opportunities that promote deeper learning.

Engage: Participate in discussions and activities that focus on offering student choice, fostering autonomy and sustaining motivation for advanced learners. Share experiences and collaborate on practical solutions with fellow educators.

Apply: Gain concrete techniques to differentiate instruction, create meaningful extension activities and ensure all students remain challenged and engaged in your classroom.

Speakers

Sherri Kulpa

Director of Curriculum and Instruction, EducationPlus

Tuesday February 25, 2025 3:30pm - 4:00pm CST
Salon 2 Marriott St. Louis Airport

Design