Help students with IEPs access grade-level instruction by identifying access points within Bookworms instructional routines, building skill staircases that lead to grade-level outcomes while supporting diverse learning and maintaining grade-level rigor.
When student thinking is visible, instruction becomes more responsive, discussion becomes richer, and learning goes deeper. Explore five practical moves for surfacing student ideas, strengthening engagement, and supporting meaningful learning. Teachers, coaches, and leaders will gain concrete strategies for making thinking more visible in ways that support understanding, engagement, and responsive instructional decisions.
“Be curious, not judgmental” is often treated like a mindset, but in coaching, it’s a discipline. Most leaders enter conversations with answers already in mind and use questions to guide teachers there. In this session, ELA and Math leaders will examine how judgment shapes coaching and how to interrupt it in real time. Participants will learn how to ask questions that actually open thinking and lead to meaningful instructional change.
What does a strong Bookworms Differentiated Instruction (DI) Block actually look like in practice? In this session, participants will explore the key look-fors that make DI Block effective, including clear routines, purposeful grouping, responsive instruction, and meaningful student engagement. Educators will examine how the block can be structured to meet diverse learner needs while remaining aligned with the curriculum goals. Participants will leave with practical guidance for strengthening implementation and identifying high-quality DI instruction.
Most classrooms are filled with activity. The question is whether children are doing the thinking that leads to real learning. When children are not doing the thinking, they are not doing the learning. This session explores practical strategies that shift instruction from compliance to thinking, amplify learner voice, and create classrooms where children analyze, justify, and communicate their ideas. Participants will leave with strategies they can apply immediately.
How do teachers stay true to the design of Bookworms while still responding to the learners in front of them? In this session, participants will explore the tension between fidelity and adaptive practice and consider when, why, and how lesson adjustments can support students without compromising instructional intent. Educators will examine strategies for balancing consistency and flexibility, using reflective practice to guide decisions, and maintaining high-quality instruction that benefits every learner.
Translating materials is often a go-to strategy for supporting newcomers or multilingual learners. While translations can be effective at certain times, multilinguals need opportunities to engage with English content to develop language alongside new learning. In this session, we’ll explore cross-linguistic strategies that allow children to use both their home languages and English while reading, writing, and talking about math.
Move beyond One Teach-One Support by clearly defining Roles and Responsibilities through the lens of student needs and maximizing the use of various co-instructional approaches, all while utilizing the Bookworms instructional routines to increase student access and engagement with the curriculum.
When anchor charts are used well, they become tools for thinking, not just classroom wallpaper. In this session, participants will explore how to design and use anchor charts in ELA and math to make learning visible, reinforce key concepts, and support students as they work independently and together. Expect concrete examples and practical takeaways you can use right away.
Creating classrooms where all students contribute meaningfully takes intentional planning and facilitation. In this session, educators will explore the goals of productive classroom conversation and how strategic questioning can strengthen participation, engagement, and deeper understanding. Participants will learn practical ways to structure and sustain discussions that support literacy, communication, and critical thinking across lessons and content areas. Educators will leave with concrete tools for embedding purposeful talk into daily instruction.
Pop culture often portrays learning as effortless genius or heroic teaching. In reality, joyful learning grows from curiosity, collaboration, and student thinking. In this session, we examine common myths about teaching in film and television and contrast them with practices that support meaningful literacy and numeracy learning. Participants will leave with reflection tools and practical strategies to foster joyful, thinking-centered classrooms.
Effective instruction starts with knowing your students well. In this session, teachers will explore what to assess and when at each grade level in the Bookworms curriculum, with a focus on using rubrics to make assessment clear, consistent, and actionable. Participants will examine practical strategies for collecting meaningful data, interpreting results, and using insights to inform instruction, support every learner, and strengthen student confidence. You’ll leave with concrete tools and routines to make assessment more purposeful and manageable.
Families and caregivers play an essential role in students’ learning, but too often they are invited in only through one-time events or traditional conferences. In this session, participants will explore practical strategies for building authentic family partnerships around instruction, helping caregivers feel more connected, informed, and equipped to support learning at home. You’ll leave with concrete ideas for strengthening trust, communication, and shared investment in student learning.
Creating strong conditions for multilingual learners starts with intentional leadership. In this session, participants will explore five practical ways leaders can strengthen support for multilingual learners. Leaders will leave with concrete ideas for building more inclusive classrooms, supporting teachers in effective practice, and creating learning environments where multilingual learners can engage deeply with content, language, and identity.
