2017 Utah Rural Schools Conference

The participants will learn how the concept of Mental Models from Psychology research can be applied to instructional planning. Participants will also understand that the development of mental models is a critical foundation for teachers who wish to become experts and have the greatest impact on student learning possible. Participants will practice creating a mental model.

Based on extensive study of existing research combined with his own research and 20 years of experience as a teacher and administrator in public schools, Dr. Hatch presents a fast-paced, engaging and practical message. Here are some comments past participants have made about this presentation:
• Very useful. Clear and concise goals that I can work on!
• Worth every minute! Will be implementing this mental model strategy.
• The training forced me to look at some of my practices and omissions…that was tough to realize that some major improvements are needed; even after lots of years of experience!
• This training was excellent! I am so excited to get started “attacking the gap”!
• Great session. Thank you for your efforts. Time flew by and everyone I have talked to got something out of this time.

The purpose of this workshop is to give you specific skills to work with your legislators. You will learn when, how, and where to contact them in ways that will be mutually beneficial.

This session provides you with different ways that will help you make your professional development meetings more engaging and meaningful. You will learn how to gamify your PD using badges and micro-credentials. Learn how to differentiate instruction so that everyone is learning at their level.

Develop yourself as a leader and advocate for public education. Develop and grow your story of self and how to advocate for public schools and your students. Engage with other leaders through social media. We will also discuss social justice and opportunities to get involved.

Develop yourself as a leader and advocate for public education. Develop and grow your story of self and how to advocate for public schools and your students. Engage with other leaders through social media. We will also discuss social justice and opportunities to get involved.

Managing angry parents is not like managing a customer service counter. Teachers market knowledge and cognitive skills, and when instruction doesn't fit, angry parents seek resolution. This stress compounds everyday demands of scrutiny and assessments. In this session, participants will practice skills that deflect parents who bully, criticize, demand, and threaten. Real-life scenarios will be investigated, and role-playing will model how teachers can cater to all customers while delivering rigorous content that is priceless.

This class will provide instruction on how to make a Plicker and UTIPS account. How to use these account to assess students' level of understanding quickly. How I use these program, for math homework. Plicker is an easy to use student response system developed by Nolan Amy; Plickers is a FREE app that can be used on any IOS or Android operating system. Students will receive a QR code card that has a number on it, you can assign the number to a student or leave it annomous. The answer choices A, B, C, and D or true and false. The teacher will use their smart phone or tablet to scan the class cards and begin to immediately see student responses pop up on the teacher's screen, allowing the teacher to reteach when needed. This unique and simple activity can be used for pre-assessments, checks for understanding, polls or class surveys, exit tickets, etc. Plickers is a great way to infuse technology into your classroom to make a teacher's life easier. UTIPS or Utah Testing Item Pool Service is another free online service that can help teachers collect data on students understanding.

This session provides you with different ways that will help you make your professional development meetings more engaging and meaningful. You will learn how to gamify your PD using badges and micro-credentials. Learn how to differentiate instruction so that everyone is learning at their level.

This session will introduce participants to some quick and easy, (all requiring little or no equipment) to use activities to not only use in a physical education class, but for any class! Great for ice-breakers, getting your students up and moving, changing up the same routine, or just for fun. Be advised that this is a hand-on, moving session where you will be having fun, laughing, and participating in each of the activities.