Three-hour ticketed pre-conference workshops have their own time slot on Friday morning. Please note: There is a separate $35 fee for pre-conference workshops.

101. Teach Like A Rebel! (Brenda Buckley) – Ditch the textbook and get on those feet and teach like a rebel! This session is sure to get you to move with these interactive activities. Learn multiple strategies to engage students and learn how to create activities with a purpose. Session attendees will step into the shoes of a student by participating in the activities and reflecting what they have learned. In return, they will have guidance in creating these activities to match their language to bring to their classrooms the following school day. It’s time to step it up a level and get that brain flowing!

102. Multiple Models of Standards-Based Lesson Planning (Dr. Joanne O’Toole) – As language educators prepare to implement the revised NYS Learning Standards for World Languages, they may feel challenged in knowing where to start and how to proceed in planning lessons that integrate both communication and culture standards and that teach vocabulary and grammar in service to language functions. This pre-conference session will show participants how to turn potential lesson planning challenges into opportunities to expand their repertoire of approaches. Participants will learn about and apply five different standards-based lesson planning models, each of which has its own structure and purpose. This session is recommended for teachers who already have familiarity with the revised learning standards.

103. Moving Towards Proficiency with Fun and Engaging Activities (Valérie Greer & Wendy Mercado) – This session will be three hours of fun, engaging, hands-on activities where you will be the student. We will demonstrate many different activities that will be sure to get your students excited to participate and move towards achieving their proficiency goals. Activities presented will include interpretive, interpersonal and presentational tasks aligned with the new standards. Participants will have the opportunity to play and practice all activities which can be implemented at any level for any language. This will be a highly interactive experience which will require audience participation. Samples of all activities will be provided. Join us to learn new creative ways to engage your students.

104. Framing Conversations about Race in the Classroom (Dr. Angèle Kingué) – This workshop will provide a space for participants to engage in deep conversations about the challenges and the rewards of teaching about issues related to race in the classroom. More specifically, we will examine the most effective and productive strategies for including discussions about race and inclusive practices in our teaching. Using the Human Centered Framework for Teaching Race in the Language Classroom, participants will develop activities to help students learn to interrogate and challenge assumptions, and provide them with the tools to engage in fruitful and transformative conversations with each other.

105. Imagine the Possibilities! Embracing the Revised WL Learning Standards  (Bill Heller) – In this workshop, participants will have an opportunity to envision the Revised NYS Learning Standards for World Languages as a lens to view current practice in a new way and a toolbox to help you focus your instructional approaches to maximize proficiency development. After some brief self-reflection tasks, participants will discover and explore five key elements that provide the foundation on which the new standards are built and a framework for creative and effective curriculum development. Then, participants receive a guided tour of the tools for teachers that are available from OBEWL to help practitioners examine current practices and develop thematic units and integrated lessons that align with the new standards.