Addressing Equity Head On in Middle Schools
Erika Saunders & Dave Brown
The Connection between Service Learning and Building Belonging
Nan Guilmette
Vergennes Union Middle/High School
This presentation focused on a community building unit that focused on service learning projects as vehicles for building a sense of belonging for students both at Vergennes Middle School as well as on a brand new middle school team.
Racial Literacy: Laying the conceptual groundwork for anti-racism work in the middle grades
Siersha Giroux
Hunt Middle School
This presentation will highlight my work with 6th grade students to teach foundational vocabulary and concepts they need to better understand the scope and impact of their social identities. The hope of this work was to pave the way for their empowered participation in anti-racism work and in criticality as they examine histories, current events and their own lived experiences.
Universal Design Strategies for an Equitable Art Classroom
Damariscotta Rouelle
Chelsea Middle School
This project addresses Universal Design strategies of respect for diversity and identity to ensure equal engagement, equity, and persistence from middle school students in the Art classroom.
Restructuring 7th Grade Geography with an Equity Lens
Elizabeth Marks
U-32 Middle School
I will be presenting about the changes I made to the curriculum of our 7th grade geography unit to focus less on memorization of maps and more on thinking through how maps can show bias, and how different groups of people organize maps in different ways.I will also talk about how we broadened the focus of the unit to encompass "visual literacy," so that students could analyze charts and graphs, and not just maps. The visual literacy aspect also gave me room to highlight racial/social inequities using statistics, although I hope to add much more of this in future years.
Queer Straight Alliance Offers Both Formal Advocacy Work & Casual Socializing
Scott Carlson
Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School
A QSA is restructured to better meet student’s needs. An advocacy focused theme works on student designed projects, and a social focused theme provides a safe place to have open ended social time
Increasing Diverse Representation in a 6th Grade Science Class
Amie McCarthy
Middlebury Union Middle School
Class activators that can be applied to the content of a 6th grade Science class to actively cultivate an equitable learning environment for marginalized students.
Practice vs Content Standards in Math Assessment
Katy Wheelock
Twinfield Union School
I chose the NCTM Mathematical Practices as assessment indicators for my high school math classes after doing an equity-focused overview of math assessment. In so doing I have realized the need to have some Practice-focused assessments.
Utilizing Circles to Promote Classroom Community
Lauren Silaika
Saint Michael's College
How do we build community in schools? Through utilizing the circle protocol, you can build a stronger class community by getting to know your students better and encouraging positive relationships.
Surveys To Enhance Equity and Belonging
Jeffrey Novak
Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School
Our school conducts belonging surveys for students, families, and staff to ensure members of our community feel connected. This presentation will share the approach we took.
Know Thyself: A Middle School Invitation to Understanding Culture
Beth Merrill
Main Street Middle School
Understanding My Culture: A middle school invitation to know thyself as a starting place for dismantling colonialist ways of being and thinking and decentralizing our own cultures.
School, Society and Sustainability
Don Taylor
Main Street Middle School
I discuss my efforts to create a project, place-based and personalized learning program that supports student growth, learning and leadership through the lens of sustainability and community service.
Engagement in Formative Assessments in a Middle School Classroom
Audrey Kopich
Rutland Middle School
I will be presenting how different types of formative assessment affected student interest and engagement in a 7th-grade science classroom. Students have been given a paper and pencil exit ticket, completed a Kahoot!, and participated in a mini whiteboard activity.
Community Launch Unit
Dani Jesmonth and Rachel Smith
Flood Brook School
We are presenting on a unit we taught for the first three weeks of school to build middle school community in grades 6-8.
Co-Creating Class Community with Class Agreements
Kristine B. Kirkaldy
Vergennes Union Middle/High School
In this presentation we will explore the process of co-creating class community through the establishment of class agreements, exploring shared values and guidelines for a positive learning experience.
Using Podcasting as a Student and Teacher Reflection tool
Lucie deLaBruere
Create Make Learn
Could you use another tool in your toolbox to help students reflect more deeply? Then join us for a hands on session showcasing how one teacher used podcasting to guide her students through the process of reflecting more deeply and found herself reflecting about her own practice. Come prepared to create your own podcast episode featuring one of your own middle school projects. Leave with new tools, a templates, and a podcast script that invites your students to reflect on their learning. Bonus! Get ready to also see how AI (artificial intelligence) tools can support you in your process.
Building Community and Meeting Student Needs Through Advisory
Sam Rosenbaum
Brownington Central School
This presentation will provide an overview of designing and implementing an advisory program for students in grades 6-8.
Implementing A Responsive Advisory Model
Skyler Ambrose and Talon Petrosino
Middlebury Union Middle School
This presentation describes our progress in implementing a responsive advisory model at Middlebury Union Middle School. We will describe our process and the data we have collected.