We have 50+ EDU vendors that are ready to introduce their products to support educators and students. Make sure you stop by the vendor hall and learn about the latest technologies and supports from our participating vendors.
Do you need help troubleshooting or preparing for your presentation? Bring your materials and questions to the technology room located in Carolina Ballroom D for tech help.
Tuesday March 25, 2025 8:00am - 10:00am EDT
Carolina D
Are you seeking digital resources aligned to their standards? Look no further! Join us for an Adventure in the Cloud as we share standards-aligned resources from Britannica, EBSCO, GoOpenNC, ISTE, and so much more. During this session, we’ll show you how to save your school funds and showcase best practices for research. We will collectively tap into a plethora of digital resources available to all North Carolina K-13 public school units.
In this session, you will learn to identify barriers to learning and apply effective visual, verbal, and written scaffolds tailored to diverse needs. You will also gain practical tools to use scaffolding strategies across disciplines and ensure all students engage with challenging content. Leave ready to evaluate and adapt scaffolds in real time, driving meaningful growth and success.
Curriculum Resource Teacher, Crayton Middle School
I am an evidence-informed public school educator and Curriculum Resource Teacher. My role extends beyond supporting teachers. I challenge assumptions, reframe instructional practices, and create opportunities for professional growth. I lead ongoing professional learning for over 100... Read More →
Tuesday March 25, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am EDT
Symphony I
Sometimes we have the perfect activity. And sometimes...we don't. What do we do when our lesson plan just reads, "page 147"? Let's explore some low- or no-prep activities that transform our ordinary worksheets, lectures, & grading practices into novel, exciting, engaging learning experiences. Paper airplanes, ball pit balls, & plungers? And did we say low- or no-prep? Curious? Your students will be too. And they'll want to come back for more tomorrow.
Middle schoolers crave agency and relevance—unlock the strategies that make it happen! Learn how two North Carolina middle schools, from Burke County and Hickory City Schools, use global education to engage students and foster a sense of belonging. This session kicks off with a dynamic presentation from educators at Heritage Middle School and Grandview Middle School, followed by an interactive gallery walk packed with practical ideas you can implement. Walk away with the "cheat code" to transform your middle school classroom into a hub of curiosity, connection, and empowerment that keeps students coming back for more!
Jamie Fernandez-Schendt is a Global Leaders Strategy Coach at Participate Learning, where he supports schools in utilizing the Global Leaders framework to cultivate globally-minded students and foster leadership across the school community in alignment with their school improvement priorities. With over a decade of experience in public education, Jamie specializes i... Read More →
Tuesday March 25, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am EDT
Governor's 3
This presentation concludes a three-part series chronicling my journey as an educator striving to better understand and support dyslexic learners. Previous sessions highlighted the challenges, insights, and progress in addressing dyslexia. Now, with a completed university program and pilot study, I share evidence-based solutions for transformative support. Attendees will revisit key insights to understand the full scope of my journey, while exploring the outcomes of intensive intervention, including before-and-after data. The session will highlight practical strategies and actionable steps to create a supportive environment for dyslexic students. Designed to inspire educators, administrators, and advocates, this presentation demonstrates that meaningful change is attainable through informed practices and research-backed approaches. Together, we can unlock the potential of every dyslexic learner and strengthen our educational communities.
Many students often struggle with connecting with literacy in an authentic way. Design Thinking, a human centered problem solving process, can be a powerful integration tool to help students connect with literacy in authentic ways. The experience of integrating Design Thinking with literacy can be transformative for learners when students use empathy maps and create solutions for characters from the stories that they are reading. Additionally, students will cultivate and grow their own creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration.
Explore multiple ways to teach and learn through inquiry and by questioning with good questions that are standards driven and student supportive. Transform academic standards and learning targets into good questions that will set the instructional focus, serve as assessments, personalize learning, and spark curiosity. Pose good questions that will prompt students to demonstrate and discuss the depth and extent of their learning. Leverage generative artificial intelligence (AI) to create good questions that will promote deep student inquiry. Most importantly, discover how teaching and learning with an inquiring mind can make the experience educational, engaging, and enriching for everyone.
Middle schools are increasingly diverse social environments where students are not only developing their identities but also learning social norms and expectations. As middle level educators, we believe in creating school cultures and communities that are respectful, welcoming, inclusive, and affirming for all (Bishop & Harrison, 2021). Microaggressions pose significant risks to young adolescents who are already vulnerable as they explore their identities. Microaggressions threaten students’ dignity and psychological/emotional condition. These subtle, often unintentional, comments or actions can also be deliberately harmful, emphasizing differences in gender, ability, language, race/ethnicity, LGBTQ+ status, etc. Regardless of intent, microaggressions can do long-term, irreversible harm. As school safety is first and foremost at the middle level, it is essential we create and maintain a positive school culture/climate, identifying and immediately addressing microaggressions. By fostering a strong understanding and implementing a proactive plan, we can mitigate the harm and damage caused by microaggressions, protecting students’ social-emotional wellbeing.
Expository writing helps students process, analyze, and communicate complex information, aligning with the inquiry strand of the North Carolina Social Studies standards. This session presents a 7-10 day scaffolded unit plan that builds expository writing skills through evidence-based analysis and structured expression. With tools like brainstorming activities, outlines, and differentiated supports, students gain confidence while learning to evaluate and present information effectively. Participants will receive ready-to-use materials and practical strategies to promote inquiry-driven writing in their classrooms.
Often, we can tell whether a school is a dynamic one in the first five minutes of a visit. The school "invites" visitors and all members of its "family" to share the warmth being generated throughout the learning process rather than keeping one's distance as a clinical observer. The result is a dynamic learning environment generated by genuine caring and inspired "family" members. Together let's explore some of the key traits of effective teaching across all curricula? Let's consider the roles of the arts, reading aloud, motivation, voice and choice, climate and culture, and more. Participants will explore a variety of questions, concerns, and challenges that address the type of culture and climate being used in classrooms, buildings, and districts. The importance of reading and writing across the curricula will be explored. The role of the arts across the curricula will be demonstrated through student work samples will be discussed.
Dr. Kenneth Piascik began his journey under the tutelage of Ray Des Roches & completed his Doctorate of Musical Arts from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Dedicated to new music, he has performed & toured with groups such as the San Francisco Contemporary Players... Read More →
Tuesday March 25, 2025 8:30am - 9:20am EDT
Governor's 1
What's the one thing your college admin courses didn't prepare you for? Yep, dealing with adult behaviors. Stepping into administration you had no idea how difficult it would be handling adult behaviors in your school. In this session, Ross will take you on a journey that every school administrator has needed at some point in their career. We will learn how to handle difficult aduls in your school. Filled with real stories and real strategies, Ross will guide you on best practices, lessons learned the hard way and the realities of human behaviors. It's time to stop managing and start leading. Stop letting others drain your energy and bring positivy to your whole school!
Being the school leader is an awesome job. Yet, being the leader is a daunting task for anyone. With extreme demands on leader's time, expectations to fix it all, limited personnel, shifting political environments, plus a looming teacher shortage, principals can feel overwhelmed. This session will provide leaders with strategies, tools and some much-needed humor to have them finding clarity in their work, walking with purpose and finding joy in the job.
Create a movement with your professional development plan, not just a small moment. This session will provide participants with easy-to-implement strategies to create, develop and execute strategic plans that improve instructional outcomes to reach school or district goals. The strategies shared can be scaled to the school or district level in order to prepare a plan, set goals, execute training and improve instructional and student success. This will ensure that when you plan your PD it's giving you the most return on your investment of time, energy and resources!
Did you ever see Multiplicity (with Michael Keaton) and think, "Gee, if only I could make 25 copies of myself to work with students individually and in small groups?" Well, now you can...almost! Thanks to AI chatbots crafted to practice skills, you can help all of your students get dialed in to the support they need to enhance their understanding AND still meet with small groups. You can also: Provide 24/7 Support: Offer students round-the-clock access to practice and feedback; Personalize Learning: Tailor instruction to meet the unique needs of each student; Optimize Your Time: Focus on small group instruction while AI handles sharpening other students skills. In this session, you'll learn how to: Design Effective Chatbots: Create AI tutors aligned with specific learning objectives, Implement Accountability: Ensure students engage meaningfully with AI-powered tools, and Leverage AI for Efficiency: Maximize your time and resources with AI-assisted lesson planning.
The North Carolina Collaborative for Mathematics Learning (NC2ML) is a group of educators from all over the state who are dedicated to supporting the teaching and learning of mathematics. Recently, a group of 6-8 co-designers came together to develop a collection of resources that support the development of empathetic perspectives, growth mathematical mindsets, and high quality, equitable mathematics practices in all teachers. All of our resources are free to the public. Come to this session to get a glimpse of all NC2ML has to offer!
In this session, we will explore practical strategies for creating a school-wide culture of reading and collaboration between teachers, librarians, and administrators. Attendees will learn how to effectively partner with the school librarian to integrate reading into all areas of the curriculum, engage students with diverse reading materials, and foster an environment where reading is valued. We will discuss tools, techniques, and real-life examples of how a strong librarian-teacher relationship can positively impact student achievement and motivation. Additionally, we’ll highlight the crucial role of administrative support in promoting literacy, from allocating time for independent reading and teacher collaboration to championing reading initiatives school-wide. With strong leadership and a collaborative approach, we can create a school culture that not only encourages academic success but also inspires a lifelong love of reading.
This workshop provides actionable strategies for increasing father involvement in schools, from elementary through high school. It includes practical tips for educators on how to foster engagement with fathers and encourages school-wide initiatives to integrate dads more effectively into the school environment.
This session will equip educators with strategies to transform English Language Arts classrooms into hubs of global learning, focusing on integrating the North Carolina ELA Standards with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Using Scholastic's Candy Bar Crisis article as the centerpiece, participants will explore the journey of cocoa from West African farms to consumer shelves, examining its implications on global economics, climate change, and social justice. Educators will: Discover Global Learning: Learn what global education entails and its importance in preparing students for interconnected challenges. Understand SDGs: Dive into the Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on Goal 1 (No Poverty), Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and Goal 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
Nurturing new teachers by identifying challenges in classroom management and modeling effective strategies to address these areas is a priority. By providing targeted support and practical solutions, we aim to foster professional growth and improve outcomes for both educators and students.
Researching the adolescent brain helps us to better the many myths and truths about middle school students. In this session, participants will examine relevant research pertaining to the development of the adolescent brain in order to understand how this information can impact the design and implementation of effective instruction and develop productive and supportive classroom environments. During the session, participants will have the opportunity to explore the adolescent brain through active reading and engaging strategies and reflect on how this research can impact the decisions of teachers, counselors and school leaders.
Have you ever felt discouraged when a student you believed needed an IEP was not approved? Do you find it challenging to interpret psychological and educational testing results? Are you unsure about how decisions are made or how the MTSS and EC processes align? If so, this workshop is designed for you! Join John, a seasoned School Psychologist, and Cathi Gann, an experienced EC Teacher, as they share insights and knowledge gained from their combined 60 years of experience working with students with special needs.
With so many demands and so much to do, it is too easy for us to become reactive and have urgency drive our actions. Reclaiming your purpose means learning to structure your teaching leadership, and ultimately your life, around your priorities, not your time! This training will help you clarify priorities, develop some simple techniques for managing them, and provide a powerful technique to help you grow the people around you - because people are our purpose.
This workshop aims to empower school leaders with the tools and strategies to cultivate a thriving culture of care among their staff. By addressing the pressing need for healthier and more sustainable school environments, we can significantly improve outcomes for both students and educators. Participants will delve into the critical reasons why prioritizing well-being is essential for school success. Through engaging discussions and practical exercises, they will explore innovative approaches to enhance school culture and operations. By the end of the workshop, school leaders will be equipped to implement tangible changes that foster a more supportive and fulfilling work environment, ultimately leading to improved student learning and teacher retention.
Being a middle school educator can be tough. Professional fatigue is real across education, and middle school educators face additional challenges like navigating hormones and burgeoning social skills while fighting for a seat at the table when education conversations so often neglect the unique nature and needs of middle schools. AMLE is the largest international organization of its kind with a membership of over 35000 worldwide. In this session, we’ll explore what AMLE can do to support you and what is possible when middle grades educators support each other with a shared vision of success. Participants will have the opportunity to share their needs and leave the session with take-and-use resources, an introduction to the various resources and services available through AMLE, and insights revealed through our Successful Middle School Assessment as well as implications for classroom and school practice.
Today’s educators face a unique and growing set of challenges. Compared to students 10-20 years ago, today’s youth navigate a world of unprecedented social, emotional, and technological pressures. This shift often manifests in disengaged learners, increased behavioral issues, and a collective strain on school culture. Teachers and leaders feel the impact—frustration, burnout, and a sense of being stuck in a cycle that feels impossible to break. This workshop will also connect brain science with practical shifts in adult behavior and mindset, highlighting how Collective Teacher Efficacy can drive lasting improvement in student engagement, behavior, and achievement. Using the metaphor of travel upgrades, participants will leave equipped to create a first-class experience for both students and staff by focusing on small but impactful changes in language, actions, and beliefs.
This session explores the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) tools within the framework of This We Believe. Join us to discover how to use AI to create 'Why' statements for instructional technology incorporation, assess progress, and use ISTE Student Standards and the Triple E Framework to guide instruction. Ideal for middle school administrators, teachers, and district leaders seeking innovative approaches to elevate student learning.
Build a Mars Colony In Minecraft with Robots and Code? YES! In our middle school computer programming class, students are using Microsoft MakeCode in Minecraft Education to simulate the robotic 3D printing of buildings and greenhouses on Mars. Students are building 2D animations of Artemis space missions using Scratch coding.
In order to close the gender gap and promote STEM careers for female students, hands-on activities and curriculum are only the beginning. The tipping point occurs when girls not only see who they are but who they can become. By modeling career choices and matching mentors with schools, interest and perception are changed. Career Fairs, mentoring, modeling, and university partnerships are other parts to the solution. This session will take you through the steps to create a culture of belonging and exploration to empower girls in STEM.
This interactive session invites mathematics instructional leaders, including instructional coaches, administrators, and faculty working with pre-service teachers, to explore tools that support implementing NC Mathematics Standards through High-Quality Equitable Mathematics Instruction (HQEMI). Participants will engage with Empathy Plays from the toolkit, gaining insights into using empathy-focused tools effectively with pre-service and in-service teachers. The toolkit also includes resources on mathematical mindsets and HQEMI characteristics, offering flexible strategies to meet diverse school and district needs. Attendees will explore an online hub of resources, learning practical methods for integration with an emphasis on supporting historically minoritized students. Bring a laptop for this hands-on experience. Participants will leave with actionable strategies to empower teachers and create equitable, inclusive classrooms where every student can thrive. Join us in transforming mathematics instruction to benefit all learners!
Join NCCAT for an engaging hands-on workshop where creativity meets mathematics! In this session educators will learn how to use low-cost materials to construct their very own math town. This engaging project integrates mathematics content standards, standards for mathematical practice, science and engineering practices, and best practices in STEAM.
Using instruction that's responsive to the needs of varied learners in your classroom is essential. But it can be time-consuming to do it well. Generative AI offers tools that can streamline planning and save time. Many of these tools offer supports for differentiated or individualized instruction. But which ones are worth your attention, and how should you use them efficiently? This session will take an in-depth look at three popular tools that can be used to 1) individualize instruction for multilingual learners, exceptional children, students with advanced proficiency, or those reading below grade level, or 2) differentiate instruction based on readiness, interest, or learning profile. We'll review specific features of MagicSchool, Diffit, and ChatGPT, including examples, strengths, and limitations. We'll also offer concrete guidelines for using each one efficiently and ethically, and participants will practice using one of the tools. This session targets new and experienced users of these tools.
Daniel Maxwell is a Lecturer and University Supervisor in the Office of School and Community Partnerships and the Department of Middle, Secondary, and K-12 (MDSK) Education as well as a student in the Ed.D in Learning, Design and Technology Program at UNC Charlotte. As a University... Read More →
The term "soft skills" must be replaced by the more appropriate term "Power Skills." The foundation of these skills including getting organized, checking email regularly, establishing timelines, and more is missing in the toolkit of many of today's students. Let's examine the problem in a seminar format and together generate a practical plan of action to ensure that our students and their parents/guardians can work together to achieve success in the classroom, at home, and in life.
Dr. Kenneth Piascik began his journey under the tutelage of Ray Des Roches & completed his Doctorate of Musical Arts from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Dedicated to new music, he has performed & toured with groups such as the San Francisco Contemporary Players... Read More →
As an 8th grade math teacher contributing to the VISIONS Project of the North Carolina Collaborative for Mathematics Learning (NC2ML), I asked my district colleagues this question: "In your opinion, what are the characteristics of a "flourishing" math student? I was surprised how few responses considered the vital role of the teacher in their students' journeys toward flourishing mathematically.
Bolster confidence and competence in the classroom with practical tools and proven techniques. Learn about the four foundational bricks of “Teacher Success Pathway” that allow teachers to grow from good to great. This strategic framework improves instruction in areas of lesson design, classroom management, student engagement and student ownership. As a result of intentional modifications, turnover is reduced in our schools while at the same time catapulting student achievement and teacher proficiency! Educators of all levels will benefit from this session. New teachers will feel this session fills in the gaps of their preparation program while leaders will be equipped with the tools to effectively prioritize and advance teaching excellence. Get empowered!
Natural disasters traumatize communities and disrupt learning in school; however, they also provide teachable moments for students to engage in learning that is relevant, service-oriented, and place-based. Inspired by local impacts of Hurricane Helene, preservice teacher candidates at Western Carolina University used Dave Burgess’ “Teach like a PIRATE” framework to design engaging lessons that “hook” learners. Presenters will share lessons addressing four objectives: (1) Students will assess and evaluate individual and community responses to a natural disaster based on expert information about disaster preparedness and response. (2) Students will create a natural disaster response plan for their family using expert information about disaster preparedness and response. (3) Students will explain the economic impact of natural disasters by comparing and contrasting the differences in cost of goods and services before and after a disaster. (4) Students will assess the impact of disaster relief efforts using primary and secondary sources of data.
Join us for the closing conference session where we are proud to announce the 2026 NCMLE Conference theme, announce the large conference giveaways (must be present to win), and announce the newest NCMLE Board members with the annual "Passing of the Gavel" ceremony.
