Collaboration • Communication • Community Andragogy — teachers learning with one another, the andragogy of appreciating and learning fro each other’s gifts through peer to peer coaching real time in classrooms with students together stimulating reflective dialogue that creates understanding and paths of action.
Belief • Student Engagement • Amplifying Student Voices Pedagogy — curriculum and content alive in real life with effective pedagogy believing in the ‘art of teaching’. The art is belief, movements in the learning space, objects within the space and materials part of the learning.
Whole School • The Whole Community • Together Alliances — we together, as an alliance, crosswalk all knowledge and initiatives to exponentially rise the potential of each educator, each educational leader and every staff member for each and every student.
Belief of Self as a Learner and Educator • Belief of Each Other • As a Team Team — the ‘TEAM’ includes everyone in the school community impacting the children and youth. We are all students. The educators are the mediators and guides for learning.
The Questions • The Planning • Actions and Practice • Reflective Practices Inquiry — our questions root from our schema opening pathways to bring creative thinking deeply into our designing structures.
Focus Groups for Reflective Practice • Qualitative Research • Learning a Reflective Practice Research — our knowledge of how our process is working, and where not, is essential to guide our growth of the whole learning community for the effectiveness of outcomes for each and every child and youth. We improve by knowing that which works and that which needs inquiry and designs for growth of thinking that leads with actions.
Collaborations start with listening to the leadership team and educators. I personally ‘walk the talk’ with interactive professional development with educators, coaches, and leaders, including modeling the pedagogy with demonstration lesssons in classrooms. The purpose is andragogy in creating dialogue between observing educators as teams, and build a model of regularly observing and learning each other. The goal is for Professional Learning Teams to lead best practices school-wide. Research shows that relationships and community drive outcomes, and open dialogue helps us honor individual gifts and grow together as educators for every student.
While each collaboration meets the school and district where they are, with their leadership, there are practical elements of my practice from experience that are always part of our efforts as a team. The goal is to have the gifts of each educator, each student, and every staff member to flourish. A brief overview of my skills that I bring to the team effort as a systems thinker and practitioner are:
demonstrating in classrooms high operational practices with students for high intellectual performance
demonstrating in classrooms to stimulate professional dialogue with educators
model pedagogy with staff sessions and with students
use of critical thinking methods and models
share real time strategies, methods, models and understanding of effective pedagogy (engaging each and every student)
practical strategies and methods for immediate use across all grade levels (PreK, K-12) and all content areas
I meet you with your curriculum and crosswalk with current and previous initiatives part of the school and district’s focus
crosswalk with school and district initiatives to support how they interconnect effectively in the best interests of students through the best efforts of educators
I have implemented and collaborated on initiatives across schools and districts with documented outcomes – qualitatively and quantitatively. Most importantly it is about ‘belief’ in each student and each educator. I prioritize reflective practices and qualitative documentation to foster thoughtful, positive growth. My website and CV features many examples of these collaborations, including initiatives I’ve developed and contributed to. My strengths as a practitioner include building relationships, maintaining a positive outlook, and mediating effective collaborations for meaningful results. I encourage you to dialogue with colleagues and educators I have collaborated with, whose contact information is available upon request. Educators include superintendents, principals, directors, classroom educators, and paraprofessionals.
Qualitative research (2024) of the six schools in the Osseo Area Schools district in Minnesota with focus groups of 100 interviews (audio and video transcribed, and coded) including educators and students K-5: —one page overview —full research
Critical thinking methods and strategies that include collaborative communities, inquiry and dialogue, visual cognitive mapping to make thinking visible and for writing, and environment
Literacy including vocabulary, phonics, writing, reading, inquiry, comprehension, Socratic Seminar, Thinking Maps, concept mapping, and dialogue
Lesson process and design with the Pedagogical Flow Map ~Priming > Processing > Demonstrating for Understanding~
Collaborative in dialogue, lesson design, modeling, and implementation with Professional Learning Teams (PLTs)
Collaborative in peer to peer coaching of teachers coaching teachers in PLCs and in classes
Students reflecting on the process and purpose of lessons through student led dialogue and writing devices
Software Applications and the Integration of Artificial Intelligence
Banning, California
In addition to my expertise as an educator and education consultant, I possess a robust skill set in software applications and the integration of artificial intelligence within educational environments. I am proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, Acrobat, InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Google Workspace, Filmic Pro, Keynote, WordPress, HTML, Ecamm Live, Whisper Transcription, ESRI GIS mapping, Zoom, and Teams. Additionally, I possess advanced proficiency with Microsoft 365 Co-Pilot, a leading AI solution recognized for its security, ethical standards, and innovation. Video expertise includes iPhone, Nikon mirrorless camera, GoPro, external microphones wired and wireless, and software for editing.
Socratic Seminar (Shared Inquiry) in a third grade classroom. Whole school implementation includes Socratic Seminar at all grade levels K-5 mediated by the students. The Instructional Coach in collaboration with the teacher who is a master at mediating the students mediating themselves with the Socratic Seminar. See video clips of this class and a kindergarten class on the The Socratic Seminar / Shared Inquiry in Action webpage.
