Workshops

Teacher workshops are now being offered for the 2006-2007 school year. While our main focus is to share with teachers realistic strategies they can use in today's classroom, all workshops can be tailored to meet the needs of any school and its teachers. We are pleased to offer workshops at your schools in the following areas:

New teacher training

This workshop offers a real look at the first year of teaching. Whether or not a teacher has past experience in the classroom as a substitute, student teacher, or teacher's assistant, the first year of teaching is challenging. Our workshop focuses on major areas not necessarily covered in college classes or during the student teaching experience. Topics covered in the workshop include:

• Strategies for teacher organization
• Strategies for student organization
• Positive parent communication
• Successful parent/teacher conferences
• Behavior management systems
• Handling homework (with students and parents)
• Grading and its importance
• Incorporating learning centers in the classroom (ready-to-use and non-worksheet based)
• Jump starting creative writing
• Questions and answers

Creative Writing in the Classroom

This workshop focuses on creative writing--the kind of writing that scares most teachers away. The workshop takes a no-nonsense, practical approach to teaching writing by using books found in the typical classroom. It pairs real literature with writing activities and then combines the two with a brilliant finished product designed to get children excited about writing and teachers excited about teaching it. The workshop covers:

• Making time for creative writing
• Using one book to teach a writing lesson in many grade levels
• Teaching the basics of poetry
• Teaching formal paragraph writing (the foundation of story writing)
• Teaching story writing
• Fun story starters for students
• Suggestions on peer editing and revising
• Unique quick and easy art techniques to accompany any student writing project

All workshops are based on our books, You've Got the Job-Now Keep It! and Creative Writers... Imagine That! All of the content in our workshops has been reviewed by reading specialists, content area teachers, special education teachers, veteran teachers and administrators for their input. To enroll your staff in any one of our TIPS workshops click here.