PD360 | Peter Weinstein | Cindy Douglas
PD 360 / The School Improvement Network
Online On-Demand Professional Development for Educators
The School Improvement Network’s suite of proven online, on-demand professional development videos for teachers and educators is focused on dramatically improving student achievement in every K-12 classroom, system-wide.
As the home of PD 360, Observation 360, Equity 360 and Common Core 360, School Improvement Network’s comprehensive suite of online professional development resources all focus on the most relevant topics in today’s schools. Get access to:
- 1,400 online professional development videos
- Research-based classroom examples of best practices
- Leading educational experts and authors
- Online forums, communities, and nationally shared resources
Founded by educators in 1991 as the Video Journal of Education, the School Improvement Network has greatly expanded its video library and topics, while remaining true to its mission: Create the very best research-based videos on teaching best practices with real classroom examples from the leading experts in every topic.
Peter Weinstein
Peter has been championing education for almost two decades. He started in public elementary schools, working as a teacher for ten years while simultaneously developing and leading dozens of workshops for the Bay Area Writing Project. He then became involved in interactive publishing, moving on to manage design and development of online and CD-ROM products at The Learning Company, eSCORE.com and Riverdeep. He has also published over 20 articles on technology in education. Since 2004, Peter has run Mindful Solutions, a professional development and education consulting firm. Peter has an MA in Education from UC-Berkeley.
“I highly recommend Peter Weinstein as a workshop presenter. Through interactive and engaging workshops, he offers practical and effective ideas for integrating technology into the curriculum. Best of all, his teaching approaches are grounded in his own experiences as a talented classroom teacher.”
Carol Tateishi, Director, Bay Area Writing Project, UC Berkeley
Peter’s Workshops:
Presentation Technology Basics for Instructors: Getting Started with PowerPoint
Move beyond whiteboards and overhead transparencies to the new standard for instructional presentation by learning how to use PowerPoint. A hands-on workshop in which participants will be guided through the complete process of producing a slideshow, from launching the program to polishing the final presentation. Topics include:
- Navigating the PowerPoint interface
- Creating, editing, and organizing slides
- Designing slides and formatting information
- Using special effects and multimedia
- Making the best of a presentation
Beyond Bullet-pointed Lectures: Truly Effective PowerPoint Use for Instruction
Learn to avoid the phenomenon known as “death by PowerPoint,” caused by lecturing from an endless stream of bullet points—which promotes sleep more than learning! This workshop is designed for educators who have basic experience creating PowerPoint slideshows, and want to engage students more effectively by incorporating best practices of instructional design. The main topics include:
- Planning instruction to meet learning goals and objectives
- Recognizing and avoiding common slide design problems with PowerPoint
- Engaging students by getting them to anticipate information
- Promoting higher order thinking skills across the curriculum
- Applying researched-proven instructional strategies from Marzano and others
- Using PowerPoint for student projects
Writing Instruction for Grades K-8: Process-based Practices That Work
When it comes to writing, students are naturally concerned with the product —the story, report, paper, or homework assignment to be evaluated. But in getting to a proficient final draft, there’s no bypassing the cognitive strategies still under development, such as thinking, planning, drafting, revising, and proofreading. This workshop shows teachers how to make the writing process more tangible and effective for their students.
In order to understand how instruction affects process, participants will work with short pieces they compose themselves, focusing on the authority of the writer to communicate meaning.
Topics include:
- Translating what we know from research into best practices
- Understanding different approaches to the writing process
- Working with voice, description, detail, and vocabulary
- Teaching and managing peer review & response
- Creating meaningful, student-friendly rubrics and other assessment tools
- Publishing student writing for varied and authentic audiences
Cindy Douglas
Cindy is currently the Director of Instruction and Professional Development for Grossmont Union High School District in the San Diego, California area. She has spearheaded the implementation of Professional Learning Communities in her district, forging a culture of learning, not just teaching, to the staff. She taught for fifteen years, working extensively with hard-to-reach students and students from poverty backgrounds.
Other experience and honors include:
- Director for new teacher support (BTSA) – Eight years
- Regional Director for BTSA- one of six in California – Two years
- Special Recognition Award from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing for her contributions to the field of education
- Teacher of the Year award two different years
At the heart of Cindy’s work is a commitment to create a culture of success for all students, particularly those from low-income and disadvantaged situations.
Cindy’s Workshops:
Professional Learning Communities: A Structure that Works!
Designed as an introduction to Professional Learning Communities, this workshop provides an overview of the foundational components, as well as discussing the incredible impact PLCs have on students when implemented effectively. The workshop will also provide a behind the scenes look at the journey one large high school district has taken to change their culture and structure to a professional learning community. Participants will be provided with both the challenges and successes encountered on this journey and will be able to learn from others’ experiences what to do, and what not to do when starting the implementation process. Most importantly, however, participants will leave the workshop with a clearer understanding of why this structure is a winning foundation for both teachers and students and why it is worth going through the “growing pains” to make it happen. It’s about students, it’s about learning!!
Got Substitutes? Got Training?
If your priority is to ensure that everyday is a learning day for your students, even when there is a substitute teacher in the classroom, then this workshop is designed for you! Substitutes (and potential substitutes) will receive the skills they need to maintain an effective classroom environment conducive to student learning. They will also leave with the appropriate tools to walk into any class and provide a day of “learning” even when there is no lesson plan available. The confidence of your substitutes will increase and the learning they bring to every classroom will be tremendously enhanced. The presenter has been providing substitute workshops for 4 years and has had extremely positive feedback on the impact of these trainings. Substitutes gain skills . . . students gain learning!
Low Income, High Achievement!
“Low Income, High Achievement” is a workshop designed to help teachers, administrators, and site staff work more effectively with students from low-income families. These students represent a huge and growing number in our school population. Learning to understand their world and to work with them in ways that will increase their chances for achievement can break the cycle of poverty for these students. Economically disadvantaged students CAN learn and achieve when the expectations are high and the support is provided. Participants leave the workshop with specific skills to interact with and guide students toward academic and “life” success!
