Published On: February 7, 2022
  • AFT Member Benefit Virtual Workshops
    https://sharemylesson.com/
  • TGH Webinar Series
    Brush up on digital skills through our TGH Webinar Series! The following webinars are free and open to the public and are geared toward beginner and intermediate learners. Please feel free to pass our webinar registration page along to family, friends, and colleagues.
  • UMass Boston Vision Studies Program
    The UMass Boston Vision Studies program is currently holding informational sessions for the tracks of students of Teachers with Visual Impairments and Orientation and Mobility Specialists.
  • AFT Health & Wellness Series
    For so many of us, our stress is at an all-time high. That’s why we want you to be a part of AFT Share My Lesson’s first Health and Wellness Series! As part of our new Health and Wellness Community, this series features exercise, nutrition and self-care strategies to help you take care of you—and some strategies to help our students as well. Bonus: By signing up for a free wellness session, you can enter for a chance to win an Apple Watch 6!
  • Online TESOL / TEFL Certification
    Teach English Abroad – Are you interested in working as an English language teacher around the world? UNI-Prep’s online TESOL & TEFL Certificate program qualifies an individual to work as an English and ESL/EFL teacher internationally. The program is completely online and is 120-hours in length. Since the course is online, it allows you the option to study from anywhere in the world as long as you have a computer with an internet connection. In addition, there is no set schedule that you must follow, so you can study at your own schedule. Once you have registered in the course, you will be given a login and password allowing you access to the course 24/7 from any computer. Most students take 2-4 weeks to complete the full TESOL Certification program, but you can take more or less time than this depending on how often and quickly you will study. Once you have finished the course, you will choose whether to be issued a TESOL or TEFL certificate since our course meets the requirements of both qualifications. 
  • Enter to win a free course from Teachers as Scholars
    We are happy to renew our partnership with Teachers as Scholars which provides BTU members an opportunity to learn from leading scholars in their fields. This year we are able to offer BTU members up to 30 full scholarships. If you are interested in attending a course, please review the lineup of courses, and then enter the drawing.  Winners will be selected at random in September.  Important note: Many of the seminars take place during the school day. Should you enroll in one of these courses, you will need to make appropriate arrangements to be available to attend.
  • Mentoring for Professional Licensure (MPL)
    To be eligible for a professional teaching license, the Massachusetts Department of Education requires an additional 50 hours of mentoring beyond the first-year induction program.  In this course, you will receive that required mentoring from veteran BPS Educators as you reflect on and grow your teaching practice. Register for one of the three posted sections (Grades K0-3, Grades 4-8, or Grades 9-12) The first Mentoring for Professional Licensure session will be held virtually on October 20th (4:30-6:30).  Contact Ailis Kiernan at akiernan@bostonpublicschools.org if you need further assistance.
  • MAXCourage
    MAXCourage is a free social-emotional ELA curriculum for 6th grade classrooms, designed to empower students to discover the value of courage, culminating in a publication opportunity.  Learn more about MAXCourage at www.maxcourage.org or email Liz Watson at liz@maxcourage.org.
  • Online PD Series: Supporting Immigrants in Schools

    BPS/OEL will be hosting a series of 10 standalone professional development sessions around supporting immigrants in schools based on the modules developed by the City University of New York – Initiative on Immigration and Education (CUNY-IIE).
    All BPS educators are welcome to join. Please share widely!
    Flyer: Please click here to view it.
    Participants will receive 2 PDPs for each session. Raffle winners will receive the Anti-Racism Books Collections. The more sessions you attend, the higher chance you will receive the prize! 
  • The Map Center presents: Small Bites
    Small Bites: An after-school series of gatherings for educators interested in teaching about Boston through a geospatial and social justice lens
    For the 2021-22 school year the Map Center is offering a series of FREE “small bites” professional development sessions. These 6 sessions will run after school and will be a mix of in-person and Zoom sessions designed to send you off with great map-based lessons and resources to immediately implement in your classroom. All K-12 teachers are welcome. Sign up for one or all of them!
    To learn more and register:
    https://www.leventhalmap.org/education/k12/professional-development/
  • Smooth Sailing
    We wanted to let you know about a fully remote autism-focused Professional Development (PD) program opportunity! The Smooth Sailing PD program is an online program that helps general education teachers learn more about autism, build relationships with their autistic students, and collaborate with their caregivers. The program is currently enrolling for 2021-2022 Fall and Spring cohorts. Teachers who are eligible to participate in this program are: 1) General education teachers, 2) teaching in grades K-2nd, and 3) have a student diagnosed with autism or is suspected of having a diagnosis of autism in their classroom during the 2021-2022 academic year. Approved by MA DESE and funded by the research arm of the federal department of education (the Institute of Education Sciences), Smooth Sailing is a free, virtual, 4-week individualized PD that provides self-paced online learning and coaching. Overall, it involves 12 hours of teacher time and awards 10 Professional Development Points (PDPs) to MA teachers.  Teachers who complete the program will also receive $300 for their participation.
    Interested teachers may view our program flyer (below), visit the program’s website, or reach out to the SmoothSailing team (SmoothSailingStudy@gmail.com) for more information or to secure a spot for enrollment in the fall or spring cohorts!
  • SSC/Governing Board Trainings
    Empower your school community: SSC/Governing Board trainings are currently scheduled from November – January of this school year jointly run by the BTU & the BPS Office of Family & Community Advancement. To register or for more info contact ccarew@btu.org . Workshops are open to all elected SSC members including parents, BTU members, high school students & school administrators all of whom are encouraged to attend.
    Trainings will be held virtually by Zoom from 5:30-7:00 p.m.
    SSC 101: 101 SSC Basics & Shared Decision Making: November 15; November 17; January 10 –This workshop focuses on the roles and responsibilities of the SSC in the school’s decision-making process. Explore & master the foundational concepts needed to develop and maintain an effective School Site Council.
  • Project Kindle 2022
    Project Kindle is a fully funded fellowship program for US-based high school teachers that gives teachers the resources and support they need to successfully lead their students on a transformative Earthwatch field experience within two years. Fellows first get to experience an Earthwatch expedition alongside a team of teacher fellows and team leaders. Through workshops led by Project Kindle alumni and Earthwatch staff, fellows then learn how to bring their students out on a school group expedition. A successful application includes the cost of an expedition, meals, accommodations, and on-site transportation. Fellows also receive a travel award grant to offset out-of-pocket travel expenses.

    Applications for both Teach Earth and Project Kindle are due January 10, 2022. Successful applicants will be notified by April 30th. Feel free to forward this email to teachers in your network, post a link on social media, share the flyer, or help us get the word out however you see fit. If you know of any teachers who might be interested in applying for a fellowship, you can put them in touch with me directly.

  • Mentoring in Action On-line Courses:
    1-credit courses: cost $250 Session A 2/4- 3/6/22 and/or Session B 4/1- 5/1/22
    • EDU 713 Supporting Sped Students to be Successful
    • EDU 714 Building Relationships with English Language Learners
    • EDU 717 Using Mindful Mentoring to Support Novice Teachers – preparing qualified mentors to support novice teachers
    • EDU 719 Social and Emotional Learning: Self-care for Educators
    3 credits courses: cost $595
    • EDU 620 Becoming a Qualified Mentor and Leader 1/21 – 5/15/22
    • EDU 646 Refining Your Practice to Support Student Learning 4/1-5/1/22
    For more information or to register, visit:  http://mentoringinaction.com/winter-2022-courses/
  • Assessment for Equitable Literacy, Evidence Based Reading Instruction 101

    This is a Teacher-created and Teacher-Led Course for ALC Credit  Please register for individual sessions or complete the whole module on Vector. This course was developed and delivered by the Dyslexia Working Group, a BTU Member/Central Office team, and will run from 4:00-6:00 pm from 1/10-2/28. The course covers the foundational components of skilled reading, including phonological awareness, phonics and word identification, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension and will provide opportunities to put learning into action to support all learners.

  • Extended Winter Window for MAP Fluency and Growth
    BPS has extended the MAP Fluency window to 2/18/22. MAP Growth Reading and Math may be administered between 1/24/22 and 3/4/22. Further clarification, updated assessment calendar, resources and supports are available here.
  • BU Consortium Grants Program Launch Event
    The Boston University Consortium invites you to learn more about the Educator Learning Grants program which offers grants of up to $5,000 for projects to be carried out in the 2022-2023 school year. On February 9th from 4:30-6:00, the BU Consortium will hold a virtual event where educators can learn more about applying for one of these grants and collaborate with BU faculty. Grant applications are open to all educators- teachers, paraprofessionals, administrators, related service providers, and more. See this link for more information and to register for the event. 
  • Playmaker 101: Healing Power of Optimism
    We at BTU and BPS/Behavioral Health Services are excited to partner with the Life is Good Playmakers (LiGP) to offer you their Playmaker 101: Healing Power of Optimism online course. For over 30 years, LiGP has provided training, resources, tools, and ongoing coaching to more than 16,000 childcare professionals working in schools, hospitals, and social service agencies that serve some of the most vulnerable populations. You can learn more about them on their website here. This foundational course will introduce you to their core philosophy and approach to building safe, joyful, engaging, and connected environments where everyone–especially children -can heal, learn and grow. They focus on the wellness, disposition, and approach of childcare professionals because they believe that to better serve kids, we need to better serve those who care for them. Educators across the U.S. and Haiti have called this one of the most amazing, rejuvenating, and transformational trainings they have ever done. Their program has been proven to reduce levels of professional burnout and increase child resiliency. See attached flyer for more information. The course is entirely self-paced and estimated to take 3 hours. You’ll have two weeks to complete at your convenience.
    When: March 1st-15th, 2022
    What: 3-hour online course
    Register here: https://playmakeru.lifeisgood.com/redeem/2022bps101
    Once you’ve registered, you can log in here on March 1st to get started: https://playmakeru.lifeisgood.com/learn
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