蜜桔直播

Pre-K

Beth Gaby, M.A., Early Childhood Quality Coach for CCR&R
University of Tennessee Knoxville

Ashlee Collins, Developmental Support Specialist for CCR&R
Signal Centers

"Why Movement Matters: How Proprioception Shapes Behavior"
Movement is more than physical activity鈥攊t plays an important role in how young children regulate their bodies, emotions, attention, and behavior. This training explores proprioception, the body鈥檚 sense of position and movement, and how proprioceptive input can influence children鈥檚 ability to feel organized, focused, and ready to learn.

Room: MBSS 244

PK-5

Baleigh Carter, Special Education Teacher
Greeneville City Schools

Brandy Rambo, Special Education Teacher
Greeneville City Schools

"Data With a Purpose - Collecting Behavior Data That Actually Tells a Story!"
Behavior data is only as good as what you do with it. This session walks through practical ways to document student behavior, so the data you collect is accurate, consistent, and actually usable. Participants will then be shown how to turn that raw information into reports that drive real decisions. Participants will leave with concrete tools for tracking behavior in the moment, organizing data over time, and building reports that lead to next steps.

Room: MBSS 223

All Areas

Darlene Smith, Educator
Hamblen County School Board Member

"From Theory to Task: High-Impact Literacy Activities for Every Learner"
This breakout session bridges the gap between literacy research and daily classroom practice. Moving beyond rote worksheets, we will explore a toolkit of evidence-based activities designed to strengthen the core pillars of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

Room: MBSS 108

PK-K;
Admin.

Jennifer Ellison, Director
Cocke Co. Cradle to Career Coalition (C5)

"Measuring School Readiness: Caregiver Insights from Cocke Co."
This session highlights results from a caregiver survey in Cocke Co. examining how families prepare children for kindergarten and how the Countdown to Kindergarten initiative is influencing readiness-related behaviors, attitudes, and knowledge. Using local data, the Cocke County Cradle to Career Coalition (C5) shares key findings, trends, and practical lessons learned that are shaping early literacy and readiness strategies in a rural community.

Room: MBSS 125

K-2

Margaret Bright, Teacher
Lenoir City Schools

"Beyond the Words: Comprehension in K-2"
This session will examine comprehension standards for K-2, as well as note progressions and demands asked of students.  We will analyze a text and plan a lesson, including strategies to use in the moment when students struggle.

Room: MBSS 203

PK-2

Melody Hobbs, Program Coordinator
Birth to Kindergarten Program
University of Tennessee Knoxville

"From Blocks to Books: How Mature Pretend Play Builds the Architectures of Literacy"
Before a child can understand that the letters D-O-G represent a furry animal that barks, they must first master the art of abstract representation鈥攑erhaps by first using a wooden block to represent that same dog. This session explores the profound cognitive bridge between children鈥檚 sociodramatic pretend play and early literacy. We will discuss how project-based investigations and shared classroom experiences provide the "rich vocabulary" and "mental tools" children need to transition from oral storytelling to symbolic literacy through pretend play. Attendees will leave with a new lens for seeing preschool children鈥檚 pretend play as a vehicle for early literacy learning, while asking ourselves: Do we believe pretend play is the most powerful early literacy intervention we have?

Room: MBSS 124

All Areas

Krista Christian, Learning Loss Supervisor
Hamblen County Schools

"Rethinking Systems of Support"
This session invites participants to rethink student support through a simple but powerful lens: imagine students as LEGO figures. What happens when we stack multiple, disconnected 鈥渟ets of legs鈥� (interventions) beneath them? Instead of creating stability, we create imbalance. The goal is not to add more鈥攂ut to build smarter, more coherent systems. Participants will evaluate their current systems for alignment and leave with practical strategies to strengthen coherence, ensuring every layer of support works together to move students forward.

Room: MBSS 129

6-12

Mona Thomas, Teacher
Greene County Schools

"The Science of Reading in Grades 6-12"
Many students decode words accurately but struggle to comprehend complex academic texts because they miss the "glue of meaning": syntax. This session demystifies how sentence-level complexity impacts comprehension and demonstrates how to leverage the "writing-to-read" connection. Attendees will walk away with high-impact, evidence-based classroom routines鈥攊ncluding Sentence Complexity Checks, Mentor Sentence Imitation, and Deconstructing/Reconstructing Writing鈥攚ith concrete examples for ELA, science, and math.

Room: MBSS 225

All Areas

Barry Wortz, Professor of Film and Creative Media
Lipscomb University

"New Literacy and the Future With AI"
Artificial intelligence is fundamentally transforming classroom environments by enabling real-time personalization that adapts to each student's learning pace, sensory needs, and cognitive processing style鈥攃reating truly inclusive spaces where neurodiverse students with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other learning differences can thrive. This session explores how AI-powered tools are revolutionizing teaching practices.

Room: MBSS 102

All Areas

Shelia Newland, Teaching and Learning Coordinator
Greeneville City Schools

"A Journey to Implementing Multi-Tiered Systems of Support for Positive Student Behavior Outcomes"
This professional learning session will focus on practical, system-wide approaches to supporting student behavior through a multi-tiered framework that aligns district, school, and classroom practices. Participants will explore how effective behavior support is strengthened when clear systems, structures, and expectations are embedded across all levels of the organization.

Room: MBSS 130

All Areas

Dr. Suzanne Bryant, Partner
Designing Leaders

Beverly Miller, Partner
Designing Leaders

"The Power of Generational Collaboration to Improve Literacy Outcomes"
Based on Tim Elmore's book A New Kind of Diversity and the presenters lifelong experience with changes in literacy instruction and policy, this interactive workshop explores how leaders can transform generational tension into team synergy and improve literacy outcomes. Participants will gain insights into the paradigms that shape each generation's view of work, authority, purpose, and literacy instruction - and walk away with practical strategies to foster trust, boost productivity, and build a culture where team members thrive and students succeed.

Room: MBSS 122

Session #1 ONLY

7-12

Kimberly Foulks, Middle School Teacher
Greeneville City Schools

"Altered Book Project: Bringing Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Writing to Student-Selected Novels through Recycling Old Books"
The altered book project focuses on turning an old book into a visual work of art that represents the student-selected novel. Through this session, teachers will learn how the project works, what the various writing components are, and how it is graded with a rubric. Images and actual student examples will be part of the session in order to see the results of the project.

Room: MBSS 131

All Areas

Dr. Jason Horne, Assistant Director of Schools
Greeneville City Schools

"Screentime: What the Research is Really Saying"

Everyone has an opinion about kids and screens, and most of them come from headlines. This session steps back and looks at what the research actually says about screen time and its effect on reading, attention, language, and learning. We will sort the strong findings from the shaky ones, talk about where the worry is overblown and where it is well founded, and leave with a clearer, evidence-based way to talk about screens with teachers, parents, and students.

Room: MBSS 226

All Areas

Brandy Shelton, Data Coordinator
Greeneville City Schools

"Beyond the Score: Using Data & AI to Strengthen Literacy Instruction"

Assessment data is most powerful when it leads to action. In this session, participants will explore practical ways to dig deeper into literacy data to uncover meaningful insights about student learning. Discover how AI can enhance traditional item analysis by identifying misconceptions behind student responses and revealing patterns in student thinking. Walk away with practical strategies for moving beyond the scores to pinpoint learning gaps, target instructional needs, and turn data into informed decisions that support student growth.

Room: MBSS 227

All Areas

Dr. Haley Richardson, Senior Manager of Intervention
Division of Special Education and Student Supports
TN Department of Education

Sheri Smith, School Counselor Coordinator for Project RAISE and Project Manager for Project InSPIRE
TN Department of Education

"Behavior and Co-regulation: Tier 1 Classroom Supports"
Behavior reflects a student's developing skills, experiences, and needs. When we understand what drives behavior, we can move from managing behavior to building skills. Through real-world examples and classroom-ready strategies, participants will learn how to recognize behavior as communication, use co-regulation to support students, and implement simple Tier I practices that build self-awareness, self-management, and social awareness. Leave with practical tools you can use immediately to create calmer classrooms, strengthen relationships, and support positive behavior from the start of the school year.

Room: MBSS 228

PK-5

Blake Hopper, Assistant Principal
Tazewell-New Tazewell Primary School

"Literacy Is in Everything: Ways to Spread Literacy Across Your School"
Join this session as a former school librarian turned primary school administrator shares practical, engaging ways to spread the joy of literacy throughout your school. Discover creative ideas that build a culture of reading in classrooms, hallways, libraries, and beyond. You鈥檒l leave with fun, easy-to-implement strategies and ready-to-use ideas you can start using on Monday to inspire students and staff alike.

Room: MBSS 242

Session #1 ONLY

All Areas

Dr. Jessica Mills, Assistant Professor and Department Head for Education
蜜桔直播

"Why it makes sense to cultivate A Sense of Belonging"
A strong sense of belonging can make a meaningful difference in a student鈥檚 experience both in and out of the classroom, but what is sense of belonging and why is it important? This session focuses on the importance of creating a sense of belonging in the classroom and what it can mean to students as individuals and as part of a larger setting. The session will highlight practical strategies faculty, staff, and school personnel can use to help students feel valued, supported, and connected to their institution/school. Participants will be given actionable ideas to build a more inclusive and supportive environment where every student has a great opportunity to thrive.

Room: MBSS 243