The Keys to Virtual Engagement: An OWL Online PD Series

This five-session series will focus on breaking down the framework of OWL into concentrated and comprehensive pieces.  Each session in the Series is focused on one essential element of teaching in a high engagement, virtual classroom. The focus is on modeling the techniques so that you will leave with new ideas each time. Participating in the Series gets you consistently connected to teachers from across the country who are in similar situations, as you share out successes and solutions that have been discovered. All the themes were suggested by teachers and have been designed to meet your needs right where you are. We’re excited to journey through this together!

Session 1: Introduction to Engagement Strategies– October 27

• Join this action packed, one-hour training where you will experience the techniques to effectively use the OWL structure to build community, stay in the target language, and allow students to guide the learning, whatever your classroom model looks like this year.  Come see how to build engagement with your students and feel confident in the language acquisition journey.

Session 2: Building Connections in the Virtual Classroom– November 10

• As our students dive into proficiency based learning, it is essential to provide connections for our students with the classroom content and their community. In this session, participants will explore how Pairings & Groupings and Transitions provide rich context, build trust within the community, and bring down the affective filter of the individual student and classroom as a whole. Through a collaborative lightning round, teachers will leave with a bank of methods to implement new methods of connections in the classroom.

Session 3: Look Who’s Talking: Engaging Questions & Conversations– November 24

• With the constant pull and change of the school year, teachers and students alike are feeling the imbalance of output in our classrooms. However, when we effectively Prompt and Question our students with intentional  function and text type, and root our conversations in student interest and relevancy, our student output increases tenfold!  This session will give participants a chance to create questioning sequences from progressions pulled from their teaching experience or previous sessions of this series. Through the review and use of the ACTFL levels, and the defining characteristics of each, we will become more mindful of the prompts we are giving our students. Come explore when, where and how to pull for the skills necessary to acquire a second language!

Session 4: Cultivating Student Buy-In- December 8

• With the challenges of online learning, we are actually given a wonderful opportunity with the platforms to build more buy-in from students. By implementing Accountability and Hooks,  we can pique students interest, foster a positive atmosphere, and provide relevant content to keep students engaged. Especially in this new learning environment, hooks and accountability used together are powerful tools to keep content relevant and interest high for maximum buy-in. Don’t miss this session, as it will help you provide extra support to students and allow them to continue to grow.

Session 5: Your High Engagement Classroom in Action- December 15

• In this fifth and final session of the series, we will reflect on the growth in ourselves and our classrooms, as well as project forward to how we will continue to hone the pieces of the OWL structure and in return, create a high engagement classroom. Whether you know nothing about PPATH, are somewhat familiar with it after participating in an OWL PD, or you have been implementing each step of PPATH along the way- this session is designed to deepen your understanding of PPATH in action for successful implementation and direction in your learning environment.