Did you know that there are more than 100 reasons you should go for a walk? Well, we are giving you another reason – a wellness scavenger hunt!

The IDEA Northern Suburbs Chapter is challenging you to take a walk sometime during the month of May preferably in a state park, named garden or forest preserve.

During your walk find ten (10) of the items that are listed. Document these ten items by taking pictures and then sharing them in the Walk on the Wellness Side Wakelet.

Reflection is the process through which we describe our learning, how our thinking changed and how it might impact your future. It is through reflection and meta-cognition that learning occurs and becomes transformative. Join us this May for the IDEA playground devoted to reflection.

Here is how a playground works:  you will have from May 23 until June 4 to watch up to 6 pre-recorded sessions that range from 30 - 60 minutes long.  At the end of each video, there will be a link for the PDHs.

Good leadership starts with taking good care of ourselves – physically and mentally so we can support and lead those around us. With a solid foundation in these areas, we are able to better lead others - our families, classrooms, organizations, and communities.

Lead Yourself is a 4-week group program that combines asynchronous learning through short, pre-recorded videos with live, virtual facilitated discussions that solidify learning and provide opportunity for building community and connection. The goal of this program is to give participants an opportunity to learn about and explore their physical and mental self-care in a structured, focused, and accessible environment.

Each week participants will learn key nutrition lessons, wellness strategies, mindfulness practices, and gentle movement techniques. Through a weekly group discussion participants will have the opportunity to share their successes, challenges, and learn from each other. At the end of the program each participant will have started incorporating some new physical and mental health practices that work specifically for them and their lifestyle. A weekly handout highlighting the week’s learning, reflection questions, and additional resources provides participants with a structured and focused way to remain engaged. With an added focus on organizational wellness, participants will also consider how to incorporate what they have learned into their teams, organization, and even into the classroom.

This program will meet the Admin Academy credit for AA #3795. Participants will complete a "Reflection Guide" throughout the course. Time will be provided after each subsection for participants to reflect and generate areas specific to their own personal and professional growth and experiences where they need to focus in order to improve self-care practices.

Illinois educators can earn 6 Admin Academy credits OR 6 PDHs

Are you interested in becoming Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (MIE) certified?

Join this exciting series of webinars ranging from Minecraft: Education Edition, STEM and Future Ready Skills, Accessibility and Inclusivity, using Microsoft Teams, and more!

Join us June 01st for Using Microsoft Teams with Staff as we discuss:

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for attending this session live. 

Join us for a brief overview of the new Computer Literacy Knowledge and Skill Development Continuum recently released by ISBE.

Illinois educators can earn 0.5 PDHs for attending this webinar live. 

Researchers in learning sciences are pioneering instructional technologies that have the capacity to revolutionize the educational system. By combining design thinking methodology with strong theoretical frameworks in the learning sciences, educators can improve learning to help students thrive.

This book lays out the intersection between theory, design and reflective practice to help educators understand individual learner differences and the impact of context upon learning. With this foundation, you will develop the skills you need to design powerful and effective learning experiences, particularly when using digital technologies.

Topics covered include:

Throughout the text, the authors emphasize the “why” behind the use of technology and the “how” to enact learning design for all digital age learners

Our summer cohorts will have a mix of synchronous and asynchronous work. Synchronous experiences will include guided discussions with leading experts.

This four week cohort will consist of: 

*Applicable to Teacher, Coach and Admin

Illinois educators can earn up to 16 PDHs for participating in this cohort.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

This CS Summer Series package will include a set of diverse PD offerings available to IDEA members as a way to prepare for new CS requirements.  There are 3 strands to choose from:

Teacher

Coach

Administrator

Participants will receive 4 asynchronous, 30 minute micro learning experiences based on the strand chosen (Teacher, Coach, or Administrator). Each micro learning experience will be available for the duration of the program and can be accessed by the user at any time.

All strands will end in an in person synchronous session with an expert on July 11 from 9-12pm at the PDA (2705 McDonough Street, Joliet, IL). These sessions will serve as capstones where participants will create toolkits based on the work they've done on their own and what they learn from the facilitator. 

Illinois educators can earn up to 5 PDHs upon completion.

This pathway will include a set of diverse PD offerings available to IDEA members regarding STEAM.  There are 3 strands to choose from:

Teacher

Coach

Administrator

Participants will receive 4 asynchronous, 30 minute micro learning experiences based on the strand chosen (Teacher, Coach, or Administrator). Each micro learning experience will be available for the duration of the program and can be accessed by the user at any time.

All strands will end in an in person synchronous session with an expert on July 13 from 9-12pm at the PDA (2705 McDonough Street, Joliet, IL). These sessions will serve as capstones where participants will create toolkits based on the work they've done on their own and what they learn from the facilitator. 

Illinois educators can earn up to 5 PDHs upon completion.

We are excited to offer a special series on using the "Everyone Can Code Early Learners" and "Swift Coding Club" resources.

Join presenters from Apple as they dive into utilizing these resources to meet the computer literacy mandates for the upcoming school year.

You can join all or one of these sessions.

Everyone Can Code Early Learners is designed to help educators and families introduce coding in the early grades, when learners are first developing computational thinking skills.

Through these lessons, learners in kindergarten through third grade will discuss, discover, and play to build a foundation in core coding concepts using the Swift Playgrounds app on iPad. Join Apple to engage with our free curriculum, preparing you to implement CSTA standards this fall.

Standards covered in this session include: 1A-AP-08, 1A-AP-10, 1A-AP-12, 1A-AP-14, 1B-AP-16

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for each session you attend. 

Other webinars in this series include:

June 29 - All Grade Levels: App Design

Are you interested in becoming Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (MIE) certified?

Join this exciting series of webinars ranging from Minecraft: Education Edition, STEM and Future Ready Skills, Accessibility and Inclusivity, using Microsoft Teams, and more!

Join us June 08th for Why We Keep Choosing Surface as we discuss:

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for attending this session live. 

We are excited to offer a special series on using the "Everyone Can Code Early Learners" and "Swift Coding Club" resources.

Join presenters from Apple as they dive into utilizing these resources to meet the computer literacy mandates for the upcoming school year.

You can join all or one of these sessions.

Everyone Can Code Early Learners is designed to help educators and families introduce coding in the early grades, when learners are first developing computational thinking skills.

Through these lessons, learners in kindergarten through third grade will discuss, discover, and play to build a foundation in core coding concepts using the Swift Playgrounds app on iPad. Join Apple to engage with our free curriculum, preparing you to implement CSTA standards this fall.

Standards covered in this session include: 1A-CS-01, 1-AP-08, 1A-AP-10, 1A-AP-11, 1A-AP-12, 1A-AP-14, 1B-AP-16

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for each session you attend. 

Other webinars in this series include:

June 29 - All Grade Levels: App Design

Are you interested in becoming Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (MIE) certified?

Join this exciting series of webinars ranging from Minecraft: Education Edition, STEM and Future Ready Skills, Accessibility and Inclusivity, using Microsoft Teams, and more!

Join us June 15th for STEM and Future Ready Skills as we discuss:

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for attending this session live. 

What are your personal interests? Goals? What are you passionate about learning more about and how do you do it?

This June the IDEA playground is all about the Life Long Learner. Developing a new skill, self-taught study, learning a new sport or activity, learning to use a new technology or acquiring new knowledge. We are digging into your why and showing you how!

Here is how a playground works:  you will have from June 20 until July 2 to watch up to 6 pre-recorded sessions that range from 30 - 60 minutes long.  At the end of each video, there will be a link for the PDHs.

Neurodivergence is a term used to describe people whose brains work differently than what is considered typical or standard.

In this workshop, let's look at some strategies for creating experiences where your neurodivergent learners get a chance to truly connect with others and explore their creativity.

We will share five ways to better support neurodivergent thinking in your classroom. Through a hands on a practical approach, you'll be able to apply these strategies whether you teach adult learners or students.

It's vital that we make learning accessible for all students. In this workshop we will help unpack what it means to be a neurodivergent thinker and how to best support them.

Illinois educators can earn up to five (5) PDHs for attending this workshop.   

Are you looking for this event in Central or Southern Illinois?  

Click here for our Central Illinois workshop

Click here for our Southern Illinois workshop. 

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

We are excited to offer a special series on using the "Everyone Can Code Early Learners" and "Swift Coding Club" resources.

Join presenters from Apple as they dive into utilizing these resources to meet the computer literacy mandates for the upcoming school year.

You can join all or one of these sessions.

Everyone Can Code Early Learners is designed to help educators and families introduce coding in the early grades, when learners are first developing computational thinking skills.

Through these lessons, learners in kindergarten through third grade will discuss, discover, and play to build a foundation in core coding concepts using the Swift Playgrounds app on iPad. Join Apple to engage with our free curriculum, preparing you to implement CSTA standards this fall.

Standards covered in this session include: 1A-AP-09, 1B-AP-09, 1B-AP-10, 1B-AP-16

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for each session you attend. 

Other webinars in this series include:

June 29 - All Grade Levels: App Design

Are you interested in becoming Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert (MIE) certified?

Join this exciting series of webinars ranging from Minecraft: Education Edition, STEM and Future Ready Skills, Accessibility and Inclusivity, using Microsoft Teams, and more!

Join us June 22nd for Using Windows in Schools as we discuss:

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for attending this session live. 

We are excited to offer a special series on using the "Everyone Can Code Early Learners" and "Swift Coding Club" resources.

Join presenters from Apple as they dive into utilizing these resources to meet the computer literacy mandates for the upcoming school year.

You can join all or one of these sessions.

Swift Coding Club resources help you and your students start your own coding clubs. Club materials support students in creating prototype apps using Apple design principles and guide them with design thinking projects. Students will prototype ideas, test their apps with peers, and refine the user experience. Join Apple to engage with our free curriculum, preparing you to implement CSTA standards this fall.

Standards covered in this session include: 1A-CS-01, 1A-AP-12, 1B-AP-13, 1B-AP-16, 1B-AP-17, 2-AP-17, 3A-DA-11, 3A-AP-13

Illinois educators can earn 1 PDH for each session you attend. 

Other webinars in this series include:

June 22 - Early Learners: Explore Variables

Teaching with Intention is a virtual Cohort where you unpack the philosophy behind social emotional learning, investigate best practices for embedding SEL instruction, and create meaningful lessons to integrate into your daily learning experiences.

This cohort was created for all educators to take a deeper dive into SEL instruction, experience lessons and activities that align to current state standards and for teachers to walk away with a portfolio of resources to use with their students.

This four week cohort will consist of: 

*Applicable to Teacher, Coach and Admin

Illinois educators can earn up to 8 PDHs for participating in this cohort.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

Neurodivergence is a term used to describe people whose brains work differently than what is considered typical or standard.

In this workshop, let's look at some strategies for creating experiences where your neurodivergent learners get a chance to truly connect with others and explore their creativity.

We will share five ways to better support neurodivergent thinking in your classroom. Through a hands on a practical approach, you'll be able to apply these strategies whether you teach adult learners or students.

It's vital that we make learning accessible for all students. In this workshop we will help unpack what it means to be a neurodivergent thinker and how to best support them.

Illinois educators can earn up to five (5) PDHs for attending this workshop.   

Are you looking for this event in Northern or Southern Illinois?  

Click here for our Northern Illinois workshop

Click here for our Southern Illinois workshop. 

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

If the pandemic has taught us anything it is that we need to cultivate problem solvers and computational thinkers. Our critical thinking skills have been put to the test and we strongly believe that it’s important that we go back to better. To do this, IDEA has developed a workshop focusing on the newly adopted computer science standards. Empowering ourselves, empowering our students.

We will begin with debunking misconceptions of computer science and design thinking in general. Computer science is so much more than just coding and cannot be a one and done lesson. Developing critical thinkers is essential for all areas of study.

Next is a deep dive into unpacking and understanding the CS standards. What are they and how can we break them down in meaningful ways? Get familiar with the new standards in this session and begin to recognize how they fit into your subject matter.

Finally, we will allow learners the opportunity to learn how to meaningfully integrate CS standards into their practice. Learn strategies for marrying the CS standards to your learning targets and unique ways to successfully implement a well rounded lesson. Leveraging the CS standards and reframing your thinking regarding computer science will allow you to reach more learners in a deeper, richer way!

Illinois educators can earn up to 5 PDHs for attending this workshop.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

As a computer science teacher, you are often the only one in your building, or maybe even in your district. There is a whole community of computer science educators just like you out there. Connect with them at the CSTA 2022 Annual Conference!

CSTA 2022 will provide you with the community of support you need to make connections locally and nationally. Join us in-person to reconnect with your community of fellow K-12 computer science teachers. From affinity groups to local chapters and content-based meetups, you are certain to find your community of teachers. 

CSTA 2022’s educational program is crafted by teachers for teachers and focuses on supporting you both in your classroom and your personal professional development, whether you’re new to teaching computer science or you’re entering your twentieth year. This year, we’re featuring over 200 educational sessions to help you get the best educational experience possible. With exclusive content designed to be hands-on for the best in-person experience, you don’t want to miss this year’s program.  

For more information (and to register!), visit the CSTA 2022 website

Planning to attend CSTA?  Stop by the exhibit hall and say hi to our IDEA team!

Neurodivergence is a term used to describe people whose brains work differently than what is considered typical or standard.

In this workshop, let's look at some strategies for creating experiences where your neurodivergent learners get a chance to truly connect with others and explore their creativity.

We will share five ways to better support neurodivergent thinking in your classroom. Through a hands on a practical approach, you'll be able to apply these strategies whether you teach adult learners or students.

It's vital that we make learning accessible for all students. In this workshop we will help unpack what it means to be a neurodivergent thinker and how to best support them.

Illinois educators can earn up to 5 PDHs for attending this workshop.   

Are you looking for this event in northern or southern Illinois?  

Click here for our Northern Illinois workshop

Click here for our Central Illinois workshop. 

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

Often schools focus on teachers in the classroom when thinking about equity work. Although teachers have the most intimate interactions with students, when equity work lives in that space only, it is often limited.

This workshop, facilitated by Dr. Sheldon Eakins and Dr. Sawsan Jaber, will help schools ask questions and think critically about how to involve all stakeholders and educators in all positions of a school community in the pursuit of justice in schools. The central question will be: How do I influence and make change toward equity and justice for my students and community within my locus of control?

Ideally, schools will attend this workshop with multiple members of their school community to begin interrogating current practices and thinking about how to strategically implement equity work for their specific communities that will lead to impactful change, student and community empowerment, and healthier school communities. Participants of this workshop will leave with strategies of how to notice, name, and interrupt historic inequities that have existed in traditional school spaces and have become the norm.

Leave the workshop with tools to collaborate with other stakeholder groups and create a plan with structured support continued learning once a month from August - December and then present your success and challenges in a round table session at the next IDEA conference.

With your registration you will get: 

Illinois educators can earn up to 25 PDHs for this workshop/cohort.

Who should attend this workshop: All educators and educational leaders at all levels. If you work with children, this workshop is for you. Individual school members can attend to lead this work in their district, or school groups can attend in order to begin building collective collaborative processes.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

About the Presenters:

Sheldon Eakins, PhD.

Sheldon L. Eakins, Ph.D. is the Founder of the Leading Equity Center and host of the Leading Equity Podcast. He is also the author of Leading Equity: Becoming an Advocate for All Students. With over 11 years in education, he has served as a teacher, principal, and Director of Special Education. 

Dr. Eakins has a passion for helping educators accomplish equitable practices in their schools. He has earned a B.S. degree in Social Science Education, an M.S. degree in Educational Leadership, and a Ph.D. in K-12 Education.

Sawsan Jaber, PhD.

Dr. Jaber is currently a high school English teacher at East Leyden High School in Franklin Park. She founded Education Unfiltered Consulting and works with schools both nationally and abroad. Dr. Jaber focuses on curriculum mapping, strategic planning, custom tailoring a social justice curriculum for schools, and anti-bias training. She completed her Ph.D. with a focus on inclusion and belonging of students from marginalized communities.

Dr. Jaber is a Board Director of Our Voice Alliance (OVA) charged with amplifying the voices of teachers of color to create more equity for students of color. Additionally, Sawsan is one of the founders of the Arab American Education Network (AAEN). She is a member of the International Society for Technology in Education professional learning network (ISTE PLN) Leader. Dr. Jaber is a National Board Certified teacher and has focused most of her research on engaging students in equity work and advocating for Arab and Muslim students. 

During the month of August, IDEA members will have the opportunity to participate in a cohort book study: The Happiness Advantage: How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life.

In the book that inspired one of the most popular TED Talks of all time, New York Times bestselling author Shawn Achor reveals how rewiring our brain for happiness helps us achieve more in our careers and our relationships and as students, leaders, and parents.

This four week cohort will consist of: 

*Applicable to Teachers, Coaches, and Administrators

Illinois educators can earn up to 8 PDHs for participating in this cohort.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.

Our summer cohorts will have a mix of synchronous and asynchronous work and are 100% virtual. Synchronous experiences will include guided discussions with leading experts.

Cohorts serve as accountability groups that can continue long after the cohorts completion. In addition to gaining invaluable information, you also make connections with like minded individuals and expand your PLN.

This four week cohort will consist of: 

*Applicable to Teachers, Coaches, and Administrators

Illinois educators can earn up to 16 PDHs for participating in this cohort.

Are you interested in our summer programming but can't make the day or location work in your schedule? Complete this form to let us know! We will use this information when considering additional or alternative offerings.