Workshops / Keynotes

“Chill-Lax,” as your teens would say because you are not special or alone. Every parent of a teen or tween has been there. Suddenly, that cute, sweet preschooler that wanted to be so helpful and live with you forever, now has decided to take over the house, win the award for eating the most destructive foods that will live in infamy, work between tweets and instant messages, NEVER put away their clothes and NEVER leave home is your reality? Yikes! This helpful workshop will give parents and teachers practical ideas for surviving the resident teen and tween alien invasion and assisting them in thriving to go off to college!

Keynote: “So What Does The Brain Have To Do With It? Why Teen And Tweens Behave The Way They Do And How You Can Help Them Thrive!”

You’ve heard of NCLU ad nauseam! What is being done to support teachers in pedagogical shifts that have been the bane of many for the last ten years? Workshop topics can be tweet alerts such as: “Change is here to Stay,” “Change Causes Uncertainty and – Change,” “Chaos Often Results in Orderly Arrangements that are Beneficial!,” or “Just Say No to the Status Quo”. In this workshop educators will learn how the new brain science can help them manage their way through the learner –centered pedagogical maize and learn teacher teaching strategies that are supportive of student-learning?

Keynote: “Teaching In a Flat World To Technology-Wired Brains”

The recent social unrest sparked “occupy” movements across the nation. What you’ve discovered is that your tween’s room and attitude is similar to those social activists that are a cornerstone to democracy but you do not want to live in a pigsty and democracy requires knowledge with responsibility. How can you guide your teen along the path of developing behaviors that will be beneficial when they leave (or are evicted) from their home sanctuary? Have you been enabling the very behaviors you now find objectionable? What can you do now? Come and let’s discuss how we can use what you will learn about teen brain development to leverage your parenting strategies.

Keynote: “Civilizing Your Teen: Using What You Learn About Brain Development To Create a Nurturing Environment For Your Teen Or Tween

Nice is a four letter word that paralyzes youth when overused and touted as the model for behavior. While being nice certainly supports the goals of a civilized society, overuse can disarm teens and make them vulnerable. Negativity has been maligned and rarely evaluated for the positive effects it has on shaping prosocial behavior and survival. This workshop will address ways to help teen brains learn to balance the focus on positive and negative messages so that they have resources when “being nice” is used as the manipulative tool for them to engage in antisocial behaviors. Ideas for helping teens learn to think critically and develop a prosocial moral compass will be explored.

Keynote: “Disarming Our Youth”: Nice Is a Four Letter Word!

Well, that is what they are trying to do against a whole backdrop of obstacles, challenges, and rewards not faced by previous generations. What are they and what can you do to play catch up in the parenting game? How do teens and tweens learn as they grow up! Time marches on and so does development whether you understand it or not. Learn the developmental basics for teens and tweens that will help you navigate through the teen growing zones!

Keynote: Workshop: Scary Movie! They Are What They Eat And You Bought It?
Some parents and school districts don’t want to know the details but the type of food we feed our growing teens is no less important than the formulas we feed our babies. Why do we care so much about what we feed our babies and so little about the fat laden, salt supported, zero nutritious sandwich teens scarf down with the 180 calorie thigh expander drink? Learn the perils to development of poor nutrition and the long-term health toll it takes on teen brains and bodies affecting their learning and behavior.

Keynote: “The Downside: They Are Eating This Not That!”

Teens are selfish and they were born that way! Some early nurturing practices and over focus in the media on individuals, possessions, and success have only added to the issue. This workshop will explore the good news about focus on self, as well as, the problems that arise when self-absorbed behavior is the primary interaction style for teens. Learn about the developmental milestones and challenges that underlie some of these behaviors and learn ways to guide teens and on a more balanced road to identity formation.

Keynote: “Growing Up Selfish”: How To Nurture An Empathetic And Caring Teen And Why This Matters

Do you daydream about the days when students knew their place and stayed there? You were the sage on the stage, were good at it, and loved being there! Who decided anyway that all this input from students and parent is a good idea for teaching and teachers? Come and learn how to manage classroom change, be in charge of mentoring, and why this may benefit them-and you!

Keynote: “Future Shock: Educating Today’s Youth For An Unknown Future Reality”

Your teen has created a computer app to alert them when you are near the room so that they can make sure that when you enter the room they are on a parent approved website. Teens and tweens with gifted minds also need educational strategies that are tailored to the special functioning of their brain. Gifted brains are organized differently than brains of other children. School curriculum does not always provide the breadth and depth of educational experience needed to help these children make the most of their potential. More homework and math problems dos not necessarily stimulate a gifted mind! This workshop will help parents and educators understand how the brains of gifted teens are wired differently and what they can do to support them.

Keynote- “The Gifted And Talented Need Special Education Too!”

Science, Math, Engineering and Technology learning begins in Early Childhood. This workshops provides educators an overview of how these concepts are learned in the preschool setting. The brain grows from experience. The conceptual experiences of math and the sciences are an appropriate part of the early learning curriculum. Attendees will get hands-on examples of what they can do in their classroom and leave with a better understanding about how preschoolers are born to discover the math and science in their world.

Brain Appropriate Strategies for School-Age Brains This workshop is a general overview of the developmental changes observed in developing brains of 5-12 year olds. Behavior management is a particular concern of many educators. This workshops addresses these issues from a brain point of view giving educators insight and strategies to tame developing brains and set the stage for a classroom that can be focused on learning.