E
plore Biblical Education Virtually
Sessions Available to Virtual Attendees
Keynote
Academic Excellence in Christian Schools
NewPresenter: Dr. Shane Blanton
Why do we insist on a rigorous curriculum and high academic achievement in Christian schools? Why do we demand high standards from our students? What are we trying to accomplish? Today’s Christian school needs to educate students to the absolute highest standards possible because of the importance of teaching them to think. We will explore how to foster academic excellence in a Christian school.
Academic Excellence: Understanding Today’s Landscape
NewPresenter: Dr. Shane Blanton
Educators everywhere are concerned about students and their families. They report that more students come to school less ready to learn—not less intelligent, less ready to be students. Research shows they are behind, harder to reach and teach, their developmental profiles are more uneven, and their attention and motivation are harder to sustain. And educators complain that parents are more anxious about their children’s success, yet less available to support and guide them, and are more demanding and critical of the school. What does the data show?
Technology Giveth, Technology Taketh Away
NewPresenter: Dr. Bryan Smith
Technology is a wonderful tool—so wonderful that we often forget it has a darker side. Yes, it enables us to do things we once thought impossible. But it also takes things away from us, things we never thought we would try to do without. As responsible adults, we understand that technology is both a blessing and a burden. But most of our students have not yet realized this truth. As teachers we need to help our students learn how to maximize the blessing of technology, while managing its burdens.
Understanding Gender from a Biblical Worldview
NewPresenter: Dr. Bryan Smith
We all know that in the last decade, our society has gone crazy over issues related to gender. To our dismay, this craziness has not stayed in the left-leaning parts of our culture. It has found its way into our churches and our Christian schools. These developments are troubling, but they are also an opportunity. They give Christian educators an open door to talk with students about gender issues from a biblical worldview. In this session we will consider how the Creation-Fall-Redemption paradigm can be used to help young people think biblically about gender.
Understanding Independent/Christian School Parents
NewPresenter: Dr. Shane Blanton
The relationship between independent school parents and their children's teachers has only grown more intense in recent years. Parents are worried more than ever about their children's education. They constantly wonder about their role in their children's learning. Most parents, of course, are grateful when their children (mostly) love school; most recognize teachers' positive impact on their children's lives. However, a growing number choose to act as their children's advocates, agents, coaches, co-teachers, and sometimes apologists. They see themselves as responsible for homework completion, curricular standards, playing time on teams, and the outcome of their children's friendships and social interactions. What's a teacher or a parent to do in the face of such conflicting messages from today’s culture?
General
Assessments in Action: Assessment Tools You Can Use Today
NewPresenter: Dr. Jenny Copeland
Using an assortment of assessment tools brings variety and increased engagement to the classroom...not to mention they are fun! If you are looking to mix up how you create or give assessments, this session will give you a selection of tools you can start using today! We will explore technology tools from BJU Press, as well as a variety of other digital assessment resources.
BIG Apologetics in the Classroom: Modeling a Defense of the Faith in Every Subject
NewPresenter: Dr. Renton Rathbun
Apologetics belongs in every classroom. Every subject contains persistent obstacles to a proper worldview which can trouble a student’s faith. BIG Apologetics is an easy tool to use which walks students through the process of defending a biblical worldview in any subject.
Broken Windows Theory and Classroom Management: How Disorder Invites Chaos
New to VirtualPresenter: Christina Miller
Often, discussions about classroom management are aimed at how to curb students’ negative behavior in the classroom. But what if effective classroom management should actually begin with eliminating the teacher’s negative behaviors? In this workshop, Mrs. Miller will discuss how certain teacher misbehaviors lend themselves toward chaos in the classroom, and what an effective teacher can do to maintain appropriate and strategic control of his or her classroom.
Christ Above Culture: A Framework for Racial Unity and Educational Leadership
NewPresenter: Sherard Burns
The false ideologies of society are infecting the way schools understand unity and justice. Since everything rises and/or falls on leadership, how principals and headmasters grasp unity will determine the direction of the schools they lead, the teachers they hire, and their pedagogical strategies. Debunking CRT, Black Lives Matter movement, and the secularized notions of social justice, this session will outline a theological vision for racial unity and biblical justice and provide insights regarding pedagogical strategies that are sensitive to culture but remain committed to the gospel.
Demos for Dummies: Tips for Better Science Demonstrations
NewPresenter: Dr. Brad Batdorf
Effective science demonstrations are available for all age levels and are powerful tools to have in your teaching tool kit. Get tips on finding, preparing, and presenting demonstrations that will captivate attention and motivate learning.
Emotions: Helping Students Sanctify Their Feelings
NewPresenter: Dr. Bruce Meyer
Post-modernity has placed a heavy emphasis upon feelings; as a result, we have become a nation of feelings rather than principle. God’s word, however, deals with emotions, providing a theology of our emotions as we relate to truth. This workshop helps us understand the proper role of emotions and how to connect our emotions to theology for principled and biblical living.
Getting the Most from Your Teacher Editions
Presenter: Pam Litzenberger
Need help putting together your lessons using your BJU Press materials? This workshop will give step-by-step practical methods to plan your lesson and your year using the many resources available with both your BJU Press teacher edition and online materials. Bring your teacher edition and computer to this workshop to fully benefit!
Instructional Strategies to Differentiate: Helping Students Get to Where They Need to Be
NewPresenter: Cindy Dickinson
Do you feel like your students sometimes just aren’t getting it? Are you looking for ways to provide differentiated instruction or new ways to present concepts? Instructional strategies are like vehicles that get students from where they are to where they need to be. Learn instructional strategies that can be used to differentiate. Discuss and determine which strategies can meet your students’ needs best. Leave with a list of instructional strategies that you can use in your classroom right away.
Making Sense of Standardized Test Scores
New to VirtualPresenter: Dr. Brad Batdorf
Can you explain the difference between criterion and norm-referenced grading, how a percentage score is different from a percentile rank score, and what those grade equivalent scores really mean? In this workshop, you will get hands-on experience with analyzing and interpreting common standardized test reports so that you can explain them to parents.
Survival Tips for New and Not So New Teachers
Presenter: Pam Litzenberger
So, you’re a new teacher or in a new school or you’re teaching new subjects. How will you ever get through this first year or two? This workshop will give you pointers and tips for making it through those tough first few months. Come learn about lesson planning, classroom management, dealing with coworkers, finding a mentor, and where to go for help when you need it.
Teacher Tools Online: What's in Here
Presenter: Cindy Dickinson
Teacher Tools Online (TTO) is a great resource provided by BJU Press to make teachers’ lives easier. In this session, you will learn how the Lesson Plan Overviews and PowerPoints can help with lesson preparation. You can also find ideas for using the artwork on interactive whiteboards and in assessments, discover options for showing videos to your classes without advertisements, and learn how to build your own tests using the ExamView test-building software.
Understanding Trauma in the Classroom: Compassion and Care for Students Who Are Hurting
Presenter: Christina Miller
Childhood trauma occurs more than we would maybe care to think about. In fact, by the age of 16, over two-thirds of children will have experienced at least one traumatic event in their lifetime. As educators, it is important for us to recognize the signs of traumatic stress and its short- and long-term impact on children, especially as it relates to their learning. In this workshop, we will discuss the spectrum of trauma, adverse childhood experiences and their impact on overall physical, mental, emotional, and social health of children, and common trauma triggers. This workshop will also address how the effective educator can respond to such students with compassion, care, and concern for their students’ spiritual, academic, and mental well-being.
When Parents and Teachers Meet: A View from Both Sides of the Desk
Presenter: Becky Teruel
Have you ever heard, or said, “I would love teaching if it weren’t for the parents?” Parents should be viewed as a positive part of our teaching—helping our students to become more successful. I have taught many years in the classroom and believe that parents can be partners. As a parent of four children, I learned to see and value both sides of communication. Come learn ways to include parents in your students’ learning to make your year the best it can be!
Administrative
Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast
NewPresenter: Doug Abels
Christian educational leaders might be tempted to look for just the right school policies, standard procedures, or sports program to set their schools apart from the competition or ensure a flourishing future, but they might be overlooking something much more powerful – the culture of the Christian school. This workshop will present a theological argument for the importance of school culture, what elements affect a school’s culture, and practical suggestions for taking ownership of the culture at your school.
Strategic Planning for the Christian School
NewPresenter: Dr. Brian Carruthers
Is your school fulfilling its goals and objectives? Does your school have goals and objectives? What is your ministry's mission statement? Where do you see your school five years from now? These questions and others will be addressed as this workshop discusses strategic planning for the Christian School.
Preschool
Focus on Fives for a Strong Foundation (K5)
Presenter: Becky Custer
The Focus on Fives program from BJU Press starts children on a journey of developing the skills they will need for first grade. This all-inclusive program provides foundational activities for heritage, science, literature, and all the language arts. We will explore the parts and pieces that make up this exciting, newly revised program. As we look at the special features of a unit, week, and day we will also focus on the instructional themes for heritage, science, and literature.
Seeing the Big Picture with Footsteps for Fours
Presenter: Becky Custer
Early learners are just starting to focus in on the world around them. Footsteps for Fours provides a solid academic foundation for future learning and also creates opportunities to grow physically, emotionally and spiritually. Discover all the parts and pieces that work together in Footsteps to ensure that your students have an exciting start to their world of learning!
Watch Me Grow! Understanding and Cultivating Preschoolers' Developmental Skills
New to VirtualPresenter: Becky Custer
Learn practical ways to instruct and inspire early learners to grow academically, socially, and spiritually. Explore the most productive methods for circle time and learning centers so that preschoolers can thrive in their classroom environment.
Elementary
Code Blue! What Can We Do? (Elementary Bible)
NewPresenter: Katie Klipp
We see it every day in the culture around us and in the students in front of us—our world is not going the right way. But it’s not just going the wrong way, it’s taking our Christian school students with it! Is it too late? What can WE do? We can make our seemingly simple Bible class more than just a time of memorizing and listening! It can be the place where students think critically, use manipulatives, role play for understanding, and learn to live and love God’s Truth. BJU Press Bible materials have all that you need to make the Bible come alive and STICK in students’ hearts for years. Come learn creative methods and ideas to engage your students in that time of day that could be the single most important influence in their school years. It’s not too late!
Communicating to Motivate Students: Bring Out the Best Behavior in Your Students
New to VirtualPresenter: Pam Elbell
The tough challenge of classroom management becomes easier when you have the right resources. Come learn creative ways to encourage good behavior. Let’s share ideas on how we can better communicate our expectations to help our students learn good classroom behavior.
Helping Young Historians See God's Story throughout History
New to VirtualPresenter: Marnie Batterman
Does history seem boring to your students? Many students see history as lists of dates, people, places, and facts. It's hard to inspire students when that is the mindset as you begin a lesson. Let's refresh their mindset to see God's hand throughout history as He works to accomplish His will and allow them to share in His story.
Helping Young Scientists Discover God's World
New to VirtualPresenter: Marnie Batterman
Students are eager to study science because they find rocks, space, and animals interesting. But do your young scientists realize studying science helps us discover more about God's character, ways we can manage the world for His glory, and ways we can help other people?
Loving to Read or Required to Read: How Do Your Students Feel?
NewPresenter: Becky Teruel
Does it seem that schools give awards for sports accomplishments more than academic and reading achievements? Rewarding and encouraging students to read will open a path to lifelong learning. In this session, teachers will learn several methods of drawing students into the “love of reading” and share ideas that have worked in their classrooms.
Phonics: The Whys and Hows
Presenter: Becky Teruel
Does phonics seem tedious to teach? Does it matter how students are taught to read? Since phonics is the proven method of teaching reading, understanding how it is used in the classroom is imperative. Join me as we explore the whys and hows of teaching phonics. We will look at the role of the Word Family approach in phonics instruction.
Reading: The Final Grade
Presenter: Becky Teruel
Isn’t giving a reading grade too subjective? Is it possible for a reading rubric to be consistent in all the elementary classes in your school? Come learn an effective method of grading for all elementary reading levels. Participants will learn which components of reading to grade and will practice grading and recording parts of a reading lesson.
Use All of the Crayons in Your Box: Phonics for K5–Grade 1
Presenter: Katie Klipp
In this session, participants will learn how to navigate the BJU Press K5 and Grade 1 phonics materials, gain helpful tips that enhance students’ ability in and understanding of word families and word manipulation, and gather creative ideas for making the phonics section of each day enticingly more colorful for students.
Yes! You Can M.A.T.H.
New to VirtualPresenter: Cindy Dickinson
Math can be an engaging and exciting subject to teach. It is so much more than just recalling and memorizing. Interested in current ideas for your math classroom? Join me to discover ways you can M.A.T.H. M—make it interesting, A—add to their knowledge, T—take it to the next level, and H—find out how they did. By engaging, instructing, applying, and assessing, you can take your math classes as well as your students to the next level.
Middle School
Memorable Science (Grades 6–12)
Presenter: Chris Coyle
This workshop will present practical methods for teaching science and will explore the philosophy behind BJU Press secondary science materials. Participants will gain a new vision of how to instruct and inspire students when this curriculum is used.
STEM for Middle School Science and Math-Without Breaking the Bank!
NewPresenter: Pam Litzenberger
How can you incorporate STEM activities into your small schools’ 5th–9th grade science and math classes? Often these activities are cost and time prohibitive. Let me give you ways to add STEM that will not break the bank or take your entire class time – and allow your students to have fun and learn at the same time.
Teaching and Delighting: Making Literature Both Educational and Fun, Part 1 (Grades 6–12)
NewPresenter: JR Remelgado
The Roman poet Horace once said literature should be both instructive and delightful. However, many English teachers struggle to teach literature in an academically rigorous manner without diminishing the joy of reading. Discover how to engage students in high levels of critical thinking while simultaneously fostering an enjoyment of literature.
Teaching Teenagers – Managing your Secondary Class (Grades 6–12)
NewPresenter: Pam Litzenberger
Trying to teach English skills or algebra to unruly teenagers is any teacher’s nightmare. How can you get these young people to focus on learning? How is teaching a teenager different from teaching, say, a fifth grader? Developing solid classroom management is a skill that requires a love from the teacher, but also consistency. In this workshop we will delve into these questions with many suggestions to help you build your classroom management skills and TEACH your class.
High School
Interesting History
New to VirtualPresenter: Kirsten Alexander
Learn how to teach history in an exciting way using BJU Press textbooks. This workshop will present practical methods for teaching history and will share ideas for how to make social studies engaging to the students.
Keeping an “A” Above Average: Avoiding Grade Inflation
NewPresenter: Anita Sedivy
When a grade on a report card does not accurately reflect the overall ability and performance of a student it can be detrimental to the student, the teacher, and a school’s program. Grade Inflation is a practice that institutions are experiencing throughout the world. This session will explore methods to assist teachers in achieving academic excellence and appropriate rigor, while maintaining a balance of compassionate concern for each student.
Memorable Science (Grades 6–12)
Presenter: Chris Coyle
This workshop will present practical methods for teaching science and will explore the philosophy behind BJU Press secondary science materials. Participants will gain a new vision of how to instruct and inspire students when this curriculum is used.
The Simplest Prescription for Improving Education
NewPresenter: Dr. Scott Buhr
Research has shown that feedback is one of the simplest ways to improve learning. It is an inexpensive yet powerful tool. This session will explore the immense strength of providing meaningful feedback and why it is often overlooked. Special attention will be given to the use of technology to provide more elaborate and immediate feedback.
Teaching and Delighting: Making Literature Both Educational and Fun, Part 1 (Grades 6–12)
NewPresenter: JR Remelgado
The Roman poet Horace once said literature should be both instructive and delightful. However, many English teachers struggle to teach literature in an academically rigorous manner without diminishing the joy of reading. Discover how to engage students in high levels of critical thinking while simultaneously fostering an enjoyment of literature.
Teaching Teenagers – Managing your Secondary Class (Grades 6–12)
NewPresenter: Pam Litzenberger
Trying to teach English skills or algebra to unruly teenagers is any teacher’s nightmare. How can you get these young people to focus on learning? How is teaching a teenager different from teaching, say, a fifth grader? Developing solid classroom management is a skill that requires a love from the teacher, but also consistency. In this workshop we will delve into these questions with many suggestions to help you build your classroom management skills and TEACH your class.
