Banned Books Book Group
Join a monthly professional reading group exploring a selection of books that have been challenged or removed from schools and libraries in the United States. From October through May, participants will meet via Zoom to discuss a selected book and explore the circumstances surrounding challenges to its availability.
Each discussion will include a discussion of the book and also consider questions such as: Why was this book challenged or removed? What concerns were raised? What does the controversy reveal about American ideas about education, childhood, censorship, and freedom of expression? How might you approach this topic in class?
The final session will examine contemporary debates surrounding libraries, schools, reading, and intellectual freedom in the United States. Several U.S. librarians will be invited to join the conversation and share their experiences.
Participants may attend individual sessions or join for the full series. A reading list will be distributed in early September.
Teaching with Photographs: Documentary Photography and Historical Topics
This hands-on workshop explores documentary photography as a form of primary-source evidence. Participants will examine photographs from U.S. history, including images from the Farm Security Administration collection at the Library of Congress, and practice strategies for helping students look closely, ask questions, interpret visual evidence, and develop historical context.
Teachers will experience classroom-ready activities for using photographs before, during, and after instruction. We will consider questions such as: What can a photograph tell us? Who created the image, and for what purpose? What assumptions might viewers bring to an image?
Participants will leave with practical strategies, resources and lesson ideas for incorporating visual sources into history, social studies, English, and interdisciplinary classrooms.
SPIDER Discussions: Making Classroom Conversation Visible
What would happen if students could actually see how their classroom discussion unfolds? SPIDER discussions are a student-led discussion strategy that allows students to observe, map, and reflect on the flow of classroom conversation. Rather than relying on the teacher to determine what makes a “good discussion,” students become active participants in evaluating how ideas develop, who contributes, how participants respond to one another, and whose voices may be missing.
In this hands-on workshop, teachers will experience a SPIDER discussion themselves and learn how to introduce the practice in their own classrooms. Participants will explore ways to use visual mapping and reflection to help students develop stronger discussion skills, listen more actively, respond to one another’s ideas, and think about the inclusivity of classroom conversation.
The workshop is particularly suited to teachers interested in student-centered learning, inquiry-based instruction, and developing students’ ability to engage in meaningful academic discussion.
Warming up Writing Brain: Short Writing for Thinking and Discussion
This interactive workshop explores short, low-stakes writing activities that can help students generate ideas, process new information, and prepare for meaningful classroom discussion. Participants will experience two approaches: free writing that combines structured and unstructured prompts, and paired writing activities designed to turn individual reflection into conversation.
We will consider how short writing activities can give students time to develop their ideas before speaking, increase participation, and create opportunities for deeper discussion. Teachers will leave with practical strategies and adaptable prompts that can be used across subjects and grade levels.
The workshop emphasizes writing as a tool for thinking, reflection, and dialogue, rather than simply as a product to be assessed.
John Dewey and Progressive Education: Learning by Doing
This workshop introduces teachers to the educational philosophy of John Dewey, one of the most influential figures in the American Progressive Education movement.
Through a brief introduction to Dewey’s life and work, followed by selected excerpts from his writings, participants will explore his ideas about experiential learning, inquiry, reflection, democracy, and the relationship between school and society.
Rather than simply studying Dewey’s ideas, teachers will consider how those ideas connect to their own classrooms. Through guided discussion and reflection, participants will examine questions such as: What does it mean for students to learn through experience? What role should teachers play in an inquiry-based classroom? And how can schools prepare students for meaningful participation in a democratic society?
The workshop combines a short lecture with close reading, discussion, and reflection on contemporary teaching practice.