27-28
Virtual Leadership Institute
Join us as we explore ways to expand access, enhance understanding, and cultivate belonging in Bridges classrooms.
Whether you’re a classroom teacher or a coach, an instructional leader or an administrator, a university faculty member or part of a local educational agency, you know the joys and challenges that accompany student-centered, asset-based implementation of the Bridges curriculum.
We need your voice to be part of the conversation as we work together to advance this work in schools and districts across the country.
VLI is now at full capacity.
Presentations
Problem Posing, Strategy Sharing, and Collaboration to Engage and Empower Students
Putting students at the forefront of the learning process is critical to promoting students’ positive identities and sense of agency over their learning. Problem posing, open strategy sharing, and other collaborative learning activities are just some of the innovative ways to empower student choice and voice. Participants will be engaged in collaborative experiences to learn how to create a shared learning experience using various problem-solving activities.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Friday, June 28, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Natalie Crist
Natalie has been an elementary teacher, math coach, university professor, principal, and curriculum director during the course of her 27 year tenure in education. She is currently the Director of Content at the Math Learning Center and strives to provide access to rich mathematics for all students through teacher education and curriculum development.
Developing a Problem-Solving Culture in the Elementary Grades
Developing a problem-solving culture requires a combination of challenging yet accessible problems and appropriate instructional moves. A significant part of this is selecting materials that provide entry points for all students, allow students to go deep with the mathematics, and include challenging problems that foster mathematical growth. We’ll investigate problems that instigate mathematical excitement and promote problem solving in the elementary grades. Come have some fun and find out what role you can play.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Friday, June 28, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 am
Patrick Vennebush
Patrick Vennebush is the Chief Learning Officer at the Math Learning Center, overseeing the areas of content development, professional learning development, educator support, and research.
Don’t Stop Believin’: Cultivating belonging and empowering students through Concept Quests
Believing that ALL students are capable math learners is powerful when it is put into action. Join us as we explore how Concept Quests can nurture a sense of belonging while empowering students to believe in themselves as capable doers of math. We will strategize ways to make rich problem-solving opportunities available and accessible — not just to a subset of students, but to ALL students.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Friday, June 28, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Tisha Jones
Tisha Jones, Senior Manager of Assessment at The Math Learning Center, previously taught math to elementary and middle school students and undergraduate and graduate math methods courses at Georgia State University.
Alyson Eaglen
Alyson Eaglen is a Professional Learning Developer for The Math Learning Center. Before joining MLC she worked as an Instructional Facilitator of Mathematics for Loudoun County Public Schools.
Supporting Students by Supporting Teachers
Supporting teachers to support students is the focus of Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose ISD’s approach to piloting and implementing Bridges. Change is not easy, but understanding the why is a good place to start. We will share our journey of supporting teachers to improve student learning opportunities.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Jenina Rothstein
Jenina Rothstein works as an elementary curriculum specialist at Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose ISD #877. She has over 25 years of teaching experience.
Amy Hoff
Amy Hoff is a 1st/2nd grade multiage teacher at Discovery Elementary School in the Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose ISD #877 school district. She has over 10 years teaching experience.
Affirming Identity and Challenging Marginalization During Discourse
Our discourse practices have the potential to build students’ conceptual understanding and interrupt narratives that can lead to marginalization. Participants in this session will deepen their understanding of what it means to affirm math identities and challenge spaces of marginality. They will also learn practical ways to integrate these ideas when planning and facilitating discourse in a Bridges classroom.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Friday, June 28, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
LaKeshia Cooper
LaKeshia Cooper is a curriculum consultant for The Math Learning Center. Before that, LaKeshia served as an elementary and middle school teacher in Grades 4–8 in DeSoto Parish, Louisiana. She also served as a K–4 math interventionist while supporting teachers in their implementation of Bridges. As a Bridges educator, LaKeshia appreciated how the use of visual models and student collaboration provided access for all her students and developed their mathematical confidence. LaKeshia lives in Mansfield, Louisiana.
Susan Hammer
Susan Hammer is a curriculum consultant with MLC. She was a classroom educator and was awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching in 2016.
Putting Equity into Practice Using Curriculum Materials
In this session, we explore what it means to use curriculum materials to support responsive, inclusive, and equitable learning opportunities for all students. We will discuss how to identify opportunities within curriculum materials for equitable teaching practices, sharing decisions and moves that teachers can make to leverage those opportunities.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Friday, June 28, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 pm
Corey Drake
Corey Drake is the Senior Director for Professional Learning at The Math Learning Center. She began her career in education as a middle school special education teacher in the Chicago Public Schools. Corey is committed to supporting teachers in using curriculum materials to teach diverse groups of students in equitable ways.
Mike Wallus
Mike Wallus is the vice president for educator support at The Math Learning Center. He has 17 years of experience as a classroom teacher, and in 2012 he was awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). Previously, Mike was an elementary mathematics coordinator and curriculum director in the Minneapolis–St. Paul metro area.
Using Asset-Based Teaching to Cultivate Belonging in the Bridges Classroom
When students recognize their strengths and the strengths of their classmates, the classroom community flourishes. During this session, participants will consider mathematical strengths and how students can identify those in themselves and in others. Participants will engage in Work Places and connect them to asset-based teaching. Focusing on the brilliance of all students builds confident mathematical thinkers and strong classroom communities.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Friday, June 28, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Jenn Christensen
Prior to joining The Math Learning Center as a curriculum consultant, Jenn Christensen was an elementary classroom teacher for 27 years. Over the course of her teaching career, Jenn has come to embrace the beauty and creativity of math. She loves to talk with children about how they are thinking, and she continually learns from them.
Jenn Ranum
Jenn Ranum brings expertise from 20 years as a classroom teacher and instructional leadership team member, as well as her experiences using Bridges, to her work with new and existing Bridges districts. Jenn enjoys modeling lessons, engaging in and talking about math with students, coaching teachers and administrators, writing blogs, facilitating Getting Started and Support Workshops for Bridges and Bridges Intervention, and presenting at various math conferences across the United States.
Navigating Curriculum Implementation When Time Is Your Missing Ingredient
Are you faced with little or no time to support Bridges implementation after the training? Hear two math leaders share their district’s 3-year implementation journey. Come discover ways for leaders to cook up learning opportunities to help teachers dig into their new resources.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Andrea Manston
Andrea Manston brings 27 years of experience in education, having served as a 5th grade teacher, math coach, and currently as the K-12 Math Coordinator for Fargo Public Schools. She has overseen and assisted with adoption and implemention of Bridges in Mathematics in two school districts, and has supported other districts as a workshop leader.
Alyssa Gilbertson
Alyssa Gilbertson brings 19 years of experience in education, having served as a first grade teacher, instructional coach, and currently as the Elementary Math Facilitator for Fargo Public Schools. Since Fargo’s adoption in 2021, she has provided guidance for the implementation of Number Corner and Bridges.
Introducing Bridges in Mathematics Third Edition
Are you curious to learn more about Bridges in Mathematics Third Edition? Join this session to understand the changes and enhancements of the curriculum, how the curriculum supports equitable teaching and learning, and the professional learning support available to sustain implementation.
Thursday, June 27, 2024
10:45 am – 12:15 pm
Beth Chinderle
Beth Chinderle is a joyful educator with experience serving as a classroom teacher and math curriculum specialist. She enjoys partnering with Bridges educators through her curriculum consultant role with MLC.
Shifting from Theory to Action: Challenging Spaces of Marginality
What does it mean to challenge spaces of marginality, and how do we do it in a Bridges classroom? This session explores the meaning of marginality and how marginality shows up in your context. We will also develop our understanding of the actions we can take to challenge spaces of marginality within a Bridges session.
Friday, June 28, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Jaime Green-Estrada
Jaime has been with The Math Learning Center for two years now as a Curriculum Consultant. She loves working with teachers across the country. She has a passion around assessment as well as supporting all learners to develop and foster a positive math identity (ask her about HS algebra and her own math identity). Jaime has taught Bridges in grades K-5 as well as worked in school and district Math leader positions in Denver and Aurora, Colorado. Jaime’s current favorite authors are Elena Aguilar, Gholdy Muhamad and Julia Aguirre. She also loves time in the Colorado mountains with her husband and 3 children.
Melissa Greenwald
Melissa is a professional learning developer at The Math Learning Center. Prior to working at MLC, she was a teacher and coach in Philadelphia.
Enhancing Equity & Access for All Students in the Immersion Classroom
This session is tailored for educators seeking to enrich their multilingual classroom dynamics. It focuses on practical strategies that cultivate an inclusive and supportive learning environment that increases language proficiency while promoting mathematical success.
Friday, June 28, 2024
8:45 am – 10:15 am
Jilian Whaley
Jilian Whaley is an accomplished Mathematics Specialist renowned for her leadership in transforming education. With over two decades of experience, Jilian has been instrumental in shaping mathematics curriculum, professional learning, and instructional frameworks. Her expertise lies in developing and implementing high-quality, equitable practices to elevate student achievement.
Katie Colon
Katie Colon is a kindergarten Spanish Immersion teacher in Delaware. With a background in teaching multilingual learners, she focuses on implementing equitable mathematics and language instruction for diverse students.
Engaging and Refining Rough Draft Math Thinking Using SpotCheck
Part of building student math identity is encouraging them to take risks and embrace what Amanda Jansen (Rough Draft Math) calls their “rough draft thinking.” In this session, we will learn about rough draft thinking in elementary math and how the SpotCheck feature within Derivita can encourage students to refine their thinking. Participants will hear from a practicing teacher about her celebrations with rough draft thinking. They also will leave with tangible next steps to support their students with refining their thinking and optionally explore how technology can enhance these opportunities.bet
Beth Joswick
Dr. Joswick has been a part of the math educational community for over 20 years with experience K-20. She is currently the Elementary Math Coordinator for Aurora Public Schools.
Jennifer Amato
Jennifer Amato has been teaching for 10 years with a focus on math for the last six years. She is part of the Aurora Public Schools Math Leadership Team and has integrated community values into the Bridges curriculum to make it more relevant for her students and school team.
Julie Tylman
Julie Tylman is a highly experienced EdTech industry veteran, working at Pearson Education for over 20 years before moving to Derivita in late 2022.
Bridges Intervention: An Overview
Are you curious about the features of Bridges Intervention? Would you like to experience the intervention materials firsthand? During this experience with Bridges Intervention, you’ll receive an overview of the materials, explore the scoring guides, and engage with different parts of a session.lor
Friday, June 28, 2024
10:45 – 12:15 pm
Lori Bluemel
Lori Bluemel lives in Missouri and has been an educator for 20+ years, mostly teaching Grades 5 and 3. Lori joined the Math Learning Center as a curriculum consultant in 2016.