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Vision

In Canyons School District, we believe that all stakeholders benefit from purposeful technology integration within the learning process, focusing on student achievement. Educational technology will be used to empower teachers, students, and other stakeholders to gain the knowledge and skills needed to adapt, create, consume, and connect responsibly and ethically with the broader world in preparation for meaningful life opportunities.

Type: Instructional Priorities clear filter
Tuesday, June 2
 

9:30am MDT

Activate, Engage, Extended: Using Inquiry and Collaboration to Promote Literacy
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
This interactive session explores how teachers can guide students through a structured reading process that promotes inquiry, collaboration, and deeper understanding of texts. Participants will learn practical strategies to prepare students to engage with a text, facilitate collaborative reading and annotation, and extend learning beyond the text through meaningful discussion and reflection.

Using an Activate – Engage – Extend framework, the session will model strategies that help students build curiosity before reading, collaboratively analyze and annotate during reading, and synthesize their thinking after reading. Educators will experience classroom-ready routines that support student inquiry, structured collaboration, and deeper comprehension across content areas.

Participants will leave with concrete tools to help students:
• Prepare for reading through inquiry-based activation strategies
• Collaboratively read and annotate complex texts
• Extend understanding through discussion, synthesis, and reflection activities

The session emphasizes practical, student-centered strategies that foster meaningful engagement with texts while building critical thinking and collaborative learning skills.
Presenter
avatar for Susie Baer Young

Susie Baer Young

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District

TS

Tyson Swasey

ELA Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
2311

9:30am MDT

AVID Focused Note-Taking from the Elementary Perspective
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
AVID Focused Note-Taking from the Elementary Perspective: Jeny Wariner and Kristie Koyle

See AVID Focused Note-Taking in action from the very start of a student’s academic journey. This session highlights developmentally appropriate practices, classroom examples, and implementation insights that support strong instruction, student thinking, and schoolwide alignment from Kindergarten up.
Presenter
avatar for Jeny Wariner

Jeny Wariner

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
With 30 years of experience in the trenches of education, Jeny Wariner understands the heart of the classroom. Currently an Instructional Coach at Glacier Hills Elementary, she specializes in bridging the gap between curriculum and classroom practice. Her commitment to excellence... Read More →
avatar for Kristie Koyle

Kristie Koyle

Kindergarten Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
2303
  Instructional Priorities

9:30am MDT

Helping All students Access Challenging Text
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
Dr. Throndsen will be sharing scaffolding strategies to support teachers as they help all student access challenging text.
Presenter
avatar for Julie Butler

Julie Butler

Teacher Specialist, Canyons School District
avatar for Bernice Allen

Bernice Allen

Teacher Specialist, Canyons School District
avatar for LaNae Goates

LaNae Goates

instructional coach, Canyons School District
This is my 23rd year in education.  I have taught 2nd-6th grade at the elementary level.  I have been an instructional coach for 14 years. I have my Reading, Math, ESL, Coaching, EdTech, and K-12 Literacy Specialist Endorsement.  I am also LETRS Certified.  I worked for 4 years... Read More →
avatar for Dr. Jennifer Throndsen

Dr. Jennifer Throndsen

Educational Consultant, Impactful Learning Designs
With over 20 years of experience in education, Jennifer Throndsen, PhD, has served in various roles across the classroom, school, district, and state levels. Her career includes positions as an elementary and middle school teacher, instructional coach, adjunct faculty, district office... Read More →
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
2412

9:30am MDT

Reaching Every Learner: Strategies for Differentiating Writing and Math
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
This professional development session focuses on practical strategies to support students at different learning levels in both writing and math. In the writing portion, teachers will explore ways to support student thinking and participation through structured class discussions with sentence frames, guided brainstorming, and the use of clear rubrics to support students throughout the writing process. In the math portion, participants will learn how to incorporate engaging, student-friendly activities using Canvas, implement choice boards to provide differentiated practice, and build fluency and motivation through interactive practice. These strategies are designed to help teachers create accessible learning opportunities so every student can participate and grow.
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
2414
  Instructional Priorities

9:30am MDT

Student-Talk and Movement Strategies to Support Vocabulary Acquisition and Retention
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
In this break-out, two different student-talk / vocabulary strategies will be demonstrated with attendees acting in the student roles. Krista Edwards and Emily Gonzalez will model strategies for Tier 1 Vocabulary Instruction, using lessons that they have used in the past and taught with improved student outcomes and student engagement. Krista will start with demonstrating a lesson pairing visual scaffolds to vocabulary acquisition, and Emily will demonstrate a strategy using physical movement in a World Language classroom to support vocabulary acquisition. Following these two demonstrations, there will be time for a debrief and conversation on how these strategies apply to your classroom and content. Teachers will leave with the confidence that they have actionable strategies they can implement immediately.
Presenter
avatar for Krista Edwards

Krista Edwards

Instructional Coach
avatar for Emily Gonzalez

Emily Gonzalez

High School Spanish Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
2307

9:30am MDT

The Collaborative Classroom: Using Quality Interactions and Mind Mirrors to Boost Engagement
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
We will be presenting on a QTEL lesson structure we have implemented in the classroom. This strategy includes reading in 4 voices, collaboration, creating a mind mirror of the character you are reading about, and presentation skills.
Presenter
avatar for Caitlin Barrus

Caitlin Barrus

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
I am currently getting ISTE certified. Additionally, I am an eMINTS affiliate trainer, and have presented on the use of SAMR and TPACK.
avatar for Lindsey Hausknecht

Lindsey Hausknecht

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
Tuesday June 2, 2026 9:30am - 10:30am MDT
3503

10:40am MDT

Access for All: Making Strong Instruction Work for Every Learner
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
We will show how WICOR strategies can be utilized for every learner, with an emphasis on special education access. We plan to model and showcase at least one strategy for every WICOR element that can be used in most classrooms.
Presenter
avatar for Susie Baer Young

Susie Baer Young

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District

avatar for Kayla Alexander

Kayla Alexander

ACC Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
2311

10:40am MDT

Fitting the Pieces: Making Arts Integration Work Across Every Subject Without Reinventing the Wheel
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
Arts integration isn't about adding more to your plate—it's about enriching what you're already teaching. In this interactive session, we'll explore how to weave the arts into existing assignments and curricula in ways that feel natural, not forced. Regardless of what subject you teach, you'll discover practical strategies for helping students make powerful connections across disciplines. We'll look at how arts-integrated assignments boost retention, critical thinking, and student engagement.
Presenter
avatar for Jenni Perkins

Jenni Perkins

Instrumental Music Teacher
avatar for Sarah Mazuran

Sarah Mazuran

Visual Arts Teacher
Being a middle school Visual Arts teacher is important to me because it is one of the most rewarding jobs and it has become a deeply meaningful career. I never know what is going to happen that day in class but I do know that it will be dynamic and never boring! Everyday I get to... Read More →
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
3412

10:40am MDT

Writing to Learn Engagement Strategies
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
This will focus on strategies for integrating writing as a learning tool into every grade level and content area. It is perfect for any educator who wants to unleash the power of writing to help students access rigorous content and deepen understandings through the frequent use of robust learning through writing strategies.
Presenter
avatar for Brittany Ashe

Brittany Ashe

Instructional coach, Canyons School District
I have been in education for 14 years, teaching at both the elementary and secondary levels. For the past 8 years, I have served as an instructional coach at the middle school level within the Canyons School District. I am deeply passionate about empowering both teachers and students... Read More →
avatar for Andrea Wells

Andrea Wells

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
Educator for 15+ years. Currently working as a secondary instructional coach. I enjoy collaborating on literacy strategies and working on remodeling projects around the house.
Tuesday June 2, 2026 10:40am - 11:40am MDT
2305

12:40pm MDT

Easy and Effective Ways to Infuse Inquiry
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
In this interactive session, you will immerse yourself in a new blend of easy and innovative inquiry-infused strategies that promise to elevate rigor and engagement in your classroom. These strategies are not only simple to implement, but also require minimal preparation, making them accessible to teachers of all experience levels. Please join us to discover and engage in practical techniques that immediately enhance student learning. Don’t miss this opportunity to infuse your classroom with inquiry-based strategies that amplify rigor, collaboration, student engagement, and relational capacity.
Presenter
avatar for Amy Guyaux

Amy Guyaux

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
avatar for Jay Rudel

Jay Rudel

AVID Specialist
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
2507

12:40pm MDT

ImmersionED: Step Into History. Make the Call. Live the Outcome.
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
ImmersionED is a scenario based interactive website with adaptive simulations to help deepen learning, build content knowledge and critical thinking skills. It is aligned to the state standards and includes lesson plans and auto-graded assignments with feedback. The kids are asked to make decisions and support their decisions but the best part is each decision will lead to different outcomes and the program adapts as they respond to help them build skills of defending their decisions or guiding them to make better decision. It is like a choose your own adventure but based on your standards and criteria.  This can be done as a class, alone, or multiplayer. Right now they have US, Modern World, Ancient World, and Geography but they are partnering with Universities to create and expand so in the near future will be Economics, Business, Math, Science and more PLUS a create your own course where you can build a course from scratch with the help of AI.  The focus will be on building your own course. 
Presenter
avatar for Christiana Forbush

Christiana Forbush

Social Studies Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
2509

12:40pm MDT

Socratic Seminars: Speaking & Listening by Design
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
This professional development session supports educators with a practical system for implementing AVID Socratic seminars at elementary and secondary levels—grounded in WICOR/WISR learning supports and structured around four phases: text selection, preparation, execution, and reflection. Participants will learn how to facilitate rigorous classroom discussions that build academic language, critical thinking, and speaking & listening skills while maintaining high challenge and high support for all learners. The result is a sustainable approach to structured dialogue that increases rigor and deepens student engagement across content areas.
Presenter
avatar for Ashley Skillman

Ashley Skillman

2nd Grade Teacher
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
2218

12:40pm MDT

The Book was Better (But Was it Really?): Using Book-to-Media Adaptations in Instruction
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT

The Book Was Better explores the thrills and pitfalls of middle-grade and young adult book-to-movie adaptations. We will examine how beloved stories are transformed—sometimes faithfully, sometimes frustratingly—when they hit the big screen or streaming platforms. From casting controversies to plotline overhauls, the conversation will dive into what adaptations get right, what they get wildly wrong, and why it matters to tween and teen readers. It will also highlight how these adaptations can be leveraged in the classroom and library to spark engagement, fuel book circulation, and support media literacy conversations. Attendees will leave with programming ideas, booklists, and talking points to help students critically compare page and screen.
Presenter
avatar for Gretchen Zaitzeff

Gretchen Zaitzeff

District library media specialist, Canyons School District
As co-lead of the Utah Information, News, and Media Literacy Collaborative, Gretchen Zaitzeff brings a strong background in fostering critical media engagement and empowering educators to integrate information, news, and media literacy across the curriculum. She works as the District... Read More →
Tuesday June 2, 2026 12:40pm - 1:40pm MDT
3410

1:50pm MDT

Engaging and rigorous strategies to improve learning
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
We will present simple interactive collaborative strategies to increase engagement and rigor in classrooms everyday across all content areas
Presenter
avatar for Leigh Anstadt

Leigh Anstadt

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
2214

1:50pm MDT

Reciprocal Teaching: Integrating Reading Comprehension Skills to Increase Student Engagement
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
Reciprocal teaching is a way students can take more responsibility for their reading and learning. Through the use of predicting, clarifying, questioning and summarizing, students share the reading comprehension responsibilities, then have an authentic student-driven discussion about the text's content. We will focus on what reciprocal teaching can look like in an elementary classroom.
Presenter
avatar for Rachelle Pease

Rachelle Pease

Instructional Coach
HV

Heidi Vincent

Instructional Coach
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
2218

1:50pm MDT

Student Talk
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
This presentation focuses on how to get students engaged with content through partner, small group, and whole class discussions. I’ll share practical strategies to help students overcome the common obstacles that keep them from talking, along with teaching moves that help create a classroom environment where student talk and ideas are encouraged, valued, and rewarded.
Presenter
RB

Raquel Bucio

8th Grade Science Teacher, Canyons School District
Tuesday June 2, 2026 1:50pm - 3:00pm MDT
3414
 
Wednesday, June 3
 

9:10am MDT

Money in the Bank: Content Literacy Made Easy
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
Literacy in the secondary classroom doesn't have to feel scary! In this session we'll provide easy, supportive techniques for how to build up all student vocabularies that you can build into your routines, regardless of content area. Literacy is everyone's responsibility, so let's help students grow their literacy skills!
Presenter
avatar for Sydnie Schoepf

Sydnie Schoepf

Instructional Coach, Hillcrest High, Canyons District
Sydnie has 17 years in education and a PhD in Curriculum & Instruction. She loves to nerd out about all things learning and EdTech. When she's not working, you can catch her playing with her two puppies, reading, or both.
avatar for April Hamm

April Hamm

ELD/Literacy Teacher, Canyons School District
I am a Literacy teacher at Hillcrest High School. I have taught elementary school for many years, and I am very interested in using technology to increase students' reading ability and vocabulary. I have experience teaching small group intervention, ESL, and have worked with all grades... Read More →
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
3406

9:10am MDT

Movement in Math
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
We're going to show ways to get students moving during the math block in elementary classes through active engagment.
Presenter
avatar for Shannon Saltzsieder

Shannon Saltzsieder

Second Grade Teacher, Canyons School District
avatar for Meredith Dolny

Meredith Dolny

Specialist
Chat with me about all things play and movement! Recess, PE, movement in your classroom--anything!
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
2212

9:10am MDT

Structured Classroom Discussion in the Younger Grades
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
We will be presenting on how you can setup Structured Classroom Discussion in progression to go from partner talk to socratic seminar
Presenter
avatar for LaNae Goates

LaNae Goates

instructional coach, Canyons School District
This is my 23rd year in education.  I have taught 2nd-6th grade at the elementary level.  I have been an instructional coach for 14 years. I have my Reading, Math, ESL, Coaching, EdTech, and K-12 Literacy Specialist Endorsement.  I am also LETRS Certified.  I worked for 4 years... Read More →
avatar for Amy Dinkelman

Amy Dinkelman

Kindergarten Teacher
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
2509

9:10am MDT

The journey from Spoon-feeding to Chopsticks: Using Rigor and Quality Interactions
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
Quality Interactions paired with maintaining rigor is key to learning.
Presenter
avatar for Courtney Long

Courtney Long

Principal
Wednesday June 3, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am MDT
3511

10:20am MDT

Collaborative Quests: Enhancing Peer Collaboration through Student Talk
Wednesday June 3, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am MDT
What if AI could help students talk more, not less? In this hands-on model lesson, participants step into a student role and experience a collaborative simulation set in the world of "The Giver". Each person takes on a secret role in a town hall meeting and uses AI guided prompts, hidden memories, moral dilemmas, and character motivations to spark live student to student discussion. Built around the QTEL PIE framework: Prepare, Interact, Extend; this session invites educators to experience the lesson and then debrief how the chatbot supports engagement, peer collaboration, and standards based instruction.

Although the example uses "The Giver," the approach can be adapted across grade levels and content areas, from science debates to historical simulations to collaborative math problem solving. Participants will leave with a practical model for using AI as a behind the scenes facilitator that amplifies student voice, supports purposeful talk, and deepens engagement with content, with one another, and with complex ideas. Ideal for classroom teachers, instructional coaches, and leaders looking for student-centered ways to integrate AI into instruction.
Presenter
avatar for Scott Christensen

Scott Christensen

Secondary ELA Specialist, Canyons School District
Scott Christensen brings 20+ years of experience in education as a teacher, instructional coach, and education specialist in grades K-12 in public schools and charter schools from Washington State, Florida, North Dakota, and Utah. He has taught English/Language Arts in grades 7-11... Read More →
Wednesday June 3, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am MDT
3414

10:20am MDT

Movement in Math
Wednesday June 3, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am MDT
We're going to show ways to get students moving during the math block in elementary classes through active engagment.
Presenter
avatar for Shannon Saltzsieder

Shannon Saltzsieder

Second Grade Teacher, Canyons School District
avatar for Meredith Dolny

Meredith Dolny

Specialist
Chat with me about all things play and movement! Recess, PE, movement in your classroom--anything!
Wednesday June 3, 2026 10:20am - 11:20am MDT
2212
  Instructional Priorities

1:45pm MDT

From Chaos to Conversation 101: Structuring Classroom Talk
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
This session is geared towards new teachers, teachers who are struggling to implement structured classroom discussion, or those that just need a refresher in best practices. We will be focusing on four main components of discussion in our classrooms, and how to ensure student accountability for conversation.
Presenter
avatar for Annie Nixon

Annie Nixon

Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
avatar for Kristen Baird

Kristen Baird

Instructional coach
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
2503

1:45pm MDT

From Struggle to Strength: Helping Students Do the Heavy Lifting with Amplify Desmos Math Tasks
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
In a weight room, the best spotters know exactly when to step in and when to let the athlete do the work. Teaching with Amplify is no different! As we prepare for full implementation next year, join us to explore the "heavy lifting" students need to do to truly grow. We’ll bridge the gap between the pedagogical research (the "why") and real-world classroom evidence of students building confidence by tackling challenges head-on (the "how"). You’ll leave with a clear map for moving from "helper" to "facilitator" and strategies to help your students take ownership of their own learning journey.
Presenter
avatar for Cynthia Lloyd

Cynthia Lloyd

Teacher Specialist, Canyons School District
Cynthia Lloyd is the Elementary Math, Science, and STEM Specialist in Canyons School District who helps teachers unlock the power of math to spark scientific inquiry and real-world problem-solving. She is passionate about designing integrated, hands-on learning experiences that connect... Read More →
HS

Hannah Seguin

3rd Grade Teacher, Canyons School District
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
2412

1:45pm MDT

Jazz Up Your Reading By Using Collaboration
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
Ready to energize your reading instruction? In this interactive session, participants will explore active reading strategies that “jazz up” literacy through purposeful collaboration. Attendees will learn creative and structured ways to partner students so they read, think, and process text together in meaningful ways.
Participants will leave with ready-to-implement structures that increase student voice, accountability, and engagement while building strong comprehension skills through collaborative learning.
Presenter
avatar for Michele Law

Michele Law

Sprucewood Elementary 2nd Grade Team Leader, Canyons School District
Kindergarten through 3rd Grade iPads
avatar for Alisa Hyer

Alisa Hyer

Secondarly Literacy Instructional Coach, Canyons School District
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
3418

1:45pm MDT

Make Student Talk a Routine
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
This presentation will give tips and tricks on how to increase Student Talk during independent work time and ways to easily implement routines for Student Talk into lessons that teachers already have!
Presenter
Wednesday June 3, 2026 1:45pm - 3:00pm MDT
2507
 


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