Workshops

Please see below for summaries of the available workshops, to guide you as you complete your registration. Click on the presenter names for more information

Workshop Session 1

10:30 am -11:15 am

Primary Math Differentiation

Meghan Hurley and Kerrie Robins, Kingsway College School

Attendees will learn about how we plan, organize, and deliver our differentiated program. We will share our workshop format, favourite resources, and strategies for grouping students. We will also share suggestions for enrichment and for promoting positive mathematical mindsets.

Executive Functions: A Primary Approach

Mara Berzins and Nicola Daykin, Montcrest

Attendees will learn how executive functioning affects any child's experience of school, how to develop a common language and a bank of strategies (for students, and for educators) in support of executive functioning. We will also have an opportunity to discuss and troubleshoot support for students you work with currently.

Use of Memory Aides/Cueing Sheets

Samira Sud and Natasha Taylor, Bishop Strachan School

This workshop offers an exploration of memory processes, including the distinctions between short-term, long-term, and working memory. Participants will gain an understanding of the learning loop, focusing on the roles of encoding and retrieval in effective learning. Key topics include immediate, delayed, and cued recall, as well as the fundamentals of memory aids—when they are beneficial and when they may not be appropriate. The session will also include a discussion on the importance of establishing clear guidelines for the provision and use of memory aids in schools, ensuring they support students' learning in an effective and structured manner.

Changing Role of LS teachers in High School

Laura Callaghan and Erin Hogin, St. Michael’s College School

This workshop will be a dialogue about the changing roles of the Learning Strategist in gr.7-12. There will be a facilitated discussion, questionnaire and shared resources Teachers will have a forum to discuss, share and learn current practices of different school models for support. There will be a take-away resource package that includes: exam study schedules by grade, organizational/time management schedules including homework planning, reading strategies, and exemplars.

Championing Student Voice and Strengths-Based Language in the IEP Process: All Levels

Marcin Ciesielski, Lisa McMeans and Marysia Robins, Montcrest

In this session you will explore Montcrest's journey in redefining our Individualized Education Plan (IEP). We'll share how we shifted our "why," moving from a deficit-focused model to a strengths-based, student-centered approach. We’ll walk through the practical processes we took to revamp our IEPs, highlighting our focus on student strengths, stretches, and voice. We’ll discuss the impact we're seeing now and what we are envisioning for our next steps in further engaging students, parents, and teachers in knowing and engaging with their IEPs.

Supporting Well-Being: All Levels

Tamara Drummond and Emma Stewart, Kingsway College School and Montcrest

Students of all ages benefit from intentional support with understanding and creating agency for their overall well-being. By looking at ways of tracking individual and cohort trends that can support programming and individual support, to developing parent education, providing PD for staff, and ensuring there is dedicated time in our class and school schedules for well-being and SEL initiatives, participants will learn with each other as to how our schools can continue to grow and enhance the well-being of their students across the grades.

Workshop Session 2

12:45 pm -1:30 pm

Teaching Writing and Assessing Writing Using CBM-WE in Primary

Jenny Van Remortel and Lisa Woon, Kingsway College School

Participants will explore evidence-based strategies for teaching writing that align with Structured Literacy. The session will introduce a variety of resources, including The Writing Revolution, The Syntax Project, and more. Practical activities and examples will be shared, allowing educators to implement them in their classrooms right away. Additionally, participants will learn about the Curriculum-Based Measure of Written Expression, a screening tool used to assess foundational writing skills, identify at-risk students, and monitor progress—similar to a reading screener.

Neurodiversity in the Kindergarten Classroom

Diane Quatrale, Kingsway College School

This presentation will describe different strategies to address neurodiversity in a kindergarten classroom setting.

Becoming Skilled at Multiple Choice

K Kennedy, Bayview Glen

More info to come

Neurodiversity and Stress Tolerance: Secondary

Alexia Citak, Branksome Hall

This presentation will explore the intersection of neurodiversity and distress tolerance among students. With a specific focus on how neurodiverse students in grades 9–12—particularly those on the spectrum or with ADHD—experience challenges related to classroom learning, self-regulation, and self-advocacy. Through an overview of recent literature and case studies, participants will engage in a facilitated discussion on how students can use their strengths to support themselves and how we, as teachers or counselors, can help build their distress tolerance skills with practical strategies and a nurturing classroom environment. This collaborative session will encourage resource sharing and will be informed by learning at Landmark College's Summer Institute, a college that specializes in supporting a solely neurodiverse population of students.

Supporting the Social and Academic Success of Neurodivergent Students

Nicole Davies and Nicole Klement, St. Clement’s School

Increasingly, students are diagnosed with a neurodivergent condition, however, educators may struggle to understand and support these students. This workshop will help educators to understand the terms neurodiversity, neurodivergent, and neurotypical. With a focus on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD-1), We will discuss what we have learned about supporting students, particularly girls, with an ASD-1 diagnosis, including the common challenges and strengths for students with this profile. This workshop aims to provide a glimpse of the experience of our students with ASD-1 and those supports we have found successful in helping them thrive in our community.

Supporting Twice Exceptional Students

Kelly Marcella, and Julie Klein, University of Toronto School

Description: Twice-exceptional (2e) students possess both exceptional abilities and learning differences, creating a unique set of challenges and opportunities in the classroom. This session will explore the definition of 2e, common struggles these students face, and ways educators can create an inclusive and supportive learning environment. Through real-world case studies, we will examine effective teaching strategies and accommodations that leverage strengths and nurture areas of need.

Workshop Session 3

1:45 pm - 2:30 pm

Setting Up Kindergarteners for Success

Lise Russo, Kingsway College School

This targeted workshop focuses on early learning and kindergarten, emphasizing the importance of self-regulation in supporting early literacy development. It will also highlight the role of core strength in a child's overall development and learning process.

Science of Math Learning: Primary

Lauren McGuire and Jillian Green, Mabin School

After spending a few years transitioning to best practices in literacy instruction and delving more into understanding cognitive neuroscience, our teachers have taken a deep dive into math and how it relates to the science of learning. We set the following goals for ourselves: • Provide teachers with PD to build their current pedagogical knowledge in the area of mathematics • Learn how to support students who struggle with math • Answer with consistency the question: “What does math look like at Mabin?” What is our philosophy, our common beliefs, what practices will you see in every classroom? And.. • What do we add and what do we subtract? What misconceptions do we hold that are not supporting student learning?

Prioritizing Student-Driven Learning and Leadership for All (KCS Sr. School Path Program)

Andrea Fanjoy, Kingsway College School

Attendees will learn about what the KCS Senior School has developed to better help all students thrive at high school and in their future lives as learners and leaders.

Transitioning Students with IEPs from Secondary to Post Secondary

Andrea Leacock, Country Day

This workshop is for teachers of students in Grade 11 and 12 who want to better support their students with learning disabilities as they transition from high school to a post-secondary institution, a pivotal transition time. Discover practical strategies to help our students build self-advocacy skills early, while exploring key steps and resources that make the transition smoother and more successful.

Executive Functioning: All Levels

Jessica Deakin, Matthews Hall

Executive functioning is, arguably, the most important skill in a learner's toolbox that allows them to access the curriculum. With so many demands on their schedules, both at our busy school and in their active social commitments outside of school, learners are being pulled in so many directions. Not to mention tech which seems designed to undermine our executive functioning skills. So, then, what's an educator to do? I work with so many children who need explicit support with meta-cognition, and I have begun to incorporate it more and more into my teaching practices.

The Learning Strategies and Student Success Conference 2025

Workshops

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