Edvance Working Groups 2024
Edvance Working Groups bring together Edvance affiliate educators to collaborate and support each other in accomplishing a focus or task that’s important to their school. Attendees will do this work for their own school alongside others who are doing the same.
Edvance Working Groups build on the PSN's commitment to fostering relationships and resources: participants will deepen their relationships with others working in the same role, as well as gain valuable expertise that will impact their own and their school's best practices in the working group focus area.
Hosted by a paid facilitator, the working groups meet virtually each month from November to April.
Cost to participate: $100/participant (unless otherwise noted in the descriptions below). Schools will be charged up to a maximum of $500 +HST total across all participating staff.
Questions? Do you have an idea for a group we should add? Reach out to Justin Cook at justin.cook@edvance.ca
REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Registration for this year's Edvance Working Groups is now closed as of Friday, November 8th
Working Groups for All Educators
The purpose of this working group is to create a space where everyone in a role in education can learn together, engage in discussions, enhance their knowledge, and implement strategies for mental health and wellbeing in their classroom and beyond.
Target Audience: K-12 Educators, Student Support Workers, Administrators, and Mental Health practitioners
Resources: Experts in the field of mental health/social emotional learning will share their knowledge and expertise on various topics throughout the year, plus provide resources for educators in each topic area
Facilitator: Tricia Schinkel, with other guest speakers
The purpose of this working group is to explore and deepen our understanding of self-regulation, focusing on how we can help ourselves and our students develop this fundamental ability. We will examine the current theory of self-regulation and the supporting research. We will use the lens that this provides to reframe our students’ behaviour and to take action to foster self-regulation.
Target Audience: Elementary and Secondary classroom educators, Student Support Services Educators
Resource: We will be discussing the book Self-Reg Schools: A Handbook for Educators by Stuart G. Shanker and Susan Hopkins. To get the full benefit from the discussion please purchase the book.
Facilitator: Timothy Veenstra
Have you ever wondered how to systematically and explicitly teach writing? The Writing Revolution (Hochman & Wexler) offers a clear instructional method called the Hochman Method®. This approach can be applied across all grade levels and subject areas. Rather than serving as a separate curriculum, The Writing Revolution integrates seamlessly into existing curricula, providing strategies and activities
that complement content instruction.
The purpose of this working group is to create a collaborative space where educators can learn together, engage in discussions, deepen their understanding, and implement explicit writing instruction in the classroom.
Target Audience: K-12 educators, administrators
Resource: We will be working with the book: The Writing Revolution 2.0 by Judith Hochman and Natalie Wexler. All participants will be required to purchase a copy of the book. (If you have a copy of The Writing Revolution, purchasing The Writing Revolution 2.0 is optional)
Facilitator: Lisa VanderKuip
Working Groups specifically for Elementary Educators
Executive function helps students plan, focus attention, remember instructions, manage tasks, and regulate their behavior to achieve goals. These skills are essential for managing time, solving problems, and adapting to new situations. When students struggle with executive function, their learning and classroom engagement can be affected. However, there are tools and strategies we can teach to our whole class to support these skills, which in turn fosters a positive classroom environment.
The purpose of this working group is to provide a collaborative space where educators and leaders can learn together, engage in meaningful discussions, deepen their knowledge, and implement explicit instruction in executive function skills in the regular and resource classroom.
Audience: K-8 classroom teachers, Student Support/Resource teachers
Resource: We will be working through the book: Executive Function Skills in the Classroom: Overcoming Barriers, Building Strategies by Laurie Faith, Carol-Anne Bush and Peg Dawson. All participants will be required to purchase a copy of the book.
Facilitator: Lisa VanderKuip
Do you have a desire to “work smarter, not harder” as a kindergarten teacher? Would you be interested in collaborating with others from across the province to share resources, plans, assessment strategies and more? Although we work in different places around Ontario, we are on the
same team, helping kids to live, love, and learn for the glory of God. Join these once-a-month sessions to make your school life a little easier as we plan and prep materials to be used in your classroom.
Target Audience: Kindergarten teachers
Resource: Each month you’ll need to bring your resources relating to the topic being planned or prepped.
Facilitator: Stephanie Robinson
Join our teacher book club as we dive into the Responsive Classroom book, Solving Thorny Behavior Problems by Caltha Crowe. This group will keep members accountable for reading the book, while providing a collaborative space to share insights, discuss challenges, and learn practical strategies for managing classroom behavior.
Target Audience: Grade 3-8 Teachers
Resource: All participants are required to purchase a copy of the book Solving Thorny Behavior Problems by Caltha Crowe
Facilitator: Allison Hendriks
The purpose of this working group is to create a space where educators and leaders can learn together, engage in discussions, and enhance their knowledge of the Science of Reading as they begin their journey to implement explicit, systematic literacy instruction.
Target Audience: K-3 educators, Resource educators, Literacy Leads who are beginning with the Science of Reading journey
Resource: We will use the book - 7 Mighty Moves by Lindsay Kemeny to guide our discussions as we learn about the Science of Reading and how best to implement this new knowledge into our different learning settings. All participants will be required to purchase a copy of the book. To make the most of our short times together, it would be beneficial for participants to have the specified chapters read by our meeting times so we can use the time to discuss the material. You will find the chapters brief, practical and informative.
Facilitators: Doreen Breukelman & Jacquie DeRaaf
The purpose of this working group is to continue the conversation among literacy leaders and school administrators about research-based structured literacy practices. This group will support literacy leaders in the development of school-level evidence-based approaches, in designing coaching practices and professional learning opportunities, and in equipping leaders to enhance their leadership of structured literacy at their schools.
Target Audience: K-8 Literacy Leaders, Vice Principals, Principals
NOTE: This group is best suited for those who participated in the 2023/2024 Structured Literacy Working Group or those who are well-established in their structured literacy practices.
Facilitator: Carolyn Bentum
Working Groups specifically for Secondary Educators
The purpose of this working group is to create a space where educators and leaders can learn together, engage in discussions, enhance their knowledge, and implement practical instruction on assessment strategies in the classroom.
Target Audience: Grades 9-12 classroom educators
Resource: We will be working through the book: Challenging Feedback Through Feedback by James & Jill Nottingham. All participants are welcome to purchase this book, but it is not mandatory. As well, it is recommended educators be familiar with or read: Just Teaching by Jonathon Eckert. Eckert refers to Nottingham's model in his book which led to further research and the idea that the following sessions which primarily focus on assessment should pair nicely with the concepts from Edvance’s annual conference.
Facilitator: Shelley Albrecht
Register below to show your interest in this group. The facilitator will be emailing the group to establish meeting dates and topics.
Audience: Guidance counsellors in secondary schools
Facilitator: Linda Booy-Korvemaker
Working Groups for Principals, Vice-Principals, and Others
Ever feel like you're scrambling to plan an upcoming PD day? This group is for you. The recently released Edvance Flourishing Schools Health Indicators Dashboard includes the following health indicator in the "Vision" domain: "School has a professional learning plan in place that pursues the mission and vision with the staff." The dashboard also includes some templates to help you accomplish the indicator.
This working group is for school learning leaders who would like support from Edvance and each other in designing and implementing a staff professional learning plan using templates provided. The group will consider your school's identity, strategic priorities, and staff needs as the foundation on which to develop a comprehensive professional learning plan to shape you professional development calendar.
Facilitator: Justin Cook
The purpose of this working group is to create a space where leaders can learn and work together to create and implement tools that will support and enhance curriculum mapping and tracking within Christian Schools.
Target Audience: K-8 Curriculum Coordinators, Vice Principals, Administrators
Facilitators: Carla Alblas, Carolyn Bentum, Lisa VanderKuip
In today’s fast-paced digital world, educators face the challenge of guiding students through the complexities of technology while supporting their well-being. This school year, JOMO(campus) and Edvance are working together to bring you innovative initiatives that prioritize digital health, offering actionable strategies to create balanced, thriving school environments.
We invite you to embark on this journey with us through the following initiatives designed to empower educators, families, and students alike. There is no cost for Edvance affiliate schools to participate in these initiatives.
Target Audience: Principals, Vice Principals
Facilitator: Christina Crook
Cost: no cost for Edvance affiliate schools to participate
Digital Health Working Group (for school leaders)
This series of six interactive online meetings will provide a forum for discussing and learning practical insights and strategies to support digital flourishing in schools. If you are passionate about creating a balanced and healthy digital culture for students and staff, this is your opportunity to drive meaningful change in your school community.
Dates: December 3, January 14, February 11, March 4, April 8, May 6, from 1-2pm EST
The purpose of this working group is to create a space for those in a mental health professional role at school:
● To troubleshoot specific concerns and clinical or ethical needs
● To share resources
● To follow best practices and to meet requirements of governing bodies/colleges of
registration for peer supervision (SW/CRPO)
● To provide a sense of community and connection
● To provide personal support/stress
Target Audience: For those with paid contracts within the schools doing a clinical mental health role (Social Work, Psychotherapist, School Counsellor, etc.)
Facilitator: Tricia Schinkel
Affiliate school leaders are invited to join an Edvance working group with the following format:
- Attend a 2.5 day sector-leading training session on “Strategic Stewardship: A Finance Masterclass” held January 19-21, 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, FL, led by experts from the Herzog Foundation
- Participate with an Edvance working group in nine online meetings throughout the upcoming year to engage with, and implement, the strategies in your school
This initiative is designed for schools who are open to changing their school’s financial strategy. The working group will help schools implement the financial changes that they will learn about during the training. This will require commitment and work for the entire period of the program. If you are open to changing the financial strategy of your school but do not know how to start, this group is for you!
Space in the Herzog training session is limited, so act quickly to register and secure your spot in this session via the Herzog registration page! A more detailed description of this opportunity, link to register, location and agenda of the Herzog training, goals and expectations of participants is available here.
Cost: The Herzog Foundation will cover the costs of the training session, hotel for 2 nights, and food while at the training. Your main cost is the flights to get to Fort Lauderdale, FL (estimated at $300/person), transportation to and from the airport, and other incidentals.
Working Groups for Teaching for Transformation (TfT) Schools
NOTE: This Working Group has already started and registration is closed for 2024-25
This working group is specifically designed for current TfT schools that have hired new staff. The TfT 101 Onboarding Working Group will create a space where recently hired teachers can be fully onboarded and equipped for successful implementation of TfT so that they can join your school’s TfT journey.
As a year-long cohort, this working group will develop a thorough understanding of the TfT framework, learn and begin to use the core practices of TfT, develop and deepen their FLEx understanding and design, and receive some focused coaching and support as they begin their journey toward implementing TfT alongside
with the rest of your team.
Cost: $500/participant
Cohort Leader: Carolyn Bentum, VP of Learning & TfT Lead at Brantford Christian School
NOTE: These Working Groups have already started and registration is closed for 2024-25
The 201 Classroom Design Working Groups bring together teachers in specific roles to support and collaborate with each other in their ongoing TfT implementation. These teachers have already completed the first-year implementation journey supported by Edvance, and now want to collaborate with teachers in their similar role to deepen their practice of TfT.
Cost: $100/participant
Kindergarten (JK/SK) Working Group Leader: Stacy Kok, SK Teacher at Cairn Christian School
Primary (1-3) Working Group Leader: Danyse Nywening, Gr. 3 Teacher at Cairn Christian School
Junior (4-6) Working Group Leader: Jill Walters, Gr. 6 Teacher at Cairn Christian School
Intermediate (7-8) Working Group Leader: Carla Alblas, Gr. 7 Teacher at Providence Christian School
NOTE: This Working Group has already started and registration is closed for 2024-25
This working group is specifically designed for current TfT schools that want to deepen their own internal staff support in implementing TfT. The TfT Instructional Leaders Working Group will create a space where instructional leaders (principals, VPs, instructional leads) can receive ongoing TfT resources and support from Edvance and collaborate with each other as leaders in their own plans and resources, so that they can sustain and deepen their own school’s TfT journey.
This working group will develop a thorough understanding of coaching within the TfT framework, attend a coaching intensive conference hosted by CACE, and interact as a group to receive resources, collaborate on identifying staff learning priorities, and problem-solve challenging situations together.
Cost: $100/participant + attendance at the CACE TfT Coaching Intensive ($299 USD per person)
Cohort Leader: Justin Cook, Director of Learning at Edvance