Kane County Regional Office of Education

Fostering a strong community in your classroom is a crucial component of a positive learning environment. Faye Licari has an inspiring Branching Out strategy for students to share their learning experience. This can not only strengthen their emotional intelligence, but also their bond with one another!

Sending communications and marketing knowledge back to the classroom! Our Communications/Website Coordinator, Kourtney Lipps ('21), recently went back to Aurora University to speak to students as part of a Communications Alumni Panel. From finding stories and creating content that connect with audiences to sharing insights on how to enter the workforce, we appreciate this opportunity!

We aim to provide professional learning experiences that can make a meaningful impact on classroom practices while empowering educators with strategies and ideas that allow them to guide their students to success. While this content takes many forms, much of it is offered through the Illinois Online Academy. Our team recently walked through the work that goes into shaping this near-decade-old platform, and how the districts we serve play a crucial role in the process. https://lnkd.in/dJPU4Ja

Life happens, and that can include your phone breaking or going missing when you least expect it. This is why creating a backup of your data can save your from losing vital information, such as photos and messages. In this Tuesday Tech Tip, Phil Morris continues his series on optimizing your mobile device by covering each step of backing up your phone, ensuring your data is always safe in case of an emergency!

The 2025 Raising Student Achievement Conference is set for December 8-9 in Oak Brook, Ill., and the window to submit applications for breakout presentations or to be a feature school/district is now open! RSAC is a two-day, immersive professional learning opportunity that drew over 900 people to attend more than 180 presentations last year. Visit rsac.iarss.org to to learn more and submit your proposal or application.

Our 2025 slate of Evaluator Academies begins this month! Whether online or in-person, initial training or retraining, we have 15 separate academies open for registration from April through September. Find your best option to fulfill this evaluator designation requirement: https://bit.ly/3DHsbR6

Would you like to help students learn from their accomplishments? This Branching Out strategy from Jordan Eggleson prompts them to present a success story to peers and answer resonating questions. This activity provides students an opportunity to reflect on what led to that achievement and what it taught them about success.

Designed with school and district staff members at all levels in mind, our annual Adaptive Schools Seminar is coming this May. If you manage or work with shared decision-making groups or faculty groups, these four sessions will help you develop skills to become adaptive through successful, collaborative conversations with your teammates. Learn more about what this workshop can offer and register: https://lnkd.in/gva4Cgaq

Back-to-back Bees! Yahya Mohammed, a seventh grade student at Larsen Middle School in School District U-46, earned the title of Kane County Regional Spelling Bee Champion for the second straight year. With a correct spelling of “intersperse” as the winning word, Mohammed took the top prize out of eight competitors through 20 rounds. Second place went to Myles Godinez from Immanuel Lutheran School in East Dundee, while Diana Gomez from Dundee Middle School placed third. Mohammed is now eligible to advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee beginning May 27. Last year, Mohammed advanced to the second day and the fourth round of competition at nationals. Congratulations to all!

Analyzing student data is an essential tool for assessing and empowering those we teach. How we interpret this data impacts what trends we find in a classroom and how we might adjust instruction in response. This Branching Out strategy helps educators move beyond simply looking at numbers, using a three-column framework to guide meaningful analysis and next steps to drive instruction.