Pre-Conference Sessions

Leveraging What We Know About the Middle School Brain and Mind (without AI) 

with Glenn Whitman

Every day, in every school around the world, every middle school student will bring their brain to school. Whether the most complex organ in the body is maximized as a thinking, feeling, and learning tool takes teachers and school leaders knowing how the brain and mind work, learn, change, and thrive, especially in one of the most neuroplastic times of child development: the middle school years. 

This workshop will begin or elevate each participant's current understanding of the most promising research, strategies, principles, and mindsets in the science of learning. Teachers and school leaders will deepen their understanding of the connection between cognition and emotion, attention and motivation, and how to make learning "desirably difficult." This will be a multiple-modality, multiple-sensory adult learning experience that uses the science of learning to teach the science of learning. Participants will leave this workshop with next-day strategies and frameworks to apply in their school's context with their school's students. We will also have a lot of fun!

In advance of this session, participants are encouraged to read "We're Answering AI and Ed Tech Questions in the Wrong Order" from the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning.

The Successful Middle School: A Place to Belong & Become 

with Laurie Barron

Young adolescents have a profound need to belong and a deep desire to discover who they are and who they want to become. In this interactive full-day workshop, participants will explore the foundational structures and daily practices that create successful middle schools where students feel connected, valued, challenged, and empowered. Drawing from The Successful Middle School: A Place to Belong & Become, participants will examine how building a common understanding, understanding young adolescents, and organizing for success provide the foundation for student growth. The workshop will also highlight practical strategies for creating connections and community, believing in students, supporting academic success and personal development, fostering student voice and choice, developing leadership, and celebrating each student's journey.

Honoring the conference theme, "Strut Your Stuff – Fashioning Inspired Minds," this session challenges educators to first find their own inspiration so they can create the conditions that allow students to confidently showcase their strengths, discover their potential, and contribute their unique gifts to the world. Participants will leave with research-based insights, practical tools, and immediately applicable strategies for helping every young adolescent belong, become, and ultimately strut their stuff.

Passionate Readers and Learners: The Art of Engaging and Empowering Middle School Students

with Pernille Ripp

Are you ready to stop chasing compliance and start cultivating true dynamic engagement in your middle school classroom? This full-day pre-conference workshop reclaims the spark that makes middle school learning extraordinary. Together, we will step into the shoes of our students to answer the ultimate challenge: "Would you want to be a student in your own classroom?" Through honest reflection, practical tools, and student-centered strategies, we will explore how to dismantle rigid compliance systems, curate classroom libraries that build reading stamina, restore authentic student autonomy, and leverage genuine student choice to re-engage even our most resistant learners.

Middle schoolers don't need another scripted program or rigid management system; they need ownership, connection, and a learning environment built on trust and respect. In this immersive, interactive workshop, you’ll discover how to design learning spaces where student identity drives daily instruction, conferring deepens relationships, and reading and writing become meaningful acts of self-discovery rather than checklist items. You will walk away not only with actionable frameworks to foster a thriving, choice-rich literacy community on day one, but with a renewed passion for the profound impact you have as an educator. Join us to transform your practice, empower your middle schoolers, and rebuild a classroom culture where every voice matters.

Unmasking the Manosphere: Tackling Misogyny in the Middle Years 

with Matt Pinkett

From Andrew Tate to the algorithms that amplify him, the manosphere is reaching boys younger than ever — and middle level educators are on the front line. This practical, full-day workshop explores why young adolescent boys are drawn to online misogyny, what it does to their wellbeing, motivation and relationships, and what schools can actually do about it. 

Drawing on research from my books Boys Don't Try?, Boys Do Cry and Unmasking the Manosphere, participants will leave with concrete classroom strategies, whole-school approaches, and the confidence to have honest conversations with boys — challenging misogyny firmly while keeping boys onside. Suitable for teachers, counsellors and leadership alike.

Designing Learning Experiences with AI: From Expertise to Impact 

with Joe Dale

Artificial intelligence is creating new opportunities for educators to design engaging learning experiences, support diverse learners and reduce workload. However, its greatest value lies not in replacing professional expertise but in amplifying it.

This highly interactive workshop explores how AI can enhance teachers' expertise, strengthen instructional design, unlock creativity, and maximise classroom impact. Through four practical, hands-on sessions, participants will explore responsible AI use, develop curriculum-aligned learning experiences, create engaging visual and multimedia resources, and use AI to improve accessibility, differentiation and assessment.

Participants will experiment with practical workflows, collaborate through a shared Padlet, and leave with a collection of adaptable resources and strategies that can be implemented immediately in their own classrooms. Throughout the workshop, the emphasis remains firmly on teacher agency, creativity and professional expertise. AI is not the star of the show. Teachers are.

Voices of the Middle Land: Building Ownership and Culture Through Voice, Choice and Agency 

with Max Bayston, Jenna Pallio, and the students and staff of American School of Milan

Through a combination of events, activities and a commitment to everyday culture, students feel empowered to take ownership of their learning and broader school environment. Facilitated by student groups and key educators, this workshop will explore the role of voice, choice and agency in creating a truly student-centered learning environment.

Rather than an expert delivery, this session will feature educators working together to unpack what student voice means to them. This exploration is suitable for any educator interested in the role of student voice.

We will:

• Define the core framework of student-centered learning and establish common terminology using real-world classroom examples.

• Explore how routine teacher language, classroom norms, and daily decision-making build a culture of trust and autonomy.

• Analyze practical strategies for integrating choice into assignments, self-assessment, and unit design.

• Hear directly from student leaders and teachers on designing impactful, student-led campus events and initiatives.

• Draft immediate, actionable takeaways for your own school setting, followed by an open Q&A with ASM student leaders.