Please join NCCAT for The Maker Mindset in Cullowhee August 14-18. A current trend in education uses the maker mindset to encourage students of all ages to build, design, program, solve problems, collaborate, and innovate. Learn to plan lessons that teach the maker mindset and pull in content as diverse as engineering, reading, and math! In this hands-on session you'll explore how you might use maker activities in your classroom to promote learning, foster engagement, and build innovation and creativity in your students. Topics include: design, 3D printing, building, invention, robotics, programming, electronics, app smashing, and more! This program is open to teachers in grades 3-12.

Join NCCAT for "Let's Up Your Physical Education Game" this August in Ocracoke. Physical education plays an important role in the overall educational process. An effective program can help boost academics for the entire school. While games have played a central role in modern day physical education, we should remember that less than 25% of adults will actively participate in sports as adults. This program will introduce a wider range of healthy lifestyle activities that students can experiment with, learn to enjoy and play, and potentially continue throughout their lives. This session is designed for K-12 physical education teachers who want to learn new and exciting ways to up their classroom “game.” 

Please join NCCAT in August for "Building Thinking Classrooms in Secondary Mathematics" in Ocracoke. Now more than ever, middle and high school students need math classroom structures that honor their strengths and promote mathematical thinking. Join us as we explore highly effective teaching practices that get students up out of their seats and engaged in thinking mathematically. Sessions for this program will examine selecting math tasks, strategies for engaging learners in mathematics, and formative assessments. This program is open to math teachers in grades 5-12. 

Join NCCAT August 7-10 in Cullowhee for - Environment and Genetics: The Science Connection. Our physical, psychological, and emotional well-being are interconnected. Through experiential lessons learn about the latest research on the connection between our environment and our genetics. Participants will study light, circadian rhythms, genetics, body systems, macromolecules, and more found in science standards grades 3-12. Literacy, science, and social studies will be featured in our activities as we discover how to make science standards applicable to our student’s lives.

The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) hosted the 2023 Inclusion Summit in June. The Inclusion Summit was hosted by Western Carolina University. The Annual Inclusion Summit brings various disability inclusion stakeholders together to discuss current practices and future innovations. Invited participants included presenters from among educators, school administrators, and related service providers. This year’s theme, Transitioning Across the Lifespan, reflected on the understanding that every step of life development involves small and large transitions. Events helped equip participants to practice and advocate for better inclusion of individuals with disabilities.

Teachers from across North Carolina joined us for "K-5: Literacy for Multilingual Learners" recently at NCCAT Ocracoke. The five components of effective literacy instruction are of particular importance to our Multilingual Learners and include Phonological Awareness, Phonics, Fluency, Vocabulary, and Comprehension. Writing is also a key component and is one avenue for meaningful use of language. Multilingual Learners can often participate in writing activities, even when their speaking skills are limited. These Elementary ESL teachers explored these components while collaborating with colleagues and a former district ESL coach to learn how to help their students improve their literacy skills based on reading science.

The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) was proud to once again host the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership at N.C. State University Summer Institute. This year there are 38 outstanding K-12 educators from North Carolina public and charter schools who make up the 2023-24 Kenan Fellows. These educators, hailing from 25 counties across the state, represent diverse grade levels and subject areas including math, science, Career Technical Education (CTE), special education, and English Language Arts. The Kenan Fellows Program provides teachers with invaluable experiences in industry and research settings and supports them in translating their internship experiences into a wealth of instructional resources that are shared with their schools, districts, and communities.