In today’s classrooms, student success requires more than covering content, it demands instruction that intentionally builds the skills students need to think, collaborate, communicate, and solve problems. This session introduces The Four Pillars – Collaboration, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Communication – as a powerful instructional framework for designing rigorous, engaging learning experiences.

Participants will explore what the Four Pillars look like in classrooms and learn how to embed them into daily instruction. 

Outcome: Participants will leave with ready-to-implement instructional strategies, planning tools, and concrete classroom applications that immediately increase student engagement, rigor, and ownership of learning.

AI is rapidly reshaping the classroom, yet many educators still feel uncertain about how to use it responsibly and effectively. This session provides teachers with hands-on, classroom-ready strategies that strengthen, not replace, their instruction. Participants learn how AI can support lesson design, scaffolds, student feedback, and personalization for diverse learners.

Outcome: Participants will leave with practical, classroom-ready strategies, clear guidelines for responsible AI use, and increased confidence using AI as a thoughtful instructional partner.

Modern classrooms demand more planning time than teachers realistically have. AI can help, but only when used intentionally, ethically, and within a strong framework. In this session, teachers learn practical strategies that streamline planning while maintaining instructional quality and teacher autonomy.

Outcomes: Participants will leave with practical strategies for using AI during the planning process to design intentional, responsive, and student-centered lessons.

This session moves beyond the “Is it AI?” guessing game and reframes generative AI as a purposeful instructional partner in the writing classroom. Grounded in the Four Pillars – Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Collaboration, and Communication – participants will explore how to teach students to use AI ethically and effectively to support pre-writing, revision, feedback, and the development of authentic voice.

Outcome: Teachers will use AI to support pre-writing and revision, design writing tasks that strengthen critical thinking and problem solving, and move beyond detection toward instruction that promotes meaningful communication and student ownership of learning.

This session supports special education teachers, co-teachers, and paraeducators in using AI to differentiate instruction, generate scaffolded materials, adapt writing tasks, and build independence for diverse learners. Participants learn how AI can reduce teacher workload while preserving individualized instruction and how the Four Pillars create a shared structure for both general and special educators.

Outcome: Educators leave with accessible tools, modified templates, and strategies for co-planning that improve outcomes for exceptional learners.

AVID routines are powerful, but many teachers struggle to update them for today’s classrooms. This session shows how AI can enhance AVID strategies such as focused notes, tutorials, inquiry structures, goal-setting, and collaborative routines. Participants learn how to pair AVID’s frameworks with the Four Pillars to deepen thinking, expand access, and prepare students for a world where AI is an everyday tool.

Outcome: AVID teachers leave with practical strategies that they can bring straight to their classroom or AVID elective.

AI offers powerful language support when used intentionally, but it must be applied with linguistic expertise and care. This session explores how to pair research-based language development strategies with AI-supported scaffolds that strengthen reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Teachers learn how the Four Pillars naturally align with language acquisition and how to maintain students’ academic voice and integrity.

Outcome: Teachers gain tools that lower barriers to participation, build confidence, and accelerate academic language growth.

Career and technical programs are uniquely positioned to benefit from AI and the Four Pillars. This session helps CTE teachers learn how to incorporate workplace-relevant AI tools, authentic problem-solving tasks, and communication frameworks that mirror real-world expectations.

Outcome: CTE teachers gain tools that strengthen employability skills, improve project-based learning, and increase student engagement.

Career and technical programs are uniquely positioned to benefit from AI and the Four Pillars. This session helps CTE teachers learn how to incorporate workplace-relevant AI tools, authentic problem-solving tasks, and communication frameworks that mirror real-world expectations.

Outcome: CTE teachers gain tools that strengthen employability skills, improve project-based learning, and increase student engagement.

Designed for administrators, directors, instructional coaches, and district teams, this session clarifies how AI influences planning, pedagogy, assessment, and expectations across a system. Leaders learn how to establish responsible-use norms, support staff through transitions, and communicate with clarity.

Outcome: Leaders will understand what implementation should look like on a campus, what teachers truly need, and how to support sustainable, aligned use of AI and the Four Pillars.