September's Professional Development Opportunities

In August, #nctechat's topic was professional learning networks (PLNs), which is near and dear to my heart. Near the end of the chat, the participants were asked to share their goals regarding PLNs in the next school year. One of my goals is to keep active in my PLN, which is easier said than done. Based on the first week of classes, this looks to be a busy semester! Luckily, there are some great professional development opportunities this month to help keep me engaged with my network and to provide support, ideas, and enthusiasm, even as things get busy.

ASCD has an intriguing webinar on "Designing Lessons that Foster Deep Understanding of Complex Texts" on September 29 at 3:00 pm. Since two of my classes are on teaching reading in the content areas, this is a webinar that I hope to attend. You can also access ASCD's impressive webinar archive if you want to see past topics.

AMLE consistently has some great offerings, and this month is no exception. Webinars include:

• Unleashing Teacher-led Innovation in the Middle Grades on September 2 at 4:00 pm ET
• Technology Integration in the Middle Level on September 9 at 4:00 pm ET
• Growing Resilience: Fall Down 7 Times, Get Up 8! on September 23 at 4:00 pm ET

#nctechat will be on Sunday, September 20 at 8:00 pm ET. This month's topic is "Say YA to Reading." 

edWeb.net has 19 free webinars throughout September. The topics range from using digital games in the classroom to tools for flipping the classroom to geometric reasoning. There's something for everyone here!