CONSULTING PHILOSOPHY

Building interactive, differentiated classrooms grounded in rich curriculum and tasks

I strive to empower teachers to become the next “version” of themselves as professionals by balancing the pressing need for significant shifts with feasible, practical upgrades to curriculum, assessment, and instruction. I believe that the change process is more iterative than linear and that there are many paths to continuous improvement. 

Interactive  Workshops

Jessica tailors workshops to the area of focus, client needs, audience type & size, and venue. Teachers experience the principles and practices of the topic through a range of modeled strategies and techniques. Lecture is limited and participants engage in rich collegial conversations activities. 

Example topics include:

• Differentiation in Elementary or Secondary Classrooms    
• Strategies for Interactive Teaching
• Strategies for Building Equitable Classrooms
• The Understanding by Design Curriculum Model
• Performance Task and Rubric Design
• Common Core ELA Standards Implementation
• Co-Teaching in the Differentiated Classroom

Design  Work

Jessica's Design Work includes a range of projects in curriculum, differentiation, professional development, & online learning.  For work related to Understanding by Design, she contracts through Jay McTighe & Associates.


Example projects include:

• Scope & Sequence Documents, Curricular Units, and Performance Assessments 
• Handbooks on Differentiated Instruction
• Online courses and content across a range of platforms and instructional designs. Clients have  included Learning Sciences International, ASCD, and Savant Learning Systems.
• Short- and Long-Term Professional Development Plans
• District Program Descriptions and Policy Documents

Lesson  Study

Jessica is well-versed in Lesson Study, a practice from Japan that involves teachers systematically and collaboratively working to plan, implement, discuss, and refine lessons.

Example district- or school-level work includes

• Intra-grade level teams
• ​Vertical teams (e.g., K-1, 6-8)
• Departmental teams (e.g., science, English)
• Teacher-Administrator Teams

Jessica's dissertation research The Influence of Lesson Study on How Teachers Plan For, Implement, and Understand Differentiated Instruction was awarded the 2010 Curry School of Education Bruce Gansneder Award for Excellence in Qualitative Methodology.

Program  Evaluation

Jessica conducts evaluations using a team approach. She enlists talented colleagues with complementary areas of expertise that are best-suited to the evaluation goals.

Examples include 

• School- or System-Wide Implementations of Differentiation 
• Curriculum
• Advanced Learning/Gifted Programs
• Specialized Schools

Connect

 INTERESTED IN A PROFESSIONAL CONSULTATION?

 Please reach out by sending her a message. Jessica looks forward to working with you.

CONNECT WITH JESSICA