Problem Solvers & Makers of Meaning

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Teacher Preparation

PEBC’s Teacher Residency program prepares college graduates to embark on exceptional teaching careers through an experiential licensure program.

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Professional Learning

PEBC supports teachers in all content areas and at all levels to become the educators they aspire to be. PEBC staff offer customized, contextualized professional learning targeting teaching for understanding.

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Policy

Local, state, and national leaders trust PEBC to inform the development of sound education policy that profoundly impacts success for students and teachers alike.
 

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Who We Are

Each and every child deserves a great teacher. As a nonprofit, we collaborate with schools, districts, legislators, and communities nationwide to recruit, train, develop and support educators who, in turn, support learners at all levels.

What We Do

We prepare outstanding new teachers, help good teachers and leaders become exceptional, and shape systems and policies that foster vibrant growth and lasting success for students and teachers.

How We Do It

The experts at PEBC are lifelong learners who celebrate independent thinking and work to foster agency for both teachers and students, culminating in deep understanding. Our Teaching Framework is based on 30 years’ learning alongside teachers – the approaches are not new, and yet they are not outdated. Educators at all levels can adapt this Framework to their own context and effectively strengthen students’ confidence and competence as problem solvers and makers of meaning.

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UPCOMING COURSES

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Jan. 21 and 28, 2021

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Phenomenal Teaching Symposium

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Self-paced modules

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Critical Practices in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education

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Feb. 25, March 4, and March 11, 2021

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Investigating Thinking Strategies

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Flexible: Self-Paced

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Remote Learning: How Parents/Guardians Can Help

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New and Notable

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Virtual Coaching

PEBC's expert facilitators are skilled at individual coaching as well as facilitating whole-staff, all-district sessions for teachers and leaders around a wide range of topics.

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Online Courses

Registration is now open for many of our fall events. We are also pleased to offer many online courses.

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Phenomenal Teaching

Wendy Ward Hoffer’s fifth book, Phenomenal Teaching, provides a wide range of examples and ideas to foster phenomenal thinking and learning in classrooms at all levels.

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LATEST PODCAST

Impact over Intention: Actions To Foster Positive Student Behavior

January 13, 2021

How can we be proactive in supporting positive student behavior?  Student behavior is a form of communication that students use to tell us what they are feeling, experiencing, and need.  Listen in as Brad Riley, Behavior Technician for Denver Public Schools, shares suggestions for teachers and school leaders to support positive student behavior as we …

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Removing the Masks of Disengagement

January 2, 2021

Every teacher dreads the question, “Why do I have to read this?” Listen in as Cris Tovani shares her CYA ~ Curriculum You Anticipate ~ planning structure. When planning for student engagement we must consider how Topic, Tasks, Time, Targets, Texts, and Tending all come together to create authentic learning experiences for students and teachers. …

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Talking About Talk During Distance Learning

December 10, 2020

In this episode PEBC Staff Developers Sathya Wandzek and Dr. Sarah Littmann-Berger join Michelle Morris Jones to talk about talk! The PEBC Teaching Framework highlights Discourse as an instructional strategy that supports student agency, equity, and understanding. John Hattie’s meta analyses indicate that student discourse has an effect size of .82 on student achievement. Distance …

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Reading Aloud in the Age of Distance Learning

December 3, 2020

Typically, Patrick Allen’s classroom brims with over 3,000 children’s books and his students pour over them tucked into nooks and crannies all around the room.  This year Patrick is teaching remotely and most of his collection is in storage;  yet he is still bringing the gift of high quality literature to his students each and …

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Leveraging Community & Workshop to Develop Mathematical Agency & Understanding

November 20, 2020

Why is math important? Why do so many people hate math? How can we promote positive STEM identity for all learners? Wendy Ward Hoffer and Michelle Morris Jones dive into these questions and more as they discuss ways to “turn over the mathematical gymnastics to the students” by developing Math Workshops that value community, problem …

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Facilitating Phenomenal Virtual Engagements: Connect Purpose, People, and Tools to Elevate the Impact of Our Virtual Meetings

November 12, 2020

As school leaders grapple with the many challenges related to leading schools during this time, the need for staff meetings, PLC’s, and professional learning remains constant.  PEBC’s Director of Leadership, Scott Murphy,  joins us to talk about the importance of facilitation and crafting high quality virtual engagements that are rooted in purpose while promoting human …

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Less is More: Mitigating Trauma So Teachers and Students Can Engage

November 5, 2020

Educators are heart centered individuals who can be caught up in the “more is more” culture, however, at this time it is crucial to embrace a “less is more”  attitude so that we can support students and colleagues who have experienced trauma.  Trauma is like a wound and takes time and attention to heal; however, …

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Elevating Teacher Voice: Education Policy Should Be All About People and Perspectives

October 29, 2020

When it comes to education policy, practicing educators need a voice at the table! Listen in as Evan Kennedy, PEBC Director of Strategic Initiatives and Policy, joins the Phenomenal Teaching podcast to share how PEBC works with local, state, and national leaders to inform the development of sound education policy.  Policy work is all about …

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Teacher Feature: Possibilities & Pitfalls of Virtual Learning

October 22, 2020

PEBC Lab Hosts Patrick Allen, Jenn Brauner, and Carrie Halbasch get real in a round table conversation about the possibilities and pitfalls of virtual teaching. All three of these Phenomenal Teachers are experienced educators whose classrooms exemplify the strands of the PEBC Teaching Framework, so what happened when they shifted to virtual learning? During our …

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A Day in the Life of a Virtual Learner with Mary Korte

October 15, 2020

Mary Korte is a PEBC Lab Host and primary teacher who has historically co-taught a multi-age primary class at the Jefferson County Open School. In years past Mary could be found sitting eye to eye with her young learners and discussing the ways in which words can create beautiful images for readers or how the …

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LATEST POSTS

Supporting Ourselves and Others: Self-Care and SEL in the Age of Covid

By Andra Brill | January 14, 2021

Confession: I’ve never been much of a fan of the term self-care. It’s always felt a bit self-indulgent and brings up visions of the old Calgon bubble bath commercials. However, over the past few years, and particularly during the past several months of social distancing, I’ve started to see that self-care isn’t selfish at all. …

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Learning to Teach in the Age of COVID

By Kim McGrigg | January 11, 2021

­­­­Teaching is not only a career for Alex Buck; it’s his destiny. One of Alex’s earliest memories is from second grade when he drew pictures of himself as a teacher – complete with a classroom full of students.   Fast forward to college: Alex studied History and French at the University of Colorado-Boulder. After earning his …

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Four Critical Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Practices: Supporting Ourselves and Others in Unusual Times

By Andra Brill | January 8, 2021

We are living in remarkable times. In July of 2020, in the middle of the Covid pandemic, CASEL released what they called an SEL (Social Emotional Learning) roadmap for reopening schools. In collaboration with forty other organizations, CASEL addressed the challenges that schools were facing as they looked to reopen this past fall. Among these …

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PEBC Teacher Residency Works to Diversify Colorado’s Teacher Workforce

By John Kearney | November 30, 2020

In the wake of calls for social justice during the Summer of 2020, 73 is a number that I’ve been thinking a lot about.  That’s because, in 73% of Colorado’s school districts, there is not one Black educator.  That’s right, I said districts.  As Director of Recruitment and Alumni Engagement for the PEBC Teacher Residency, …

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Creating a More Resilient Education System in Colorado

By Evan Kennedy | November 23, 2020

In partnership with Keystone Policy Center, PEBC is convening an Education System Resiliency and Innovation Initiative (ESRII), gathering more than 80 teachers, leaders, legislators, stakeholders from across the state to use this time of challenge to catalyze learning.  As part of this work, we asked ourselves the question – “What is the critical work necessary …

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Mind Your Triggers

By Dana Sorensen | November 4, 2020

In what ways might we best support learners during this unique school year? One way is to learn about and understand triggers – in ourselves and in our students – so that we can remain calm resources in their lives as they transition towards another year of learning. TriggersThe teacher walked directly at me in …

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What can you do when you can’t peek over their shoulders?

By Michelle Morris Jones | October 28, 2020

One of the biggest challenges with remote teaching is our inability to walk around the classroom and hear student thinking!  Looking for those scrunched up faces when students are grappling with something challenging, seeing those smiles when students feel successful, noticing the choices students make regarding materials and processes, listening in on new friendships and …

What can you do when you can’t peek over their shoulders? Read More »

Virtual Discourse

By Sathya Wandzek | October 22, 2020

Yes, things are different. Everything is harder, and there are more loops than ever to go through to do the simplest task. So, what’s not different? In all my conversations with teachers over the last four months I continue to hear the same  things: They want their students to feel safe, loved, seen, and heard. …

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PEBC Supports Amendment B and Proposition EE

By Evan Kennedy | October 21, 2020

PEBC is proud to support two ballot measures on Colorado’s ballot this November that would provide important support to the early childhood and K-12 sectors – please join us in supporting Amendment B and Proposition EE on your ballots this year. Amendment B amends the Gallagher Amendment by eliminating language that prohibits residential property taxes …

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What do my students really understand? Building a Bridge from Virtual to In-Person Learning

By Annie Patterson | October 19, 2020

In an in-person classroom, teachers can walk around and take a look at student work, listen in to learners’ conversations, and quickly confer to clarify misconceptions. But in virtual classrooms, students sit behind cameras turned off, too shy sometimes to even type responses to their teachers, much less ask for help. Even in socially-distanced settings, …

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