Connect to professional learning that fits your learning style
Engage in your professional learning with our exceptional online or virtual services. From product embedded online resources like Renaissance Smart Start™ to interactive, content rich Virtual Onsite Seminars, we can connect you to the knowledge and strategies you need to implement your Renaissance solutions with success.
Fits your schedule
Access professional learning content and strategies you need, when you need it. Renaissance online and virtual professional development services let you fit your learning in when it makes sense to you and your teachers.
Renaissance Smart Start®
Whether you are a brand-new user of Renaissance solutions, or just need a refresher, Renaissance Smart Start® provides you with quick guides, tutorials, and activities to give you foundational best practice training. Renaissance Smart Start is easy to use, and best of all, accessed from your Renaissance Home Page.
- Video Tour: Get to know Smart Start
Implementation and Data Coaching
Implementation and Data Coaching empower teachers to analyze data from their Renaissance solutions and make decisions to improve teaching and student learning in the classroom. Your Renaissance Coach will be available via call, chat, or email to your core implementation team as well as work directly with your teachers to help turn insight into action that drives instruction.
Implementation and Data Coaching provides:
- Facilitated data conversations so educators can fully understand how to analyze student data
- Data-based action plans for differentiating instruction and intervention
- A dedicated Renaissance Coach who understands unique site needs
- Flexible scheduling options to reduce disruptions in the school day
VIDEO: The Power of Coaching
Online learning “...gives participating teachers opportunities to practice what they learn over relatively extended periods of time...and provides a level of convenience that conventional professional development does not.”
Harwell, 2003
Virtual Onsite Seminars
Virtual Onsite Seminars are a cutting edge way to deepen your knowledge of Renaissance products to achieve intended outcomes. These seminars emulate an in-person experience via enhanced 3D technology with engaging activities and discussions.
Virtual Onsite Seminars provide:
- Interactive training on a variety of topics for up to 30 attendees to effectively implement Renaissance solutions
- A personalized experience with content delivered by one of our experts
- A 90-minute session that covers one of the topics listed below
Virtual Onsite Seminar Topics and Descriptions:
Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360®
Description: This session will inform participants on how independent practice contributes to growth in literacy and how Accelerated Reader supports powerful and effective practice. Participants will learn tools to select the right books and how to set individualized goals to ensure that reading practice time is used effectively.
Description: Teachers who are using Accelerated Reader in their classrooms on a regular basis will review implementation data to identify things that are going well and areas that can be strengthened. They will practice classroom strategies for guided independent reading practice that research has shown lead to high levels of student engagement and growth.
Description: This session will demonstrate how teachers can use tools built into AR 360 nonfiction articles to provide direct instruction on skills needed for close reading and allow students to practice those skills as they read the articles independently.
Renaissance Star 360 Assessments®
Description: This session is designed to give participants a high level understanding of how the data they get from Star assessments can be used to answer their questions about student performance so that they can more effectively plan instruction that accelerates growth. It will prepare them to administer the assessment with fidelity and begin to access key reports.
Description: After teachers have data from initial screening with Star assessments, this session will guide them in considering implications for core instruction, grouping students and planning for intervention. We will demonstrate how various tools (such as the Instructional Planning Report, the Renaissance Planner and the learning progressions) will support them in planning instruction based on the skills students are ready to learn.
Description: After teachers have identified student needs using Star data, this session will focus on answering the critical “what’s next” question. Activities will focus on use of tools for grouping students, setting reasonable growth goals based on data, identifying skills and associated resources for instructional planning and monitoring progress for students in intervention.
Description:This session will focus on use of skill probes in Star Custom as one tool to formatively assess student understanding of specific skills to inform instructional planning decisions.
Renaissance Accelerated Math®
Description: In this introductory session, you will explore the essential principles of an effective math classroom, and understand how Accelerated Math can help to implement them. This overview will cover the basic capabilities of Accelerated Math 2.0. You will experience the software from both the student and teacher perspective so that you can set custom implementation goals for your classroom.
Description: This session will teach routines for successful implementation of independent math practice, and how to effectively manage meetings with students. You will learn to explain differences between DOK levels, and to identify strategies for facilitating robust DOK mathematical discourse.
Description: How do you use data to make instructional decisions in your math class? This session will help you to understand for to group students and select the optimal schedules and content to improve outcomes.
New for Back-to-school 2018
Description: This session will help participants in deepening their use of data from Star assessments and Accelerated Reader to identify struggling students as well as those in need of more challenge, and to take action on those insights.
Description: This session will focus on the powerful data about student achievement that is available as a result of additional screenings with Star. Participants will use Student Growth Percentiles to determine if instruction and intervention has resulted in an appropriate level of growth, and plan for adjustments as needed. They will also examine data on Mastery of state standards and associated skills.
Description: This session will build a shared understanding for administrators and teachers of how Renaissance Flow can assist in meeting all learners’ needs. Participants will receive hands-on practice using the Renaissance Planner tool and Dashboard views. They also will set priorities for implementation and corresponding professional development within their professional learning communities.
Description: English in a Flash helps students learn in English and personalizes vocabulary acquisition efficiently and rapidly. This session will introduce you to English in a Flash and let you experience the software as both a student and a teacher.
Description:In this session, participants go deeper into English in a Flash and receive hands-on experience in learning how to analyze the reporting data that the software provides
Description: This session will teach participants the basics of MathFacts in a Flash software and the value of math fact automaticity.
Description: In this session, participants will go deeper into MathFacts in a Flash software and learn to incorporate it into existing math instruction and practice.
Live Hourly Webinars
New for back-to-school 2018-2019, webinars provide:
Content designed to address specific questions around effective strategies for using Renaissance products delivered by a Renaissance Coach via interactive webinar for educators in short, highly focused topic, typically 40–60 minutes in length. Webinars may include hands-on guidance in the software as needed.
Live Hourly Webinar Topics and Learning Outcomes:
Renaissance Accelerated Reader 360
Learning Outcomes:
- Discuss scheduling reading practice
- View an Accelerated Reader quiz
- Introduce ZPD, text difficulty, interest level, and points
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Explain quality, difficulty, and quantity goal types
- Understand importance of goals, grit and guidance
- Emphasize the importance of high comprehension
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Discuss classroom routines to maximize results
- Learn how to provide immediate feedback, guidance and prioritize needs using reading logs
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Review Diagnostic and Student Record reports to identify struggling students
- Discuss strategies to promote reading growth
- Hands on teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Review Diagnostic and Student Record reports to identify successful students
- Discuss strategies to promote reading growth
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- View Vocabulary Practice and Literacy Skills quizzes
- Learn how and why you can incorporate vocabulary practice and literacy skills quizzes into your routine
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Discuss the importance of close reading skills
- Navigate through the steps of assigning a skills practice
- View the student experience
- Hands on: teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Renaissance Star Assessments
Learning Outcomes:
- Introduce the various uses of Star assessments
- Learn the design of Star
- Discuss fidelity of test administration to help ensure accurate and reliable data
- Hands on: Student and teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Understand benchmarks and screening windows
- Introduce the Screening Report and commonly used scores
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Learn to set goals and monitor student progress using Star assessments
- Interpret the Student Progress Monitoring Report
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Gain an understanding of the Renaissance Mastery Model
- Become familiar with the Monitor Student Mastery dashboard
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Discover the Renaissance learning progression
- Learn how students are placed into the progression to get suggested skills
- Find instructional resources based on skills
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Review Student Growth Percentile (SGP)
- Practice plotting students via benchmark and growth metrics
- Learn the connection between student benchmark levels and growth
- Discuss growth and fixed mindset
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Identify your purpose for setting goals
- Define the types of goals available
- Learn to set goals and monitor student progress
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Renaissance Star Custom
Learning Outcomes:
- Discuss formative assessments
- Learn how to assign and schedule pre-written skill checks to your students
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Score constructed response skill checks
- Review skill check data
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Build your own skill checks using pre-written items
- Learn how to add your own items
- Hands on: Teacher experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Renaissance Star Spanish®
Learning Outcomes:
- Who takes Star Spanish?
- Why administer Star Spanish?
- When and how often should it be administered?
- How was the test developed?
- What scores are reported?
- Where do you view results?
Renaissance Accelerated Math 2.0
Learning Outcomes:
- Examine the design and purpose of Accelerated Math
- Explore how Star can help identify math skills needed for differentiation and growth
- Discover how students practice, test, and review skills
- Generate practice assignments for your students
- Hands on Teacher and student experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Monitor the dashboard symbols as students complete assignments
- Discuss how and when to intervene with struggling students
- Generate tests when students are ready to show mastery
- Hands on: Student experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Review software tips to refine lesson plans
- Explore resources to help students organize their assignments, get assistance, and collaborate
- Discuss routines that can help facilitate a productive and efficient math classroom
- View the Diagnostic Dashboard
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Examine ways to incorporate one-on-one conferences into your daily math routine
- Formulate strategies for engaging students during conferencing.
- Model ideal conferencing scenarios.
- Explore resources to assist with conferencing
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Learn the benefits of mathematical discourse
- Discuss teacher and student roles
- Explore resources to help students grow in their ability to engage in discourse productively
- Model scenarios to use with your students
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Renaissance MathFacts in a Flash
Learning Outcomes:
- Outline the development of math facts automaticity
- Breakdown the benchmark levels
- Navigate the student workflow
- Explore ideal practice
- Hands on: Teacher and student experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Accelerated Math Instructional Practice
Learning Outcomes:
- Examine the design and purpose of Accelerated Math
- Explore how Star can help identify math skills needed for differentiation and growth
- Discover how students practice and quiz on skills
- Generate assignments for your students
- Hands on Teacher and student experience
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Examine ways to incorporate one-on-one conferences into your daily math routine
- Formulate strategies for engaging students during conferencing
- Model ideal conferencing scenarios.
- Explore resources to assist with conferencing
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom
Learning Outcomes:
- Study the benefits of participating in mathematical discourse
- Discuss teacher and student roles
- Explore resources to help students grow in their ability to engage in discourse productively
- Model scenarios with your students
- Apply newly learned knowledge to your classroom