Sparks in the Dark - In Sparks in the Dark, Travis Crowder and Todd Nesloney share their experiences as educators who purposefully seek to spark a love for reading and writing in the learners they serve. The reason is simple: Writing and reading have the power to change the trajectory of a life. Through the stories and real-life examples they share, the authors light the way to...Incorporating literacy skills in every subject in engaging ways. Empowering students and staff to ask and explore tough questions about the world. Encouraging learners at all levels to choose to read books that challenge them. Taking responsibility to seek and share learning for everyone's benefit.
Participants are responsible for obtaining their own copy of this month's text, Sparks in the Dark prior to the beginning of the book study. Click Sparks in the Dark to view the book.
Course Basics: The Learning Management System, Schoology, is used to house discussion board conversations and group materials. Book Club is facilitated by Nicole Nowlin, Sixth-grade teacher, Lee's Summit School District and MSTA member.
Each Friday morning, discussion board questions are posted in the Schoology group. These discussion board questions provide an opportunity for participants to connect, share, and reflect on that week's reading. Participants are expected to allot time each week to visit the discussion board often to encourage and learn from each other. Additionally, participants must comment on the posts of two other participants.
Virtual live meetings occur two Thursday nights within the month at 7:00 pm (CST). These virtual meetings use either Google Meet or Zoom to discuss the learning and application of the reading to our classrooms and students.
Attendance for BTAP participants ONLY: BTAP participants must fully participate in all discussion board sessions in Schoology (typically consists of 3 discussion board prompts, initial response and two comments on peer responses. In addition, BTAP participants are expected to fully participate in the virtual live Thursday meetings (posting in the chat box, participating in breakout sessions, and in the main room session). Recognizing there might be a time when a BTAP participant must miss a Thursday night live meeting an alternate reflection assignment will be assigned for the participant to complete. However, BTAP participants are allowed to miss only one (1) Thursday Virtual Live Meeting. Missing more than one virtual meeting (even with completing the alternate assignment) will result in non-completion of the course for BTAP purposes. BTAP Participants must notify Dr. Layton at dlayton@msta.org if missing a Thursday Virtual Live meeting.
PD Certification: At the end of the month, participation hours will be calculated and participants will be emailed a certificate of completion. PD certificates will be emailed to all participants.