I am deeply committed to providing encouragement and assistance to inservice educators. I have a long history of inservice presentations for school districts and conferences in central and eastern Illinois. I welcome invitations to present inservice sessions. Following are some of the topics that I have presented in recent years. I am also very willing to develop new topics as the need arises. Each of the following presentations is designed to meet the practical needs of teachers.

 Options in Discipline: What's New? What Works?

This presentation reviews a number of discipline approaches that are being used. It reflects ideas from the Internet, ideas from Canter's revised Assertive Discipline text, and looks at a continuum of discipline approaches from which today's teachers may choose. This presentation works best when it is specific to a given age level; i.e., elementary schools, middle schools, or high schools. It involves audience participation as well as direct instruction.

Lee Canter's Assertive Discipline (1977) was widely used by many teachers over the years; it was also widely criticized. Canter's new revised Assertive Discipline text has been significantly revised and suggests changes in response to the criticism once lodged against the original Assertive Discipline approach. Teachers who used Assertive Discipline but found it to emphasize punishment and positive reinforcement at the expense of problem solving will find Canter's new strategies exciting and helpful. The presentation will briefly contrast the new with the old, but will focus most on how Assertive Discipline can bring a sense of respect to classrooms and an emphasis on problem solving.

Building Student Responsibility into Your Classroom Communication

My recent research on classroom communication suggests that teachers sometimes teach students to be less responsible, rather than more. This presentation examines classroom communication strategies and identifies ways to encourage and teach students that they are responsible for their actions and for assuming greater responsibility for their own learning.

Peer Rejection and Classroom Bullies: What Can Teachers Do About These Two Detriments to Positive Classroom Climates?

Research suggests that students who are victims of bullies or feel rejected and ostracized by their peers do not learn and do not feel safe in their schools. Teachers often are not always aware that they have students who are bullies or students who feel rejected and left out. Yet, even when they realize that the problems exist, they feel helpless to prevent the problems from occurring. This presentation examines the dynamics of bullying and the effects of peer rejection on students. It will help teachers be aware of the problem and suggest some strategies for responding when the situation occurs.

Building Positive Images and Teaching Responsibility

This presentation will examine the relationship of students' sense of self worth to the acceptance of responsibility and accomplishment of goals. Some researchers today are concluding that building success and goal setting into the curriculum and teaching responsibility for one's actions are more effective ways to create a sense of self worth than setting out to improve self esteem as a goal in itself. Students feel worthwhile when they set goals and reach them.

This presentation examines the dynamics of anger in children. It focuses particularly on helping teachers respond constructively to children who are expressing anger in their classrooms. It also suggests strategies for teachers to handle their own anger.

I do many workshops for parents through schools, churches, libraries, and other service organizations. Following are workshop topics:

Individuals who are interested in talking with me about inservice presentations should contact me via my email address or home telephone.