2024 Kansas MTSS & Alignment Symposium

Renaissance FastBridge consultants will guide you through recommendations and best practices that facilitate an optimal experience for your schools and staff.

Delve into the transformative power of fostering a positive school climate through empowering engagement. As the educational landscape evolves rapidly, it's imperative to create environments where students feel not only heard but also valued contributors to their own learning journey. We'll see how Kansas data specifically shows the connection between engagement -- student voice and agency -- and achievement on state assessments. Through a structured activity you will also glean each other's wisdom about strategies you're using to address your climate data in ways designed to leverage the outcomes that we all want for Kansas students.

Function based thinking is a behavioral science concept that is an integral component of an effective Multi-Tiered System of Behavior Support. It empowers all educators to provide behavior support more efficiently to all students by considering the purpose(s) challenging behavior(s) serve and what is reinforcing them.  Research has consistently shown that traditional “discipline” practices that are solely punitive such as verbal reprimands, timeout, suspension, and expulsion are not effective and often make challenging behavior worse.   Rather than staying stuck in the cycle of problem-punish-problem-punish with little to no success, educational staff need to understand the behavior science behind this phenomenon and use this knowledge to guide more effective and consistent instructional responses to challenging behavior.

Key behavior science concepts are too often not known or misunderstood by educators causing them to stay in an ineffective reactive model and overlooking effective proactive prevention strategies based on Function Based Thinking. Schools need all educational staff to have a clear understanding of the main underlying concepts of behavior science and use this knowledge to guide their responses at all tiers of support in order to work smarter and not harder. This workshop provides this foundational knowledge using easy-to-understand, everyday language in a humorous and engaging way getting all educators on the “same page” removing obstacles to implementation caused by misunderstanding and miscommunication.

“Tier 2” world is often very challenging and can be frustrating for all parties involved.  What makes a strategy tier one versus tier two versus tier three?  At what point does a student move tiers?  How does Function Based Thinking guide this process? This session will attempt to answer these questions in addition to providing direction for ongoing implementation of a Function Based Thinking Multi-Tiered System of Behavior Support.

In this session we will explore the pivotal concept of fidelity. Join as we explore strategies for defining and maintaining fidelity within your unique educational system. From clarifying expectations to establishing boundaries, participants will be equipped with practical tools and insights to ensure fidelity across curriculum, assessment plans, and instructional strategies. Whether you are new or a seasoned practitioner, this session will provide clarity and guidance for navigating the fidelity maze with confidence and purpose.

Schools can build relationships with kindergarten families and gather valuable information to prepare for incoming students by leveraging the Ages and Stages Questionnaires®. Understanding the unique needs of each family and child as they enter your school system provides the information needed to build a strong foundation. A foundation of connecting with families to build trust and open communication. In this session we will help you access the power of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires® in your school system.

The M.I.N.D. (Measures & Interventions for Numeracy Development) Facts on Fire Program is an open access research-based platform that equips educators for increasing their students’ numeracy and computation skills. Dr. Brian Poncy, the co-developer of the platform, joins school districts who have adopted the program as they tell their story about the barriers overcome during implementation, successes realized, and practical on-the-ground answers you need to begin your journey implementing the M.I.N.D.

Teachers need intervention materials that are free, accessible, research based. This session will present the Measures Interventions for Numeracy Development (M.I.N.D), and a set of open-source materials that educators can use to increase computation skills. Participants will leave the session with an understanding of the purpose and uses of the program and the ability to access materials to support the development of students’ computation skills.