The 2008 FNO Shanghai Mini Conference
Saturday, January 26 2008

Join Jamie McKenzie at the Shanghai
Community International Schools

Great Writing
Smart Searching
Powerful Thinking and Questioning
New technologies can make a huge difference in the performance of students if the focus is on the learning and the pedagogy rather than the tools.

This day will devote particular attention to ways we can strengthen the writing, searching and questioning skills of our students.

Participants will bring their own wireless laptops as many of the activities will be hands-on.

Venue

Detailed outline below.

Register and pay online at http://mckenzieseminar.com/

Credit will be arranged through SUNY for those who attend these sessions and complete a paper.
Register and pay on line for this conference at
http://mckenzieseminar.com

Schedule of Events
Saturday, January 26, 2008

8:30 AM  -  10:00 AM 
Powerful Searching
In this session, Jamie equips teachers with a basic toolkit of search strategies to help them cope with the info-glut that can be so frustrating to them and their students. Teachers will see the value of employing advanced Google in combination with search logic.

In addition to good search logic, Jamie will introduce the group to the Deep Internet and resources not easily found with Google and other search engines.

10:00 AM  -  10:15 AM
Morning Tea

10:15 - 11:30 AM 
Powerful Writing & Thinking - Part One
While word processing has been around for decades, its potential to support idea processing and powerful composition has been rarely appreciated or understood. This session delves into the dramatic possibilities available when the these tools are used along with enhanced synthesis skills.

Writing and thinking can be interlinked. Jamie engages the group in seeing the interplay between mind mapping, the formation of ideas and the eventual composition of sentences and paragraphs to express complex ideas in a coherent and persuasive manner.

11:30  -  Noon
Lunch
Lunch will be served on site.

12:00-2:30 PM 
Powerful Writing & Thinking - Part Two
Writing and thinking can be interlinked. Jamie engages the group in seeing the interplay between mind mapping, the formation of ideas and the eventual composition of sentences and paragraphs to express complex ideas in a coherent and persuasive manner. Finally, the group explores the value of the Six Traits approach to help students refine their early drafts.

2:30-2:45 Afternoon Tea

3:00 PM  -  4:00 PM
Original Thinking, Synthesis and Invention
Good teachers equip students with the capacity to build their own ideas and transform knowledge in powerful, sometimes magical ways. Jamie introduces the group to a toolkit of synthesis strategies that will support novelty and invention.

4:00 PM  -  5:00 PM
Authentic Learning with New Technologies
Building on the work of Fred Newmann, Jamie shows the group how to plan units that engage students in struggling with real challenges drawn from the world outside school. This approach will emphasize the following:

Instead of busy work - repetitive tasks that require little thought and involve mere scooping, smushing, memorizing and regurgitating - Newmann's approach immerses students in challenges that demand imagination, resourcefulness, persistence and stamina.

Even though some of these activities may be staged or simulated, they still pass the test of authenticity because they meet the following criteria:

* They are rooted in issues, challenges or decisions that people face in the world.
* They are genuine.
* The act of wrestling with these challenges is purposive - saturated with meaning and significance.
* A student can see a payoff in the future for work well done and skills acquired.
Costs

Full Conference - $ 175.00 USD