SPEAKING

Our team offers an array of energetic, engaging presentations and professional development sessions for your school, district, or community. Below you'll find our speaking team and all the topics we offer. If there's ever a topic or particular training you want to bring to your school, conference, or training event, and we don't have it listed here, just ask! We love creating new content to help educators!

Chad Ostrowski

Tiffany Ott

Rae Hughart

Jeff Gargas

Chad is the co-founder of the Teach Better Team and the creator of The Grid Method, but he is a middle school science teacher at heart. He now travels the country sharing his story, working with teachers, schools, and districts to help them to reach more students.

• Increasing Student Achievement
• Staff Motivation
• The Power of Mastery Learning
• Transforming Your Instruction
• The Teach Better Mindset
• Grading and Assessment
• Classroom Management
• Differentiation / Meeting Student Needs

Reaching ALL Students With Mastery Learning

Mastery Learning is more than just a great idea, it is transforming students learning experiences around the country. Let’s talk about the “how” behind implementation and finally reach all students.

Participants will learn:

• Tools & Strategies to Effectively Implement Mastery Learning
• How to Increase Student Ownership & Achievement
• How to Transform Your Classroom

TEACH BETTER.

The pursuit towards Better is a personal journey for educators changing the narrative of a traditional academic mindset toward a continual determination of being our very best, every day. Teach Better today than you did yesterday. Teach Better tomorrow than you did today. It's not about competing against others - it's about our grit to elevate our practice to Better reach our students.

Participants will learn:

• Where teach better came from
• How to apply the teach better mindset to your practice.
• The positive impacts of the teach better mindset on practice, instruction and success.

7 Changes that Could Save Your Teaching Career

Did you know education is battling teacher burnout and a teacher shortage? With these two earth-shattering dilemmas striking our world, how can you save your teaching career? Let’s explore 7 changes you can choose to make TODAY to save your teaching career.

Participants will learn:

• High Impact Teaching Strategies
• How to Change Your Mindset to Overcome Challenges in the Classroom
• How to Reignite Your Passion for Teaching

Tiffany Ott is the Director of Curriculum Development with the Teach Better Team, a high school math teacher in Ohio, the founder of #MasteryChat, and an educational technology fanatic. She just can’t get enough of teaching and learning!

Whether it’s connecting with a teacher struggling to make mastery learning work, writing about education, designing units, or speaking up on a stage to teachers who want to change the world with awesome teaching, she is hooked on all things education.

• Educational Technology
• Gifted Education
• Staff Inspiration
• The Power of Mastery Learning
• The Teach Better Mindset

Listen Now:

Teach Better Talk: Episode #14

The Instant Relevance Podcast : Episode #5

Teach Better

Ready for a wake-up call delivered with love? Tiffany’s nickname on the Teach Better Team is Mama Tiff because she is, undeniably, the Mama of the team. Get ready for a dose of motherly love when you see Mama Tiff in action. Yes, she will tell you in no uncertain terms that you are doing some things wrong in your teaching practice. Yes, she will hold up the mirror to your flaws and make you face them. Yes, she will do it all with the blend of “You better get yourself in the right direction,” and “I got your back, sweety- we can do this together,” that great Mama’s are known for.

Participants will:

• Discover what the Teach Better mindset it all about
• Take a hard look at what needs to be better in their own career
• Recognize that the path to Better is slow, continuous…. And awesome!

The Blame Game

Yes, there are a million reasons why teaching is an impossibly difficult, exhausting, burn-out causing career. But it’s time to stop playing the Blame Game and time to start taking action. Tiffany lays out the five main challenges educators love to blame (Monopoly, anyone?) and explores the options we have for changing ourselves and our perspective. When you play the blame game, nobody wins. Let’s shift our perspective and start making lasting change!

Participants will:

• Identify the blame game scapegoats that get in the way of progress
• Learn how to stop blame in its tracks and pivot in a more positive direction
• Make a plan for dealing with the blame game happening all around them

Reaching All Students Means Reaching ALL Students (Even The Ones Who Already Know The Content)

It is not easy to meet the needs of every student in your classroom. This if fact. All too often, the students that already understand the content and don’t really need the lesson are left bored, frustrated, and underserved. The answer? Mastery learning! But it only works if you have the right structures and systems in place - so let’s put the tools in teachers’ tool belts and create some awesome learning experiences for ALL our students!

Participants will::

• Understand the epidemic of underserved advanced students - and the problems that occur because of it
• Understand the unique needs of advanced students
• Explore the structures and systems that can make mastery learning work

Making Mastery Manageable with Effective Technology Integration

Personalized learning is a major buzzword in education right now, but figuring out how to actually make it work in your classroom is tricky. How do you design units of instruction? How do you monitor progress and provide effective feedback? How do you stay organized enough to not go crazy? Good news! The tech tools we have access to in modern education can help make it actually work. Let’s learn how together.

Participants will:

• Discover how today’s technology makes personalized learning possible
• Learn technology tools and resources that enhance learning for students
• How to transform the way your students think about their learning

Bite-Size Mastery: Nibbling Your Way Through Mastery Learning

If you aren’t ready to gorge yourself on full-blown mastery-learning but still want some of the benefits, Bite-Size Mastery may be the appetizer you need! Learn the recipe and cook up some mini mastery-learning experiences. Return to your classrooms with a buffet of ideas to try right away!

Participants will learn:

• The foundations of mastery learning – And why it doesn’t have to be scary!
• The common pitfalls of mastery learning
• How to break down and align your standards
• How to design high quality, engaging, and effective initial instruction
• Timing instruction, assessment, and learning opportunities for maximum effectiveness.
• Planning for and organizing the learning process in a bite-sized mastery lesson.

Rae Hughart is a Middle Level Math Educator in Illinois, creator of the Teach Further Model, and the Director of Training and Development for the Teach Better Team.

In 2017, Rae was honored with the Illinois State University Outstanding Young Alumni Award - inducting her into the University Hall of Fame. In 2018, Rae was awarded the Henry Ford Teacher Innovation Award for the work with the Teach Further Model. 

• Dynamic Lesson Planning
• Student Motivation
• Staff Inspiration
• Community Engagement
• The Power of Mastery Learning
• Standards-Based Grading (SBG)
• Growth Mindset / Mindfulness
• The Teach Better Mindset

Your Mindset leads to Your Impact

Mindset is everything! The scars we carry with us while scaling terrifying mountains or while rolling down hills, each bump and bruise has shaped us into the educators we are today. But, how can we shift our mindset to take these bruises and make them into a purposeful tool to foster our own success? It begins with a personal growth journey and ends with a pursuit toward a never ending professional growth journey toward excellence. #BetterYou

Participants will learn:

• The connection between Personal Growth and its ability to stifle our Educational Growth
• Tools on a Mindfulness practice of Goal Setting
• How your Network can transform your Impact
• How to Actively Choosing to Excel

PBL + Maker + STEM + Community = Purpose! #TeachFurther

Partner with local businesses to create dynamic, impactful, effective, and connected content by designing themed units dedicated to community engagement. Utilizing data supported best practice techniques, tech tools, and stakeholder ownership, teachers build love for learning and communities thrive on a new found purpose for supporting schools. Don’t settle for STEAM/STEM, PBL, or another acronym for engaged exploration. Choose to blend them together with purpose and rally community ownership!

Participants will learn:

• The 3 Pillars of Dynamic, Community Inspired Lessons
• How to enhance Any Lesson for Any Subject Area at Any Grade Level
• Teach Beyond the 4 Walls of Your Classroom

Diving in Head First into Standards-Based Grading

Take the plunge! You may understand Standards-Based Grading, but how do you make it manageable in the classroom? Join a session dedicated to providing tools to support SBG classroom implementation, parent communication suggestions, report card options, and developing a deeper student understanding of the process! Take off the floaties and let’s head to the deep end!

Participants will learn:

• The Fundamental Four Pillars of Standards-Based Grading
• How to Combat Common Concerns
• What Scores Represent in SBG
• Manageable Retake Strategies
• How Standards-Based Grading Can Transform the Way You Teach

Mastering Personalized Learning in the 21st Century

While everyone enjoys the idea of mastering Personalized Learning, it has become increasingly challenging for 21st century teachers to make it a reality - until now! Personalized Learning is more than just a great idea, it is transforming students learning experiences around the country. Let’s talk about the “how” behind implementation and finally reach all of our students.

Participants will learn:

• Tools & Strategies to Effectively reach more students
• How to Increase Student Ownership & Accountability
• How to integrate current tools with purpose

Jeff is the COO and co-founder of the Teach Better Team. Prior to Teach Better, Jeff spent most of his career in the hospitality and entertainment industries. The 5 years prior to co-founding Teach Better, he worked with small businesses and entrepreneurs, helping them with content marketing, brand management, social media, and general business operations.

• Entrepreneurship / Teacherpreneurship
• Initiative Implementation
• Social Media
• Leadership
• The Teach Better Mindset

Listen Now:

How to Be Awesome at Your Job: Episode 430

3 Marketers Walk Into A Podcast: Episode 48

Work From Your Happy Place: Episode 152

Teachers On Fire: Episode 31

The Dave Pamah Show

Increasing Your Impact Through Entrepreneurship

At the core of every teacher is the desire and a need to reach and impact as many students as possible. While teaching itself allows an individual to reach hundreds, if not thousands, of students throughout a career, some educators want to do more. Starting with your idea, and your passion for education at the core, you will leave this session with a clear vision of where to take your idea, and the next steps to get started.

Participants will learn:

• The Increased Impact Teacherpreneurs Can Have on Education
• How to Find Your Niche
• How to Share Your Passion with Other Educators

Using Social Media to Engage Your Students and Community

Let's explore the ways you can harness the power of social media to engage students, stakeholders, and your community. We’ll explore tools, tips, and techniques to utilize social media while staying safe. Take advantage of the many options available to engage your students, stakeholders, and community.

Participants will learn:

• How to Effectively Engage Students using Social Media
• How to Keep Yourself and Your Students Safe on Social Media
• How to Engage Stakeholders using Social Media

#Do It Anyway - How to Overcome Fear, Negativity, and Criticism, and Do What’s Right For You

Most people never even attempt to follow a dream. Fear, negativity, and criticism hold us back. It’s time to overcome and pursue your passion. Let’s explore how you can break through the fear, destroy that negativity, and use criticism as fuel to #DoItAnyway and be happy.

Participants will learn:

• How to embrace failure to grow
• How to convert negativity and criticism into passion and creativity
• Why what others think should not stop you from pursuing your dreams
• How to feel the fear of failure...and do it anyway

Classroom Inc: How to Manage Your Classroom Like a Business, and Your Business Like A Classroom.

You might not know it yet, but your classroom is a business, and most businesses are just classrooms in disguise. Find out how to manage your classroom like a business and your business like a classroom.

Participants will learn:

• The similarities between classrooms and businesses
• Why teachers and business leaders have more in common than they think
• Strategies for effectively working with others, managing teams (or classrooms!) and building lifelong, impactful relationships