Sara Van Der Werf is a nationally board-certified teacher who taught secondary mathematics for Minneapolis Public Schools for 27 years with 5 of those years leading K-12 mathematics at the district office.  Sara served in multiple positions on the Minnesota Council of Teachers Mathematics board, most recently as past-President.  Sara currently travels around the US speaking and providing professional development.  Sara’s passions in K-12 mathematics include engaging students in discourse, English Language Learners, movement, teaching that values student reasoning about mathematical concepts and building positive student identities. 

At HIVE 2020, Open Up Resources’ virtual professional learning event, Sara will be sharing her five best tips for mathematical reasoning and discourse. Attendees will share experiences of what went well, lessons learned, and re-entry strategies for the 2020-2021 school year. Specific topics of focus include equity of access, approaches to professional learning, exploring digital resources, and engagement strategies from principals and teachers.

When asked about her excitement to connect with educators at HIVE 2020, Van Der Werf noted, “If any group of educators is going to identify quickly best practices for learning math in a virtual environment, it will be the group of teachers who will be at HIVE.  I love the community of educators who are willing to problem solve together centered around a common goal of developing mathematical reasoners in our students.”

In addition to Van Der Werf's thoughtful and informative talk, attendees will engage in unique, interactive curriculum pathways, coffee chats, flex sessions and special events. More information about what to expect can be found here.

The event’s keynote speaker, Dr. Kristopher J. Childs, will lead the conversation on HIVE 2020’s theme: Reimagining Education. Dr. Childs has created a movement to inspire all who are involved in academic endeavors globally to pursue excellence and academic success. Additional speakers include: Natalie Wexler, Dr. Amanda Jansen, Sara Van Der Werf, and D. Lacy Asbill. More speakers and schedules to be announced.

HIVE 2020, originally planned to take place in New Orleans, went virtual March 31 in response to school closures and community stay-in-place orders. The Open Up Resources team is now finalizing details in this new normal. The professional learning conference will now take place over five days starting June 23. Programming will be synchronous and interactive with recordings of all sessions provided to participants after the conference for future viewing. Additional information on pricing and registration deadlines can be found here.

Sara is active in the national mathematics community via twitter, @saravdwerf, and writes frequently at her blog, saravanderwerf.com.

*Full schedule to be announced and subject to change. 

About Open Up Resources:

Open Up Resources is a 501c3 that exists to increase equity in education by making the highest quality curriculum freely accessible to educators and providing implementation supports to the broadest number of teachers, empowering them to effectively and sustainably improve student outcomes in pre-K-12 English Language Arts and Mathematics. To learn more about Open Up Resources' mission and work, click here.

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