Deeper Learning 2026

Step into the year 2051. In this immersive Deep Dive, you’ll open a “Box from the Future” filled with strange ephemera—protest flyers, redacted curricula, AI classroom reviews—and work with peers to collaboratively imagine the story of how education might evolve over time. Drawing from the discipline of experience design, you will experience this participatory world- building process, but also design your own speculative artifacts and learning experiences. You’ll practice using world-building as a tool for deeper learning across disciplines, helping students critically analyze systems, see agency in the present, and connect learning to real-world issues. You’ll leave with adaptable strategies, artifact templates, and a prototype of your own, all ready to use with students in any subject.

This session is for teachers, instructional coaches, and school leaders who want a highly engaging, equity-focused practice rooted in the principles of experience design.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)  
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)  
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)  
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing  
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)  
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

Solutions to complex systemic challenges already exist within the “local genius” of our communities.  This interactive deep dive explores how to shift from designing for communities to designing with them.

As we will build a community in real time, we'll explore the attributes of thriving communities and the conditions necessary for true co-creation. You will identify a specific challenge from your own context and work collaboratively to discover the missing voices and perspectives traditional data often misses. We will then explore ways to authentically build the trust required for meaningful partnership and practice the listening skills required for true collaboration. Participants will leave with concrete tools and a clear plan to integrate community voices into your design process—not just as a strategy, but as a restorative act of shifting power to those most impacted by decisions.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

In Crafting Hope in Challenging Times, diverse participants from across the educational ecosystem are invited to engage in a shared, reflective experience focused on how today’s social and political dynamics are felt and lived in schools. Blending design thinking, narrative inquiry, and accessible hands-on making (no artistic background required), participants will translate lived experiences into small quilt-square artifacts using mixed media as metaphor, assembled into a collaborative installation representing collective experience, hope, and imagined change. In a moment of heightened polarization, the session treats craft as a tool for connection, sense-making, and pedagogical imagination.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

As educators, we design our learning environments with great care - spaces we feel comfortable in and feel will be engaging for our students, leaning on research, wisdom of practice,  and intuition.  What if we could find ways to improve even the best laid plans?  What hidden or untapped resources might be in and around your classroom to help increase belonging, engagement, self-awareness, and appreciation for culture and place?

Come join us in our collaborative lab space to explore Stanford’s Dimensions of Belonging as a framework for considering the roles we allow people and place to play in our learning environments; in our Belonging Lab, we’ll prototype changes to our school or classroom spaces that goes beyond just welcoming environment to activating our spaces and students as shapers of belonging.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

We often hear about hands-on teaching, but how do we actually put student-centered learning into practice? The session will focus on how you can design integrated, multi-disciplinary learning experiences in any classroom and any subject. This deep dive will strike a balance between being actively engaged as learners and pulling the curtain back to explain the ideas and research behind the learning. By the end of this session you will have concrete teaching strategies as well as an overall framework for lesson, project, or unit planning. Come be part of the Habla magic!

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

Come learn about standards aligned, data driven teaching and learning through the experience of making chocolate. In this Deep Dive, participants will have the chance to make chocolate in a couple of different ways while learning about the history of this extraordinary food. Throughout the experience, participants will have time to understand the importance of real experience toward Deeper Learning in the classroom. We will unpack the experience for connections to all of the traditional content buckets, and use that understanding to inform the work we will do back home after the conference.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

Are you committed to Deeper Learning—projects, authentic assessments!—and grade-level curricula (like Springboard or Illustrative Math)? Good for you. You are committed to educational justice. But you may also be feeling the squeeze: there’s only so much time.

It doesn’t have to be a zero-sum game. The trick is to put Deeper Learning and solid curriculum in service of each other. In this Deep Dive, you’ll bring a unit or assignment from your published curriculum (or work with examples we provide) and learn how to deepen its power by applying principles of High-Quality Performance Assessment (HQPA) and practices of public exhibition.

After a day in this creative design laboratory—open to teachers and school or district leaders—you’ll show off your new skills with a piece of curriculum that’s been “Deeper Learn-ified.”

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

When we think about Deeper Learning, we usually picture Project-Based Learning. Projects are one of the best ways to immerse students in Deeper Learning, but in most schools, projects are not happening all the time. Often, even in PBL schools, they comprise only a small part of the schedule. Students deserve Deeper Learning all day long.

In this workshop, we will dive into Deeper Instruction strategies—analyzing frameworks, models, and videos—to help us move toward schools where every lesson is a Deeper Learning lesson. We will consider together strategies for PreK-12 classrooms where students are active, independent, and collaborative thinkers throughout lessons, whether the lessons are a part of projects or not connected to projects.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

This full-day session invites educators and school leaders to collaboratively reimagine what equitable and future-ready schools can be in an age shaped by AI. Through dialogue and collaboration, we will disuss the possibilities and tensions of AI in education. We will also design individual action plans to bring back to your schools to make equitable use of AI in your schools. This session is ideal for teacher leaders, instructional coaches, and school or district leaders who are thinking strategically about how to engage teams and communities in shaping responsible and human-centered uses of AI.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

This Deep Dive will explore students' dynamic translanguaging pedagogies to foster multilingual ecosystems in our classrooms and schools. Participants will seek to understand their own linguistic histories and disrupt biases that impact instructional design. Participants will delve into translanguaging practices that can foster a more multilingual and inclusive classroom environment. We will discuss strategies for integrating translanguaging into pedagogy and curriculum design. Educators will be able to apply new strategies to their classrooms and schools in order to disrupt harmful language practices. They will build nurturing spaces to honor and leverage the linguistic diversity of their students. Come and create classrooms where multilingualism is celebrated, and all students feel valued and engaged in their learning journey. All experience levels are welcome.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

When given the gift of someone's attention, what do you choose to do with it? Join Magician Sky King (www.SkyKingMagic.com) and educator Carolene King for a deep dive on attention where you will craft the scripting for and confidently perform a magic illusion for an audience by the end of your experience. Learn about a framework on crafting engaging experiences and put it into practice through this magic show experience. Reflect on how you will apply this framework in your work, whether you are teaching leadership skills to your staff, or science principles to middle schoolers, or creative writing to high schoolers. Use the magic of crafting engaging experiences to playfully engage your participants' attention to effectively deliver your content.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

In this interactive deep dive led by Creating Creators, Santa Ana Unified School District’s Saintly Films, & What School Could Be facilitators, participants will reimagine a favorite lesson by embedding narrative filmmaking strategies aligned with academic standards. Using a PBL framework & AI tools, they will explore the creative process from brainstorming driving questions, scriptwriting, storyboarding, filming, & editing to produce a one-minute video artifact & lesson outline. The session offers firsthand experience with creative media to elevate learning, foster belonging, & engage diverse learners.

Participants will leave with tools, templates, & a replicable framework to integrate filmmaking into classrooms across grade levels & subject areas. This session is designed for teachers, instructional coaches, & school leaders seeking equitable, student-centered practices that make learning more meaningful & engaging.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

More than ever, schools need cooperative learning environments where students feel a sense of belonging and know their voice matters. This workshop is a hands-on professional learning experience that equips educators with practical, rhythm-based strategies to strengthen engagement, focus, and classroom community across all grade levels and subject areas.  We will explore how these approaches help students build focus, self-regulation, nonverbal communication, collaboration, and confidence.  These strategies channel energy in positive, focused ways, align with SEL goals, and can be used immediately—no music or dance background required.

Participants will experience stepping and body percussion activities and learn how to adapt them for classroom use as warm-ups, mindset training, focus resets, and collaborative learning tools. Each strategy is clearly connected to classroom application, with guidance on facilitation, differentiation, and classroom management—making the session valuable for general classroom teachers, arts specialists, and administrators alike.

Participants will also take part in a short step performance inspired by collegiate step traditions and examine how its structure can be scaled for different ages, spaces, and instructional goals.  Come ready to clap, stomp, and laugh your way into tools for creating a classroom where every student feels seen, valued, and part of the rhythm.



Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava

This Deep Dives experience includes visiting a local student at their internship to witness learning in action, while mentors reflect on the power of guidance and community experts share how they strengthen neighborhoods. Learners will engage directly with young people as they pursue passions, build mentor relationships, and take on impactful work. Participants will also explore a local organization doing meaningful community work. These authentic encounters highlight what’s possible when education extends beyond classroom walls. Afterward, participants engage in hands-on workshops to explore tools and strategies for building thriving real-world learning programs. They will leave not only inspired but also equipped with a practical plan to design infrastructure, systems, and supports that bring this vision to life in their own contexts.

Lunch is included in each deep dive.
LUNCH MENU
Greek Salad (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Cannelini Bean & Pasta Salad (Vegan)
Lemon Basmati Rice (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Mediterranean Spiced Chicken (Gluten-Free)
Tahini Dressing
Falafel (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Roasted Vegetables   Lemon Bars & Baklava