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Empowering Communities To Shape Their World.

Collaborative Inquiry 2024-2025

Registration Type

Cohort 1

June 2024-Feb. 2025
$ 3,995 Tuition
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sold out

Innovation In Education Begins In Orlando, Where Endless Possibilities Await.
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Empowering Early Childhood Educators through education, mentorship and community.

Elevate Your Educator Journey: A Transformative 8-Month Program for Early Childhood Educators

Join us on an inspiring eight-month odyssey designed to propel your teaching talents to unparalleled heights. Our exclusive program is tailored for educators intent on transcending traditional teaching boundaries and igniting impactful change within their communities.

Unfold Your Journey in Orlando, Florida

Immerse yourself in a comprehensive learning experience with four immersive in-person training sessions. Complementing these are monthly coaching sessions, meticulously designed to guide you on your mission to empower your community and sculpt a better future together.

Engage, Learn, and Collaborate

Dive deep into a rich tapestry of learning activities, community exhibitions, and collaborative projects. Delve into the world of Project Zero, exploring cutting-edge principles and strategies that will revolutionize the way you teach and learn.

Maker-Centered Learning: Transforming Education

Unlock the secrets of maker-centered learning, a groundbreaking approach developed by the esteemed Agency by Design at Harvard University. Gain hands-on experience and an in-depth understanding of how this innovative methodology can be seamlessly integrated into your teaching practices.

Join a Community of Visionaries

Become part of a dynamic community of educators, united by a shared commitment to inquiry, innovation, and experimentation. Embark on this collective voyage to empower our communities and mold the architects of tomorrow. Together, we will nurture ideas, cultivate growth, and inspire each other towards new educational horizons.

Ignite Change, Shape Futures

This is your call to light the spark of creativity and leadership within you. Inspire the next generation of critical thinkers, problem solvers, and creative doers. Join us in reshaping education and transforming the world, one student at a time.

Your Adventure Awaits

Are you ready to chase big dreams and unlock your limitless potential? Immerse yourself in the transformative power of maker-centered learning and witness its life-altering impact firsthand.

Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity. Apply today and begin your unforgettable adventure in educational excellence

About The Program

Discover the power of maker-centered learning! Engage students in deep and meaningful learning while fostering their creativity and problem-solving skills. Join our teacher cohort 2024-2025 to explore a range of strategies and tools created by Agency by Design, a renowned research initiative by Project Zero at Harvard University. In this year-long program, you will unlock the power of thinking routines to enhance learning for both educators and students. Experience the key practices that make thinking visible and  And try out core practices associated with making thinking visible and learn how they relate to and interact with one another.

Here Is What You Will Learn

Learn

Embark on a transformative journey to enhance your teaching skills. Join our cohort and discover how to implement and document maker-centered learning practices in your classroom. Let experts guide and inspire you and help you connect theory with practice to make a real impact on your students’ education.

Experience And Connect

Experience the awe-inspiring magic at embracing innovation at our campuses at Young Innovators in Oviedo and Winter Garden. Immerse yourself in the expertise of our dedicated practitioners who are making a real impact in their practice

Empower Your Community

Unlock the secret to educational triumph by fostering strong connections with parents and the community through impactful events. Discover the power of involving parents in maker-centered learning and empower them to extend this remarkable experience into their own households. 

Instructors

Dr. Edward Clapp

Project Zero Harvard University

Edward P. Clapp, Ed.D. is a Principal Investigator at Project Zero interested in exploring creativity and innovation, design and maker-centered learning, contemporary approaches to arts teaching and learning, and diversity, equity, and inclusion in education. Edward and his colleagues explore these issues with their teacher partners through a variety of different collaborative inquiries around the world. In addition to his work as a researcher, Edward is also a Lecturer on Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Edward’s most recent books include co-author The Participatory Creativity Guide for Educators and The Maker-Centered Learning Playbook for Early Childhood Education.

Lindsey Hicks

Project Zero Harvard University

Lindsey Hicks is a practitioner specialist on the Envisioning Innovation in Education project at Project Zero. Lindsey was an elementary special education teacher and teacher leader for over twenty years in the Scarsdale, NY public school district. Lindsey is a co-founder of the Scarsdale Reggio Emilia study group where she leads teachers in the exploration of the Reggio approach to teaching and learning and other contemporary topics in constructivist and innovative pedagogy. Lindsey’s professional interests include diversity, equity and inclusion in education, literacy, sustainability, and music and art as empowering forces in the lives of teachers and students.

Lisa Yokana

Project Zero Harvard University

A career educator, Lisa Yokana is currently an educational consultant, specializing in innovation. She was the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) coordinator at Scarsdale High School for 15 years, where she designed and taught a three level STEAM course sequence for Scarsdale’s Design Lab. In 2019, the program won the gold medal in the STEAMEX international contest for innovative curriculum design. Lisa works with teachers across the disciplines to integrate Design Thinking and Making into their curriculum. She was a Coach for IDEO’s Teachers Guild, and co-instructed Project Zero/Harvard Graduate School.

Educators- Apply Here

Community Events

Become A Sponsor

Making Learning Visible Exhibits

Children are innovators. Come experience how The Innovation Advantage makes learning visible and their plans to solve problems and challenges.

Part of the exhibit is also a visual representation of the practices of maker-centered learning in Central Florida and the opportunity for the public to participate in the experience of collaborative inquiry between parents, educators, and the community.

Competition

Come experience the excitement of bringing ideas to life in a fun-filled festival where children experience learning and build their innovation skills to identify and offer solutions to real-world challenges in their communities.

The competitions are open to schools that practice the Innovation Advantage. Teams compete to win seed funding for their innovative start-up company and receive coaching from a panel of local judges with business and financial experience.

Our Testimonial

Teacher Testimonials

Discover the power of maker-centered learning! Engage students in deep and meaningful learning while fostering their creativity and problem-solving skills. Join our teacher cohort 2024-2025 to explore a range of strategies and tools created by Agency by Design, a renowned research initiative by Project Zero at Harvard University. In this year-long program, you will unlock the power of thinking routines to enhance learning for both educators and students. Experience the key practices that make thinking visible and  And try out core practices associated with making thinking visible and learn how they relate to and interact with one another.

5/5
Teacher
This Innovation Advantage program is unlike anything else I have ever seen! I am an educator, and this program is truly revolutionary. It not only provides teachers with strategies to prepare kids for a world of constant change but also gives children the tools and skills they need to make their own mark on the world. It is an incredible way to develop problem-solving, critical thinking, and creative design skills. It has made a huge difference in my classroom, and I am so thankful for the tools and resources the program has provided. This program will definitely change the world, and I cannot recommend it highly enough!

More Information

Empowering Communities to Shape their World is a one year program designed for teachers preschool to elementary school. This is a hybrid program but requires participants to attend in-person meetings four weekends in one year. 

June 13-14, 2024
September 20-21, 2024
November 22-23, 2024
February 21-22, 2025 

The in-person events allow to foster a deeper understanding of the material and allow for networking opportunities and the building of relationships between teachers in the cohort.

Between site visits, the participants will meet regularly (about every two to three weeks) in small groups to discuss the progress of their work, share documentation, and receive feedback from one another. There will be a general structure for study group meetings, which will be self-facilitated by the participating educators. The project liaison will offer on-the-ground coaching to the Participants regularly. In between site visits, teacher groups will conduct 60-minute virtual coaching sessions for the Participants.

Teachers, Teacher Leaders, and School Administrators and Leaders.

Orlando Florida Empowering  will be hosted at the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County and Young Innovators Academies.

 

Scholarships are available for educators from qualifying organizations. With generous support from organizations and many individual donations, we are able to offer a limited number of professional learning scholarships to support a range of schools, districts, and organizations as well as a diverse group of educators.

These scholarships support educators and teams in under-resourced contexts and marginalized communities. 

The deadline for registration is Sunday, July 31, 2024.

Space is limited. The courses may fill prior to the registration deadline.

Our Sponsors