The Gifted Students We Miss: Looking Beyond Labels, Behavior, and Expectations
Giftedness does not always look like high achievement, compliance, or academic ease. Come explore giftedness as neurodiversity and examines how strengths may be overlooked when students are identified by disability, behavior, language acquisition, or other learning needs. Participants will challenge common assumptions and explore more equitable ways to recognize gifted potential in students who are often missed.
Mrs. Sarah Sales & Ms. Kayla Lopez, Integrated STEAM Coalition
IH 156
Enacting Culturally Responsive Teaching Through Multicultural Literature: Building Educational Partnerships and Community Connections in Early Childhood Classrooms
Explore how multicultural literature supports culturally responsive teaching in early childhood classrooms. Learn practical strategies for selecting and using diverse texts to affirm children's identities, strengthen family and community partnerships, and promote equity and inclusion. Through research and classroom examples, educators will gain actionable tools to foster belonging, resilience, and positive social-emotional development.
Dr. Bascolyne Day & Mrs. Norma Ortiz-Mariscal, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi & Gregory-Portland ISD
IH 157
Introduction to Claude AI for K-12 Educators
Gain a practical, hands-on introduction to Claude AI, Anthropic's AI assistant, designed specifically for classroom teachers. We will begin with a brief look at Anthropic's background and guiding philosophy, understanding the company's approach to building safe, helpful AI tools, before moving into the practical mechanics of getting started: how to sign up for an account and navigate the available tools and interfaces.
From there, the session builds core AI fluency through prompt generation showing participants how to write clear, effective prompts and iterate on them to get better results. Sample artifacts and real prompt examples will be offered throughout, providing ready-to-use prompts that can be adapted to your unique classroom needs.
A central focus of the session is applying Claude AI to real instructional challenges: creating materials for diverse, mixed-ability classrooms, generating translations for multilingual learners and families, and differentiating content across reading levels and learning needs. Participants will leave with concrete strategies for using AI to save planning time while better meeting the needs of every student.
The session closes with a discussion of ethical considerations including student data privacy, academic integrity, appropriate use boundaries, and the importance of human judgment in reviewing AI-generated content.
By the end of this session, participants will be able to comfortably use Claude AI as a practical teaching tool, with the skills and examples needed to apply in the classroom setting and beyond.
Mrs. Mallory Pena, Gregory-Portland ISD
IH 158
Language as an Asset: Building Partnerships by Honoring What Students Bring
Shift your mindset from seeing language as a barrier to seeing students' native language as an asset. This session focuses on knowing our students, their strengths and interests, and moving past "I don't speak their language." Through communication and partnership with students, families, and communities, we can build on what students already bring to the classroom.
Mrs. Sandy Gonzalez, Gregory-Portland ISD
IH 163
Summer Research and Professional Development Opportunities for K-12 Teachers
K-12 STEM teachers participated in National Science Foundation-funded summer program at Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMU-K). Through summer research and professional development activities, the teachers developed learning modules based to implement in their classrooms. The teachers will share their summer research experiences and learning modules.
Dr. Mohammad Motaher Hossain, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
IH 164
Are We Solving the Teacher Shortage or Sustaining It? A Conversation About Teacher Retention in Texas
This session will discuss the persistent teacher shortage in Texas schools and prompt attendees to consider whether vacancies are being filled, usually by uncertified teachers or long-term substitutes, or if local and state decision-makers are fueling the shortage by not improving poor working conditions, pay, and professional support, which continue to sustain the teacher shortage.
Mrs. Elizabeth Carreon, Texas A&M University-Kingsville & West Oso ISD
IH 267
Career Corner
Beyond the Lesson Plan: Resume Skills for Teachers
Bring your resume for review and feedback with education recruiters, and learn how to highlight your classroom and field experiences, transferable skills, and accomplishments. By the end of the session, you will have practical strategies for strengthening your resume and presenting yourself as a competitive candidate for teaching roles.
Mrs. Nicolette Ramirez, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Career & Professional Development Center & West Oso ISD
IH 268
