How to Live Mentally Well and Crush it During Difficult Times In this session, based, in part, on stories from his i’Mpossible Project book series, author and youth mental health specialist, Josh Rivedal talks about his school days in a format that’s visceral and creates an emotional connection between students and the powerful message that it’s okay to talk about mental health and that it’s possible to live mentally well during difficult times. Josh will cover: what mental health is and is not, coping skills, what depression and anxiety is and how we can cope with either or both, how to reframe failure, how to help oneself or a friend if in a mental health breakdown, and finding and cultivating hope during difficult times.

The Southern Tier Brass (2 trumpets, French horn, trombone, tuba and drum set) has been active throughout the area for over 30 years performing music in a wide range of musical styles from the renaissance to contemporary including renaissance, baroque, classical, jazz, standards, popular, rock and Broadway selections. We have a combined public school band teaching experience of over 100 years! Our school performances have been extremely well received by both students and teachers. In addition, our performing experiences include the Binghamton Philharmonic, the Tri Cities Opera and jazz and popular settings. Our program can be tailored to a variety of situations. Examples include: 1. Introducing the brass instruments to students about to start band in elementary school. 2. Providing the opportunity for older music students to see and hear the brass family up close on a wide variety of musical styles. 3. A program tailored to a given grade level social studies curriculum e.g. the Civil War with time period music and narration.

The Children’s Food Lab brings food and nutrition education to schools throughout the NYC and Mid-Hudson region. The Children’s Food Lab (CFL) offers food arts and sciences discovery labs, where curious minds of all ages can connect to the transformative power of food — food that is integral to the health of their bodies, minds, communities, and environment. CFL labs are hands-on, multi-sensory with a STEAM-based approached. They incorporate science, technology, math, nutrition, social studies, ELA, and the arts whenever possible. Students learn the incredible stories behind ingredients they eat all the time, foods like corn, wheat, milk, eggs, herbs, oats, vegetables, spices, cacao, and on. Students explore how food is grown, processed, and prepared, as well as how their food choices affect the health of their bodies and environment. The context and backstory of each ingredient creates a deeper connection between students and their food – a connection that will last a lifetime and shape the course of a child’s health and well-being.

Alan Katz is the author of more than 50 picture books, poetry collections, and middle grade novels for young readers (including Take Me Out of the Bathtub, Got Your Nose, OOPS!, The Funniest Joke Book Ever for Kids, and Misty the Cloud, a NYT bestseller written with Dylan Dreyer of the Today show). Alan's program is an inspiring look at his career as a reader and writer. In a virtual multimedia presentation that includes his work as an award-winning author, TV writer, animation creator, comic book/trading card writer, theater producer, kids' radio host and more, he laughingly fosters a “hey, I can read that/I can write that” attitude. Silly Dilly singing, ridiculous rhyming and a recap of his wildly creative career make for an insightful and enjoyable presentation. (Incidentally, he's also got three-person musicals based on my Silly Dilly songbooks and on my joke book, and can bring them to your school or library...starring my son, who's now playing Peter in the Pinkalicious musical Off-Broadway!)

The Compassionate Leaders Circle (CLC) proudly offers Student Leadership Labs for K-12 students, fostering creativity, self-discovery, and meaningful connections at every stage of their educational journey. Book Lab for Elementary Schools empowers young learners to write and illustrate their own stories, which are professionally published on Amazon. This exciting experience allows students to showcase their work to friends, family, and local libraries, building confidence and pride in their achievements. Dream Lab for Middle Schools guides students to uncover their core values and collaborate in learning pods. These sessions strengthen their connection with themselves and their peers while setting actionable goals for a purposeful and rewarding transition into high school. Purpose Lab for High School and University students helps participants realign with their personal values and aspirations. Using proven methodologies, this program equips students with actionable steps to pursue a fulfilling life and realize their full potential. CLC has aligned its programs with NYSED’s initiatives, including the “Portrait of a Graduate,” to support students in achieving a successful path to graduation. Each lab is thoughtfully designed to inspire and empower students, creating lasting impacts both within and beyond the classroom.

Amapola Arts Bilingual, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Art Education: Where Culture Meets Creativity! Amapola Arts is a bilingual, family-run art studio co-founded by Hector (Nino) Morales and Dr. Gliset C. Morales. Based in Kenmore-Tonawanda, NY, the studio specializes in on- and off-site art classes and culturally and linguistically responsive workshops that engage learners of all ages through canvas painting, pottery, photography, and mixed media. Rooted in Puerto Rican, Afro-Caribbean, and Taíno cultural traditions, Amapola Arts creates space for youth to explore identity, express themselves creatively, and build community. Programs are grounded in the Windows and Mirrors framework, helping students see themselves reflected in their work while gaining insight into cultures beyond their own. Offerings for P–12 Schools, Afterschool Programs & Community Organizations: On or Off-Site Art Classes & Workshops – Canvas Painting – Hand-building Pottery – Photography & Visual Storytelling – Mixed Media Projects Potter’s wheel experiences available for on-site sessions at the studio. Programs can be booked as single-day sessions, multi-week series, and summer or after-school enrichment. Inclusive, Culturally Responsive Curriculum Sample themes include: – Nature, symbolism, and visual storytelling – Celebrating multilingual heritage and family culture – Art as a tool for advocacy and connection – Identity, belonging, and creative expression. All Materials & Bilingual Instruction Provided. Amapola Arts brings all supplies and handles setup—just provide the space. Customizable to Your Needs Programs are adaptable by age group, schedule, theme, and budget. In addition to partnering with schools and organizations, Amapola Arts also offers bilingual classes and community events at its Tonawanda studio. Learn more at www.amapolaarts.com or reach out to glisetmorales@amapolaarts.com to begin planning a workshop!

Digilangua is a digital platform for readers (short novels) written in accessible language expressly for language learners. We currently have an actively growing library of more than 170 books in five different languages: English, German, Italian, French and Spanish, the majority of which also have audio to accompany the ebooks. Founded by two world language teachers and authors of comprehensible novels, the LMS-similar site boasts access for up to 180 students per teacher login, the ability for teachers to monitor student reading progress, create auto-graded comprehension questions, select the books available to different classes, as well as create assignments for students, all within the platform.

Nationally recognized Youth Motivational Speaker, Passion Ignitor and Leadership Expert, Lamarr Womble, created Passion for Leadership to give EVERYONE the power to choose in work, school and life. In order to do that, I specifically help students, educators and professionals: -Overcome their mental roadblocks and life challenges -Discover their Passion -Lead self and others to develop skills and live a more fulfilled life Passion for Leadership offers school assemblies, conference keynotes, interactive workshops, classroom takeovers and professional development. We also can offer consultations for a holistic approach to inspiring school climate. Lamarr Womble can bring INSPIRATION, PASSION and ACTION to your school or conference!

From performances to workshops to artist residencies, Wandering Theatre strives to spread the magic of storytelling and self expression with young audiences. PERFORMANCES: We offer performances as school assemblies, along with a 15 minute talkback following each show to answer questions from the audience, and give an inside glimpse into how our puppets work. Our puppet show is called "The Dragon and the Wanderer". It is 30 minutes long, appropriate for grades K-5, and has themes in line with SEL content (friendship, compassion, standing up to bullies). It utilizes shadow puppets, hand puppets, physical theatre, and a surprise transformation (the set turns into a giant dragon puppet!). Set to original music, “The Dragon and the Wanderer” does not use language, and has played very well for ESL students, deaf students, autistic students, and students with developmental disabilities. WORKSHOPS: We run puppeteering and puppet-building workshops (catered to grade level/student capabilities). Workshops can coordinate with Art and/or STEAM classes, and can be brought into those classrooms as a single-day workshop or a multi-day artist residency. In our shadow puppet building workshops, participants will build their own shadow puppets out of paper plates and learn how to manipulate them on a shadow screen. In our physical theatre & puppeteering workshops, participants will practice bringing everyday objects to life, creating cooperative puppets in groups, and using physicality and motion to tell stories.

I am a sewist who makes bags and clothing. I love teaching others the basics of sewing and even getting into more advanced bag making. I am able to do live demonstration or run a workshop.

About Anna (check out my website to learn more about me and my art practice): Anna holds her BFA in Printmaking/ Education from The College of Saint Rose and her MFA in Studio Art from The State University of New York at Albany. Anna is a Professionally certified K-12 Visual Arts educator in New York State. Anna currently teaches High School but has experience teaching homeschool, elementary/middle and college level courses. -Example of Services- I'm also interested in working with YOU to create a unique lesson/ workshop/ PD As an artist and educator I'm dedicated to amplifying the importance of art in our lives. My goal is to provide an intimate insight into art making, collaboration and reflection. All workshops can be for any grade and can be tailored to what you are specifically looking for. Artist Talk/ Lecture (Workshop/ PD- Hands on or Virtual): - I share my background and artistic journey focusing on past and current artworks/ concepts. - I critique classwork and provide feedback/ insight Graduate Work Exploration (Workshop/ PD- Hands on or Virtual) -Part of my graduate work I focused on object(s) as portraits of people from my life. Through a personal excavation, I collect and repurpose intimate artifacts that have been preciously stored away. These personal relics and other mass-produced items are combined with the common house fly in portraits of significant people from throughout my life. I examined our obsessive fascinations with objects and their associations with individual people. -Students will listen/ watch a presentation of my work and then pick an object that has significance in their life- students will sketch out this object from memory and at the end we will see which object(s) reappear between students- the link that joins us all together. Printmaking (Workshop/ PD- Hands on): With my extensive background in Printmaking, Bookbinding, and Paper making I can do a variety of hands on workshops for students and staff. -Printing demos of: Relief, Intaglio, Mezzotint, Kitchen Litho, Monoprinting. -Paper Making Demo -Paper Making Workshop -Bookbinding Workshop -Zine Workshop Other: Polymer Clay Jewelry or Cane Building (Workshop/ PD- Hands on) Cyanotype: what is JUNK? (Workshop/ PD- Hands on) Hand Tufting (Rug Making) (Workshop/ PD- Hands on) Mixed Media (Workshop/ PD- Hands on) Portfolio Building/ Critique

My name is Michael Fry, and I'm a 4-time World Champion jump roper, speaker, and founder of Let's Jump L.A. Let's Jump L.A. offers jump rope assemblies and P.E. Takeovers for schools across the country. We’ve worked with over 90 schools, teaching students how to jump rope as an exciting way to learn about persisting through failure, working together, and treating others with kindness. The assembly is a 35 minute show that includes jump rope performances, audience participation, double dutch, high-energy music, and motivational messages. We focus on the importance of kindness, working together, and being persistent in the face of failure. The P.E. takeover is more hands-on learning. We work with rotating groups of up to 50 students at a time, for 30 minutes each. With each new skill they learn, students realize that they can improve at any endeavor with practice and patience.