NSTI - 2026

How can schools effectively welcome new educators, foster a strong sense of belonging, and immerse them in the principles, systems, and culture of their learning community? At Avenues São Paulo, the New Leaf program was created to answer this question. In this deep dive, participants will explore how New Leaf supports new teachers in internalizing the core values, practices, and spirit of the community, laying the foundation for their success and long-term growth within the school. Participants will also examine practical strategies for designing and implementing meaningful onboarding experiences that promote connection, clarity, and a smooth transition for new educators into their own school communities.

What if schools were intentionally designed around the experiences that most shape students’ lifelong wellbeing, purpose, and success?
Drawing on insights from the Gallup-Purdue Index and Avenues’ Student Experience framework, this two-day deep dive invites participants to explore the six essential experiences that research shows have a lasting impact on students: inspiration, care, mentorship, deep work, real-world application, and belonging.
Participants will engage in a highly interactive process that blends reflection, analysis, and design. Through guided activities, they will:

• Reflect on their own formative learning experiences and connect them to the research
• Explore the “Big Six” and how they translate into the Avenues Student Experience
• Conduct an experience audit of their own schools to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities
• Examine concrete examples from Avenues São Paulo, including structures such as circles, mentorship, mastery projects, and real-world learning programs
• Apply a mentor mindset lens, considering how adult relationships and intentional design shape student growth across all six experiences
• Begin designing or refining systems and practices that make these experiences more consistent and equitable for all students

Across the two days, participants will move from understanding research → seeing it in practice → applying it to their own context.
Participants will leave with:

• A clear, research-informed framework for student experience and wellbeing
• Practical tools to assess how intentionally their school delivers key experiences

This workshop aims to go beyond the surface of project-based learning and unpack the skills students need to develop in a project-based curriculum. We will explore in depth key skills and how to facilitate, design, and assess practices that scaffold deep thinking. Over two days, we will explore how to intentionally teach and grow students’ ability to:


    1.    Formulate meaningful questions with increasing complexity across grade levels; 
    2.     Co-plan projects with students by equipping them with tools for planning, time management, collaboration, and goal setting; 
    3.    Support personal inquiry through age-appropriate research strategies that foster autonomy and critical thinking;
    4.     Design for assessment and curricular progression by identifying the key skills students should develop over time, understanding how these skills unfold across grade levels, and defining meaningful evidence of learning and assessment practices.
 
Participants will engage in interactive discussions, explore real classroom examples, and leave with practical tools and strategies to design more intentional, student-centered, and cognitively demanding project-based experiences.



O objetivo deste workshop é aprofundar e ampliar o repertório teórico e prático sobre a aprendizagem baseada em projetos, com foco nas habilidades essenciais que precisam ser desenvolvidas ao longo da trajetória escolar para formar alunos mais autônomos em seus processos de investigação e ação, mais críticos em seu pensamento e mais colaborativos em suas contribuições para seus pares e comunidade. Ao longo de dois dias, exploraremos como planejar, ensinar e avaliar, de forma intencional, práticas que promovam o deep thinking e apoiem o desenvolvimento progressivo dessas competências.
Juntos, investigaremos:


    1. A formulação de perguntas norteadoras para projetos e a progressiva complexificação dessas perguntas ao longo dos diferentes anos escolares;
    2. O planejamento colaborativo de projetos com os alunos, oferecendo ferramentas para organização, gestão do tempo, colaboração e definição de objetivos;
    3. Os processos de investigação individual por meio de estratégias de pesquisa adequadas a cada faixa etária, favorecendo a autonomia e o pensamento crítico;
    4. O planejamento da progressão curricular e dos processos avaliativos, identificando quais habilidades devem ser desenvolvidas ao longo do tempo, como elas evoluem nos diferentes anos escolares e quais evidências podem tornar a aprendizagem visível.


Os participantes terão a oportunidade de discutir práticas pedagógicas, analisar exemplos reais de sala de aula e experimentar ferramentas e estratégias que poderão ser adaptadas aos seus próprios contextos. Ao final, sairão com referências práticas para refletir sobre suas experiências e desenhar ou aprimorar projetos.

This interactive workshop is designed to help educators and administrators develop and implement a successful student ambassador program that aligns with their institution’s mission and provides valuable leadership opportunities for students. Participants will leave with a comprehensive roadmap and practical strategies for fostering student leadership and enhancing their school community through a well-structured ambassador program.

What if entrepreneurship learning could happen in a history class, during a science experiment, through a podcast project, or even in the way students solve everyday problems? This 90-minute hands-on workshop explores how entrepreneurial thinking including curiosity, creativity, adaptability, initiative, and problem-solving can be developed across any subject area, not only in business classes. 


The session will also address current educational challenges, such as fixed mindsets, stereotypes students carry about themselves and others, student engagement, and the impact of AI on learning. Participants will experience practical activities, analyze real classroom examples, and leave with strategies to create more meaningful, creative, and student-centered learning experiences.

How can read-alouds become a powerful tool for language development, vocabulary growth, and deep comprehension across grade levels and content areas? In this interactive deep dive, participants will explore the research and practice behind purposeful read-alouds through the lens of the Science of Reading and language-rich instruction. Together, we will analyze mentor texts, experience model read-alouds, examine strategies for explicit vocabulary and comprehension instruction, and collaborate to design meaningful learning experiences that can be adapted to different contexts. Through shared reflection, discussion, and creation, educators will leave with practical tools, ready-to-use plans, and a network of colleagues committed to fostering meaningful literacy experiences that help all students grow as readers, thinkers, and communicators.

Join a hands-on workshop to integrate Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) into K-12 lessons using the CASEL framework. Participants will focus on their upcoming lessons and learn to embed SEL into academic learning. Through interactive activities and real classroom examples, teachers will explore strategies to foster SEL in any lesson. By the end, attendees will leave with a clear, actionable plan ready to implement in their classrooms the following schoolweek.

Traditional curriculum design is focused on discipline-based, academic content standards. This workshop is based on the premise that deep learning happens when transdisciplinary skills such as student agency, critical thinking, lifelong learning, wellbeing and global citizenship are prioritized in the curriculum design process. After viewing 2-3 short video examples, participants will have the opportunity to share successes, challenges and examples of how they are working to "flip" curriculum design, so that transdisciplinary skills are a first thought, and not an afterthought.  Discussion will be in a participant-driven "EdCamp" format.
  

This session is designed to engage educators in reflective, collaborative learning around the concept of student agency. Participants will begin by exploring a series of real-world case scenarios that highlight different manifestations and challenges of student agency in school contexts. Working in small groups, educators will analyze and discuss the scenarios, sharing perspectives, questioning assumptions, and identifying common themes related to student voice, choice, ownership, and responsibility. Following these discussions, facilitators will introduce key concepts, research-based frameworks, and practical definitions of student agency. This content will help participants connect their initial reflections to a shared conceptual understanding and language.To conclude the session, educators will apply their learning by developing their own proposal or action plan that promotes student agency within their classroom, grade level, or school context. The session will intentionally move from experience → theory → application, ensuring participants leave with both clarity and concrete next steps.