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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

photo by Myles Ma

Mr. David Allocco is a firm believer in the ability to reach all students using 21st century technology.  Today’s learners are more diverse, and unlike most of their instructors, have grown up in a digital age.  They create multimedia projects, maintain relationships through social networking sites, and text message.  By using 21st century technology teachers can start “speaking” their students’ language.  

Mr. Allocco offers professional development sessions for teachers who want to add 21st century resources and skills into their lesson plans.  While you can choose from the presentations below, Mr. Allocco can also cater his message to fit your needs.

“David Allocco’s teacher workshop was refreshingly time-efficient, polished, and designed for direct implementation in my classes....David’s hands-on training, approachability, and expertise made this among the most effective teacher trainings I’ve attended.”

JOHN NOLAN / PARAMUS HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER

SELLING EDUCATION

Mr. Allocco holds a degree in advertising from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.  In addition, Mr. Allocco worked for a short time in the field as a media strategist and an assistant account executive prior to entering the classroom.    
 

Despite leaving the industry, Mr. Allocco continues to use the basic principles of advertising to reach his students.  By infusing these principles into lesson plan development, teachers can better reach their students and communicate in ways that foster stronger comprehension.

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As part of this presentation, Mr. Allocco will help teachers think like an advertiser so that they can "sell" kids on their lessons.

PRESENTATION OPTIONS

GAMING IN THE CLASSROOM

Video games can be an effective way to teach lessons to students.  According to education author Marc Prensky, today’s average college graduates will have spent less than 5,000 hours of their lives reading, but over 10,000 hours playing video games.  In this presentation, Mr. Allocco will show teachers how to effectively use and create their own video games in the classroom.  He will also showcase his original game entitled, Choosing Sides: The American Revolution in Bergen County.  In the game, students follow the fictional John Van Dunk as he talks to the real-life residents of Bergen County in 1776 who have varied allegiances.  After talking with people like Reverend Gerrit Lydekker and Theodosia Prevost of The Hermitage, students must decide if they would be loyal to the British Crown or join the Patriots in the Revolution.  The game was featured on NJTV’s “Classroom Close-Up” on 12/30/12.

TEACHING THROUGH INQUIRY

Teaching through inquiry is a student-centered approach to lesson design that allows young people to "discover" the answers to key essential questions.

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By analyzing maps, primary sources, and statistical data, students will both raise and answer questions that drive the lesson and connect to the learning objectives.  

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Mr. Allocco will walk teachers through a lesson on the Salem Witch Trials to help illustrate the approach.

NEAR

We live in the Age of Information and the Age of Misinformation.  Given the paradoxical nature of this historical period, it is easy for people to become apathetic to what's going on in the world around them.  It begs the question, "How do we know when something means something?  To help, Mr. Allocco created a strategy to approach current events entitled NEAR (Novelty, Effects, Applicability, Reach).  

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Through this strategy, teachers can lead students through meaningful conversations that will allow them to understand the world, predict what will happen next, and create solutions to potential problems.

“The directives for students in the Common Core Standards and Habits of the Mind model of instruction involve students analyzing different sources of data, perspectives on issues, and decisions made by people and governments in history.  The interactive simulation, ‘Choosing Sides’, uses digital technology, local history, and historical perspectives to engage students in researching, debating, and analyzing textual and technical information.  Students investigate historical documents by examining the decisions of real people living in Bergen County.  The high level of student energy makes this a best practice lesson!”

HANK BITTEN / FORMER SOCIAL STUDIES SUPERVISOR / INDIAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL

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