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March 2025

The Spring 2025 training season is just around the corner. How are you preparing? We highly recommend taking some time to review your class materials, presentations, and learning activities as you get ready for your upcoming Spring workshops!

During busy workshop seasons, it's important to take a moment, pause, and breathe.

Box breathing is a simple relaxation technique that involves inhaling, holding, exhaling, and holding again, in a rhythm that mimics the four sides of a box.

Incorporating breathing exercises in workshops, like box breathing, can help participants:

• Reset
• Reduce stress
• Enhance focus and engagement

Unlocking the Power of Gamification

Click on each image in this section for training ideas and resources!

"Gamification is a powerful technique to boost participant engagement. It involves applying game elements, such as competition, rewards, etc. to educational activities. Gamified learning motivates learners and keeps them interested throughout the session."

- Joseph S. Renzulli, University of Connecticut 

We are also happy to share the following resources from our colleagues with the University of New Hampshire T2 Center. We hope they are useful to you. Please take a look, and don’t hesitate to reach out to Vanessa at vanessa.corrao@uconn.edu with any questions or to share ideas and resources.

Enhancing Accessibility in Educational Materials

A Couple of Other Pointers:

• Make sure fonts and images are large enough for participants to read.
• Fonts like Arial and Calibri, sans serifs, are easier to read.
• Each slide or section should have a header. Headers should be different depending on the content on the slide/in the section.
• Avoid "click here" and instead have the text describe the link's target.
• Make sure there is a clear color contrast between slide backgrounds and font colors.
• Only use color to convey meaning.
• Include transcripts or textual descriptions for all purely audio or visual media, and use only captioned multimedia.
• Minimize animations and eliminate flashing elements.
• It is good practice to set ALT (alternative text) for all images.

If you have particular questions or concerns you'd like to discuss, feel free to email Vanessa at vanessa.corrao@uconn.edu. We’re happy to help!

Start 2025 Out Right! 

Sharing a reminder that we will require all instructors to use our new T2 PowerPoint template beginning in 2025. 

If you have questions or need help, please view the T2 PowerPoint template tutorial on best practices for use and tips on transferring a presentation from its existing template.

If you are still struggling with a slide or two, let Vanessa vanessa.corrao@uconn.edu or Mary mary.c.mccarthy@uconn.edu know and we will be glad to help you!

What's Happening in CT

Fiscal Corner

Instructors, sharing a reminder to please take some time to make sure all of your contact information is up to date in our Husky Buy system for the new year. Thank you!

Have a question or a topic idea for the next edition of the Instructor Quick Tips newsletter? Don't keep it to yourself! Reach out to Vanessa Corrao, vanessa.corrao@uconn.edu, and let’s make the next issue even more incredible.

Connecticut Training and Technical Assistance Center

270 Middle Turnpike, Unit 5202

Storrs, CT 06269-5202

Phone: 860-486-9373