Welcome to the official newsletter of The Teaching and Learning Collaborative Inc. (TLC). TLC is a nonprofit organization based in San Diego that provides equitable access to high-quality, innovative educational opportunities for marginalized students. We’re glad to have you with us as we share stories, resources, and updates. | | |
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Message from Our President
Hello! I am excited to announce the launch of TLC’s newsletter. We look forward to sharing our latest projects, programs and special events with you. We are also looking forward to providing helpful resources and highlighting innovative practices in the field of education.
At TLC, we remain committed to creating innovative programs for students who are a part of marginalized communities, including newcomer, refugee and housing insecure youth, recognizing the brilliance and value of each student. Thank you for being part of our community and for your continued support. With your help, we look ahead to a year of growth, inspiration, and boundless possibilities.
Best regards,
Bailey Choi-Vanos, Ed.D
baileymchoi@gmail.com
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STREAMLab
TLC's newest after-school program, STREAMLab, serves refugee and housing insecure students in the San Diego Unified School District. Funded by the San Diego Unified Office of Children and Youth in Transition (CYT), our program provides high-quality STREAM (science, technology, reading, engineering, art, and mathematics) experiences, while also supporting social emotional learning (SEL), executive functioning, and English Language Development (ELD). We have an amazing team of teachers and consultants facilitating the program. Our diverse group of students, who collectively speak 10 different languages at home, practice English while engaging in creative and collaborative tasks as a part of STREAMLab.
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Students explore how things work by taking electronics apart. | |
Students stretch their creativity through puzzles and brainteasers. | |
Students get messy and build their confidence to create. | |
Curriculum To Go
In the thick of the pandemic, teachers were struggling to provide relevant at home activities for students who were on ten day quarantines. To meet this identified need we developed “Ten Good Days” of standards-aligned, high-quality, developmentally appropriate and engaging activities for students to do independently while they were home quarantining. Our “Ten Good Days” were shared broadly among teacher networks and many teachers continue to find these resources incredibly helpful. To find these and other resources for teachers, visit TLC Resources.
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Summer Fun
TLC was excited to continue its Level Up partnership with the Karen Organization of San Diego. This past summer's theme, STREAM to the Future, captured the hearts and minds of all involved.
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Caren Holtzman
Caren has been a TLC Board Member since its inception. We asked Caren several questions to help the TLC community get to know her better. Check out her answers below:
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What draws you to TLC?
Two things: working with passionate, committed individuals who care about their work and the work itself. My career has focused on issues of equity and access in education and on supporting excellent teaching. TLC combines these two elements and operationalizes them into innovative programs and experiences for teachers and for underserved, culturally and linguistically diverse students. We have a clear focus and also the ability to be creative and responsive to the communities we work with. I'm living the dream.
What TLC event has been the most memorable?
I don't have one specific top memory: The most memorable part of TLC is the feeling of being part of something special that allows teachers and students to show how brilliant and creative they are. It feels great to see kids and teachers doing work that's challenging, engaging and matters to them.
Curious what Caren does in her free time and what book she's reading?
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TLC’s Take on Teacher Professional Learning
At the TLC we believe Teacher Learning should mirror what we know about Student Learning. It needs to be dynamic, interactive, hands-on, and relevant. Part of our organization’s mission is to support teacher excellence and we strive to achieve this goal through innovative approaches to supporting the work of teaching.
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Integrating SEL with Academics: A Strengths-Based Approach
In our work with underserved students and their teachers, the Teaching and Learning Collaborative (TLC) focuses on assets, talents, strengths, and skills. Highlighting “what is good” rather than focusing on deficits and problems guides the TLC teaching philosophy. We believe this intentional, explicit focus on goodness creates a supportive SEL (Social Emotional Learning) environment in which students build their self-confidence and willingness to take intellectual and social risks.
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Thank You to Our Community | |
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We are grateful to all the talented students, teachers, mentors, families, partners and sponsors who make this important work happen.
Have a question? Want to get involved?
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