ACTEM2026: Full Schedule

Welcome to the 2026 ACTEM Conference! #ACTEM26

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8:00am EDT

Beyond the Classroom: Engaging Your Whole Community in Digital Citizenship

Thursday October 15, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT

Building a healthy, safe, and responsible digital culture requires meaningful engagement from students, educators, families, school leaders, and the broader community. This session will explore strategies for creating shared understanding and collective ownership around digital citizenship initiatives across an entire school community. Participants will examine approaches for family engagement, student leadership, community partnerships, and schoolwide communication while exploring ways to move digital citizenship beyond isolated lessons and into everyday practice. The session will highlight practical examples, engagement strategies, and actionable ideas for building a more connected and collaborative approach to digital citizenship.

Speakers

Jonathan R. Werner

MLTI Ambassador Program Facilitator, Maine DOE - Learning Through Technology Team

Jonathan R. Werner brings his unique and diverse career path—spanning roles as a classroom teacher, education attorney, library and instructional technologist, and technology integrator—to his mission of helping educators create transformative learning experiences. Now in his... Read More →

Thursday October 15, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
Pine Tree

Teaching Strategies

9:10am EDT

What Your Students Want You To Know...

Thursday October 15, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT

Sagadahoc

We have more technology than ever before, but is it really working? Is it engaging students, enhancing learning, or improving the overall educational experience like we hope? How will we know? Well, we ask them! Join us for this interactive session where we will discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly of technology integration from students' perspectives with actual students!

Speakers

Mary Chase

Social Studies Department Head, Skowhegan Area High School

Now in my 17th year of education, I have always embraced teaching with technology, even in schools without a technology budget. I've learned to seek out and rely on free sites/apps that work with nearly any devices. As a long-time ACTEM conference attender with a Masters in Technology... Read More →

Thursday October 15, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT
Sagadahoc

Teaching Strategies

1:10pm EDT

Cyberstorm: A Take-Home Tabletop Toolkit for Navigating Digital Dilemmas

Thursday October 15, 2026 1:10pm - 2:10pm EDT

Pine Tree

This interactive professional learning session helps educators recognize and respond to the digital dilemmas that commonly arise for both teachers and students; issues like online privacy, cyberbullying, misinformation, and responsible tech use. Through real-world scenarios, collaborative discussion, and practical strategies, participants learn how to guide students in making thoughtful, ethical choices online while also protecting their own digital well‑being. By the end of the session, teachers walk away with ready‑to‑use classroom activities, conversation prompts, and a clearer understanding of how to foster a safe, supportive digital culture across grade levels.

Speakers

Jim Chasse

Infrastructure Specialist Maine DOE, Maine Department of Education

Thursday October 15, 2026 1:10pm - 2:10pm EDT
Pine Tree

Teaching Strategies

8:00am EDT

A-my-I - Amaze-my-Intelligence

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT

Howard

See what AI can do for you with Ed Tech Tools you may already be using. See how to use ChatGPT and Code.org to very simply and efficiently create a Wordle-like word guessing app. Then learn about Wordela, by eReflect, Inc., and how it uses AI to teach vocabulary acquisition. If time permits, we can even check out Microsoft Make Code and brainstorm ideas on how to make your classroom into an arcade!

Speakers

Matthew Strine

Resident Educator, eReflect, Inc.

Typesy is the premium keyboarding program for education. Come hear from me about why as a former district-level tech director and K-8 school principal, my research led me to Typesy as the best solution out their to solve my classroom needs. Six years ago I decided to return to the... Read More →

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
Howard

Teaching Strategies

8:00am EDT

Little Lifts, Big Empathy: Designing Practical and Purposeful Project-Based Learning Experiences

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT

Penobscot

After a conference full of ideas and inspiration, turning those notions into action can be challenging. Join this workshop to explore the 5E design thinking framework for structuring manageable learning experiences. Discover how we might stoke a spark from ACTEM into a bonfire of empathy-fueled innovation.

Speakers

Dan Ryder

Design Facilitator, CRCS Overman

Success & Innovation Center, Director. #SICMBC
Idea wrangler, design thinker, improviser, author, and award winning educator.
Apple Distinguished educator.
NEA Foundation’s 2018 Horace Mann Award for Teaching Excellence
Co-Author, INTENTION: Critical Creativity in the Classroom (Bl... Read More →

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
Penobscot

Teaching Strategies

8:00am EDT

Smart Greenhouses: A Transdisciplinary Approach to CS

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT

Cumberland

Transdisciplinary Learning integrates two or more disciplines to answer a driving question or solve a problem. MMSA's Smart Greenhouses Project combines plant science and CS to automate desktop greenhouses, building student skills in both areas while revealing real-world CS applications. In this session, hear how educators have used this project to increase students' skills and self-efficacy in computer science.

Speakers

Stefany Burrell

Nonprofit, Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance

I am MMSA's Computer Science Team Lead and the Project Manager for the Smart Greenhouses project, Maine State Science Fair, and Maine Middle School Science & Engineering Fair. I'm a big believer in hands-on and project-based learning, where students are challenged to be curious, creative... Read More →

Rachael Dektor

Friday October 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
Cumberland

Teaching Strategies

9:10am EDT

NotebookLM and the Mentor Mindset

Friday October 16, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT

Capital

NotebookLM is a powerful tool for educators, offering complete control over sources and engaging students with complex material. This session will focus on high school applications, demonstrating how to make complex texts more accessible, student made study sets, and strategies for self-teaching. It includes workshop time for exploration and personal application. Bring a computer and a collaborative mindset!

Speakers

Bryan Quigley

Secondary Science Teacher, Yarmouth High School

I am a secondary science educator at Yarmouth High School, and am passionate about plants, technology, the environment, guitar, MTG, and anywhere nerd culture and nature collide. Excited to share what I have learned with y'all.

Friday October 16, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT
Capital

Teaching Strategies

9:10am EDT

Spooktacular STEAM: Haunted Houses, Tricks, Traps & Tech

Friday October 16, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT

Arnold

Get ready to brew up a magical mix of literacy, engineering, and low-barrier STEM for a delightfully spooky hands-on session. Through playful design challenges, participants will invent giggly goblins, mythical monsters, haunted hideaways, and eerie inventions featuring lights, trap doors, moving mechanisms, and Rube Goldberg–worthy chain reactions. Experience how seasonal projects can connect science, literacy, math, and purposeful technology. Everyone leaves with ready-to-use resources, a spooky build, and a flexible framework for cross-curricular learning experiences for any classroom

Speakers

Marci Klein

Curriculum and Product Designer, 3DuxDesign

Marci Klein, M.D. is a clinical and academic pediatrician with over 25 years of experience in early childhood development, education, and social-emotional health. She transitioned into education to create more engaging, deeper, and authentic learning experiences that support all learners... Read More →

Friday October 16, 2026 9:10am - 10:10am EDT
Arnold

Teaching Strategies

1:10pm EDT

Don't Cell Yourself Short

Friday October 16, 2026 1:10pm - 2:10pm EDT

Pine Tree

With Maine’s new bell-to-bell cell phone restrictions now in place, schools are entering a new phase of teaching, learning, and student support. This session will explore the opportunities, challenges, and practical realities of implementing phone-free learning environments while maintaining meaningful technology integration and student engagement. Participants will engage in discussion around school culture, student behavior, instructional shifts, communication challenges, and the evolving role of technology in classrooms. The session will also highlight practical strategies, lessons learned, and considerations for supporting students and educators through this transition in ways that prioritize focus, connection, and learning.

Speakers

Jonathan R. Werner

MLTI Ambassador Program Facilitator, Maine DOE - Learning Through Technology Team

Emma-Marie Banks

Coordinator of Learning Through Technology, Maine Department of Education

As the Coordinator of Learning Through Technology, Emma oversees the implementation of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative (MLTI), supporting schools in the purposeful integration of technology to enhance teaching and learning. In her role, Emma leads long-term statewide planning... Read More →

Friday October 16, 2026 1:10pm - 2:10pm EDT
Pine Tree

Teaching Strategies

2:20pm EDT

Authentically ME: Helping Educators Find Their Writing Voice

Friday October 16, 2026 2:20pm - 3:20pm EDT

Capital

Discover simple, classroom‑tested strategies that help educators find their voice and turn lived experience into meaningful writing. We’ll use a design‑thinking lens to clarify ideas, shape structure, and build confidence—tools you can use for your own book projects or to support student writers.

Speakers

Jacqueline Gardy

Friday October 16, 2026 2:20pm - 3:20pm EDT
Capital

Teaching Strategies

8:00am EDT

9:10am EDT

1:10pm EDT

8:00am EDT

8:00am EDT

8:00am EDT

9:10am EDT

9:10am EDT

1:10pm EDT

2:20pm EDT

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