PROJECT CRISS: CReating Independence through Student-owned Strategies

INSTRUCTOR(S): Kathy Theis, National CRISS Trainer, Mukwonago School District
GRADE LEVEL: 3-12
CREDIT: 2
 

We've all seen students struggle in classes, and usually we think it's because they don't have a handle on the subject.  But, believe it or not, it has less to do with the subject than how the subject is approached.  To put it simply, most students don't know how to learn.  The reason for this is simple:  No one has ever taught this. That is why Project CRISS was created.

CRISS stands for CReating Independence through Student-owned Strategies.  It's a flexible system that allows teachers to incorporate active learning strategies easily into the instruction of course content.  The end result is students who have strategies, tools, and techniques to understand better, to organize, and to work with content material in all their classes.  Project CRISS transforms students into strategic learners.  Teachers are trained how to incorporate learning strategies into their regular classroom instruction.  It becomes a natural process.  As teachers teach their courses, they also directly teach the techniques of more active learning by showing, telling, modeling, demonstrating, and explaining.  As students progress through the year they gradually assume more and more of the responsibility for learning by using the techniques which work most effectively for them.  CRISS will transform the traditional "lecture and test" classroom into a stimulating, dynamic learning environment.

Project CRISS is a nationally validated exemplary project.  Recent advances in brain-compatible learning substantiate the merits of this philosophy and help explain the project's  success, longevity, and national proliferation.  Kathy Theis is a nationally "renowned" CRISS trainer and is from our area of Wisconsin!  To find out more about Project CRISS, please visit www.projectcriss.com

Required Text: Project CRISS: CReating Independence through Student-owned Strategies, 3rd ed., will be available at the academy for purchase at a cost of $50.