Professional Development

Whether you’re looking for a brief, impactful keynote or an intensive professional development series, I have something for YOU! Here are some of the things Vanessa love to speak about - expect to be engaged, entertained, and leave with strategies to implement in your classroom right away!

Become a life-changing teacher: The 5 most valuable things you can teach your students!

Math can be soul crushing. Believing you can't do math leads to a lack of confidence, hopelessness & many tears! By making sure your math lessons are infused with FIVE key core principles, this session will turn you into a life-changing math teacher that inspires students to see themselves as capable of ANYTHING - even math!

Math Therapy: heal math trauma & help students build better relationships with math!

Did you know that pretty much anyone who thinks they're "not a math person" has math trauma they haven't worked through yet? We’ve all had math teachers before, but how many of you have had a math therapist?! This session will empower you to teach your students that they are capable of everything and that anything is possible - starting with math!

Embracing the Powerful Role of Failure in Math Class

What do Lady Gaga, Steven King....and Albert Einstein have in common? They all faced failure before getting to where they are!  Fear of failure is one of the reasons students have math anxiety. It prevents students from asking questions, speaking up, and even supporting their peers. ln this workshop, we explore the role of failure in math class & how you can harness it to inspire students to embrace failure in math class - and IRL!

Upcoming Tour Dates

  • Stockton Public Schools

    September 19 2024
    (Stockton, California)

  • NCTM

    September 25 - 28 2024
    (Chicaco, Illinois)

  • NCSM

    September 24 2024
    (Chicago, Illinois)

  • Toronto Catholic District School Board

    October 2 2024
    (Toronto, Ontario)

  • EnCorps

    October 3 2024
    Virtual Webinar

  • Nevada Virtual School

    October 7 2024
    (Las Vegas, Nevada)

  • Corwin Press

    October 9 2024
    Virtual Webinar

  • CMC South

    November 7 - 10 2024
    (Palm Springs, CA)

  • Alberta Teachers Association

    November 1 2024
    (Alberta, Canada)

What People Are Saying

  • This was one of the best sessions of the conference...and all time! I have always wanted to figure out how to tackle math anxiety in my school. This session provided clear, concise, and practical steps that I can start using to create a safe and fun space for students to thrive in math!

    TJ Capella, Elementary Educator (California, USA)

  • I loved her first session so much, I stayed for the second one! Love how positive Vanessa is about Math and how we got some tangible resources to use in our classroom specifically around growth mindset. Please have her back again next year!!!

    Morgan Friesen, High School Educator (Alberta, Canada)

  • Vanessa was amazing, captivating the audience with a powerful message that reached beyond math teachers. Her insights were incredibly impactful, and I hope she returns next year so all educators can benefit from her wisdom!

    Angela Doggen, Educational Coach (New York, USA)