Real Skills for Real Life Summit

Home / Professional Learning / Event

Are we preparing students to navigate the future, create it, or both?

The future belongs to those who can think critically and creatively, focus intently without being distracted, and channel their inner strengths. Today's “future-ready” student graduates with the knowledge and capacity to adapt, innovate, and thrive in college, career and real life.

These are "The New Basics"—essential skills grounded in cutting-edge brain science and executive function research.

For students to learn traditional academics, they need:

Working memories to use what they know to solve complex problems
Self-regulation to manage their cognitive, social, and emotional capacities to achieve goals
Reflection to examine their thinking, self-assess, process perspectives, and pause before taking action
Cognitive flexibility to build deeper understanding by pivoting their thinking in response to changing circumstances

So, how can we make executive function skills the foundational building blocks for developing "Real Skills for Real Life" in our schools? And, what does the science of learning tell us about how students best develop these skills?

Join us to engage with leading neuroscientists and educational strategists who translate brain science into transformative leadership strategies you can immediately implement in your district! Come and find out how incorporating these skills will increase student achievement; build new capacity of your team; and take your own leadership to the next level.

Learning Sessions:

Wednesday, October 8 Thursday, October 9 Friday, October 10

How Do Kids See The Challenges They Face?

Are we preparing our students for the future, are we preparing them to create the future, or both?

We'll unpack the critical competencies our learners need to thrive in an ever-evolving world, challenging us to move beyond traditional preparation to foster the innovative mindsets and adaptive capabilities that will enable students to actively create and shape their future.

Creating the Future: Awareness and Engagement

Do you know how to prepare yourself, or your students, for optimal learning?

Unlock the science behind optimal learning in this session that reveals the powerful connection between student engagement and the brain's natural capacity for growth and discovery. Through evidence-based strategies and transformative insights, you'll discover how to create learning environments that don't just capture attention—but ignite curiosity, fuel motivation, and empower every student to reach their fullest potential.

Creating the Future: Brain Basics and Promoting Executive Function

Demand for Executive Function and Lifelong Learning Skills

Do you know the skills businesses and society need today and tomorrow?

Through powerful insights from Portrait of a Graduate initiatives and industry partnerships, this session reveals how we can empower every learner with the dynamic capabilities they need to not just navigate tomorrow's challenges, but to emerge as architects of positive change in our rapidly evolving world.

Adult Brains

What do you believe about each student's ability to learn? Do you think they know your beliefs?

Explore the profound connection between our deeply held beliefs about student potential and the invisible signals we send every day, illuminating how executive function mastery can bridge the gap between our aspirations for students and our daily practices that nurture their growth.

Executive Function in Student and Adult Brains

How will the strengthening of students’ executive function skills address the challenges you see in their learning and thriving?

This dynamic session reveals practical strategies that transform learning challenges into opportunities for growth, equipping educators with the tools to cultivate resilient, self-directed learners who are ready to embrace tomorrow's opportunities with confidence and purpose.

Learning and Thriving in Context of Relationships and Community

What can you do to ensure that relationships are built to provide an environment for learning to thrive?

Learn how intentional relationship-building—supported by strong community contexts and executive function development—creates a powerful ecosystem where every student feels seen, supported, and empowered to soar beyond their perceived limitations into growth and achievement.

Why Lifelong Learning Skills?

Why is the current emphasis on grades and scores not what we need in today’s world? Why do we need young people who are curious, have a sense of drive and mission, social intelligence, and agility?

The time is now to challenge the traditional metrics of academic achievement and explore why today's world demands a shift toward nurturing executive function skills - from curiosity and social intelligence to purposeful drive. Together, we'll discover how educational leaders can become powerful catalysts for change, illuminating the path toward an education system that truly prepares young people for the complexities and opportunities of real-world success.

From Research to Practice: How to Foster Essential Skills

How do I create the foundation where learning grows?

Dive into a dynamic exploration of concrete, actionable strategies that transform the abstract ideal of executive function into daily educational practice, where you'll discover how to architect learning environments that naturally cultivate these essential skills. Learn how to shift from traditional instructional models to creating vibrant, purposeful spaces where students' executive function capabilities can flourish organically.

Meaning-Making: How Students Make Sense of What They Learn and Experience

The Power of Motivation and Goal Setting

Why does thinking positively by itself not lead to achieving goals? How do educators create an environment where students set goals for themselves?

Venture beyond positive thinking to unlock the interplay between mindset, environment, and achievement, as we explore how educators can architect spaces that naturally inspire students to set and pursue meaningful goals. Discover the elements that distinguish successful goal-achievers from those who struggle, and learn how to create educational ecosystems where every student can develop the inner compass that guides them toward their highest potential.

Perspective Taking: Building Understanding

How does perspective-taking change the brain and deepen motivation and understanding?

We'll get into the science of perspective-taking and learn how expanding our mental horizons can ignite new neural pathways and fuels the innate drive to learn and grow. Join us to uncover innovative approaches that empower both students and families to harness these vital capabilities, creating a ripple effect of resilience and understanding that extends far beyond the classroom walls.

Goal Setting and Perspective Taking in Action!

Successful Inner Voice Leads to Successful Outer Voice

Communicating and Collaborating in Practice

How does a mentor mindset improve the relationships between adults and children and among children?

Step into a powerful exploration of the mentor mindset and discover how transforming adult-child relationships can catalyze a revolution in educational dynamics and student growth. Through dynamic breakout sessions and collaborative inquiry, we'll uncover the concrete indicators of success and essential "look-fors" that signal when we're truly nurturing an ecosystem of meaningful connection and authentic learning partnerships.

Creative Thinking Unleashed

Critical Thinking: A Convergence of Skills

How does the interplay of self-regulatory skills and the quality of teaching/caregiving environments contribute to students’ health, learning, and well-being over time?

Explore the vital connections between enriched learning environments and students' lifelong development, where skilled guidance meets the innate potential for growth and discovery. Explore the science of building robust mental frameworks, and learn ways educators can spark deep intellectual engagement and foster analytical capabilities that evolve naturally within each child.

Taking On Challenges: A Stress-Can-Be-Enhancing Mindset

How can we manage reactions, such as stress, to our advantage in coping with challenges?

Journey into the interplay between mind and body and learn how our neural and physical responses to challenges can be transformed from perceived obstacles into powerful catalysts for growth. You'll come away with strategies for reframing stress responses and cultivating resilient mindsets, empowering educators to create learning environments where challenges become gateways to extraordinary development and achievement.

Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking and Taking on Challenges in Action!

Strategies to Spark and Unlock Learning

Motivation, Goal Setting and the Brain

How do we motivate, inspire, and build self-confidence in our students and employees?

Uncover the spark that transforms ordinary learning spaces into vibrant incubators of confidence and purpose, where motivation becomes the magnetic force drawing students and staff toward excellence! Learn to craft educational ecosystems where self-assurance blooms naturally, unlocking the hidden potential within your school community and fostering a rich culture where passionate learning becomes contagious.

Executive Function and Lifelong Learning in Action

Possibilities Mindset, Goal Setting, Personal and Organizational Change

Developing an Action Plan for Your District

Learn from district leaders who will reveal the powerful levers of systemic change, sharing their journeys of weaving executive function and lifelong learning into their educational DNA. Through rich dialogue and strategic insights, discover how these leaders have activated key drivers of change, mobilized their teams, and architected breakthrough moments that you can adapt to ignite your own district's transformation journey.