Friday, May 15, 2026
-
SB
Opening Session
SAAABE Board Lead
May 15, 8:00am – 8:25am25 minBexar (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 400) -
Keynote Session
Keynote SessionDr. Miguel Cardona Lead
May 15, 8:25am – 9:30am65 minBexar (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 400) -
NG
Advancing Claim-Evidence-Reasoning in Middle School: Bilingual Scaffolds and Structured Collaboration
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsNelia Gamez Lead
May 15, 9:45am – 10:40am55 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This session models how middle school bilingual students use collaborative scaffolds to build Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) responses through structured discussion, reading, and reflection. Participants will learn how group work, academic talk, and guided supports lead students from co-constructed responses and presentations to independent short answers and full essays. The session provides practical strategies that strengthen both language development and critical thinking while promoting equitable participation. -
ME
Bridging Language and Science in Dual Language Classroom
Effective Instructional Practices in Elementary DLBE ClassroomsMagda Esparza Lead with Nidia Martinez
May 15, 9:45am – 10:40am55 minLa Salle (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Rigorous science instruction in dual language classrooms requires intentional and systematic language development. This session introduces a research-informed framework for implementing language bridging practices that advance both scientific inquiry and bilingual proficiency from Pre-K through middle school. Drawing on Cummins’ BICS/CALP distinction and the Interdependence Hypothesis, participants will analyze classroom-tested strategies including structured academic discourse routines, bilingual word walls, sentence stems, and purposeful translanguaging practices. Attendees will leave with concrete implementation tools and scalable models to center language, culture, and community as essential drivers of multilingual student achievement. -
From Prompt to Practice: GenAI Strategies for Bilingual Classroom
Hybrid International StrandDr. Carlos Lindade (Portugal) Lead
May 15, 9:45am – 10:40am55 minLa Villita (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This session will offer a series of hands-on, classroom-ready examples showing how generative AI can support key areas of teaching and learning in bilingual classrooms. Participants will explore practical ways in which these tools can assist with lesson planning, the design of engaging bilingual materials, formative assessment, and the development of student-led activities that encourage creativity and autonomy. The session will introduce a range of accessible, easy-to-use tools that teachers can adapt to their own educational contexts while ensuring alignment with curricular standards and learning objectives. Attention will also be given to the development of students’ and teachers’ digital literacy, with particular emphasis on critically evaluating AI-generated content and understanding its pedagogical potential and limitations. Participants will leave the session with a clear idea of the importance of establishing clear guidelines and classroom practices that foster the responsible, ethical, and purposeful use of AI in educational settings. -
Building Bridges Between Contemporary Music and Spanish Literature
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsEllen Flores Chavira Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This presentation models how contemporary Spanish-language music can be used to build meaningful bridges to literary analysis in bilingual classrooms. Through classroom-tested pairings from AP Spanish Literature, participants will explore strategies that connect students’ lived linguistic and cultural experiences to canonical texts while strengthening biliteracy and critical thinking. The session is interactive and provides ready-to-use comparison prompts that position students as active interpreters, cultural experts, and advocates for their voices and identities. -
Rising with the Bridge: Becoming Campeones of Cross-Linguistic Transfer
Effective Instructional Practices in Elementary DLBE ClassroomsAdriana Navarrete Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 12:05pm70 minLa Salle (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Unlock the power of the 'Bridge' in the bilingual classroom through a comprehensive exploration of the Dynamics of Cross-Linguistic Instruction, based on the foundational work of Silvia Dorta-Duque de Reyes. This session provides educators with a clear, research-based framework for planning standards-based transfer lessons. We will examine steps of the planning process essential for the lesson framework to be a success: standards, recognizing language subsystems, and transference relationships. Participants will gain insight into designing a strategic lesson sequence using the Gradual Release of Language. Attendees will leave with a structured approach to fostering deep linguistic connections for their students. -
Voces del mundo: enseñando español en Costa de Marfil
Hybrid International StrandKante Kadjatou (Costa de Marfil) Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 11:50am55 minLa Villita (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
¿Alguna vez te has preguntado cómo se vive la enseñanza del idiomas más allá de nuestras fronteras? Esta ponencia te invita a descubrirlo a través de la inspiradora experiencia de una docente en Costa de Marfil. Exploraremos qué impulsa a una maestra a dedicarse a la enseñanza de idiomas, la extraordinaria diversidad y riqueza lingüística del país y cómo transcurre un día en su aula. También se abordarán elementos como el perfil de los estudiantes, los recursos didácticos que emplea, así como los retos y oportunidades que enfrenta en su contexto educativo. Acompáñanos en este recorrido y aprende de la valiosa experiencia de Kante, profesora de español en Costa de Marfil. -
Where Language and Disability Meet: What Districts Must Do Differently
Featured SessionsLizdelia Piñón Lead
May 15, 10:55am – 12:05pm70 minPine (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Where Language and Disability Meet explores how schools can better serve multilingual students with disabilities by rethinking systems that often separate language development from special education. This session challenges deficit-based approaches and highlights how they contribute to misidentification, limited access, and inequitable outcomes for emergent bilingual learners.
Participants will examine how policy, instruction, and collaboration can work together to create more inclusive, asset-based environments that honor students’ linguistic and cultural strengths. The presentation offers practical strategies for equitable identification, bilingual and culturally sustaining instruction, stronger collaboration between multilingual and special education teams, and authentic family partnership.
Grounded in research and real-world district examples, this session empowers educators, leaders, and advocates to move beyond compliance and toward transformative practices. Attendees will leave with concrete tools and a renewed vision for creating classrooms and systems where multilingual students with disabilities are fully included, supported, and positioned to thrive. -
SB
Awards Ceremony
SAAABE Board Lead
May 15, 1:00pm – 1:45pm45 minBexar (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 400) -
MC
“¡Juguemos! Let’s Play! Estrategias de vocabulario que incorporan el puente.”
Instructional Practices in Secondary DLBE ClassroomsMichelle Camacho Lead with Michelle Morales
May 15, 1:35pm – 2:45pm70 minFiesta (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This interactive session will go over the what & why of traditional bridging, and showcase a variety of vocabulary strategies that can be used in any content area. -
Storytelling, Creativity, and Emotional Learning in Dual-Language Classrooms
Effective Instructional Practices in Elementary DLBE ClassroomsMahiette Tarrago Lead
May 15, 1:45pm – 2:40pm55 minLa Salle (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Discover how storytelling, creative play, and social-emotional learning can boost language development and cultural connection in bilingual and dual-language classrooms. This interactive session shares hands-on strategies, character-based narratives, and play-based activities that engage students while fostering confidence, cultural pride, and community. Grounded in research showing the benefits of storytelling for multilingual learners, educators will leave with practical ideas to make language learning inclusive, creative, and empowering. -
“Tejiendo Puentes entre México y las Américas: Identidad Transnacional y Colaboraciones Educativas Interculturales”
Hybrid International StrandMargarita Machado - Casas (Mexico - USA) Lead
May 15, 1:45pm – 2:40pm55 minLa Villita (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
This presentation highlights an innovative cross-cultural initiative that strengthens educational experiences through collaboration among the United States, Mexico, and Latin America. Centered in Oaxaca, the project demonstrates how international partnerships can create meaningful opportunities for both local communities and students in U.S. educational settings. Participants will learn about Oaxaca Vive, a model that brings together educators, students, artists, and community leaders in shared spaces of learning that connect language, culture, the arts, and education. -
MJ
Translanguaging with Purpose: Research to Classroom Practice
Effective Instructional Practices in Elementary DLBE ClassroomsMariana Jimenez Lead
May 15, 2:55pm – 3:50pm55 minLa Salle (Level: 1st Floor, Cap 40)Show details
This hands-on workshop bridges research and classroom practice by guiding educators through the intentional design of translanguaging routines for bilingual, dual language, and ESL classrooms. After a concise overview of key research (García & Wei, 2014; Cummins, 2000) to clarify common misconceptions, participants will actively engage in designing cross-linguistic vocabulary bridges, contrastive writing scaffolds, and structured discussion protocols that promote biliteracy and academic language development.
Through collaborative planning and real classroom scenarios, attendees will create practical tools that leverage students’ full linguistic repertoires as assets while maintaining rigorous target language expectations. Participants will leave with ready-to-implement strategies and a clear framework for honoring language, culture, and community in alignment with Still We Rise: Campeones de lenguaje, la cultura, y la comunidad. -
Click, Scroll… What’s Next? Cyber-Wisdom in the Digital Age
Hybrid International StrandMercedes Del Rocío Valderrábano Zamorano (España) Lead
May 15, 2:55pm – 3:50pm55 minLa Villita (Level: Ground Floor, Cap 30)Show details
En una sociedad hiperconectada, esta ponencia plantea si la educación actual está formando personas capaces de vivir bien en entornos digitales. Frente al predominio de competencias técnicas, se propone la educación del carácter como base para desarrollar el juicio moral y la acción ética.
Desde este marco, se introduce la cibersabiduría como la capacidad de ejercer un juicio práctico éticamente informado en contextos digitales, inspirada en la phronesis aristotélica. Este enfoque integra cuatro dimensiones: alfabetización, razonamiento, autorreflexión y motivación moral.
Se argumenta que los enfoques tradicionales de educación digital —centrados en habilidades técnicas o normas— son insuficientes ante la complejidad del entorno digital, caracterizado por la sobreinformación, la mediación algorítmica y la ambigüedad moral. La cibersabiduría emerge así como una competencia clave para promover el florecimiento humano, permitiendo actuar con prudencia, responsabilidad y orientación al bien común.
Asimismo, se subraya la necesidad de integrar este enfoque tanto en la educación escolar como universitaria. Finalmente, se presenta el trabajo del Centro de Educación en Virtudes y Valores (UFV), orientado al desarrollo de programas y formación docente en cibersabiduría -
TB
Accelerate Learning with Footsteps2Brilliance & Foster Calm Learning with Friendzy!
Sponsored by Teaching Counts! (Silver) Sponsored SessionsTerri Balderrama Booker Lead
May 15, 2:55pm – 4:05pm70 minPine (Level: 2nd Floor, Cap 40)Show details
Discover how to accelerate literacy and support emotional wellness for Emergent Bilingual students through engaging, research-based strategies and resources. This session combines innovative bilingual language and literacy tools with practical approaches to help students thrive academically and socially. Learn how to bridge school and home learning with culturally relevant, developmentally appropriate English and Spanish resources that promote Kindergarten readiness and 3rd grade reading proficiency. Explore how the brain responds to stress and how language and culture influence behavior, while gaining strategies from the Regulate–Respond–Relate framework to create calm, focused classrooms. Walk away with ready-to-use bilingual tools—including visual supports, sentence stems, and routines—that empower students, strengthen connections, and eliminate learning gaps. Attendees will receive access to free resources, including a trial opportunity and materials to immediately implement in their classrooms