Training

Below you will find his biography and contact information. ** The creator of the **//AWAKENINGS//** workshops has worked in public education for forty years. His passion for learning has been the central driving force of his professional career. He has taught on the elementary, middle, high school and college levels. His area of specialty is English Literature, with a heavy emphasis on Shakespeare, James Joyce and writing. During his years in the high school he created “The Writer’s Workshop,” which became a popular elective. In 1971, he spent a year at England’s Oxford University. During this time he also taught in three Oxfordshire primary and intermediate schools that were using a child-centered and interdisciplinary approach. This experience became the foundation for the work he would later do in his Brain-Compatible Learning Workshops. When he created the Paramus Community School in 1978, his dream was to provide a setting in which the whole community could come together and share in the joys of learning. Twenty years later, the Paramus Community School is one of the most successful programs in the county. In 1979, he was instrumental in starting the “Transitional Program” for disenchanted students who were at risk of dropping out of school. This special education program, still in existence, has won State and Federal recognition for excellence and compassion. In 1994 he was elected president of the New Jersey Association for Lifelong Learning.
 *    4MAT training in Carteret was provided by Dick Piazza.
 * About Dick Piazza **

In addition to his brain-compatible learning workshops, Dick Piazza offers **4MAT** training to teachers and administrators across the country. As a national consultant for About Learning, Inc., Dick has trained hundreds of teachers in Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wiscconsin and New Jersey. The **4MAT** design is a cohesive framework for teaching and school organization developed by Bernice McCarthy. It provides educators with the “Natural Learning Cycle,” a model for instruction and curriculum development that is reflective of current brain research. Dick has recently completed studies with Michael Gurian, nationally known author and specialist in gender brain differences in learning. As a national consultant for Mr. Gurian, Dick is presenting ground-breaking workshops for educators and parents on **“How Boys and Girls Learn Differently.”** Currently, Dick is developing a positive-based strategic plan with a major New York school district. ** Appreciative Learning ** is an inquiry-based approach that focuses on what works in systems and develops action plans to build upon success using the qualitative data generated in the process. Mr. Piazza has recently been included in the **National Register’s Who’s Who In Executives and Professionals**. For workshop and keynote information: 201-599-1005 dendritepiazza@gmail.com