Services
Professional Learning
“I learned so much and I am ready to start using these strategies next year.”
“I can’t wait to get back in my classroom and start doing this! ”
“This was an excellent seminar...it opened my eyes to numerous new strategies and methodologies to utilizing in both my Graphic Novels & English courses. This seminar was incredibly thorough in providing both resources and engaging, easy to use lesson ideas.”
“This was an awesome PD and (after having had, unfortunately, many bad PDs in my time) a fantastic use of time. I feel like I have many more resources than I thought I would leave with, plus the support I need to begin implementing more drawing activities and graphic novels into my curriculum. Thank you so much!”
“Shveta is full of easy to implement strategies that helped me dig deeper with my students, not only developing their critical reading and viewing skills, but also using comics as a conduit for addressing students’ social and emotional needs in these stressful times. I used Shveta’s approaches to connect with my students as individuals and to guide them in exploring what matters.”
“I love that Shveta Miller gives you things you can do tomorrow, while also providing in-depth ideas for the long term. And everything is adaptable to any students of any level, from kindergarten to adult. ”
Professional Learning Topics
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Learn how to leverage high-interest, relevant texts and students’ capacity to closely examine visuals to engage them with grade-level content and standards while also providing the most essential unfinished learning they need to be successful.
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Develop flexible and multimodal assessments to monitor each student’s evolving needs. Create learning tasks with high ceilings, low floors, and scaffolds that ensure each student is engaged in productive struggle with meaningfully complex topics.
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Equip students with the skills and tools to tell stories, make arguments, and present information using an intentional combination of words and pictures. Discover how visual storytelling (and comics and graphic novels) invite students to communicate in unique, startling, and insightful ways.
Format
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These sessions are designed to be hands-on, engaging, and immediately applicable to the classroom. Strategies, tips, and adaptable resources are provided. Participants leave these sessions confident with implementing new practices and eager to learn more.
Structured anywhere between one - six hours.
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Dive deeper into the topic with a series of sessions, allowing participants to apply learning in between sessions and return with specific questions, successes, and refined intentions.
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Ideal for small teaching teams or individual teachers. I provide support with setting actionable student-centered goals, monitoring student progress, and supporting teachers to refine instructional next steps to accelerate student outcomes.
Mode
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We can use your video conferencing platform of choice (Zoom, Google Meet, Teams, etc.) to work face-to-face in the virtual world.
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We will intentionally alternate between a live online format and asynchronous communication that will allow more flexible and customized support.
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I can travel within 100 miles of the Portland, OR metro area, but may require a travel stipend to work onsite elsewhere.
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Access recorded webinars, video tutorials, hyperdocs, and other asynchronous learning resources to self-pace through a professional learning module.
Observe an online coaching conversation with Shveta
“Shveta was one of our most sought-after online coaches and trainers. Her incredible ability to partner with teachers to help them analyze their students’ data and turn it into action to increase student performance was recognized by all. The demand for her expertise was so high. She has a calm, professional demeanor and truly cares about those she works with. She has exceptional organizational skills and the ability to independently work on multiple projects at the same time, all while making every customer she works with feel like they are her only client. She is truly an amazing educator and coach.”
Speaking & Presenting
I am a dynamic, engaging, and responsive speaker, presenter, interviewer, and panelist.
I practice attentive and thoughtful listening with co-presenters, moderators, and audience participants.
I adapt to participants’ needs and the flow of conversation, creating an authentic and personalized experience that never feels scripted or recycled.
I welcome every question and work to develop relationships with those who attend my events.
“I’m really appreciating not only the content of this session, but Shveta Miller’s masterful way of presenting—speaking slowly and clearly, pausing to ensure we understand terms, asking us to engage with visual texts in real time…There are sooo many “close looking” strategies she recommends we use for visual texts that are inquiry-based, dependent on diverse perspectives, and applicable to all grade levels. Love! 💛 ”
“What a great presenter! Shveta is dynamic. Her ideas for building skills in students, using questioning strategies, and leading students to high level conversations will help me support my struggling readers. I can’t wait to see the results.”
“Shveta’s commitment to best practice and the latest research alongside her boldness and agility to pilot, reflect, and adjust, make her an exceptional example of a maximizer. She is a person who wil drive forward any team, any initiative, and any project.”
Watch Shveta’s Featured Presentations
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Oregon State Literacy Association's 2023 Symposium
Just as students need “close reading” skills to analyze texts, they also need to apply “close looking” strategies to examine visual texts. I model 11 “close looking” strategies that help students uncover the intricacies of objects, systems, and relationships; explore diverse perspectives; and probe their own subjectivity.
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San Diego Comic Con 2020
I join four experts to demonstrate how to lead students in analyzing the elements of comics and the unique combination of art and text. We also share resources and discuss challenges.
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WonderCon 2020
In this crash course in text analysis for graphic novels, I co-presented techniques and tools for building students’ critical literacy skills with graphic texts at all grade levels. Watch as we demonstrate how to lead students in analyzing the elements of comics. We share tips, activities, and vocabulary you can use with your students tomorrow!
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TImes 10's What's Best for Kids 2021
Angela Stockman and I discuss how teaching multimodal writing and visual storytelling creates brave student writers who can offer meaningful peer-to-peer feedback. We each share “one thing” that can be quickly implemented the next day in the classroom.
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How to Find and Choose Graphic Novels for Students Comic-Con International April 2021
Join our expert panel of teachers and librarians as we discuss where to find high-quality reviews and title recommendation lists, how to choose titles and match readers to texts and tasks, where to find books in both print and digital formats, and more.
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Graphic Novels Are the New Textbooks San Diego Comic-Con @ Home July 2021
Modern, dynamic teaching means thinking outside the textbook. I join a panel of experts to discuss techniques to engage students using the comics medium in a way that will demonstrate practical positive educational results.
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Manga in Libraries: Teaching with Manga
I join a panel of experts discussing the benefits of including manga in the curriculum, addressing challenges, resources to support teaching with manga, and must-have titles. Sponsored by ALA’s Graphic Novels and Comics Roundtable in 2022.
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Using Drawing for Formative Assessment
Edutopia adapted my article to produce this short video primer on the value of assessing student understanding through drawings.
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Graphic Novels: Teaching Up to Their Potential, 2022
The stigma about graphic novels not being “real” books is (almost) gone. But are educators using graphic novels to their full potential? What literacy skills can be practiced and honed using graphic novels? Which books are best for which purposes? Who still needs to be convinced that graphic novels have a role in promoting literacy—and how? Sponsored by Lerner Publishing Group.
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Engaging Accelerated and Reluctant Readers with Comics, Library Pass 2021
Our panel of experienced educators—Jesse Karp, Shveta Miller, Julie Ann Price, Susannah Richards, Ph.D., Jana Tropper—discussed their process for using comics to support readers of different abilities, how they partner with other stakeholders, and how they measure their success. Moderated by John Shableski.
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Get Your Mind in the Gutter: Sequential Art as Inference Tool, 2022
While some dismiss comics as less intellectually challenging than “real” books, graphic novels offer an opportunity to think abstractly in a way few other storytelling media can. The space between panels – the gutter – requires readers to make connections, while the art demands patience and attention that isn’t guided by words lined up on the page. I joined other seasoned educators to share how we use comics as a tool for all types of inferring: determining causes, solving problems, predicting likely outcomes, and connecting dots.
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Instruction and Validation Through Comics
This workshop, hosted by LitX, explores newer and lesser known comic titles that can serve as instructional tools for students as well as opportunities for students AND teachers to see themselves and their struggles on the page. We offer suggested titles and specific strategies to use in the classroom immediately! This session was offered at the New England Association of Teachers of English’s 2022 Virtual Conference.
Curriculum Development
I develop lesson plans, units, modules, and text study guides serving Language Arts students in grades 6-12.
My curriculum resources:
meet the highest DEI standards — they are free of bias, prejudice, limited perspectives, and inaccurate representations
align to state and national standards while making the standards relevant to students’ interests, experiences, and goals
activate students’ prior knowledge, honoring their cultural ways of knowing and funds of knowledge, to facilitate connection to the new learning
expose all students to higher level thinking (DOK 3 and 4 questions and tasks), while offering a variety of scaffolds to ensure students can work in productive struggle
guide teachers to use multimodal formative assessments to monitor students’ progress with learning targets
offer differentiation guidance and instructional moves based on the variety of formative assessment data collected
provide enough context and support while maintaining respect for each teacher’s ability to modify based on their immediate context and classroom community
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Editing
I am committed to developing equitable educational materials that reflect and support diverse learners and that align with the principles of Culturally Responsive Education.