Section List

HAL: Quiz Bowl - Middle School (Private)  

March 20, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Students competing in academic quiz bowl competitions will answer questions from a variety of topics.  

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.

Special Education Community Of Practice (Day 4 of 4)  

March 25, 2026

• ESU#3 Student Services
• Harvey, Amy

Special Education Community Of Practice-Cass and Washington County

Audience:  Special Education Practitioners + Directors

Join us at ESU #3
8:30-11:30am - Session for Secondary/Young Adult
12:30-3:30pm - Early Childhood/Elementary

This Special Education Community of Practice (COP) is specific to districts in Cass and Washington County. The COP is a collaborative network of special education practitioners, and directors from similar districts dedicated to improving outcomes for students with disabilities. Through shared problem-solving and the exchange of effective strategies, members will work together to enhance IEP development and compliance, and emphasize the use of evidence-based instructional practices to support learning needs of all students.

HAL: MCC Science on the Sphere - Meteorology (Private)  

March 27, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Explore the dynamic world of meteorology in this engaging and practical course focused on predicting weather patterns specific to Nebraska. Through Science on a Sphere datasets and hands-on experiences, students will gain an understanding of meteorological principles such as cloud formations, atmospheric pressure and precipitation patterns and their application to local weather prediction.

Please contact Metro Community College for more information. 

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.

CLC e-Mission (Private)  

March 30, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Please contact Adam Larson at alarson@esu3.org for more information.

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.

HAL: Poetry Writing and Performing (Private)  

March 30, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Presented by Matt Mason.

By engaging in a variety of unique and wonderful poetry writing exercises, students and their teachers will learn the basic elements of poetic craft, specifically, how to use metaphors, similes, imagery, alliteration, and repetition to create poems with texture and depth.

Breaking into small groups to share their original works, students and teachers will discover how guided questions and a specific vocabulary (“I notice” and “I wonder”) can help the writer not just “revise” his/her poem, but also re-envision it, enabling the writer to see his/her work in a new light.

Once the students and teachers have revised and polished their original poems, participants will, through an exercise that utilizes group performance, learn about the basics of performance and how to use the tools of voice, breath, pacing, and body language (choreography) to make our poems leap off the page and command the stage. These exercises will culminate in a final event where students will have the opportunity to recite/perform their original work, understanding that the goal of performance poetry is to couple the best possible text to the best possible performance.

Students will leave this workshop having learned how to compose superior poems and perform them with confidence.

Goals of the day include: demonstrate creative thought through original poetry, learn poetry writing techniques, and be part of a non-threatening collaborative creative process of expression.

Teachers are active participants and should be part of the day's events including supervision and participation.

Instructor Bio

Matt Mason is the Nebraska State Poet and has run poetry workshops in Botswana, Romania, Nepal, and Belarus for the U.S. State Department. His poetry has appeared in The New York Times and Matt has received a Pushcart Prize as well as fellowships from the Academy of American Poets and the Nebraska Arts Council. His work can be found in Rattle, Poet Lore, Prairie Schooner, and in hundreds of other publications. Mason's 5th book, Rock Stars, was published by Button Poetry in September of this year. Find more at: https://matt.midverse.com/

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event. 

HAL: MCC Biomimicry in Engineering (Private)  

April 2, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Workshop Information-
Nature's own innovative designs are often inspiration for cutting-edge technology. Using nature as a model for human problem-solving is the basis of biomimicry. You'll explore how the principles of biology, evolution and adaptation can be harnessed to create more sustainable, efficient and resilient engineering solutions.



Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.

CLC e-Mission (Private) (Cancelled)  

April 3, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Please contact Adam Larson at alarson@esu3.org for more information.

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.

HAL: Neurographic Design (Private)  

April 8, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Neurographic Design

Neurographic Design is a method used in art therapy. It helps the artist be more mindful and opens up neurons in the brain that allow creativity to flow. We will use the art elements involved in this process to create a beautiful abstract design on an illustration board with sharpies and brush markers. Through this workshop, students will learn the process of creating a project beginning with the inspiration through idea development, project creation, completion and critique. 

HAL: String Art (Private)  

April 9, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

Workshop Information-

Students will be introduced to string art; what it is, how it originated, and current and past string

artists. Throughout the exploration students will be encouraged to find inspiration for the type of

string art they would like to create. They can develop their own template or use any of the

various that are provided. Students will hammer MANY nails into a wood plaque. Then they will

attach and wrap the string on the nails to create their piece. This project is open ended, there

are many ways to successfully create a finished piece.

Number of Students- 

Up to 24

Grades-

Grades 4-8th

Cost-

$180

Amount of Time-

Half Day

Where is it held-

Can be held at your school or ESU #3 (depending on room availability)

Instructor Bio:

Lacey Ruhge is an artist, seamstress, and instructor of all things creative.  She is a former elementary art and middle school English teacher who now guides kids and adults through the creative process at her own studio, A Peace at a Time Creative Studios.  Her biggest passions are creating with clay, repurposing “junk” items, and generally making creative magic happen with those around her.   Lacey received her bachelor’s in elementary education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and her master’s degree in art education from The Art of Education University.

HAL: Extreme Math Elementary  

April 14, 2026

• ESU#3 Professional Learning
• Anderson , Lexie

In order to give ESU3 districts priority for these events, if you are outside of ESU3 and want to talk about registering please contact Adam Larson.

This HAL COMPETITION event is a morning of student math problem solving, collaboration, and logic questions.  Student teams of 4, 5, or 6 members will participate in a Sprint Round, Team Round, and a Problem Solving Round during the morning. 
The spirit of the morning is collaboration and math achievement in an effort to recognize the importance of math problem solving. 
•       Students in elementary schools are invited to participate.
•       Each round is timed and student accomplishment will be recorded.
•       Recognition will be provided for individuals in the Sprint Round and for teams in the Team Round.
•       There is no school winner or leader at the end of the event.


REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Schools must include how many teams of 4, 5, or 6 students.
Schools must provide the names of the team members per team. 
Contact Adam Larson if you have enough teams to create your own day
ESU #3 will supply pencils.
Some calculators will be available, but schools may choose to bring their own.
School permission slips and all school field trip requirements are in effect.
At least one adult sponsor/teacher is required to attend with each school represented.
The adult sponsor/teacher will be asked to be a participant in supervision and correcting student papers from the morning.
Questions to alarson@esu3.org 

Disclaimer: By participating in this event organized by ESU #3, you hereby grant permission to ESU #3 to use your image and likeness captured during the event for promotional and media purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, photographs, videos, and audio recordings. If you wish to withdraw your consent regarding the use of your media, please reach out to the primary contact of this event.