Professional Development
Whether you’re looking for a brief, impactful keynote or an intensive professional development series, I have something for YOU! Here are some of the things I love to speak about - expect to be engaged, entertained, and leave with strategies to implement in your classroom right away!
Become a life-changing teacher: The 5 most valuable things you can teach your students!
Math can be soul crushing. Believing you can't do math leads to a lack of confidence, hopelessness & many tears! By making sure your math lessons are infused with FIVE key core principles, this session will turn you into a life-changing math teacher that inspires students to see themselves as capable of ANYTHING - even math!
Math Therapy: heal math trauma & help students build better relationships with math!
Did you know that pretty much anyone who thinks they're "not a math person" has math trauma they haven't worked through yet? We’ve all had math teachers before, but how many of you have had a math therapist?! This session will empower you to teach your students that they are capable of everything and that anything is possible - starting with math!
Embracing the Powerful Role of Failure in Math Class
What do Lady Gaga, Steven King....and Albert Einstein have in common? They all faced failure before getting to where they are! Fear of failure is one of the reasons students have math anxiety. It prevents students from asking questions, speaking up, and even supporting their peers. ln this workshop, we explore the role of failure in math class & how you can harness it to inspire students to embrace failure in math class - and IRL!
Testimonial: Victoria Rossi, Grade 2 teacher, Washington USA
Best professional develppment session in all my 23 years of teaching, period.
Testimonial: Kerri Patterson, Math Interventionist & Instructional Coach, Colorado USA
I literally just walked out of your session at NCSM and you were PHENOMENAL. You were so engaging and so uplifting! Thank you for your session and thank you for being you. I am so inspired and motivated to do even more for my kids. So thank you, thank you, thank you!!
Upcoming Tour Dates
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Inspiring Future Women in Science
March 3 2026
(Waterloo, ON) -
MPTCA
March 5-6 2026
(Grand Prairie, AB) -
ATOMIM
March 24 2026
(Augusta, MA) -
GO CODE
April 29 2026
(Toronto, ON) -
Waterloo Catholic District School Board
March 31 2026
(Kitchener, ON) -
Havergal College
April 8 2026
(Toronto, ON) -
AFEMO
April 14 2026
(Virtual) -
ASCD
April 22 2026
(Naperville, IL) -
Math For America
April 22 2026
(New York, NY) -
Watt Riot Cycling
May 2 2026
(Virtual) -
MATHJOY Conference
June 4 2026
(Leander, TX) -
CAMT
June 23-25 2026
(Fort Worth, TX) -
Summer Learning Institute
June 29 2026
(Bar Harbor, ME) -
Get Your Workshop On
August 4 2026
(Foxborough, MA) -
NWMC
October 9-10 2026
(Portland, OR) -
NCSM
October 26-28 2026
(Denver, CO) -
MCTM
November 6 & 7 2026
(Grand Rapids, MI) -
ATMNYC
November 21 2026
(Manhattan, NY)
What People Are Saying
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This was one of the best sessions of the conference...and all time! I have always wanted to figure out how to tackle math anxiety in my school. This session provided clear, concise, and practical steps that I can start using to create a safe and fun space for students to thrive in math!
TJ Capella, Elementary Educator (California, USA)
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I loved her first session so much, I stayed for the second one! Love how positive Vanessa is about Math and how we got some tangible resources to use in our classroom specifically around growth mindset. Please have her back again next year!!!
Morgan Friesen, High School Educator (Alberta, Canada)
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Vanessa was amazing, captivating the audience with a powerful message that reached beyond math teachers. Her insights were incredibly impactful, and I hope she returns next year so all educators can benefit from her wisdom!
Angela Doggen, Educational Coach (New York, USA)