Add value and increase engagement in your workshops by using some of the new digital and internet-based tools that are available for free. There are almost always a fair number of participants at any given workshop who have smart phones capable of connecting to the internet. Usually the owners will be willing to pair up with those who don't have them.  Ask some of your participants if they would be willing to download one of the free QR (Quick Response) reader apps such as "i-nigma" or "qrafter." QR codes are those square barcodes you've been seeing in magazines, programs or ads. They are links to Internet sites.

With the program loaded on your computer, you can generate a QR code and link it to content on the web or to content you have created such as a handout, a video, or an answer to a question. Once you've generated the QR code symbol, you could post it in your room and use it as a link to an opener, a closer, a question for discussion, or food for thought during a break. It could also be used to link to a handout you've created or an article you have referenced in the training. Try it. I think both you and the participants will find it a fun and engaging bit of added value to the workshop.

This tip was submitted by Mike Toncray, a RCTS and SCORE certified trainer at the Professional Development Alliance in Joliet, Ill. Toncray also said that in the 10 workshops he's delivered in 2011, "Teachers always commented that the strategies and techniques learned in The Bob Pike Group workshops are among the most useful and practical they've experienced." If you aren't attending The Bob Pike Group annual conference September 14-16, then make plans to attend next year!