Developed and led by former education and best-selling author of Ditch that Textbook and Tech Like a Pirate Matt Miller, Tech Like a Pirate: How to Create a Buzzworthy Classroom That Captures Students’ Attention — and Holds It, is a virtual five-session cohort-based learning experience that blends big-picture thinking around attention, motivation, and relevance with practical strategies, examples, and tools to help you actively engage students in learning.  Whether you’re a classroom teacher, instructional coach, or district curriculum lead, this is your chance to reimagine learning in a way that captivates students and helps them succeed.

The RocketPD live-virtual cohort experience is designed to give classroom educators and school and district leaders an actionable, affordable and convenient way to facilitate difficult but necessary strategic conversations and initiatives at a time when schools and school communities face both intense initiative fatigue and competing distractions. Districts can register select members of their building or central-office teams for open cohorts.

The program includes (5) scheduled weekly structured learning conversations, delivered virtually over Zoom. Plus, password-protected access to the RocketPD Learning Portal, where participants can access practical resources for different sessions and, for a limited time, the session recordings. Plus, all attendees can request a customized Certificate of Completion to share with their administration.

Tech Like a Pirate: How to Create a Buzzworthy Classroom That Captures Students’ Attention — and Holds It with Matt Miller is a (5)-session (90 minutes each) collaborative professional-learning experience for school leaders, instructional coaches and classroom teachers. Participants will emerge with practical and proven strategies to help them foster engaging learning environments that capture and hold student attention en route to the understanding and application of key academic concepts and goals.

The RocketPD cohort experience provides a unique opportunity for school and district leadership and their staff teams to have candid conversations with a nationally recognized school psychologist and best-selling author on the subject of student well-being and classroom management. Unlike one-off seminars and keynote speeches, the cohort provides a clear opportunity for sustained development and the basis for a framework that school leaders can use to create stronger, more supportive environments for sustainable success.

This (5)-session cohort-based experience will take place between November and December 2025. You can view the the full schedule, including dates and times under “the schedule” above. If you want to participate in this cohort, but the dates and times do not work for your schedule, keep in mind that, while live participation is always encouraged, the sessions are recorded and accessible via the RocketPD Learning Portal for a limited time. If you have a large team (30 or more), and the schedule dates and times do not work for you entire team, reach out using the form below to inquire about the formation of a custom cohort for your district and/or school teams.

If you’re interested in joining the Tech Like a Pirate: How to Create a Buzzworthy Classroom That Captures Students’ Attention — and Holds It cohort with Matt Miller, save your spot now by following the button on this page. Once you sign up, you’ll receive more information about the program, including payment and invoicing details. You’ll also receive a detailed follow-up email with information about your cohort, including scheduled session dates and times. Should you have questions at any time throughout the process, you’ll receive the phone and email of our project coordinator to ensure a positive experience.