Services

With decades of teaching and leading adults, SunUp Works is deeply rooted in practices that work best for adult learners. In schools, we find that when the adults are doing well, so are the kids. This same concept applies to any organization that works with adults. Adults need particular qualities in their work to feel like they matter, that their skills are seen as competent in the eyes of others, and most importantly, adults need to know why — why are we doing what we are doing? Why should we pay attention to a new learning or professional development? Why would I want to improve? These are important questions and are often overlooked by leadership. It doesn't matter how good a leader is, if an adult is demanding something of another adult, the natural adult response is to think, "make me!" Most adults will get over this and comply, but is compliance what you are hoping for? Or, are you hoping to have fully engaged adults who own the concepts and implement with fidelity? We think it is the latter and we can help you help your adults be the best versions of themselves for your organization. 

Building on the learning from the seminal population study, the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACES), we have learned that most humans are exposed to enough adversity during the developing years that our bodies adapt to be prepared. Our brains function in a very sequential way and when we implement practices that match our biology, we can create incredible work environments that help us achieve our vision. What this means is that for organizations to be successful, we need to attend to this idea and create a work environment that attends to our human adaptations and something called the Stress Continuum. We also learned that humans are incredibly adaptable and resilient. Our work brings these technical elements into useful and usable ways so that adults feel their best self while at work. 

Instructional design and improvement are cornerstones to a classroom or a professional development going well. And by going well, we mean that content is accessible, engaging, and used. There are practices that work from the earliest of ages to the adults in the workforce. If teaching or training is needed in your organizations, we can help your team understand and implement appropriate strategies so your learners are accessing and using what you need them to. These practices include Pedagogy (preschool though pre-puberty), Andragogy (puberty through adulthood), Universal Design for Learning, Essential Elements of Instruction, and Constructing Meaning.