MELIT - Revealing Strengths: The Foundations of Accelerated Literacy Learning

Event is FULL - Currently not accepting registrations

FULL - K-AM - Foundational Literacy Learning that Leads to Successful Readers and Writers

There are many critical aspects of early learning in reading and writing that form the building blocks that allow children to form efficient processing systems. This early learning is an essential foundation of later success.

Presenter: Dr. Sue Duncan
Sue Duncan was Executive Director of the Reading Recovery Program in the Early Childhood and Elementary Education Department at Georgia State University and worked at GSU for 26 years. Sue retired on 1 August 2020 but continues to work on contract. Sue trained as a Reading Recovery Trainer in 1989 and has worked in New Zealand, England, Canada and the USA. Sue is the only trained Trainer for the Successful Start (First Chance) program in the US. She has also trained as a university trainer for the Partnerships in Comprehensive Literacy and Comprehensive Intervention Model.

Suitable for: All Educators, Administration, Student Teachers

9:15 am - 10:20 am

Platform: Virtual

Participant Max: 300

FULL - AM-1 - Strengthening Relationships: A Team Approach to Literacy Instruction

How do we get better at working as a team? Literacy intervention teachers support children alongside the classroom teacher. A child’s progress depends on the combination of good classroom teaching and one-on-one instruction. Join us for a discussion of a Reading Recovery teacher led inquiry project. We’ll share what worked, what didn’t, and how we are getting better at working together.

Presenters: Jennifer Flight, Meghen Bonin, and Mika Shawarsky
Jennifer Flight, Reading Recovery Trainer - Canadian Institute of Reading Recovery - Western Region
Meghen Bonin, Classroom and Reading Recovery Teacher, River East Transcona School Division
Mika Shawarsky, Classroom and Reading Recovery Teacher, River East Transcona School Division

Suitable for: Early Years Teams and Reading Recovery

10:40 am - 11:40 am

Platform: Virtual

FULL - AM-2 - Beyond the Graph: Transforming Student Data into Astute Teaching

Have you ever felt frustrated when your student’s data does not reflect acceleration? In this session, you will learn how to “criss-cross the landscape” of Reading Recovery records in order to view the child’s progress from different perspectives. We will share how collaborative conversations around student case studies can develop an investigative approach leading to new discoveries… and accelerated learning!

Presenters: Michelle Hildebrand and Holly Cumming
Michelle Hildebrand, Reading Reovery Teacher Leader, Winnipeg School Division
Holly Cumming, Retired Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, Winnipeg School Division

Suitable for: Reading Recovery

10:40 am - 11:40 am

Platform: Virtual

FULL - AM-3 - "I wanna read it!!!" Exploring Shared Literacy Experiences

Wondering how to move your students out of simple pattern text? This session will explore instructional approaches used to support emergent literacy learners move into a world of little story books that they CAN read. Action research project data will be shared.

Presenters: Heather Bell and Helen Proulx
Heather Bell, Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, St. James Assiniboia School Division
Helen Proulx, Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, St. James Assiniboia School Division

Suitable for: K-1 Classroom Teachers, Reading Recovery Teachers

10:40 am - 11:40 am

Platform: Virtual

FULL - AM-4 - Effective Literacy Practice from a Distance

The document “Recovery Learning in Literacy: A Three-Part Series K-2” was published by Manitoba Education (September 2020) to help early literacy teacher teams hone their observational skills of students and their literacy understanding. This document also discusses effective literacy practices that provide opportunities for students to accelerate their literacy progress. This session will discuss these effective practices and how they may be adjusted in a socially distanced and/virtual setting.

Presenter: Vanda Mitri

Suitable for: All Educators

10:40 am - 11:40 am

Platform: Virtual

FULL - K-PM - Successful Start (First Chance) Early Literacy Program Overview

Successful Start provides intensive professional development for teachers to support children to get underway with literacy successfully. Successful start provides a strong beginning in literacy for low socio-economic learners and those that speak other languages. An overview of the data and elements of Successful Start will be provided.

Presenter: Dr. Sue Duncan
Sue Duncan was Executive Director of the Reading Recovery Program in the Early Childhood and Elementary Education Department at Georgia State University and worked at GSU for 26 years. Sue retired on 1 August 2020 but continues to work on contract. Sue trained as a Reading Recovery Trainer in 1989 and has worked in New Zealand, England, Canada and the USA. Sue is the only trained Trainer for the Successful Start (First Chance) program in the US. She has also trained as a university trainer for the Partnerships in Comprehensive Literacy and Comprehensive Intervention Model.

Suitable for: All Educators

1:00 pm - 2:15 pm

Platform: Virtual

Participant Max: 300

FULL - PM-1 - Sensitive Observation: A Critical Art and Science

What did you observe that led to that teaching decision? Educators’ personal development as sensitive observers occurs over time. We will think about what we need to refresh and what we need to develop further in this session to make powerful teaching decisions in Reading Recovery and Literacy Lessons.

Presenter:Allyson Matczuk, Early Literacy Consultant/Reading Recovery Trainer Manitoba Education & Training

Suitable for: All Educators

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Platform: Virtual

FULL - PM-2 - Meaningful Conversations: Powering Literacy Learning

Talk is a powerful part of learning to read and write in the first years of school. How do we as teachers recognize and capitalize on our students’ experiences, ability to communicate, and need to make sense of the world around them? How do we engage children in meaningful conversations that form the foundation of their literacy learning? Join Teresa Turner for a discussion about arranging for children to make the link between what they can already do with language and the new challenges of learning to read and write.

Presenter: Teresa Turner, Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, River East Transcona School Division

Suitable for: All Educators

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Platform: Virtual

FULL - PM-3 - Things that make you go "hmmmmm..." : The Power of Close Observation in Determining Next Step

Clay continually reminds us to work from a child’s known – to look for the cutting edge of their competencies and to design instruction from that point on. But what do you do when the child’s frames of reference seem to lay far beyond those of the classroom? In this session teachers will explore how they can use their observational superpowers (along with Clay’s Predictions of Progress framework) to help determine those next, easiest learning steps with a particular child.

Presenter: Marnie Paterson, Divisional Learning Support Teacher, Pembina Trails School Division

Suitable for: Reading Recovery

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Platform: Virtual

FULL - PM-4 - Concepts About Print and Foundational Literacy Learning in the Early Years

This session will focus on the purpose of using the concepts about print assessment task as part of Marie Clay’s: Observation Survey of Early Literacy Achievement. A pilot research project was conducted to identify a gradient of difficulty in the 24 task items in order to establish a grade level expectation sequence that would indicate when a child is most likely to gain control over these conventions and rules of the written code. Implications of this research will be discussed pertaining to both intervention and classroom contexts. Examples of explicit instruction of these foundational concepts about print skills will be demonstrated in a one-on-one, small-group, and whole-class setting.

Presenter: Kasha Korchinski, Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, Lord Selkirk School Division

Suitable for: All Educators

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Platform: Virtual

FULL - PM-5 - Fridge Masterpieces: Accelerated Literacy Learning in a Grade One Classroom

This session is about the reciprocal power of storytelling, writing and reading. Children in a grade one classroom become ‘active learners’ right from the start by using their own telling of stories to write and read – empowering students, parents and their teacher.

Presenters: Holly Cumming, Retired Reading Recovery Teacher Leader, Winnipeg School Division

Suitable for: All Educators

2:30 pm - 3:30 pm

Platform: Virtual