Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten through Grade 3 and Evaluating Reading/Language Arts Instructional Materials for Grades K-5

Time: 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM CST

Location: Panhandle Area Educational Consortium, 753 West Boulevard, Chipley, Florida 32428

Description: The goals for this workshop are to (a) review academic language skills; (b) review recommendations from the IES practice guide titled Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten Through 3rd Grade that are appropriate for students in grades K-3; (c) discuss potential obstacles for implementation of recommendations and identify potential solutions for these obstacles; (d) review the design elements for reading/language arts instructional materials; (e) examine the components of the Rubric for Evaluation of Reading/Language Arts Instructional Materials for Kindergarten-Fifth Grade; and (f) provide opportunities for workshop participants to ask clarifying questions.

Audience: The primary audience will include school administrators, curriculum coordinators, literacy coaches and teachers at the LEA level in the area served by the Panhandle Area Educational Consortium (PAEC). Those attending the workshop are focused on improving literacy in their districts, as strong literacy skills are seen as imperative to improving overall student achievement. It will also allow them to collaborate with one another and to reflect upon how these tools can be used at local levels to improve current literacy instruction. Participants in the workshop will gain knowledge and ability to utilize the tools in their local settings.

Speakers: Phyllis Underwood, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate REL Southeast at Florida State University