Reading is an essential skill in today’s global knowledge-based economy. Even with our technological advances, being able to read well is a determining factor in the life options students have open to them in school and beyond. In this presentation, Ms. Hammond will share how we can craft an learning ecosystem in our school communities that equip all educators, not just language arts teachers, to provide the type of literacy instruction and support necessary to help students develop true agency and autonomy as powerful, joyful readers by the time they graduate.

This presentation equips emergent bilingual educators with the foundational knowledge of Spanish reading foundation, focusing on five key areas: phonics, morphology, syntax, vocabulary (including cognates and false friends), and applying these concepts to effective reading instruction. Participants will gain valuable insights and practical strategies to support emergent bilingual students’ phonemic awareness, sound-symbol correspondence, vocabulary development, grammatical structures, and reading comprehension in Spanish. Through engaging activities and real-world examples, educators will explore research-based practices and learn how to leverage students’ existing language skills to foster biliteracy development.

Recent RLJ articles have described both the limitations of repeated reading as the primary tool for developing fluency among all readers, and the value of incorporating high leverage, multi-componential instructional practices like connecting word study to vocabulary knowledge, parts of speech, and morphology. This session features the articles’ authors as they unpack the research that underlies brain changes associated with grade-school fluency improvement. and high leverage fluency practices for upper elementary school students, particularly striving readers. This session will also dedicate significant time to providing practical guidance for educational strategies and routines.

Sentences are the building blocks of composition. Sentences must be crafted to accurately convey the intended meaning, and sentence structure must vary to keep writing interesting. Too often, instruction at the sentence level is hurried and more emphasis is placed on paragraph composition. Without learning about crafting sentences, paragraphs are stiff, boring, and lack specificity of meaning. Instruction in sentence construction should be carried on throughout elementary school, and even beyond. Participants in this session will leave with instructional approaches for teaching students how to compose various types of sentences.

A comprehensive approach to improving literacy outcomes begins with adopting an early literacy policy that supports educators, students, and families in preventing or addressing students’ reading difficulties; however, the policy is only as effective as its implementation. In this session, we will explore the landscape of early literacy policies across the United States and discuss strategies for leading a coordinated approach to close the gap between what we know and what we do.

This session unpacks the complexities of comprehension and its underlying factors. Our focus will be on engaging comprehension instruction that encourages metacognition and higher-level thinking. Join us to understand the importance of funds of knowledge, identify comprehension breakdowns, and consider the role of think alouds in building comprehension.

Several recent statements assert that the Simple View of Reading (SVR) is a dated, incomplete, and inadequate account of reading. With these in mind, this session will discuss the SVR as a theory of reading, the predictions it makes, and the central evidence that bears on its claims. The session will also include discussions of the main criticisms that have been made of the SVR, responses to those, and comments on the alternatives that have been proposed as replacements.

Language access, both oral and written, is a powerful tool for children to live life on their terms and make the most significant difference in the lives of others. In our society, access to oral and written language defines and predicts long-term health and economic outcomes. Unfortunately, statistics continue to reveal disproportionate access by race, socioeconomic status, and language status. The focus of this breakout session is to explore how to converge structured literacy with culturally affirming and preserving language-teaching strategies using African American English (AAE) as a case in point.
The session objectives are as follows:

1. Review our nation’s illiteracy crisis relative to who has and has not had access historically, including root causes;
2. Examine AAE and its relation to written language;
3. Describe both incidental and direct teaching approaches for children whose oral language varies systematically from the language of print;
4. Identify language-affirming and preserving strategies to implement throughout the day and;
5. Review ways to engage in ongoing interprofessional education and practice. Participants who attend this breakout session will glean or deepen their knowledge and skill in serving children from diverse language backgrounds.

A scientifically-based literacy block reflects research on what and how to teach to maximize student outcomes.

Reading Science frameworks illustrate the relationship between word recognition and language comprehension instruction on global reading outcomes. The reciprocal relationship between oral and print language (word recognition) is strong. By understanding these frameworks, and how these language components develop, we are better informed to design and deliver effective instruction. By coupling guidance on what to teach with knowledge of stages of mastery and cognitive load theory, we can better design instruction that supports students toward proficiency.
Objectives:

• Review research-based frameworks that define learning targets for developing reading proficiency. Which skills should I target?
• Outline the critical components of an effective literacy block. What should the reading block look like?
• Identify practices that maximize instruction and improve student outcomes. How can I ensure that students are getting the instruction they need?

This session will explore Dr. Jasmine Rogers’ doctoral dissertation research that explored the intersection of the Science of Reading and Black Language, focusing on teacher responses to Black Language in structured literacy lessons. The study aimed to answer the following questions: What are teachers’ responses to student use of Black Language in the K-2 structured literacy environment? And, to what extent does professional learning about Black Language affect teachers’ instructional actions when teaching Black Language-speaking students? This study aimed to examine the language used by teachers and students during sessions, focusing on the teacher responses to student Black Language use to develop culturally and linguistically responsive teaching practices in structured literacy lessons.

Using her research and her role as a Coach in the DC Reading Clinic’s In Schools program, Dr. Rogers will share linguistically responsive actions that teachers have implemented and provide guidance on steps educators can take to develop teaching practices aligned with the science of reading that embrace Black Languages speakers.

Session participants will learn about the development of metalinguistic skills, linguistically responsive pedagogy, and instructional measures that can be implemented to teach foundational literacy skills.

In the past several years, more than 32 states and the District of Columbia have signaled the importance of instructional practices aligned to the Science of Reading via funding legislation and funding efforts. It feels like we are at an inflection point in the shift toward research-based practice in literacy. However, in TNTP’s work with more than 300 school systems nationwide shows a clear “implementation gap.” playing out in real-time, as districts move to enact important changes mandated by law without ensuring that educators can make the necessary connections between the theory they’ve learned in their state-mandated science of reading training, the materials they have access to, and the unique learners in their classrooms. In this session, TNTP will share what we are learning about how systems are avoiding the “implementation gap,” and engage participants in a discussion about what’s working, and the lessons learned from their own systems.

What happens when state legislation, massive funding, and sustainable coaching systems work alongside nonprofit organizations and grassroots efforts? Teachers and students win. Join us for a panel discussion moderated by Linda Rhyne, President of The Reading League North Carolina, highlighting how multiple people and organizations work together towards sustainable change and a state full of proficient readers. Panelists include Nancy Hennessy, M.Ed experienced literacy consultant, author and former president of International Dyslexia Association; Amy Rhyne, Office of Early Learning Senior Director at NCDPI; Monica Campbell, Professor of Education and the Executive Director of Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Literacy Center; Rupen Fofaria, Director of the North Carolina State Board of Education, and Camille Walters, UNC Charlotte Mebane Early Literacy Scholar alumni and current K-5 teacher.