It's already March? Say it isn't so. This year has really flown by!
As a reminder, normally, we publish our newsletters on the first Monday of each month from September - May. Any other necessary communication during the month will come through our ELAR Listserv, so be sure that you have signed up using the button at the bottom of the newsletter.
RLA STAAR Bootcamp: Strategies for Success Gr 3-10
The Region 10 ELAR Team hosted our STAAR Bootcamp on February 12th and March 1st. We had over 200 educators, instructional coaches, administrators, and coordinators from around the region attend this engaging session. The goal of our bootcamp is to spark ideas for educators so that they can develop their own camp for students who may need an additional push to success prior to taking the STAAR assessment. Thank you to everyone who attended and offered great feedback!
ECR Evidence Pull
Do your students struggle with identifying and selecting the best evidence to support their thinking? Well, you're NOT alone. Try this activity on your next ECR Writing. It was a real hit at our RLA STAAR Bootcamp! Participants read a paired passage, wrote thesis statements for an ECR prompt, and were tasked with selecting strong evidence to support their selected thesis. The conversations were amazing!
The 6 Syllable Types
The English language has approximately 1.6 million words, and many of those words have more than one syllable. Blending and segmenting syllables in words occurs orally during phonological awareness instruction, then progresses and transfers to word reading and spelling. This skill is crucial because it helps readers break multisyllabic words into manageable chunks, allowing students to decode and encode unknown words. This session will share an overview of each syllable type, lessons, and resources to help teachers teach each type.
Date: March 20, 2024
Time: 4-5 PM
Location: Zoom Session
Presenter: Dr. Pearl Garden
Email: pearl.garden@region10.org
Twitter: @LiteracyPearls
From Artifact to Action Pre-Reading and Phonics
This session gives teachers who have participated in and/or are participating in the reading academies the opportunities to put the content learned in the pre-reading (7) module and word study (Module 8) into action. Participants will be able to get an overview of skills related to the content they have learned or are learning related to phonics instruction.
Date: March 22, 2024
Time: 9-12
Presenter: Dr. Pearl Garden
Email: pearl.garden@region10.org
Location: 400 East Spring Valley Road, Richardson, TX, USA
Twitter: @LiteracyPearls
Summer Roadshow Locations Announced!!
Each summer, Region 10 Consultants pack up and take our professional development on the road to locations around the region, making it easier for YOU to attend our sessions. This year's Roadshow dates and districts have been announced. More information about session titles and times will be released at the end of March. Until then, mark your calendars, and we hope to see you at one of our Roadshow events!
June 4 - 5: Cedar Hill ISD
June 11 - 12: Forney ISD
June 17 -18: Celina ISD
More information coming soon!
Back That Thang' Up: Using Evidence to Support Constructed Response Gr 3-8
The new writing demands of the state assessments will require students to construct short responses to text-based questions. Students’ ability to clearly answer the questions asked and select the best text evidence to support their responses will depend on the number and quality of opportunities they have to practice these vital skills. In this session, participants will gain an understanding of the new STAAR assessment requirements for constructed response questions, learn strategies to create text-based questions based on the TEKS and help facilitate students’ abilities to compose written responses that provide appropriate text evidence.
Date: June 10, 2024 and July 11, 2024
Time: 9-4
Location: Region 10 ESC
Presenter: Chandra Shaw
Email: chandra.shaw@region10.org
Location: 400 East Spring Valley Road, Richardson, TX, USA
Twitter: @CShawR10
911 ECR Emergency Gr 3-8
Preparing students for the rigor of standardized tests can be daunting, especially when trying to equip your students with the essential skills needed to excel on the STAAR test's Extended Constructed Response (ECR) items. This session aims to alleviate the challenges by offering practical strategies, valuable insights, and collaborative activities designed to empower teachers with the tools to provide direct, explicit instruction that guides their students toward writing exceptional ECRs. Join me for a hands-on, interactive workshop designed to enhance teachers' expertise in effectively teaching ECR writing.
Date: June 24, 2024 and July 15, 2024
Time: 9-4
Location: Region 10 ESC
Presenter: Chandra Shaw
Email: chandra.shaw@region10.org
Location: 400 East Spring Valley Road, Richardson, TX, USA
Twitter: @CShawR10
The 411 on EOC ECRs
The Extended Constructed Response (ECR) on the English 1 and English 2 End of Course (EOC) exams set expectations that incorporate text analysis and evidence-based writing that is foundational to students' college readiness. In this session, participants will review strategies to promote text-based thinking before getting "the 411" on how EOC writing expectations align with various college-readiness standards. In order to inform instructional practices around writing, participants will take a deep dive into rubrics and samples of student writing craft. In this interactive workshop, participants will engage in reading and writing experiences that will foster authentic writing growth for increased success on EOCs and beyond.
Date: June 20, 2024 and July 15, 2024
Time: 9-4
Location: Region 10 ESC
Presenter: Jennifer Gunn
Email: jennifer.gunn@region10.org
Location: 400 East Spring Valley Road, Richardson, TX, USA
Twitter: @GunnTexas
Mapping Out Instruction with TRS
Dates: March 27, 2024
Time: 8:30-3:30
Location: Region 10 ESC
Presenters: Christopher Gray
Email: christopher.gray@region10.org
Location: 400 East Spring Valley Road, Richardson, TX, USA
Twitter: @CGrayR10
According to the TEA Assessment presentation, "anchor approval, also known as rangefinding, is the process of defining the range of performance of student responses that fall within each score point on a rubric." The following Constructed Response Workbook was included in their presentation to help illustrate the process of scoring SCR and ECR items.
Building Better Collaboration Between Families and Schools
Listen to the Podcast here.
What the Science of Reading Says about: Literacy Strategies for Secondary (What the Science Says)
Bring the science of reading directly into the classroom! Developed for Grades 6-12, this resource offers teachers meaningful strategies to build students’ reading and writing skills. This book provides easy-to-use methods and lessons to help older learners practice word recognition, reading comprehension and content knowledge, and writing. With these research-based strategies, middle and high school teachers can make reading and writing simple, engaging, and effective! This book meets College and Career Readiness and other state standards.
Teaching Reading Across the Day, Grades K-8: Methods and Structures for Engaging Explicit Instruction 1st Edition COMING May 14, 2024!!!!
In Teaching Reading Across the Day, literacy expert Jennifer Serravallo provides nine effective, predictable, research-based lesson structures that help busy teachers save planning time and focus their teaching―and student attention―on content rather than procedures. Each of the nine lesson structures (read aloud, phonics and spelling, vocabulary, focus, shared reading, close reading, guided inquiry, reader’s theater, and conversation) has its own chapter and features a wealth of resources that let you see the lessons in action in K-6 ELA, Science, and Social Studies classes, including:
- An annotated teaching vignette, lesson explanation, and research notes
- Tips for planning, structure and timing suggestions, and ideas for responsive teaching
- Detailed planning templates and 23 accompanying online videos covering over 3 hours of classroom footage
- Jen’s reflections, key look-fors, and ideas for next steps
In Nourishing Caregiver Collaborations: Elevating Home Experiences and Classroom Practices for Collective Care, Nawal Qarooni invites us to step beyond school-centric, one-off events and practices to create more authentic, engaging collaborations with caregivers. Instead of asking what families can do to support schools, Qarooni asks how schools can identify and celebrate what families already inherently bring to their children's literacy learning.
Establishing this work in holistic teaching--a pedagogical mindset that affirms the importance of loving the whole child through compassionate, collective care--Qarooni explores five critical literacy tenets by highlighting opportunities to listen for, honor, connect to, and elevate family strengths while inviting them even further into our shared work and encouraging reflection around:
Recognizing the journey of process,
Celebrating the role collaboration plays within the collective
Using observational literacy to read the world
Advocating for the power of talk to grow ideas and connect with others
Giving children choice to make self-directed decisions
About Us
The Region 10 ELAR team provides literacy support through professional development services, instructional coaching, and technical assistance.
Twitter: @R10ELA
Dr. Pearl Garden
Email: pearl.garden@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1318
Twitter: @LiteracyPearls
Chandra Shaw
3-8 Literacy Consultant
Email: chandra.shaw@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1564
Twitter: @CShawR10
Jennifer Gunn
6-12 Literacy Consultant
Email: jennifer.gunn@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1080
Twitter: @GunnTexas