Welcome to the November ELAR Newsletter! As the season shifts, we're excited to continue fostering a love for ELAR and keeping you informed and up to date by sharing best instructional practices. Let's make this month one for deepening connections through reading and writing—bringing warmth, creativity, and inspiration into our classrooms.

Thanks to our friends in Duncanville ISD, we've got a great Talk Read Talk Write Activity shared from the MetroCREST Meeting and Dr. Pearl is dropping some new Reader Response wisdom for our K-2 teachers in this month's PD in 15! Also, check out the TEA RLA Newsletter for important updates regarding Bluebonnet Instructional Materials stakeholder meetings from TEA.

Continue to look for our newsletters on the first Monday of each month from September - May of each school year. 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.

Purpose: Allows school staff at all levels to provide feedback and input for upcoming professional learning opportunities

Directions:

- Complete the survey yourself

- Share link/QR code with your district’s instructional staff (including teachers, counselors, librarians, instructional coaches, campus administrators, district administrators, etc.)

Link: https://region10.sjc1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b3j38qWodvkf6Ki

On November 1st, Duncanville ISD hosted MetroCREST. Metrocrest is a monthly meeting for local ELAR curriculum supervisors and leaders across the DFW area. This meeting offers a chance to learn and share instructional strategies and practices to plan for district educator support, collaborate, and discuss important TEA updates.

Duncanville ISD's Curriculum and Instruction team, led by Kiesha King, K-5 RLA Coordinator, and Jason Brumfield, RLA 6-12 Coordinator, presented a demonstration of a great new district initiative aimed at increasing academic discourse and writing practices across content areas. They've rolled out district-wide implementation based on the book, Talk Read Talk Write by Nancy Motley. Check out resources from the activity we experienced using a fabulously relevant cross-curricular connected text.

• Slide deck
• Participant guide
• Article
• Envelope questions

Thanks to ALL of our participants who have attended our Fall PD sessions so far!

As a reminder, most of our sessions are available at the campus/district level upon request. To request a session, simply fill out the Session Request Form found at the bottom of the newsletter. This form may also be used to request ELAR Coaching.

Click on the image below to view our Fall PD Offering Flyer!

Description: With the launch of the STAAR redesign, approximately one-third of students in the state of Texas received zero points for their RLA extended constructed responses, exposing a need for a deeper understanding of the text-based writing requirements. Join us as we navigate the complexities of ECR scoring. Participants in this session will understand the STAAR hybrid scoring model, gain insights from the STAAR ECR rubric, engage with analysis and feedback of student samples, as well as explore instructional implications for different grade levels.

This session will be offered for two different grade level bands, (Gr 3-7 and 8-EOCII)

Register for this session below

Dates:

• Jan. 24 - Grades 3-7
• Jan. 27 - 8-EOC

Time: 9-4

Presenters: Chandra Shaw & Jennifer Gunn

Description: In today’s demanding educational environment, teachers often face overwhelming stress, anxiety, and burnout. This session is designed to empower educators with practical strategies to understand the 7 types of rest and reclaim their well-being to enhance their overall effectiveness in the classroom. Teachers will leave equipped with a holistic approach to self-care that not only reduces burnout but also fosters a more sustainable and fulfilling teaching career. Join us to prioritize your well-being and become a well-rested, resilient educator.

This session is for ALL educators. Invite a non ELAR friend to join!

Register for this session below:

Date: November 12, 2024 Time: 4-5 PM

Date: December 10, 2024 Time: 3:30-4:30 PM

Presenter: Chandra Shaw

Description: Get ready for an engaging session where you'll dive into the world of small-group reading instruction! You'll explore skills-based, differentiated, and needs-based approaches, and discover how to use data to create flexible groups and select the perfect texts for instruction. Align small-group instruction with research-based reading strategies and gain insight into what students not at the teacher's table will be doing. Plus, get hands-on with activities that bring the science of teaching reading and research-based instructional best practices to life! For your participation, you'll earn # CPE hour(s). It's a fantastic opportunity to enhance your teaching toolkit and make a real difference in your student's reading journeys!

Register for this session below:

Date: November 11, 2024 Time: 9-12 PM

Date: January 24, 2025 Time: 9-12PM

Presenter: Dr. Pearl Garden

Can't get a sub? Don't have time to attend a full day of PD? Well, PD in 15 might just be for you. Each month, we'll showcase a small chunk of a much longer session that teachers might find useful. It's a great way to refresh your teaching with ideas you may have forgotten to use from a previously attended session.

This month's session comes from our very own Dr. Pearl Garden. In Reader Response: Focusing on Oral Language, Dr. Garden helps our K-2 educators understand the important role they play in developing students' evidence-based discussion skills. The full 3hr version is available by request at the campus and district level. Simply fill out the Session Request Form found at the bottom of our newsletter.

Watch this month's PD in 15 below by clicking on the image or the button below it.

Need the latest information about College Prep Courses? Check out the Advanced Academics Newsletter below.

• Additional information for extended constructed responses is being included in assessment data files that are sent to LEAs.

• Non-scorable condition codes and a glossary explaining them will be available.

• Points earned for each of the two sections of the writing rubric—Development and Organization of Ideas and Conventions—will be provided.

• Reporting for the Texas Assessment Program 2024-2025 School Year

As required by House Bill 900, 88th R.S. (2023), TSLAC has adopted mandatory collection development standards for school libraries. Each Texas public school district board or governing body must approve and institute a collection development policy that describes the processes and standards by which a school library acquires, maintains, and withdraws materials as outlined in the standards.

(Download a printer-friendly version of the FAQs.) Additionally, TSLAC has developed a checklist to assist districts in developing or revising their collection development policies.

Instructional Materials Showcase at Region 10 - January 22-23, 2025

• Day 1 Registration Link - January 22, 2025 - ELAR/Spanish LAR/Phonics
• Day 2 Registration Link - January 23, 2025 - Mathematics

The North Texas Council of Teachers of English Language Arts (NTCTELA) Summer Conference will be June 6 in Royse City ISD, at their new Special Events Center. It’s really pretty!

Do you struggle to get kids to turn in work?

Do you wish students put forth more effort on the work they turn in?

Do you feel like students are failing and they don’t care?

Well, this month's podcast spotlight is for you! In this week's episode of This Teacher Life with Monica Genta, How to Get Students to Turn in High-Quality Work and the Simple System to Ensure No Kids Fail, Monica discusses ways to get students to put forth their best effort on the first try. Who couldn't use this information?

Listen to the podcast here.

In this new edition of the highly regarded, Why Don't Students Like School? cognitive psychologist Daniel Willingham turns his research on the biological and cognitive basis of learning into workable teaching techniques. This book will help you improve your teaching practice by explaining how you and your students think and learn. It reveals the importance of story, emotion, memory, context, and routine in building knowledge and creating lasting learning experiences.

The Region 10 ELAR team provides literacy support through professional development services, instructional coaching, and technical assistance.

Twitter: @R10ELA

Gr K-5 Literacy Consultant

Email: pearl.garden@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1318
Twitter: @LiteracyPearls

3-8 Literacy Consultant

Email: chandra.shaw@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1564
Twitter: @CShawR10

6-12 Literacy Consultant

Email: jennifer.gunn@region10.org
Phone: 972-348-1080
Twitter: @GunnTexas

• September 2024
• October 2024