We are excited to announce our latest professional development offerings! Click the titles to find a description and registration information. For more information about any of these workshops, e-mail reading@esc4.net.
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Join us for short discussions tailor-made for reading and writing teachers!
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Check out our new on-demand sessions!
Region 4 is going virtual this summer to keep everyone safe and socially distanced. We'll be providing professional development via Zoom. Presenters will email participants with a link to join the session prior to the training session.
The Science of Teaching Reading - Virtual Series
This series, based on the Science of Teaching Reading framework, explores key concepts in foundational literacy, including oral language, phonological awareness, word structure and analysis, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Designed for teachers, administrators, instructional coaches, and preservice teachers, each course dives deeply into the theory and practice of early reading skills and provides educators the tools to implement effective early literacy practices.
Sessions in this series include:
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Vocabulary and Reading Comprehension
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Print Awareness and Alphabet Knowledge
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Phonics and Other Word Identification Strategies
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Reading Fluency
Writing, Writing Everywhere!
Emergent Writing PreK and Kindergarten
Emergent writing skills are an important part of the Early Childhood Classroom. Research suggests that adult modeling and guidance on how and when to apply writing skills is critical for future academic success. Participants will discuss the stages of writing development, learn how to embed writing in literacy centers, and incorporate writing in the classroom every day. Modeled Writing, Shared Writing, and bookmaking strategies and techniques will be presented. Bookmaking is a wonderful way to show students the reciprocity of reading and writing and an excellent tool to encourage students to write.
The Science of Teaching Reading Prep Course is a new offering to help teachers in an Alternative Certification Program pass the required Science of Teaching Reading exam. The 86th Texas Legislature passed House Bill 3, which established the requirement that all teacher candidates wishing to teach PreK-6th demonstrate proficiency in the science of teaching reading, and from that, The Science of Teaching Reading exam (STR 293) was created.
If you're looking for support in preparing for this exam, this two-part virtual course can help! We will review the content of the STR Domains 1-4 and apply the knowledge to practice test questions.
- Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 (8:30-11:30 a.m.) | Register
Classroom Management that Works for Beginners! It's All About Instruction
April 28, 2021 (1:30pm - 3:30pm)
Examine instructional routines that promote positive classroom interactions between students, teachers, and parents. Participants will explore practical strategies that promote a healthy classroom through effective management of instruction to impact the learning of all students. Teachers will acquire skills to determine the classroom structure, organization, routines and procedures that increase student motivation, engagement, and levels of student responsibility. This session focuses on the building blocks for creating positive classroom environment through designing effective instructional routines. Learn more and register here.
Connecting with Students Online: Strategies for Remote Teaching and Learning
May 5, 2021 (8:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m)
Region 4 Reading/Language Arts welcomes Jennifer Serravallo, national presenter and author of Connecting with Students Online: Strategies for Remote Teaching & Learning, Writing Strategies: Your Everything Guide to Developing Skilled Writers, and Reading Strategies: Your Everything Guide to Developing Skilled Readers. Serravallo and her team will be presenting "Connecting with Students Online: Strategies for Remote Teaching and Learning".
An unprecedented pandemic may change the definition of classroom, but it doesn't have to change your definition of good teaching. This workshop will offer concise, doable suggestions based on Jennifer’s own experiences and those of the teachers, administrators, and coaches she has communicated with during the pandemic. There will be an emphasis on the vital importance of the teacher-student connection.
The workshop will guide participants to:
• effectively prioritize what matters most during remote, online instruction;
• schedule your day and your students’ to maximize teaching and learning (and avoid burnout);
• streamline curricular units and roll them out digitally;
• record highly engaging short lessons that students will enjoy and learn from;
• confer, working with small groups, and drive learning through independent practice; and
• partner with the adults in a student’s home to support your work with their child.
Register for this session here.
Who Needs Coaching? Not Me! Coaching the Resistant Teacher
May 19, 2021 (1:30pm - 3:30pm)
Explore practical techniques and tips for coaching the teacher that does not want to be coached. Participate in collegial dialogue with other coaches through problem-solving real world coaching scenarios. Using research and evidence based practices, create a plan of action to support resistant teachers. Learn more and register here.
Acceleration Series
Understanding the Role of Author's Craft and Rhetoric in Informational and Persuasive Texts--A TEKS-Based Approach
June 21, 2021 (1:30pm - 3:30pm)
In this engaging workshop, participants will learn strategies to help students explore, identify, and analyze elements of author's craft in informational and persuasive texts. Participants will learn a structured, scaffolded approach to examine the impact that diction and rhetorical devices have on the meaning of texts. Explicit connections to the newly-adopted English Language Arts TEKS will be made and suggestions for enhancing virtual learning will be explored. Learn more and register here.
Instructional Coaching - Bite-Sized Sessions
What are your needs as an instructional coach? Meet your individual goals and personalize your learning by selecting from these bite-sized virtual sessions.
Pre-observation and Observations
Learn strategies for building a collaborative coach-teacher relationship, structures for the pre-observation meeting, and ideas and forms for collecting quality evidence during instructional observations.Setting Instructional Coaching Goals
Learn how to work shoulder-to-shoulder with teachers during the post-observation conference to identify mutually agreed upon coaching goals based on teacher instructional practices and student needs.
Instructional Coaching Cycle
Learn how to organize coaching into cycles to help you create a structure for yourself and your teachers. During this session, we will identify the structure of small group and one-on-one coaching cycle.
Providing Models of Expert Teaching to Support Implementation of Coaching Goals
Teachers need to see effective instruction in action. Modeling is one way to show a teacher how to implement a specific strategy. By modeling lessons that make teaching and learning visible, coaches help teachers build a vision of effective instruction. Learn processes to make your model teaching a collaborative one-on-one professional development opportunity.Principal and Instructional Coach Relationship
Learn strategies and explore tools to build a collaborative partnership of professional development between principal and instructional coaches.
Coaching Adults
Teachers of all levels of experience and expertise can benefit from instructional coaching, but engaging and motivating adult learners can be challenging. This session will explore strategies for developing, engaging, and empowering teachers.
Remote Instructional Coaching
Maximize your coaching time through remote instructional coaching. This session will share resources and strategies to provide full coaching cycles remotely.
One Hour Cafe Series
Energize your daily instruction with high yield research-based practices for face-to-face and virtual classrooms, in a quick one-hour session presented by Region 4 Reading/Language Arts. Each session can be taken individually. For more information, e-mail reading@esc4.net.
Rubrics to the Rescue
July 8, 2021 (1-2 p.m.)
How do I improve the quality of my students' work products? How do I save time grading their products? Rubrics to the rescue! In this one hour session, participants will examine the benefits and steps to creating quality rubrics to improve the quality of student work products and increase achievement. We will explore how the use of rubrics can help teachers, students, and parents authentically monitor learning and progress in a face-to-face or virtual classroom. Learn more and register here.
Let's Go RAFTing
July 13, 2021 (1-2 p.m.)
Participants will explore how to develop and use RAFTs that will encourage critical reading and writing across the curriculum. Participants will learn how to use RAFTs to incorporate the language domains (listening, speaking, reading and writing), boost student engagement through choice and reinforce content area concepts. All learners (highly-abled, on-level and struggling) will benefit from the innovative technique. Learn more and register here.
Power in Choice Boards
July 20, 2021 (1-2 p.m.)
Participants will explore how to create choice boards with ease. This differentiated technique will help students access background knowledge, incorporate the language domains (listening, speaking, reading and writing), boost student engagement and emphasize content area concepts. All learners (highly abled, on-level, and struggling) will benefit from the innovative techniques. Learn more and register here.
The Right Fit with Tiered Assignments
July 27, 2021 (1-2 p.m.)
Participants will explore how to tier assignments that will help students access background knowledge, incorporate the language domains (listening, speaking, reading and writing), boost student engagement and emphasize content area concepts. All students (highly abled, on-level, and struggling) will benefit from the innovative technique. Learn more and register here.
It's a Whole New World:Getting Students Engaged in the Virtual Classroom!
July 29, 2021 (1-3 p.m.)
Shifting between face-to-face and virtual instruction is a tall order for both educators and students. Do you find that your students are not participating in discussions, not volunteering to answer or ask questions, not completing assignments and not excited about attending class? Have you noticed that you are using the same techniques over and over each class setting trying to get students authentically engaged? This is the class for you! Energize your instructional practices with a variety of interactive engagement strategies for the virtual classroom. Learn more and register here.
Contact us for details about any of these sessions. Coaching and customized professional development are also available by e-mailing reading@esc4.net.