School is out for students, but Hamilton County teachers will be sharpening their literacy instructional skills at the third annual Scenic City Literacy Conference on the campus of Southern Adventist University in Collegedale on Wednesday and Thursday.
"Hamilton County (through Read 20) and Hamilton County Department of Education continue to work together to provide Hamilton County's teachers with staff development opportunities to enhance the literacy instruction that they bring into the classroom," said Shawn Kurrelmeier-Lee, chief reading officer of Read 20.
"Professional development is essential for our teachers. It is so important for our children to have teachers who are prepared with the latest thinking and tools for teaching literacy," said Julie Legg, director of K-5 Literacy and ESOL for HCDE.
Read 20 is a public-private partnership that promotes literacy skills for early childhood, in support of Hamilton County's community literacy goals. Created in 2006 in response to community input through the 2004 Education Summit to encourage adults to read to children at least 20 minutes a day, Read 20 provides books and read alouds for children in public elementary schools and childcare centers in Hamilton County.
The conference is a collaborative partnership with Read 20, HCDE, UTC, the Public Education Foundation, Southern Adventist University, and Chattanooga State Community College. The focus of this year’s conference is on pre-K through eighth grade literacy. Many of the presenters in concurrent sessions are literacy leaders within HCDE and the state.
The conference features national keynote speakers:
Dr. Donald Bear, author of Words Their Way, who directs the E. L. Cord Foundation Center for Learning and Literacy where he works, through assessments and tutoring programs, with children who struggle to learn to read and write. Assessments he has developed are widely used in statewide literacy programs.
Isoke Nia, a national expert in literacy has been a classroom teacher, staff developer and literacy researcher for Teachers College, Columbia University. She consults in literacy instruction throughout the United States, Africa, the Caribbean and other destinations abroad.
Michael Fowlin, a literacy performer and speaker whose programs combine his professional acting talents and his psychological training to present programs that encourage inclusion, not just tolerance, towards all people. He has worked extensively with all age groups in the United States and in other countries.
Conference agenda:
Wednesday
8:30-9:45 a.m.: General Session with Donald Bear, author of Words Their Way
10-11:15 a.m.: Concurrent Sessions
11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.: Concurrent Sessions
1-1:45 p.m.: Lunch
2-3:15 p.m.: Concurrent Sessions
Thursday
8:30-9:45 a.m.: General Session with Isoke Nia
10-11:15 a.m.: Concurrent Sessions
11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.: Concurrent Sessions
1-2:15 p.m.: Lunch with Performance by Michael Fowlin
2:15-2:30 p.m.: Closing Remarks and Door Prizes