I’m looking forward to being a part of this amazing week of learning at Penn State York next month!
Dr. Aileen P. Hower has put together a terrific line-up for immersive study of this topic. Speakers include Dorothy Barnhouse, Kristin Ziemke, Meenoo Rami, and many others leading keynotes and sessions.
I’ll be speaking on Wednesday, June 24th and talking about bringing sense to the sea of “initiatives” swirling around us. I’ll then lead breakout sessions on both supporting old and young readers.
The institute is open to all educators and includes the option of receiving Penn State Graduate School credit.
I’m looking forward to upcoming events in February. There’s nothing more fun than getting to see friends and meet new faces across the country.
Registration is open now for each of these. Hope to see you in person (or typy-typing online)!
If you cannot make these, check the link at the bottom of this post for additional events (I’m talking to you OH, MO, TX, IN, PA…).
Indianapolis and Chicago
February 4 and 5. Kate Roberts and I will lead a day long workshop on close reading practices for grades 4-12. There will be tons of practical ideas for close reading fiction, nonfiction, texts and media. And potentially we can get Kate to sing (but don’t tell her I told all of you that).
Beginning January 21 (then Jan 29 and Feb 11). I’m leading a 3-session online Heinemann webinar called “Energize Your Teaching: Informational Reading, Writing and Research are Way More Interesting Than You Think. These run on each date from 10-11:15AM EST.
NCTE is definitely one of my favorite times of the year.
Nothing is better than getting to connect with edu-friends. Or the fun of doing that squinty eye look as you try to sneak-read someone’s name tag as you wonder, “Have I seen your face in a little twitter photo before?.” I’m looking forward to being in the D.C. area and for the energy of this upcoming weekend.
My friends and I at The Educator Collaborative have many events going on and we hope we’ll get a chance to say hi to you. Sessions, signings, meet-ups…. and we’re really excited to organize an informal meet-up we’re calling the “Professional Book Swamp Meet”! All the info is below.
Events
Sunday morning Meet-up and “Professional Book Swap Meet”
If you are unable to attend, follow the hashtag #NCTE14 for highlights.
Earlier that day, Kate Roberts and I will be signing books at the Heinemann Booth. Exhibit Hall, Saturday, 1:30. (Added bonus: Meenoo Rami will be there as well, signing her new book Thrive!)
Looking Forward To
Pre-conference twitter chat tonight! I’m guest-hosting #IRAchat at 8pm EST, 7pm CST: More info here.
Being back in New Orleans (and the food!)
The energy of hundreds of educators all learning, laughing, and sharing together.
What will surely be another fun conference twitter stream: #IRA14
And the start of my mile long list of sessions I can make it to if I duplicate myself:
Jeff Kinney General Session
Richard Allington FS01, Closing the Rich/Poor Reading Achievement Gap, Sat 11-12
Kristin Ziemke and Katie Muhtaris, 01557: Student Learning Networks: Building Digital Learning Communities that Ignite Powerful Learning, Sat 11-12
Kylene Beers and Bob Probst, 02214: When the Text is Tough
Frank Serafini, Sylvia Pantaleo, Suzette Youngs 1445: Reading Picture Books Closely: Developing Strategies for Comprehending Multimodal Texts, Sat 11-1
Donalyn Miller, Kelly Gallagher, Penny Kittle 1863: Building Reading Lives that Last, Sat 11-1
Tim Rasinski et al, FS13: The Art of Enging Your School Year Literacy Strong
oh my… this is only up until 1PM and I already have too many options…
We hope our ideas spark engagement and interest in looking at close reading not through the lens of a mandate or prescribed program, but instead as one of many methods that can support our students (and ourselves) in looking at texts, media, and even our lives in new ways.
Falling in Love with Close Reading Study Guide!
In honor of your work, Kate and I wrote a Study Guide to accompany the book and support you in your conversations with colleagues. More than just discussion questions, the free guide is written with the same spirit Kate and I bring to our in-school staff development: one part inspiration, one part conversation, one part hands-on practical… and all parts collaboration.
LIVE! In addition to our regular work speaking and consulting in schools, Kate and I are presenting on the West Coast in April (yay!). Seattle on April 3 and Portland on April 4. Seats are limited (our two fall dates sold out early). Information and registration for the One-Day Workshops are at this link.
Call for Videos!
by Iconshock used under Creative Commons lic
Many of you have been tweeting or telling us in person about the amazing work you and your students are doing around close reading while using strategies from Falling in Love with Close Reading. We would like to celebrate your work and share it with the world.
We are having an open call for 4-minutes or less classroom video clips of you and your students in action.
All submissions require appropriate consent forms, find them and how to submit at the video landing page: Vimeo.com/FILWCloseReading (click links on the left sidebar). Selected videos will be posted with your name and state (unless you request otherwise).
#engchat Archive
We enjoyed guest hosting #engchat last night, the weekly chat for teachers of literacy and English. You can find the archive here. While there, consider donating to help #engchat‘s founder, Meenoo Rami, defray the cost of web-hosting the chat archives and announcements.
Thanks for all you do for your students and this profession!
I am looking forward to a week of fun events as we roll into December. (I’m also sharing with you some super-new west coast dates coming up in Spring, you’re the first to know!)
Thursday, December 5. Madison, WI.Madison Area Reading Council is hosting a dinner and talk at the Maple Bluff Country Club. Yummy food and an intimate setting. Dinner at 5:30 and I’ll be talking close reading starting at 6:30. Register here.
Friday, December 6. Brookfield, WI. Event Sold-Out. Heinemann One-Day workshop, Fall in Love With Close Readingfrom 8:30-3:30. Seats went quickly, if you weren’t able to attend in person we will be tweeting live all day long using #FILWCloseReading. Join us!
Waukesha County Reading Council
Saturday, December 7. Pewaukee, WI. Waukesha County Reading Council is holding their next meeting at the Country Springs Conference Center where I will be speaking, “Kids Want to Write!: Develop a Powerful Culture of Writing, Growth, and Community.” 8:30-11:00AM. Session is already packed, visit their facebook page for last minute info.
Monday, December 9. Amherst, NY. with special guest Kate Roberts(!!)Heinemann One-Day workshop, Fall in Love With Close Reading. Day starts at 8:30-3:30. We will be tweeting live all day long using #FILWCloseReading. Join us! A few seats are remaining, register here.
Other Events Online and Across the Country
I’m traveling the country across 2014, visit my events page to see when I will be in your area.
As members of my blog community I’d like to share with you the first word on two newly added west coast events (the exact location hasn’t even been decided yet!), but registration is now open and seats are expected to go quickly.
I’ll be speaking about Common Core State Standards myths, meanings, and providing guidance on ways to support our schools in moving forward.
Attend (Virtually): Webcast, Tweet
Registration for the in-person event has met capacity, but you are able to watch the live-stream online. Registration for the webcast is free: here.
You can use the hashtag #AEW2013 (American Education Week) while viewing, in order to connect, chat, and respond. I’ll plan to read and respond to tweets at the end of the evening.
Giving Back: Funding Books for Educators
One aspect of this conversation will include research around the absolute necessity of providing access to books. With this in mind, I wrote to friends at Booksource and asked if they would consider funding some educators’ needs. They graciously agreed and have committed to giving a total of $1,000 in book money to a few educators in attendance.
Here are the details from UW-Madison’s website and how Wisconsin educators attending in person or online can apply. Deadline is Monday afternoon:
Virtual Book Study
UW-Madison will also be kicking off a virtual book study of Pathways to the Common Core, more information is forth-coming.
I hope you will attend, tweet, and continue these essential conversations.
I am honored to be a featured speaker at my alma mater, The University of Wisconsin-Madison, at the UW-Madison School of Education’s “American Education Week 2013.” I will be speaking on Wednesday, November 20, 2013 from 6-7PM CST with a Q&A to follow.
The event is free to attend in person or virtually through a live-stream. Both options require advanced registration.
For more information and to register click here or the image below.
I’ll be totally honest: I speak at public events all the time–I should be used to this–but nothing still gives me more butterflies than the hour before a webinar goes live. I always find myself sorting through things that need not be sorted and texting people that need not be texted.
I will also tell you: the second we start and I get to connect with fellow educators, it feels just like home.
In this post, I’d like to:
share with you the archived webinar from my conversation with Tony Flach of The Leadership and Learning Center this past week.
I’m looking forward to sharing all of this with you (butterflies and all)!
Archived Webinar: A Conversation About the Common Core State Standards
Thanks to all of you who attended my live webinar with The Leadership and Learning Center. It was a blast, Tony Flach was a terrific host and Cathy and crew from the center made it very enjoyable. In case you missed it, it is now archived! Here’s the link or click the image below.
click to be taken to archived video
I’m also looking forward to providing the first day keynote and joining panel discussions at The Leadership and Learning Center’s conference on the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Assessments in New Orleans, November 5-6. More here.
Upcoming Webinar Series: Energize Your Classroom: Informational Reading, Writing And Research Are Way More Interesting Than You Think!
Beginning October 2, I am leading a three-session, live, interactive webinar series on best practices for informational reading, writing and research.
I led a similar series this past winter, and it was so much fun that Heinemann has decided to offer two separate time slots, giving you more opportunities to attend. Both series will run for the first three Wednesdays in October, select the time slot that works best for you (or perhaps even your team for day-time learning):
For information on group rates call Heinemann PD at 800-541-2086, ext. 1151.
The webinar involves my live video stream, an on-going real time chat box for all attendees to communicate, and options for credits. All sessions are archived for participants.
click for registration page
As always, thanks for all you do for your students and fellow educators. I’m honored to be a small part of your big journey.
Let’s work together! I have several speaking engagements coming up over the next few months, with more being added soon. Bookmark my Speaking Engagements page for continual updates.
Heinemann is offering two different LIVE series times, during the day for in-school professional development or in the afternoon for end-of-day learning. PLNs are encouraged to apply and can call 800-541-2086, ext. 1151 for information on reduced group rates. Links to register:
October 15, 2013. Online session with Albany Area Reading Council, NY. “Energize Your Research Reading and Writing Instruction.” More information on membership and events here.
In Person
September
Over 500 educators are already registered! September 17, 2013. Upstate Schools Consortium at Furman University, Greenville, S.C. “Pathways to the ELA Common Core.” Info: Upstate Schools Consortium
October
On-line live Webinars, see above.
November
November 1-2, 2013. Dubai, UAE. “MENA Common Core Conference.” Invited Keynote and Speaker. Register here: MENAcommoncore.com
November 5-6, 2013. New Orleans, LA. Leadership and Learning Center’s “Common Core State Standards Summit 2.0: Getting Ready for the Next Generation Assessments.” Keynote and Panelist. Register here: Leadership and Learning Center.
November 20, 2013.University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI. Evening Keynote during “American Education Week.” Registration information coming soon.
November 21-24, 2013. NCTE Annual Convention. Closer Reading: Close Reading Texts, Close Reading Lives (with Kate Roberts and Maggie Beattie Roberts). Boston, MA. Info:NCTE
November 25-26, 2013. NCTE CEL (Conference on English Leadership) Convention. Info: CEL
December
Registration is open now for my Heinemann One-Day Workshops, Fall In Love With Close Reading. Early-bird discount through September 13.
December 5, 2013 Evening with the Madison Area Reading Council, WI. Information on membership and events here.
December 7, 2013. Workshop with the Waukesha County Reading Council, WI. “Kids Want to Write!: Develop a Powerful Culture of Writing, Growth, and Community” WCRC facebook page or membership information at WRSA.
I am honored to be invited to give the keynote and lead sessions for the 1st Annual MENA Common Core Conference in Dubai, UAE, November 1 and 2, 2013.
The conference is aimed at supporting educators in the MENA region (“Middle East and North Africa”), or anyone interested in joining, who either work for American schools that are currently studying the Common Core Math and ELA standards or educators in general interested in studying the standards and best practices.
The Common Core Standards alone do not impact schools, it is instead dedicated educators teaching with purpose and a deep focus on students that lead to more rigorous and engaged learning. Educators of MENA schools have a unique opportunity to learn from the triumphs and troubles of implementation in the United States and take the best of what’s possible back to their classrooms.
Call for Proposals
There is also a current call for proposals of educators interested in presenting at the conference. Presenters have their conference fee waived. The conference organizers have more information and are accepting proposals at their website (here). Proposals are due by Sept 15th.
I am looking forward to an exciting, intensive–and no doubt inspirational–conference!
I have truly loved every opportunity to work with the educators of South Carolina, from the SC Department of Education researchers to administrators and teachers. At each heart has been a strong belief in teaching and learning and seeing through the noise to look for what is best for each child.
On September 17, I’ll present on the ELA CCSS, supporting educators in understanding their expectations, seeing ways our literacy instruction already supports these expectations and ways to adjust our instruction to support each child’s development and independence. We will think specifically about ways to not simply follow often conflicting-mandates, but instead make children the heart of our curriculum and teaching.
I’m pleased to be speaking at a one-day institute this summer, hosted by the Wisconsin State Reading Association. Click for the full WSRA Flyer. Registration is available here.
I’m looking forward to speaking at the All Write!!! Institute in Warsaw, Indiana. I’ve heard rave reviews about this one and look forward to presenting, listening in on the other amazing presenters, and the great conversation with fellow edu-literacy-friends.
Click for the full flyer, which includes registration information.
Christopher Lehman 