I’m excited to share my interview at Two Writing Teachers: “An Interview with Educator and Author Chris Lehman.”
I was interviewed by TWTs’ Beth Moore, my friend, former colleague at the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, and TWT regular contributor.
We talked my passion-ish for writing and reading, tips for helping reluctant student writers, standards, heroes and so much more. It was a blast to do and I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed having it!
In April I will begin booking services for the 2014-15 school year. If your school or organization is interested in on-site or on-line professional development or speaking engagements please be sure to join the growing wait list before April 1st for your best chance at being added.
For more information or to apply, use the contact form on the bottom of my Services Page.
This school year has been exciting and such a joy teaching and learning inside of classrooms with teams of teachers, speaking at conferences and workshop days around the world, and connecting with educators online in webinars and interactive sessions. I’m looking forward to 2014-15.
Also, there are some surprises in store (announced soon!), be sure to follow me on twitter or subscribe to this blog to so you don’t miss the big announcement.
Looking forward to continued collaboration, inspiration, and together becoming our best so students can become their best.
My talk from November at UW-Madison is now available on their YouTube page. Close to 400 of you attended in person and online and the School of Education wanted to make the talk available to you to share.
In it I discuss two diverging decisions we can make in our schools about how to approach the ELA Common Core Standards, we can take the route of initiatives simply for initiative’s sake or we can take the route of our students, seeing their needs and responding to them.
I also take on the topic of CCSS “aligned” products, including exemplar modules and rubrics found online. I discuss where the creation of those modules began and how they miss the mark of both good classroom practice and the standards themselves.
I then describe promises we must make to our students and ways of aligning your instruction to their strengths and needs. Throughout I include the comments of our fellow educators and how they are navigating these challenging waters.
My sincerest hope is that you feel empowered to make the decisions that are best for you and your students. I hope you enjoy it and look forward to your insights and ideas.
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.
In it, Franki and I discuss saving the teaching of research and informational reading/writing from the boredom inducing 8-week long card-catalog projects of our own youth to teaching in ways that support student learning, energy, and interest. The podcast draws on thinking from my book Energize Research Reading and Writing(sample chapters here). And is also the subject of my upcoming October 3-part webinar series with Heinemann PD (more on that and registration in yesterday’s post).
Listen to the podcast by clicking the image below (or this link):
Click to be taken to “Chris Lehman on Student Research (PODCAST)”
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.
Join me this Thursday (9/19) for a live interview and conversation led by Tony Flach of The Leadership and Learning Center. The format of this free webinar will give you a chance to ask questions as well!
This webinar is scheduled from 11AM-11:45AM ET to offer you and your PLN time to join in during a professional period.
Information and free registration here or clicking the image below.
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.
A large group of dedicated educators filled the room to capacity despite the heat wave(!) and talked, tweeted, wrote, shared, and considered ways of re-imagining research instruction to support engagement, learning, and student independence.
What a moving conversation tonight for the #DonGraves chat. Thanks to Penny Kittle and Tom Newkirk for this project. It was fun hosting with Donalyn Miller and Penny and seeing so many of you come out to talk about Don’s legacy, his vision, and to share inspiration.
The archive is below, I plan to look back between that, the book and DVD for new insights.
Listening matters, conversation matters, and it’s great to have both with all of you and this vibrant education community we are within!
I wanted to send a thank you to all of you for making Energize Research Reading and Writing a part of your classrooms. Whenever a book goes into a new printing Heinemann sends a new copy with a sweet little note, it’s a really special surprise. A mysterious delivery just came and I opened to that very gift–with a note saying the book is now in it’s third printing!
I know your life as an educator is jam-packed, it is an honor to be welcomed into your instruction.
Please keep tweeting, messaging, and sending your thoughts and photos. They are inspiring!
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 