February 2009 IRC Communicator

C
ommunicator
Volume 32, Number 3
In This Issue:
Board Briefs
President’s Column . . . . . . . 1, 4
IRA State Coordinator . . . . . 2-3
IRC Activities
The Conference is Coming! . . . 5
Top 10 Reasons for Preservice
Teachers to Join IRC . . . . . . 5
Legislator of the Year Award . . 15
2009 Prairie State Award . . . . 16
Forms
IRC Conference
Registration . . . . . . . . . . 8
Housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Features
A Visit with Lois Duncan . . . . . 3
Author & Me Celebration . . . . . 4
Bingo Family Reading Night . . . 6
32nd Day of Reading . . . . . . . 7
Literacy Leaders . . . . . . . . . . 10
Illinois Authors’ Corner . . . . . 11
Books in the Home . . . . . . 12-13
East Central-EIU Host Authors . . 13
ISLMA/LBSS Grant . . . . . . . . 13
Cool Studies . . . . . . . . . . . 14-15
NIRC Summer Conference . . 15
Ying Chang Compestine
will Visit Schools . . . . . . . . 15
2009 IRC Conference
March 19-21, 2009
Springfield, Illinois
Register online at
www.illinoisreadingcouncil.org!
February 2009
IRC
President
Roxanne Owens
Do you experience your own version of Bill Murray’s Groundhog Day movie every
year when you once again pass out the tattered copies of Island of the Blue Dolphin
and Julie of the Wolves to your students? You know they’re good books that the kids
enjoy and benefit from reading, but at the same time, you’d like to branch out and
explore something else that addresses the same themes or curriculum connections.
In the back of your mind, you’ve considered introducing your students to newer
books and authors, but those are the books you have on your shelf, those are the
books you’ve always used (and the teacher in that room before you used), those are
your “old favorites” and besides, who has the time or the money to deal with this on
top of everything else you have to do? If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Well…
It’s great to have beloved old favorite books. Many of the books we use in our
classrooms today—particularly award-winning old favorites and classics—deserve
to have a place of honor. Looking back at my first year of teaching, I was probably
MOST excited about reading my old favorites with my new students.
Some of the students liked my old favorites, some of them didn’t. One of the many
lessons I learned early in my teaching career occurred when a student asked if I
planned to have them read any books published “like, during our lifetime?” He had
a point. The books in my classroom library were from my lifetime. I had diligently
spent the summer trolling used bookstores and garage sales to gather multiple copies of books for my first classroom. They were quality, award-winning books, but
there were probably a lot of good books published more recently that I ignored
because they didn’t engender that warm feeling of recognition when I saw them.
I suddenly felt haunted by the advice of my children’s literature course professor,
the legendary Cecile Small, who said, “I don’t want to run into you 20 years from
now and hear that you are still teaching with the books from your childhood or the
books you learned about in this class.” Uh-oh.
I don’t think I’m the only teacher who falls into the pattern of relying on my own
old favorites, or the books that happened to have been available on the bookshelves
I inherited my first year of teaching. I have been teaching a children’s literature
course for 15 years (the same course I took from Professor Small—it even meets in
Continued on page 4
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
IRA
State
Coordinator
Roberta Sejnost
Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.
W. B. Yeats
During these cold winter evenings, listen to the words of Yeats
and let the things the councils of Illinois are doing “light your
fire.” As I visit your councils, I am always amazed by the
wonderful things you accomplish in the name of literacy.
To give attention to some of these great things, let me give a
big shout-out to the councils who have chosen to participate
in IRA’s Honor Council program. Bravo to Blackhawk,
Northern Illinois, Fox Valley, Lake Area, SCIRA, CARA,
Prairie Area, MID-State, Western Illinois, South Suburban, Two Rivers, Will County, Lewis and Clark, South
Eastern, Southern Illinois, Illinois Language and Literacy,
and Illinois Title I Association. And, remember, if you need
help or information about any portion of the Honor Council
process, please contact me or your Regional Director. We
are all glad to help.
Now, for more shout-outs! Congratulations to Macon
County and Illinois Valley who have submitted and received
program grants as of November 30th. The Regional Directors
and I are busy reviewing some additional applications so if
your council sent one in, you’ll hear from us soon! And, what
a treat it was to see the newspaper coverage that Prairie Area
and Northern Illinois received recently. Information about
Prairie Area Reading Council’s events was highlighted
in the School News section of a neighborhood insert in the
Chicago Tribune, and the Rochelle News-Leader featured
the good works of Northern Illinois Reading Council by
highlighting their contribution of a bookshelf and books to a
Habitat for Humanity house in Ogle County, a venture they
plan to repeat as more Habitat for Humanity houses are built.
Keep up the good work, councils, and be sure to share such
good works with the press so the world learns of your good
deeds in literacy!
Speaking of learning about good deeds in literacy, remember,
IRC members, you are always welcome to visit other councils
where you can gain some terrific ideas and wonderful moments of learning. Check www.illinoisreadingcouncil.org, the
IRC website, for the most current information about each of
these great opportunities.
2
Northwest Area (Region 1)
February 17th finds Northern Illinois Reading Council
meeting at the Borders in Rockford and at Conover Square in
Oregon, and at Kishwaukee College in DeKalb for a “Teachers as Readers” session. Northwestern Reading Council
holds its Membership Appreciation meeting on April 2nd at
the Massbach Ridge Winery in Elizabeth.
North Chicago Area (Region 2)
On February 19th, SCIRA focuses on differentiation by
presenting “Do-Able Differentiation” featuring Michael Ford
at Caruso Middle School in Deerfield.
West Central (Region 4)
If you know any preservice teachers, encourage them to attend Western Illinois Reading Council’s Spring Preservice
Teacher Reading Night on March 11th in Horrabin Hall at
Western Illinois University. WIRC is also planning a Young
Authors’ Conference on April 18th at the Abingdon High
School Auditorium. And, attend Illinois Valley Reading
Council’s supper meeting where Donna Sheehan, Kim
Pepperell and Lynda Hootman present “A Rule of Thumb:
Reading in the Zone” at Advent Lutheran Church in Morton
on March 5th. Then, April 2nd finds our own Boomer Crotty
speaking at Central Illinois Reading Council. Finally, on
April 14th, MID-State Reading Council members will be
treated to a book talk.
North Central (Region 5)
On March 5th, South Suburban Reading Council shares
dinner and Jennifer Drake with us as she presents “Facilitating Literacy Development Through Teacher Collaboration”
at Georgio’s Banquets in Orland Park.
East Central (Region 6)
East Central-EIU hosts author Sally Walker at their April
14th spring meeting in Buzzard Auditorium at Eastern Illinois University. East Central-EIU will also participate in
the “Leaders As Readers” event on April 18th at the Cross
County Mall in Mattoon. And don’t miss author Jamie Gilson’s presentation to Macon County Reading Council on
April 16th at the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Decatur. Vermilion Valley’s April 18th meeting features Boomer
Crotty presenting “Laugh(ture) and Literature Across the
Curriculum” at the Danville Public Library.
Southwest (Region 7)
On March 24th, National Road Reading Council hosts
a Book Chat with Shirley Marshall that focuses on good
summer reading, and Lewis and Clark Reading Council
Continued on page 3
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
IRA State Coordinator continued from page 2
celebrates their year with a Spring Banquet on March 31st
at Fischer’s in Belleville.
Southeast (Region 8)
th
On March 30 , South Eastern Reading Council holds a
“Carnival of Ideas” to help you plan book reviews and talks,
summer reading ideas, book awards and grant writing, while
April 21st finds Southern Illinois Reading Council celebrating spring at the Carbondale Civic Center.
All Over the State (Region 9)
And, no matter where you live in the state, you are always
welcome to attend Secondary Reading League’s book talk
presented on April 16th by Anderson’s Bookshop. Yet another way to “light your fire” is to begin putting together the
paperwork for IRC’s Council of Excellence Award, designing
and creating your Hall of Council display and getting your
council’s slate of officers filled for next year. On that note,
if you have not volunteered yet to be a new officer, why not
call your council president and do just that? Remember that
new officers need to attend the Leadership Training in July
where they learn about their duties and join other council
officers in planning the next year’s meetings, activities,
and service programs, all while having FUN and collegial
camaraderie. And, while councils are making these plans,
Regional Directors and IRC Officers are on hand to make
suggestions and offer help.
Speaking of July’s Leadership Training retreat, this year’s
keynote speaker is a local Bloomington gal, Carla CampbellJackson, who is passionate about how good leadership
enhances service to others and is so excited about presenting
at our Leadership Retreat she is not even charging a speaker’s
fee! I know her dedication and passion will energize us all!
And, you can help energize others as well. I am looking for
some current officers who are willing to share their successful
ideas with incoming council officers. Let me know if you
would be interested in helping with the training. Don’t
let your good ideas waste away–share them at the retreat.
Finally, here are some dates to remember. More specific
details and applications for each can be found at the IRC
website.
March 1:
March 19-21:
April 15:
IRA Award of Excellence to IRA
IRC Council of Excellence Award
to Roberta Sejnost
IRA Honor Council to IRA
IRC Conference, Springfield, IL.
Mail council officer list to IRA with
copy to Roberta Sejnost
February 2009
A Visit with Lois Duncan
By Barbara Chrz-White
Lois Duncan no longer feels she has the stamina to partake
in school visitations, so she was wondering how she could
help those of us in the classroom without actually having to
be there. This is how the DVD, A Visit with Lois Duncan,
developed. The DVD is a family project of Lois and her two
daughters, Kerry and Robin. Robin was behind the camera
and produced the DVD, while Kerry was the interviewer.
This project was done in Lois’ home in Florida. Kerry asks
many questions that students would typically ask. You can
see video and still photographs of Lois as a youngster growing
up. She tells about getting started as a professional writer,
and what it still takes for her to complete a book. You can
see how difficult it was for Lois to lose her daughter to a fatal
shooting...an unsolved murder. And, Lois on the movie set of
Killing Mr. Griffin and Hotel for Dogs, as she talks of what
it’s like to have a book become a major motion picture.
The DVD is a delightful look at Lois Duncan’s life. Seeing
her laugh, smile and talk with her daughter gives an inside
peek into the personal life of Lois and her family, and the life
of the renowned young-adult author we know and love. We
were fortunate to be the first to take advantage of purchasing A Visit with Lois Duncan. The DVDs were hot off the
press. If you’d like to purchase one, you may do so by going
to Lois’ personal website at www.loisduncan.arquettes.com.
You’ll feel like you’re in the same room with Lois and Kerry...
having a chat with friends.
Mission
The mission of the Illinois Reading Council
is to provide support and leadership
to educators as they
promote and teach lifelong literacy.
Illinois Reading Council
1210 Fort Jesse Road, Suite B2
Normal, IL 61761
Phone: 888-454-1341
Fax: 309-454-3512
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: www.illinoisreadingcouncil.org
3
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Author & Me Celebration
President’s Message continued from page 1
the same building during the same time slot) and while
I’m happy that the education majors are familiar with
several much-loved classics, I’m always a bit surprised
that they have very little knowledge of books published
during their own lifetime.
I always start out the first class session by asking what
books the students read in elementary school and high
school. For the past 15 years, I have gotten—with few
exceptions—the same answers. My current undergrads
attended elementary school in the late 1990s and early
2000s, yet the majority of books they read in elementary
school were published decades before they were born.
I love Charlotte’s Web and Charlie and the Chocolate
Factory too, and I’m glad children are still reading those
titles, but there are a lot of other great books out there
today that deserve a place in the curriculum and in our
classroom libraries.
If the vast majority of books you use in your curriculum
were published before the turn of the century—especially
if they were published way before the turn of the century,
it’s time to challenge yourself and your colleagues to
move into the new millennium. IRC can help. Begin by
attending the IRC Conference in Springfield this March.
At the conference, you’ll choose from over 300 sessions
presented by authors, professional development speakers, university educators, and classroom teachers. You’ll
learn about the tried and true and the fresh and new.
Then, take the inspiration from the conference and create a unique literature project that meets the criteria for
an IRC Literacy Support Grant. The grant application
deadline is May 1st, so you have plenty of time to create an innovative project proposal that will help you to
get out of the repetitive Groundhog’s Day experience of
using the same books year in and year out. (And if you
happen to be one of those teachers who are constantly
adding new books to your curriculum, we’d welcome a
grant proposal from you as well!)
Honor the old favorites and continue to use them—they
are beloved for a good reason—but in the spirit of the Bill
Murray movie, Professor Small, and the holiday season,
ring in the new. Best wishes for a 2009 filled with warm
moments, exciting adventures, and awe-inspiring revelations brought to you through new favorite books.
4
By Keta Foltz, Janell Hartman,
Amber Findlay, and Christa Curley
What do Steven Layne,
Rocky Raccoon, bare
books, summer writing
bags and an IRC Literacy Support Grant have
in common? They’re
all part of West Carroll
Primary School’s Author & Me Celebration
that was held on Thursday, September 18, 2008!
Last spring our 1st graders were introduced to Rocky
Raccoon, their writing mascot and summer pen pal.
Over the summer, Rocky and the incoming 2nd graders
exchanged letters about their summer writing projects.
Rocky was even given his own email address (rocky@
wc314.org) for more writing opportunities for the students.
On August 7, we had a writing workshop for the students
to come in and work on their bare books. During the first
month of school, 2nd graders brought their completed
books to school to share with their classmates and other
classes. Through the IRC Literacy Support Grant, we
were able to provide each grade level with some of Steven Layne’s books. Teachers read his books with their
students to gear up for his visit.
As a part of the IRC Literacy Support Grant, we were
able to have Steven Layne come for the day to share with
the students about being an author. After school we did
a coffee house style setting for the students to share their
books with their family and friends.
It was a great way to celebrate our 2nd grade authors. In
the evening, Steven Layne spoke to parents and students
about “Where in the World Authors Get Their Ideas.”
Thanks to the IRC Literacy Support Grant for funding
our Author & Me Celebration.
To meet Rocky and find out more about inspiring young
writers visit us at the 2009 IRC Conference in March.
Come to our session on Friday morning titled “Writing
Still Rocks: It’s in the Bag!”
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
The Conference is Coming!
The Conference is Coming!
By Christine Boardman Moen,
President-Elect and 2009 Conference Chair
Since IRC and its members are all about literacy, I
thought I’d write a “persuasive” literacy list detailing all
the reasons to attend the 2009 IRC Conference, Reading!
Engage! Excite! Ignite!
As many know, one of the
Biggest state literacy
Conferences will take place in Springfield, Illinois, on
March 19-21, 2009.
During this
Engaging and Exciting conference,
Featured professional speakers such as Nell Duke, Deb-
bie Miller, and Janet Allen
Gather to share their ideas and information with
Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of
Interested (and easily Ignited!) Illinois literacy educators
Utter surprise, attendees may encounter IRA board
members, Illinois Experts and Mary Ellen
Vogt as well as a host of other wonderful speakers and
presenters! All the
While, watching, listening, learning, buying, sharing,
chatting, laughing, and dining at
eXcellent breakfasts, lunches, dinners and banquets.
Running to sessions, buying books,
Yearning for the conference not to end too quickly yet
patiently waiting finally to get some
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzs.
Top 10 Reasons for Preservice
Teachers to Join IRC
By Carol Owles
Get free pizza and free teacher “stuff” at our
annual IRC Conference Preservice Teachers’ Pizza
Party!
10.
Can put your professional association with IRC
on your vita.
9.
and leaders who teach
Be eligible for reduced fee of $25 to attend our
annual Conference.
Jessica and lots of other
7.
Jaycee, Jacquie, Juanita, Justin, Jared, Jocelyn, Jodee,
Kids by the hundreds and hundreds and hundreds!
Listening and learning all they can,
Many attendees will return to their districts and cam-
puses energized after meeting and greeting
Neal Shusterman, Jennifer and Matthew Holm, Sharon M. Draper, and Tedd Arnold
Or have had the opportunity to meet and greet the great
author-illustrator
Patricia Polacco, Jim Aylesworth, the 2009 Prairie
State Award Winner, or Margie Palatini.
Quite by accident, a conference attendee may
Run into other speakers, such as Kadir Nelson, John
Coy, Pam Allyn, Jim Burke, and
See them chatting with Margaret Read MacDonald,
Raymond Bial, or Adrian Fogelin.
To their
February 2009
8.
Have opportunities to attend professional development workshops.
Get our IRA-recognized and prestigious journal,
the Illinois Reading Council Journal.
6.
Have networking opportunities with other literacy professionals and soon-to-be colleagues that
may lead to future employment.
5.
Meet children’s authors and other professional
authors at conferences and events.
4.
Meet face-to-face with some of the big “literacy
gurus” in our profession.
3.
2.
Always have resources to help you.
And the #1 reason why you should join IRC is:
Learn more and have fun with
other literacy professionals.
So, don’t forget to invite your Student and
Preservice Teachers to the 2009 IRC Conference!
5
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Bingo! Our School is a Winner with Family Reading Night
By Christina Basham
This past November,
we completed our 4th
Annual Family Reading Night in our small
rural school district Iroquois West Elementary School. Thanks
in part to the generous
funding through the
Illinois Reading Council Literacy Support Grant, we
were able to keep this great family event going in our
community.
it was time to switch
rooms and that doors
would be closing in
two minutes. After
a family had listened
to a guest reader, they
received a sticker to
go on their bingo card.
They could also receive a sticker for going to the craft of the evening,
which was making a book mark, going to snack, or
reading a book and taking an Accelerated Reader Test.
We came up with a Bingo theme for our event. When
each family entered our building they signed in and received a bingo card and schedule for the evening. Our
bingo cards consist of nine squares with a free space. In
twelve classrooms, we had guest readers. This year our
readers included a parent as Fancy Nancy, a local farmer
reading farm books, and firemen from our volunteer
department reading fire stories along with one fireman
dressed as Fire Pup. We had a junior high teacher who
dressed as Paul Revere, and another was Emily Elizabeth
with one of our kindergarten teachers dressed as Clifford. We also had a local insurance agent read Amelia
Earhart stories and she was dressed to fit the part. We
had teachers and a community volunteer dress as Disney
princesses and read their stories. We also had a school
aide use sign language with her story. To finish it up, we
had a community member read witch stories, a former
staff member act out Junie B. Jones stories, and a teacher
dress up as a pirate for a pirate room.
When a child had completed at least three activities in
the hour-and-a-half program, they could return to the
registration table and receive a reading goodie bag. The
bag consisted of a bookmark, finger pointer, magnifier,
eraser, pencil, small notepad, puzzles, and tip sheets for
the family on how to help the reading process.
Each reader was provided
with a host or hostess in
the room they were reading
in, which was usually that
teacher’s classroom. The
readers read the same stories
during four twenty-minute
reading blocks. After the
twenty minutes, it was announced over the school public address system that
6
With each year, attendance at this event
grows and the families
have a great time in a
relaxed atmosphere during the evening. This
year we passed out 255
goodie bags at the end of
the evening. We have a
large population of Hispanic families that attend the event even though some
have apprehensions about entering the school building.
As one parent summed it up on her parent survey of
the evening, “I think it is very important to stress the
importance of reading to our kids. It is a great idea for
families to spend a night together and enjoy listening to
stories.” It was another great year for Family Reading
Night at Iroquois West Elementary School because of
the generous support of the Illinois Reading Council
Literacy Support Grant. (If you would like additional
information on this event, please attend our session at
the 2009 IRC Conference as we present this topic and
the use of the grant.)
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
32nd Day of Reading
By Barbara Chrz-White
A day just for secondary educators and literacy—recent
research, book talks, ideas to take straight to your classroom, networking, content area reading, differentiation,
writing, speaking, assessment. All of these things were
hot topics at the 32nd Day of Reading, with a record
crowd on hand.
originally wrote in 1971, has gone Hollywood, and will
be on the big screen in January 2009. Emma Roberts
and Lisa Kudrow star in this updated comedy about kids
wanting to help stray dogs. As a result of this, Lois has
written two more “doggie” books, News for Dogs (April
2009) and Movie for Dogs (2010).
Cris Tovani was the keynote speaker and also presented
two other breakout sessions. Everything she spoke
about was tried and true, straight from her classroom.
Yes, classroom. Cris is a high school English teacher,
besides an author and nationally renowned speaker. She
offered practical strategies for all that could be used immediately in our classrooms, whether a reading teacher,
a chemistry teacher, a history teacher, a math teacher,
or an applied arts teacher.
In 1992, Lois Duncan was the recipient of the Margaret
A. Edwards Award, presented by the School Library
Journal and the Young Adult Library Services Division
of the ALA, honoring a living author for a distinguished
body of adolescent literature. This year Lois was awarded the Katharine Drexel Award by the Catholic Library
Association “recognizing an outstanding contribution
by an individual to the growth of high school and young
adult librarianship and literature.”
Cris kept everyone’s attention, not only with her firsthand knowledge, but also with examples of student work
and her sense of humor. Being able to apply what Cris
does in her classroom can be done by all of us. She
gave us ideas about helping students determine what is
important in what they read in fiction and non-fiction.
Cris also spoke of how important it is to teach strategies
for our students to use when we’re not there to help them,
and how important modeling our own thoughts for our
students is, particularly if they’re having difficulty with
their readings, no matter what the class.
Thank you to the many presenters who spoke on topics spanning the realm of adolescent literacy. The day
was rewarding and enriching, personally and professionally. Thank you to the Day of Reading steering
committee: Terry McHugh, Liz Strejcek, Ellen Levy,
Sandy Coughlin, Patty Rieman and Barb Chrz-White.
A special thank you to all the special volunteers who
were hosts/hostesses for breakout sessions, volunteers
who helped in the exhibit area, at the SRL table, at
book sales, at the registration table, and took care of
our audiovisual needs.
Young adult author Lois Duncan is a master of writing
suspense novels for both boys and girls. Lois took us
on a journey through her life as a young poet/writer,
to life as an author/mother of three, to an extremely
accomplished young adult author. She showed us the
process she followed while writing her novels.
If you’d like to request a program proposal form to make
a presentation at the 33rd Day of Reading, contact Barb
Chrz-White at [email protected] or 847-6990797. You can also download a proposal form from
our website at www.dayofreading.org. Please visit the
Day of Reading website for further information, SRL
updates, and handouts from the 32nd Day of Reading.
Lois has written several poetry books, the most recent
being Seasons of the Heart, which consists of poetry
Lois has written throughout her life but had never published. Lois Duncan has experienced tragedy in her life
she hopes no one ever has to go through. This event
brought us “Who Killed My Daughter,” a true, but sad
story. On a happy note, Hotel for Dogs, which Lois
February 2009
Thanks to those of you who attended the Day of Reading this year. We look forward to seeing you November
7, 2009. Sharon Draper, young adult author of Copper
Sun, and Fabiola Ehlers-Zavala, an ELL specialist,
will be our featured speakers. What an exciting day
that will be!
7
Return this form with payment to
Illinois Reading Council
1210 Fort Jesse Road, Suite B2
Normal, IL 61761
IRC Conference 2009
Registration Form
March 19-21, 2009
Springfield, Illinois
Or register online at
www.illinoisreadingcouncil.org
ONE NAME ON EACH FORM Please print or type. Form may be reproduced.
Name (Last)________________________________________ (First)___________________________________________________
School/Business_____________________________________ City ____________________________________________________
Home Address_________________________________________________________________________________________________
City______________________________________________ State____________________ Zip _____________________________
Home Telephone (
) _____________________________ Business Telephone (
) _________________________________
E-mail __________________________________________________________________ Presenting at Conference? ___Yes ___No
Are you an IRC member? ___Yes ___No
Council Affiliation ______________________ Are you an IRA member? ___Yes ___No
REGISTRATION includes meetings on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
On or Before February 1, 2009
____IRC Member (Membership Number ___________________________________)
____Preservice Teacher with ID (Member)
____Retiree (Member)
____Non-Member (If you join now with your conference registration, register as a member!)
____Retiree (Non-Member) ____Preservice Teacher with ID (Non-Member)
MEALS Meals are optional. Mark choice of menu. Include payment with registration.
____Thursday Breakfast (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce Lansky
_____Bacon & Eggs
_____Vegetarian
____Thursday Luncheon (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Roger Farr
_____Chicken Tortilla Spinach Wrap _____Vegetarian
_____Turkey Sandwich
_____Vegetarian _____Roast Sirloin
_____Vegetarian
$150
After February 1, 2009
$25
$225
$50
$175
$50
$250
$75
$18
$23
$22
$27
____Thursday Luncheon (Hilton) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Neal Shusterman
$22
$27
____Thursday Prairie State Award Banquet (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . MaryEllen Vogt
$30
$35
$18
$23
$22
$27
____Friday Luncheon (Hilton) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sharon M. Draper $22
$27
FREE
FREE
____Friday Breakfast (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mary Cappellini
_____Four Cheese Omelet
_____Vegetarian
_____Mediterranean Chicken Salad
_____Vegetarian Salad
_____Chicken Wrap
_____Vegetarian
____Friday Luncheon (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nell Duke
____Friday Night Pizza Party for Preservice Teachers Only! ____Friday Banquet (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jennifer and Matthew Holm $30
$35
____Friday Night Entertainment Event (Hilton) . . . . . . . . . . . . Improv Comedy Show
$10
$15
$25
$30 _____Pecan Crusted Chicken Breast
_____Salmon
_____Vegetarian
____Saturday Breakfast (A. Lincoln) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tedd Arnold
_____Cinnamon French Toast
_____Vegetarian
____Saturday Author Luncheon (Hilton) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Patricia Polacco
_____Chicken Teriyaki
METHOD OF PAYMENT
(Sorry, no P.O.’s accepted!)
Check (payable to IRC)
Visa
MasterCard
_____Vegetarian
TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED
$18
$_____________
$23
$_____________
Credit Card
Signature ________________________________________ Expiration Date
Mo.
Yr.
Special Accommodations - Individuals who need special accommodations must make specific requests in writing to the IRC office at least three weeks prior to the conference.
Cancellation/Refund Policy - Requests must be made in writing by March 1, 2009. Please see the complete policy under General Conference Information or at IRC Website. ILLINOIS READING COUNCIL
HOUSING APPLICATION FORM
Conference Dates - Thursday, March 19; Friday, March 20; Saturday, March 21, 2009
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Housing forms will only be accepted by mail. Forms will not be accepted at the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau office. Housing forms must be received by February 15, 2009.
Any forms completed incorrectly will not be processed and will be returned to sender.
A separate form must be completed for each room requested. Use one form per room, not per person.
Do not request a room with two beds unless there are two or more people. Rooms with two beds are at a premium.
Hotel room assignments are on a first-come, first-served basis. If the hotel/motel of your choice is not available, the Housing Bureau will secure reservations for you at another hotel.
An acknowledgment from the Housing Bureau will be sent to you upon receiving your housing application form. A hotel room reservation confirmation will be sent from your hotel/motel. Make all changes with the SCVB/IRC Housing until February 20. After February 20, call the hotel directly to make any changes.
All rooms for the IRC Conference which have not been reserved by February 15, 2009 will be released for general sale.
No rooms will be held without a credit card or check deposit. Please forward any checks for deposit to the hotel assigned. Do not send checks to the Springfield Visitors Bureau. If the hotel/motel does not receive an advance deposit check by February 20, 2009, the credit card will be charged the advance deposit of one night room and tax. All deposits are non-refundable. Cancellation or arrival and/or departure changes must be made
by February 20, 2009 to receive a refund. Please note that some hotels charge for early departure.
The Springfield Hilton Hotel requires a two night minimum.
The President Abraham Lincoln Hotel was previously the Springfield Renaissance Hotel.
Type of Credit Card: ________ #____________________________________________ Expiration Date:____________
(must be valid through 3/09)
Arrival Date_______________________________________ Departure Date_____________________________________
Last Name________________________________________ First Name________________________________________
Address__________________________________________ City_______________________ State______ Zip_________
Daytime Phone (______)_____________________________ Fax (______)______________________________________
Email_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Type of room needed:
_______Room with one bed
_______Room with two beds
If rooms with two beds are unavailable, will a room with one bed be acceptable? _______Yes
Please number your preference of hotel with a one (1) for
your first choice, a two (2) for your second choice, etc.
Abraham Lincoln
$106.00-$117.00
Springfield Hilton
$115.00
Crowne Plaza $115.00
Drury Inn & Suites $96.00
Hilton Garden Inn $95.00
Holiday Inn Express $95.00
Comfort Suites $89.00
Hampton Inn $89.00
Ramada Limited North $78.00
Route 66 Hotel $77.00
Pear Tree Inn $76.00
Northfield Inn $75.00
Microtel $74.00
_______No
List all room occupants including yourself:
1. ____________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________
4. ____________________________________________
Mail form directly to:
SCVB/IRC HOUSING
109 North 7th Street
Springfield, IL 62701
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Literacy Leaders Discuss Literacy Policy Issues in Illinois
By Chyrese Wolf and Linda Wedwick
The 3rd Annual Illinois Literacy Policy Forum was held at
Illinois State University on October 3rd, 2008. Co-organizers
of the forum were Dr. Linda Wedwick, interim director of the
Mary and Jean Borg Center for Reading and Literacy at ISU
and Dr. Chyrese S. Wolf, faculty in reading and elementary
education at Chicago State University. Several faculty representing colleges and universities from throughout Illinois
along with Illinois Reading Council and Illinois State Board
of Education representatives presented policy perspectives.
Topics included Response to Intervention (RtI) practices at
both the elementary and secondary education levels, enhancing literacy levels of English Language Learners (ELLs)
from an ISBE and teacher education perspective, adolescent
literacy legislative initiatives, and general national and state
literacy policy issues.
The forum served as a means of presenting literacy policy
issues to an audience of Illinois literacy leaders serving in
a multitude of educational settings. Upon culmination of
the policy presentations, forum participants selected a focus
topic for detailed discussions. The results of these discussions follow.
Based upon the self-selection of forum participants into
discussion focus groups, RtI appeared to be the hottest topic
for Illinois literacy leaders. The group highlighted numerous
attributes of RtI initiatives. Professional dialogue and collaboration focusing on the assessment, evaluation, planning,
and teaching and/or intervention processes appear to have
increased as a result of RtI.
However, as collaboration and dialogue increased, so did the
identification of negative policy attributes associated with
equity, for instance. Forum participants stated the need to
address inequities in funding RtI initiatives across rural, suburban, and urban areas in Illinois. Therefore, grant funding
is needed not only to address specific geographical inequity
but also those inherent to school structures such as planning
time and scheduling constraints at the middle and secondary levels. Also tied to funding is the need to expertly train
literacy coaches and administrators at all levels.
While discussion focus groups credited RtI initiatives with
fostering collaborations, a need still exists to communicate
beyond the local school level. Professional associations,
school boards, conference proceedings, regional offices of
education may help serve this purpose.
10
As with RtI, the English Language Learners (ELL) focus
group described the critical need for all stakeholders to
have a comprehensive, research-based understanding of
their students. The group emphasized the need for literacy
educators to know each student from a linguistic, cultural,
and social perspective. It is inappropriate to define an ELL
based solely on language background, according to focus
group participants.
Because all students come with a broad fund of knowledge,
teacher education, professional development, assessment
processes, and communication with the general public must
operate from such a perspective. To enable such a transformation, literacy assessment for ELLs must be conducted in
the primary as well as secondary language (L1 & L2), as
holistic, authentic and formative. Further, an effort must be
made to validate large-scale literacy assessments, according
to the focus group.
As there is a need to thoughtfully identify and assess ELLs,
a similar issue must be addressed in the conceptualization
of adolescent literacy. A contradiction exists between the
conceptualization of adolescent literacy and literacy instruction in secondary education teacher education programs.
Much work is needed to identify successful models to support adolescent literacy development. These models must
be cognizant of the diverse organizational structures of Illinois middle and high schools. But, before models can be
validated, success in adolescent reading must be defined.
To produce the empirical support to address these concerns,
grant funding sources and a coalition of school stakeholders
to carry the message to the public, other stakeholders, and
legislators must be identified. The adolescent literacy focus
group contended that a state level definition of adolescent
literacy is needed. Once broadly accepted conceptualization
occurs, literacy practices can be validated and supported with
empirical evidence. Next, this information may be communicated to parent support groups.
As one can see, literacy policy issues in Illinois are broad,
diverse, and complex. The forum was successful at bringing
several issues to the forefront. More work must be done. To
contribute to these conversations, please contact Chyrese
Wolf at [email protected] or Linda Wedwick at llwedwi@
ilstu.edu. Please also attend the policy briefing session at the
IRC Conference in March 2009 presented by Drs. Wedwick
and Wolf.
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Welcome to the “Illinois Authors’ Corner,” showcasing new releases from our fabulous Illinois Authors and IRC members. If you’d
like to include your new release, please visit the IRC website to find out how to submit information.
One Wolf Howls
Written by Scotti Cohn
www.scotticohn.com
Illustrated by Susan Detwiler
Sylvan Dell
February 2009
Category: Picture Book
Ages: 4-8
Spend a year in the world of wolves
in One Wolf Howls. This adventurous
children’s book uses the months of the
year and the numbers 1 through 12 to
introduce children to the behavior of
wolves in natural settings. The lively,
realistic illustrations of Susan Detwiler
complement the rhyming text and bring
each month to life. From January to
December, howl, frolic, and dance,
while learning important lessons page-by-page!
Paws, Claws, Hands and Feet
Written by Kim Hutmacher
www.kimberlyhutmacher.com
Illustrated by Sherry Rogers
Sylvan Dell
Spring 2009
Category: Picture Book
Ages: 5-9
The Order of Odd-Fish
Written by James Kennedy
www.jameskennedy.com
Illustrated by John Meyer
Delacorte Press/Random House August 2008
Category: YA Fantasy
Grades: 6 and up
An Environmental Guide from A to Z
Written by Tim Magner
www.greensugarpress.com
Illustrated by Aubri Vincent Barwood
Green Sugar Press
March 2009
Category: Nonfiction
Ages: 8-12
With a compelling narrative
and unforgettable images, An
Environmental Guide from A
to Z explores nature’s connections and brings awareness and
a deeper understanding of how
the world works. Even if you mastered the alphabet long ago,
be prepared for a new adventure and see how, from A to Z, the
beauty of nature provides air to breathe, water to drink and
food to eat. Child or adult, get ready to see nature in a whole
new light!
February 2009
Earl the Earthworm Digs for His Life
Written by Tim Magner
www.greensugarpress.com
Illustrated by Lindsay Knapp
Green Sugar Press
March 2009
Category: Picture Book
Ages: 5-9
The story about the coming-of-age
of a simple earthworm captures the
attention of the youngest reader
and won’t let go. From his first
wiggle, Earl takes us deep into his
world, and together we explore his
surroundings and learn about his
connections to nature. Packed with
colorful illustrations of bees, ants,
grasses and trees, the journey of Earl the Earthworm is as engaging as it is inspiring. To top it off, amazing footnote facts make
this instant classic extra entertaining. Join Earl the Earthworm
as he wiggles his way from confusion to greatness!
N is for Nature: An Environmental Alphabet Book
Written by Tim Magner
www.greensugarpress.com
Illustrated by Mike Nudelman
Green Sugar Press
February 2009
Category: Picture Book
Ages: 3-7
From buzzing bees and jumping kangaroos, to gorgeous trees and wiggling
worms, N is for Nature excites the eye
and inspires the imagination. Simple
prose and creative images allow early
readers to discover the magic of the
alphabet. All twenty-six letters are illustrated by the part of nature chosen
to represent them. After reading N is
for Nature, you’ll never look at the
alphabet, or nature the same again!
Grinelda the Mad Hatter
Written by Mary Jo Reinhart
www.paulanathan.com
Illustrated by Paula Nathan
Gumboot Books
November 2008
Category: Picture Book
Ages: 6-9
I Put a Spell on You: From the Files of
Chrissie Woodward, Spelling Bee Detective
Written by Adam Selzer
www.adamselzer.com
Random House/Delacorte
September 2008
Category: Fiction
Ages: 9-12
11
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Books in the Home: Planting Seeds of Literacy in Our Communities
By Mary Gardner for the Northern Illinois Reading Council Board of Directors
An idea can be
planted like a
seed. It can be
nurtured and can
grow and bear
fruit. For the
Northern Illinois
Reading Council (NIRC), the
seed was an idea
(NIRC Board Members with the family
shared at an Ilfrom the Habitat home in Polo.)
linois Reading
Council Board Meeting. An Adult and Family Literacy Grant
from the Illinois Reading Council nurtured the seed, and the
work of NIRC members helped it germinate. The fruits of
that labor proved to be more rewarding than any of us could
have imagined. I present here NIRC’s “gardening journal,”
a record of the growth of that seed.
November 2007
Officers of the Northern Illinois Reading Council (NIRC)
attended the Illinois Reading Council Board Meeting in
Bloomington. During the sharing of council activities and/
or discussions of ways to reach out to the communities we
serve, someone mentioned the idea of local councils teaming with local Habitat for Humanity organizations to provide
books for the families receiving new homes. Officers brought
the idea back to a NIRC board meeting. The decision was
made to pursue this project with a goal of one home in each
of NIRC’s counties.
January 2008
An application for an IRC Adult and Family Literacy Grant
was written with the intent of providing bookcases and books
for three Habitat homes.
March 2008
NIRC received $750 from an Adult and Family Literacy
Grant–seed money!
April through July 2008
Plans were finalized to be ready for the Ogle County home
in Mt. Morris sometime in the fall. Contacts with the Winnebago Habitat organization informed us that they would
be blessing four homes in September. NIRC Board meeting
discussions were held to plan how to handle the project, as
it seemed to be growing around us. The decision was made
to move ahead with all the homes, to use the IRC Adult and
12
Family Literacy Grant as far as it would go, then to use NIRC
budgeted funds as needed.
August 2008
Erin Taylor of Wonderland Books and Toys in Rockford was
ready to package books for each of the children in the Habitat
homes based on age and gender. A mixture of hard cover and
paperback books would be chosen. By this time, we knew
we had the four Rockford homes, as well as one home in Mt.
Morris and one in Polo, and the possibility of one more in
DeKalb County! To make expenditures for books equitable,
we voted to spend $85 per child for books. Esme Codell’s
book How to Get Your Child to Love Reading was selected
to be given to parents. In addition, one-year subscriptions
to the local newspaper would be purchased for homes in the
smaller communities.
September 2008
At last, our first presentations were made; the four Habitat
homes were blessed in Rockford! NIRC board members
presented the books and a bookcase at each home. A local
carpenter handcrafted the bookcases, donating his labor.
By the end of a rainy Sunday afternoon four families, with
a combined total of fourteen children, held the keys to their
new homes. Later in the month the Polo home was ready
and presentations were made to a family of four. As NIRC
members toured the home the girls were found reading their
new books. The oldest was found upstairs in the attic loft
and informed us that the bookcase would be going up there
near her parents’ office.
October 2008
NIRC’s president received a phone call request from the
Boone County Habitat coordinator, “We’ve heard you are
giving books and a bookcase to new Habitat homes. We
have a house blessing for a home in Belvidere on October 29.
The new owners will be a mother and her five-year-old son.
Can you help us?” After a flurry of emails it was decided to
go ahead with the Belvidere home, completing NIRC’s goal
of planting the seeds of literacy in all our counties. NIRC
members attending this blessing watched an excited youngster carefully place his books in his new bookcase.
November 2008
Several NIRC members were present at the blessing of the
Mt. Morris home on Sunday, November 3, 2008. The new
homeowner was a single mom with twin second graders. The
Continued on page 13
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
East Central-EIU to Host Authors:
Tedd Arnold and Sally Walker
By Linda Reven
The East Central-EIU Reading Council
has been fortunate to be able to arrange
for two children’s authors to visit the
campus of Eastern Illinois University
in the coming months. Tedd Arnold
has written numerous children’s books
including No Jumping on the Bed,
Tedd Arnold
Parts, More Parts, Super Fly Guy,
Five Ugly Monsters and Green Wilma.
Sally Walker was the recipient of the
2008 Prairie State Award for Excellence in Writing for Children. Her
books include Fossil Fish Found Alive,
Secrets of a Civil War Submarine, and
The Vowel Family. Tedd Arnold will
Sally Walker
be presenting “There’s an Author Loose
in the School” on Tuesday, March 24,
2009 and Sally Walker’s presentation on Tuesday, April 14,
2009 will focus on writing, especially nonfiction. Books by
the authors will be available for purchase from Waldenbooks
on the evening of the event and a book signing will follow
each presentation. (Refer to the IRC website for times and
locations.)
The East Central-EIU Reading Council is conducting a lottery to identify practicing educators within the area served by
ROE #11 (Cumberland, Clark, Coles, Douglas, Edgar, Shelby
and Moultrie counties) and undergraduate/graduate students
attending Eastern Illinois University who are members of the
local council to enjoy dinner with each of the guest authors.
Council members will be able to enter their names in a lottery
to have “Dinner and a Book with Tedd Arnold” (in March)
and/or “Dinner and a Book with Sally Walker” (in April) during each of the general council meetings prior to the author
visits. Members whose names are selected will also receive
a book by the author as a gift from the council.
The East Central-EIU Reading Council hopes to foster a
love of literature and promote lifelong literacy by exposing
children, parents, preservice teachers, practicing teachers
and administrators from the area community to the work of
these two notable authors of books for young readers. Tedd
Arnold’s appearance is being made possible through the support of the Student Reading Council at EIU, while an IRC
Program (Speaker) Grant has provided the funding necessary
to sponsor Sally Walker’s presentation.
February 2009
ISLMA/LBSS Grant
By Leslie Forsman
The Illinois School Library Media Association/Library
Book Selection Service (ISLMA/LBSS) Endowment Fund
will begin accepting applications for a competitive grant in
March of 2009.
Recipients of the grant will receive one (1) complete set of
books of either the Monarch (K-3), the Caudill (4-8), or the
Lincoln (9-12) Award nominees for the 2009-2010 school
year as indicated on their application. To be eligible to receive the grant, the library must apply by May 15, 2009 and
must be registered to participate in that award program for
2009-2010 by May 15, 2009.
Every effort is made to distribute the grants throughout the
state and among public and private/parochial school libraries
and public libraries, depending on the applications. Libraries
that received a set of books in 2008 are not eligible for the
grant in 2009.
Please visit www. lbssfund.org for more information and for
the grant application.
Books in the Home continued from page 12
bookcase was built by a retired carpenter and the books were
ready to go. With this presentation, NIRC has given bookcases to seven homes with books for nineteen children.
Future Plans
What will happen from here? A Sycamore home will open
in December and NIRC will be there with a bookcase and
books. Board members have discussed the possibility of
requesting financial support next year from local service
organizations such as Rotary Clubs and the Kiwanis or Lions. Seeking contributions of new books from members to
supplement the number of books purchased has also been
considered. Plans are in place to continue the project in
2009, extending NIRC’s mission by providing resources
and materials for parents and community members. The
board of directors and members of the Northern Illinois
Reading Council appreciate the support of the Illinois
Reading Council in the sharing of this idea as well as the
funding from the IRC Adult and Family Literacy Grant.
The seed was planted in that dark, rich Illinois soil, blossomed
into Books in the Home, and blooms as a literacy legacy
throughout northern Illinois.
13
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Cool Studies: SSR vs. Repeated Oral Reading
By Lou Ferroli
So, the other day my wife wanted to read a piece from the
newspaper to me, something about our governor. I said,
“Go,” and she started reading. After sixty seconds, I quit
listening. Just force of habit–sixty seconds of oral reading
is all you get these days. I didn’t ask her any comprehension
questions, but I knew she read 258 words correctly during
that minute. Not bad.
Our 21st century preoccupation with timed reading has two
sources, I believe. First came curriculum-based measurement where we learned that a 60-second oral reading, even
though it’s just an accuracy task, ends up being a reliable
way of monitoring kids’ progress in reading. That research
spawned DIBELS. Perhaps IRC members have heard of it.
Then along comes RtI with its frequent school-wide progress
monitoring and the quick and easy 60-second measures get
cemented in place.
The second source of our infatuation with timed oral reading
was the National Reading Panel report which insisted that one
of the five key pieces to a reading curriculum is fluency. And
what promotes fluency? How about good old free reading?
There is plenty of practice, kids build sight vocabulary, and
fluency follows, no? Sorry, said the NRP report, Sustained
Silent Reading (SSR) does not work. What improved fluency
was repeated oral reading. It was actually quite a consistent
finding. So, we started doing repeated reading instruction–
some cool stuff like Readers Theater, but also just lots of
one-minute fluency training.
The findings about SSR are disturbing to many teachers,
theorists, and researchers who still like SSR in spite of the
lack of evidence. SSR just feels right. One approach to rebuttal was arguing that the NRP, with its insistence on only
“experimental” research, ignored a number of pro-SSR studies. Stephen Krashen led the way and offers on his website a
compilation of studies which find benefits of SSR. Rebuttals
of major research summaries, however, never have even a
small portion of the impact the original reports have. They
always sound too sour grapesy.
Then along comes a study by Reutzel, Fawson, and Smith
(2006) which takes a different tack. Instead of whining
“wrong studies,” they decide to take a close look at the very
SSR studies that the NRP did include. Several SSR studies
“used intact classroom groups from different school settings
which introduced school effects.” In some SSR studies
there was no indication of the nature of the regular read14
ing instruction that kids received. (The regular instruction
is what might have been effective.) Some studies did not
even control for the overall time spent reading. Apart from
the NRP studies, Reutzel, Fawson, and Smith reported that
SSR, as implemented in classrooms across the nation, rarely
includes accountability for whether or not students actually
read during SSR time. (SSR is likely to work way better
when kids actually read.)
So, based on their analysis of the design flaws and some holes
in the procedures used, Reutzel, Fawson, and Smith designed
an experiment to compare ScSR (a more structured form of
SSR) and Guided Repeated Oral Reading to see their impact
on fluency and comprehension. They used four third-grade
classrooms in two schools. Each one of the teachers was
trained in both procedures and then (Get this.) rotated every
nine weeks so that each treatment was delivered in equal
amounts by each teacher. Nice! On top of this, they were able
to randomly assign kids to the two treatment groups–rare in
classroom studies. They stratified the kids into high, medium,
and low achievement groups based on their end-of-secondgrade scores on the state test. (Does Utah call the state test
U-SAT?) Then they assigned kids within each achievement
level to the two treatment groups. Thus, they controlled for
school effects, teacher effects, and pre-existing differences
in student ability.
They provided detail on the regular reading instruction in
both schools–a prescribed 120 minute routine: 60 minutes
guided reading with centers, 30 minutes word work based
on Cunningham’s word-building activities, and 30 minutes
of whole group vocabulary and comprehension instruction
determined by the district’s curriculum.
In addition, students received twenty minutes per day of
fluency training. The repeated reading procedure included
oral readings of teacher-selected segments from the gradelevel text. Teachers and peers gave kids feedback on their
accuracy, rate, and expression.
The ScSR treatment involved silent reading of studentselected books of various genres. The kids were taught how
to choose texts at their independent levels. They were held
accountable for their reading by completing a log of books
read. There were also reading conferences during which
“the teacher asked students to read part of the book aloud,
conducted a brief discussion about the reading, and asked
Continued on page 15
February 2009
The Illinois Reading Council Communicator
Cool Studies continued from page 14
the child to set goals for finishing the book in a reasonable
time frame.”
After the yearlong experiment, a series of ANOVAs (statistical group comparisons) looked for differences between the
two groups’ gains on the various measures. Both groups
showed much improvement, but on one measure after another
the result was “no difference” between the groups.
The NRP criticized previous SSR research for interpreting findings of “no difference” as meaning that SSR was
as good as some other form of reading instruction. The
comparison is meaningless if the descriptions of the SSR
and the comparison procedures are poor and uninformative.
Reutzel, Fawson, and Smith, however, followed the NRP’s
own recommendations for how to do good fluency and SSR
research. The “no difference” findings in this case do seem
to mean that SSR can be quite effective when it is done well,
when it is structured. These findings also mean that we really
can use silent reading of self-selected material to impact on
oral reading fluency.
If you want to know more about how ScSR is done, you might
already have the details in your possession. Just as this column was going to press the November 2008 Reading Teacher
(“a journal of research-based classroom practice,” mind you)
came out and the how-to of the structured SSR is right there.
How cool is that? The original is Reutzel, D.R., Fawson, P.,
& Smith, J. (2008). Reconsidering sustained silent reading:
An exploratory study of scaffolded silent reading. Journal
of Educational Research, 102, 37-50.
Ying Chang Compestine
NIRC Presents
36 Annual Summer Conference
th
Richard Allington
Author of:
No Quick Fix, the RtI Edition: Rethinking Literacy
Programs in America’s Elementary Schools
is available for
school visits
before and after the
2009 IRC Conference
in March.
To make arrangements, contact Jean Dayton
at Dayton Booking by phone at 812-824-5017
or by email at [email protected].
What Really Matters for Struggling Readers:
Designing Research-Based Programs
What Really Matters in Fluency: Research-Based
Practices Across the Curriculum
What Really Matters in Response to Intervention:
Research-Based Designs
Thursday, June 11, 2009
8:30 – 11:45 a.m.
Kishwaukee Community College,
Malta, Illinois (just a tad west of DeKalb)
For more information contact Mary Gardner,
NIRC President at [email protected]
February 2009
Legislator of the Year Award
Nominations for the 2009 Legislator of the Year
Award are now being accepted. The award recognizes
an Illinois Legislator who demonstrates outstanding
contributions toward advocating literacy and education in Illinois. This award will be given during
the Welcome Reception at the IRC Conference on
Wednesday, March 18, 2009. Please take a moment
to share how your legislator has enhanced education
in your area and/or in the nation. Please email your
nominations to the IRC Legislative Committee at
[email protected].
15
Congratulations to Jim Aylesworth
the 2009 Prairie State Award Winner
By Roxanne Owens
Jim is the author of many popular books for children, including Aunt Pitty Patty’s
Piggy, Through the Night, Hanna’s Dogs, Little Bitty Mousie, Country Crossing, Old Black Fly, and the forthcoming Our Abe Lincoln.
From his experiences as a classroom teacher, Jim has learned how to create stories
that children enjoy. His books include rhythmic chants, engaging text, and enchanting illustrations. He
is known throughout the United States as an entertaining and enlightening speaker. During the 2009 IRC
Conference, Jim will present three featured author sessions and participate in the Thursday evening “Hear
the Authors Read” event. Please join us at the Thursday night Prairie State Award Banquet to see our own
Illinois author, Jim Aylesworth, receive this year’s award.
Illinois Reading Council
1210 Fort Jesse Road, Suite B2
Normal, IL 61761
Non-Profit Org.
US Postage
PAID
Permit No. 800
Springfield, IL