Lighting it Up with Lit Academy

Lighting it Up with Lit Academy

By: Ashley Watson-Stroud, Ph.D., Regional Literacy Specialist

Lit Academy team 6 had the privilege of working with the dedicated educators of the Redesign School District.  Teachers, Literacy Coaches, Administrators, and District Personnel met on June 15th and 16th at Glen Oaks Middle School’s campus to learn about and apply the research from the Science of Reading.  Lit Academy is a working conference. When asked to define Lit Academy, Redesign’s Educators said, “Its hands-on learning, coaching, team-based, support with data, and a tool to grow teachers and students.”  

 Through Lit Academy, Redesign’s Educators learned about the Science of Reading Research and Instructional plans.  Janee’ Butler, Lindsey Vicknair, Elizabeth Sens, and Ashley Watson-Stroud provided training in The Science of Reading, Curriculum Deep Dives, Cross Content Application, Data Analysis, Intervention, and Literacy Planning. During 2 days, Redesign’s educators discussed the Science of Reading, classroom implications, growth opportunities in their data, and changes they wanted to make for the following school year.  In the words of a second-grade teacher from Redesign, “Lit Academy explains the importance of literacy.  It covers the Science of Reading and provides research to support instruction.  The training covers diagnostics and assessments.  It covers the plans to target and bridge student instructional gaps.”  

Redesign’s teachers gained a greater understanding of the Science of Reading, implications for instruction, and they worked to craft a Literacy Plan for the 2022-23 school year.  A fourth-grade teacher from Redesign said her greatest takeaway was, “Everyone teaches literacy.  It is important to everyone.”