Dr. Robert Brooks is a clinical psychologist on the faculty (part-time) of Harvard Medical School and former Director of the Department of Psychology at McLean Hospital, a private psychiatric hospital in the Boston area. He has lectured nationally and internationally and written extensively about such themes as resilience across the lifespan, education, children and adults with special needs, psychotherapy, parenting, family relationships, and creating positive school and work environments. He is the author or co-author of 22 books including Raising Resilient Children; The Power of Resilience: Achieving Balance, Confidence, and Personal Strength in Your Life; and Tenacity in Children: Nurturing the Seven Instincts for Lifetime Success. His latest publication is a children’s book about “tenacity,” titled Poppy and Graham’s Quest for Tenacity. Dr. Brooks has received many awards for his work, including Hall of Fame Awards from both the Connecticut Association of Children with LD, and CHADD. Most recently, he was given The Mental Health Humanitarian Award from William James College for his contributions as a clinician, educator, and author, and the 2023 Trailblazer Award from Worldmaker International in recognition of his contributions “to the field of human resilience and his innovation in creating new pathways for many.”

In his keynote Dr. Brooks will highlight the lifelong impact that educators have on students.  He will discuss the importance of empathy, "micromoments," and positive emotions as essential components in the process of teaching and learning.  He will describe specific strategies that educators can use to nurture caring, responsibility, intrinsic motivation, and resilience in students.  Examples of these strategies--based on the many consultations he has conducted with schools and educators, the hundreds of children and adolescents he has seen in therapy, and the position he held years ago as principal of a school in a psychiatric hospital--will be described.

Maryanne Wolf is a scholar, teacher, and advocate for children and literacy around the world. She is the Director of the Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice at UCLA in the School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA and the former John DiBiaggio Professor of Citizenship and Public Service at Tufts University. She has authored over 170 scientific publications; Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain (15 translations; HarperCollins, 2007); Tales of Literacy for the 21st Century (Oxford University Press, 2016); and Reader, Come Home: The Reading Brain in a Digital Culture (12 translations; HarperCollins, 2018). She is co-author with Martha Denckla of the RAN/RAS naming speed tests, a universal predictor of dyslexia, and the creator of the RAVE-O Intervention Program for all struggling readers. She has received multiple awards for her contributions to the neuroscience of reading; the major awards from the International Dyslexia Association and the Einstein Award from the Dyslexia Foundation for her dyslexia research; and the Walter Ong Award and the Alfred Korzybski Award for her work on the effects of different mediums on the intellectual development of the species. Most recently, she was elected a permanent member of the Pontifical Academy of Science.

Jake is an Ohio native who began his teaching career in Milwaukee, WI in 2015. Having specialized in literacy instruction, Jake built a following on social media for his engaging and rhythmic phonics lessons and evidence-based structured literacy work, even landing him on The Kelly Clarkson Show in January 2024. Throughout his career, Jake has taught PreK, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades and has recently stepped into the role of Foundational Literacy Director for a choice school in Milwaukee, WI. Jake directs curriculum, assessment, and instruction for a team of PreK to 3rd grade teachers. In addition, Jake co-teaches an online Science of Reading Course for Elevate Your Classroom. In his spare time, Jake presents nationally for conferences such as Elevate Your Classroom, Unlocking SOR, and IL ASCD. He is thrilled to be joining the Plain Talk family this year! 

Knowledge about the science of reading has made its way through thousands of schools over the past few years, and curriculum companies have followed suit with their edited and updated materials. However, what we continue to see is a challenge that has become difficult to tackle with our current generation of students: engagement. How do I make explicit, systematic instruction joyful? How do I make direct instruction inclusive for a classroom of diverse learners? How do I balance compliance with student-centered advocacy? Join Jake Daggett in this high-energy, motivating keynote where you will practice ways to transform your instruction with accessible, movement-based, perplexing, and sensory-based practices. It is time to get movin' and groovin' with art of direct instruction! 

In the latest Active View of Reading by Duke and Cartwright, engagement and executive functioning are key factors woven into motivation and reading success. In Jake's session, practice ways to engage multilingual, above, and below-level learners with interactive visual, auditory, blending, and dictation activities. Session attendees will leave this session feeling empowered and equipped to make their K-2 phonics instruction repetitive, systematic, articulation-based, and predictable. Let's have some fun! 

Dr. Jarred Amato is an award-winning English teacher, the co-founder of Project LIT Community, a grassroots literacy movement, and the author of Just Read It: Unlocking the Magic of Independent Reading in Middle and High School Classrooms. Jarred is an avid reader and writer who enjoys collaborating with fellow educators to improve literacy access, attitudes, and outcomes in our schools and communities. Dr. Amato received his B.A. in English and History from Vanderbilt University, his M.A.T. from Belmont University, and his Ed.D. from Lipscomb University. After teaching middle and high school English for 13 years in Tennessee, Dr. Amato recently relocated to New Jersey, where he and his wife are attempting to keep up with their two boys. You can subscribe to Jarred’s free weekly newsletter at https://jarredamato.substack.com/. 

Educator and author Dr. Jarred Amato will reflect on his literacy journey and reveal how he continues to refine his game plan, particularly in today's algorithmic age, to reach readers of all ages –one book and one conversation at a time. Specifically, Jarred will touch on the big ideas –including the independent reading (Read and WRAP) framework, Article of the Week protocol, authentic grammar and vocabulary instruction, and more – from his book, Just Read It: Unlocking the Magic of Independent Reading in Middle and High School Classrooms.  

Jarred will also explore how to structure our ELA block –from a daily, weekly, and yearlong lens. Specifically, Dr. Amato will provide concrete strategies and resources in order to empower and engage all students as readers, writers, and critical thinkers from the first day of the school year to the last. 

Dr. Anita Archer is an educational consultant to state departments and school districts on explicit instruction and literacy.  She has presented in all 50 states, all US territories, and many countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, and is the recipient of ten awards honoring her contributions to education.  Dr. Archer has served on the faculties of three universities, including the University of Washington, the University of Oregon, and San Diego State University. She has co-authored numerous curriculum materials, including Phonics for Reading (Curriculum Associates), a three-level intervention program, REWARDS (Voyager/Sopris), a five-component literacy intervention program, and a best-selling textbook titled Explicit Instruction: Effective and Efficient Teaching (Guilford Publications). 

Explicit instruction is an evidence-based, systematic methodology for teaching academic skills to students across grade levels. While the Science of Reading informs us on what to teach, 50 years of research on Explicit Instruction guides us on how to teach. In this session, Dr. Archer will review, illustrate, and model high-leverage practices concerning the Design of Explicit Instruction lessons in which the teacher would 1) convey the purpose of the lesson, 2) establish a firm foundation for new learning by reviewing necessary prerequisite skills and knowledge, 3) clearly explain or demonstrate what is to be learned,  4) provide scaffolding to optimize student success, and 5) provide adequate guided and independent practice to ensure learning.  

Note: Dr. Archer is presenting two sessions on Explicit Instruction. This session focuses on the Design of Explicit Instruction Lessons and the second on the Delivery of Explicit Instruction. Participants may attend one or both sessions. 

Explicit instruction is an evidence-based, systematic methodology for teaching academic skills to students across grade levels. While the Science of Reading informs us on what to teach, 50 years of research on Explicit Instruction guides us on how to teach. In this session, Dr. Archer will present high-leverage practices and procedures for the Delivery of Explicit Instruction that increase engagement, participation, and learning: 1) requesting frequent responses, 2) monitoring student performance carefully, 3) providing affirmative and corrective feedback, and 4) maintaining an appropriate pace throughout the lesson.   

Note: Dr. Archer is presenting two sessions on Explicit Instruction. This session focuses on the Delivery of Explicit Instruction and the second on the Design of Explicit Instruction. Participants may attend one or both sessions. 

With a BA in elementary education and an MA in Curriculum & Instruction as a Reading Specialist, Jennifer is passionate about helping students in need of support, especially in areas related to reading difficulties. After being a classroom teacher, Jennifer moved to work with the Louisiana Department of Education for 5 years, she then transferred to work as a school administrator proudly being named principal of the middle school in her family's neighborhood school. After serving for 8 years, literacy instruction called her name again and she began her role with The Center for Literacy & Learning. The best title she carries though will always be mom- mother of 2 amazing children, Gabe and Ella.

Today teachers are asked to do it all. Many are left to "figure it out" on their own and are doing the best they know how. Join Jennifer as she discusses and shows teachers just what it looks like to provide differentiated, systematic, and explicit instruction for ALL students during daily Tier 1 instruction time.

Dr. Ashby’s reading journey started 30 years ago, when she pursued an Ed.M. at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, then taught a writing workshop and content-area reading to adult learners. This led to deepening her instruction skills by studying the OG approach at Massachusetts General Hospital. In Ohio, she supported teachers and students with reading disorders in the Columbus area. Ongoing work with struggling readers (K – Adult) motivated an interest in researching the role of phonological processes in reading. Jane earned a doctorate in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts, where she learned how to use eye movement monitoring to study silent reading. In 2009, she joined the Psychology Department at Central Michigan University, where her eye movement lab investigated the role of speech processes in silent reading. She co-authored Psychology of Reading (2012) as well as several papers examining the role of phonology when children and adults read silently. In 2017 - 2018, Jane refreshed her knowledge of reading interventions and turned to supporting teachers in Vermont as they developed more effective literacy practices. Since 2022, she enjoys working as a Professor in the Reading Science Program at Mount St. Joseph University.

If you’ve ever wondered if it is worthwhile to set learning goals around handwriting for struggling readers after grade 1, this session is for you.  We will explore the role of letter formation in automatizing letter recognition and why this is crucial for reading and writing development. Then we examine how teaching letter formation increases brain activation in key reading areas. We describe approaches for identifying which letters to reinforce and how to teach them so they stick. Types of practice activities, writing positions, and paper are reviewed. Work samples from a dysgraphic student demonstrate the far-reaching impact of letter formation instruction on self-esteem and reading achievement. 

Pam Austin has over 35 years of experience as an educator. She has worked as a Professional Learning Facilitator manager with over 17 years of experience in training and supporting districts in various literacy and numeracy interventions for Voyager Sopris Learning in addition to delivering LETRS professional development sessions. She has also shared her love of proven VSL solutions as a product marketing manager when she began her role as an EDView 360 podcast host in 2019 and continues to this day. Her goal is to aid teachers in changing the lives of students so that they not only become proficient and successful learners, but also, individuals confident in pursuing personal and professional life goals. She previously held the role of literacy specialist at The Center for Development and Learning (CDL) now The Center for Literacy and Learning. As an educator in the New Orleans Public Schools for 14 years, she served as an elementary teacher, a reading interventionist, a school-based reading coach, and a central office field literacy facilitator. These varying roles allowed her to gain a myriad of experiences that have enhanced her ability to work in collaboration with other educators, schools, and districts for impactful professional learning. Pam’s first steps into a life-long career as an educator began as a fourth-grade teacher, in a small school, in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. And the journey continues… 

In this interactive session, participants will reflect on and apply the attributes for effective, scaffolded writing instruction. A lack of time often leaves writing to be assigned as an afterthought and a mandate to go forth and write with expectations of expressive, cohesive, and creative use of language and style. Are all students able to get there? The self-reflective questions include: "How to get students there?" "Do you know what it means to go beyond assigning writing to providing the explicit, systematic, supportive instruction students need to build the necessary skills to become proficient writers?" Participants will apply strategies for practical writing across content areas through the gradual release model of instruction for writing. 

Dr. Barbee holds a doctoral degree in educational leadership and literacy from the University of Houston. She brings ~20 years of education-related experience in PreK-12 settings. Dr. Barbee currently serves as a full-time consultant with Corwin. She most recently served as a project manager of assessment for learning in a large urban district, which involved creating system-wide professional learning programming for central staff and campuses that promoted the spread of research-based practices. Through an emphasis on relationship-building and human-centered design principles, Dr. Barbee has coached PreK-12 principals, teachers, and district leaders on pedagogical practices that promote equity and student agency. She served as an ESOL teacher in Thomazeau, Haiti, and worked with Haitian teachers to implement sustainable teaching practices. She currently serves on the board of Roam Wild Adventures, a nonprofit that works to connect youth from diverse backgrounds through carefully designed outdoor adventure trips. Her co-authored books include The Teacher Clarity Playbook, Grades K-12: A Hands-On Guide to Creating Learning Intentions and Success Criteria for Organized, Effective Instruction, Teaching Foundational Skills to Adolescent Readers; and Clarity of Learning: Organization, Explanations, Examples, and Assessment in Teacher Clarity.

Across the US, the word "assessment" has been reduced to a test, something that happens to students, a marker of intelligence or effort. In the age of content coverage, how do we shift our lens from a focus on teaching to a focus on learning, from an event that happens TO students to a process that happens WITH them? In this session, we will discuss evidence-gathering opportunities that empower learners so that we--alongside our learners--can monitor progress in the moment to help us reach our long-term milestones. 

Dr. Bell Jiménez is the K-5 Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Literacy, Biliteracy, English Language Development, and Interventions in the Madison Metropolitan School District in Madison, WI. She is passionate about literacy and language development for socially, culturally and economically diverse students. Her research centers on the science of reading in multilingual instructional settings.

Ensuring that English Learners (ELs) receive rigorous educational programs is essential for their academic success and equitable access to learning opportunities. Research indicates that ELs often face a "rigor gap," where instruction is unintentionally diluted due to misconceptions about their capabilities. This can lead to lower academic outcomes and perpetuate a cycle of underachievement.  As teachers prepare to work within the complexities of a diverse learning environment, this session will discuss, extend, and add to the instructional practices teachers can use to support culturally and linguistically diverse populations.

Kelley Bendheim serves as Assistant Director of Early Literacy in the Office of Early Learning at the NC Department of Public Instruction.  She began her career in education as a teacher 28 years ago in Virginia.  She went on to serve in North Carolina as an educator, interventionist, instructional coach, literacy lead in a turnaround school, and district-level director of the Office of Early Learning.  She has her undergraduate degree in Early Childhood Education from James Madison University and her Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Appalachian State University.  Currently, Mrs. Bendheim is pursuing her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Appalachian State University.  Kelley is proud to support the educators, district leaders, school leaders, and community of North Carolina as we work in service of North Carolina students.

Brian Tracy states, “If you want to sail your ship in a different direction, you must turn one degree at a time.” In 2021, North Carolina enacted the Excellent Public Schools Act. This act was an update to prior literacy legislation enacted in 2014. This 2021 modified legislation included a comprehensive statewide approach to tackling the stagnant literacy data that had existed for over a decade in North Carolina. While comprehensive legislation with aligned funding is the first step toward success, North Carolina recognized the need to develop intentional short- and long-term action plans to ensure ongoing sustainability that focused on shifting systems at the state and local levels, overcoming the barriers of local control. Respecting the diversity and uniqueness of districts, schools and classrooms, the Office of Early Learning provided a comprehensive self-reflection tool, which serves as a resource for leaders to examine the overall strengths and opportunities for improvement at the district and school level. This has resulted in strategic coordination and alignment of local literacy systems, as well as data-driven conversations for leaders, teachers, and support staff to establish manageable goals and action steps within a comprehensive literacy system. The framework includes a learning walk protocol that can be used as needed by designated stakeholders to support overall engagement and continuous improvement with literacy processes. Join North Carolina state literacy leaders as they share the comprehensive systems and strategic coordination that have yielded positive outcomes from state to student. 

John Bennetts is a national literacy consultant specializing in evidence-based reading practices. With extensive experience training educators and collaborating with system leaders, John supports schools and districts nationwide in implementing instructional practices and systems aligned with what we currently know about best practices. He works closely with system leaders to help schools and school districts evaluate and change current practices to better align with best practices, ensuring sustainable improvements in literacy outcomes. Before joining Readsters, John served as a teacher and administrator at both elementary and secondary levels, worked at the Rhode Island Department of Education, and managed the development of an online, adaptive reading program for secondary students. These experiences have given him a comprehensive perspective on the educational landscape. Beyond his professional role, John is the vice chair of the board for Reach Out and Read Rhode Island. This nonprofit partners with pediatric practices statewide to provide books to children ages birth to five during pediatric visits, while empowering parents with strategies to foster literacy at home. 

In an increasing number of environments, scripted curricula guide Tier 1 instruction, and maintaining "fidelity to the curriculum" often takes precedence. This session shifts the focus to what truly matters: "fidelity to the student." Strong instructional coaching is a critical component of this student-centered approach, empowering teachers to meet diverse student needs while maintaining the integrity of the curriculum. Participants will learn how to balance curriculum fidelity with responsive instruction and walk away with actionable coaching strategies to implement immediately in their schools. 

As district-wide adoptions of foundational reading programs (often referred to as “high-quality instructional materials” or “HQIM”) continue to transform K-2 Tier 1 foundational reading instruction, many schools and teachers are still grappling with how to meet the needs of all students. Despite the evident value of using HQIM in Tier 1, this has created some problems for implementing Tier 2. Many educators are now unsure how to design an effective Tier 2 system. Some have implemented separate, scripted Tier 2 programs, others are using Tier 1 materials for Tier 2 instruction, and many leave Tier 2 up to classroom teachers. Alignment between Tier 1 and Tier 2 increases the success of students who need additional reading support, but this is not easily achieved. In this session, we describe ways to improve Tier 2 instruction to keep it aligned with evidence-based practices and better align it with Tier 1. We will explore a simple tool that leaders can use to change their Tier 2 system. 

Wiley Blevins has a Doctorate in Education. He studied at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Bowling Green State University. He is an author, educational consultant, and researcher, and has taught both in the United States and South America. Wiley has written over 17 books for teachers, including A Fresh Look at Phonics, Phonics from A TO Z, Differentiating Phonics Instruction for Maximum Impact, and Choosing and Using Decodable Texts. He has authored several phonics and reading programs and wrote the phonics brief by the International Literacy Association, Meeting the Challenges of Early Literacy Phonics Instruction. Wiley's current focus is on adaptive technology, differentiated professional development, and children's literature. Wiley has written over 100 children's books and is SVP and Associate Publisher at Reycraft Books, a new imprint focused on publishing books by authors and illustrators from under-represented groups.

In this session, participants will examine how to differentiate Tier 1 phonics instruction to meet the wide range of student needs--those students below grade-level expectations, above grade-level expectations, and multilingual learners. The session will focus on key phonics instructional routines as well as pacing and engagement issues.

The author will present his work in New York City as the largest school district in the United States transitioned to structured literacy instruction. The presentation highlights the various levels of support needed to support administrators and teachers and what factors made the biggest difference in early phonics instruction.

Dawn Brookhart, M.A.T., M.Ed., is an experienced leader, consultant, instructional coach, and author with nearly three decades of expertise in transforming education. She collaborates with schools, districts, state education agencies, and educational organizations to bridge the gap between policy, research, and evidence-based practice, creating lasting, sustainable change in education systems nationwide. Dawn's leadership has been pivotal in guiding schools from local recognition to national prominence, including her work with National Blue Ribbon Schools and the creation of a Seattle Times-featured reading and dyslexia training academy—the first of its kind in a Pennsylvania public school. Known for her expertise in the science of reading, she has helped improve student outcomes across the country by empowering educators with professional development and coaching in high-quality, research-based literacy instruction. Dawn is also the co-author of "Instructional Leadership with Student-Focused Coaching: Creating the Conditions for System Success" with Dr. Daryl Michel, a resource that equips educators to foster collective leadership through collaborative, student-focused coaching. As co-founder of Ed Cap Consulting, LLC, she partners with her husband to build educator capacity and drive systemic change. Additionally, Dawn serves as the Vice President and co-founder of the Reading League Pennsylvania and is an IMSLEC-accredited Orton-Gillingham teacher.

Join Dr. Daryl Michel and Dawn Brookhart for an engaging and transformative session that will challenge traditional leadership roles and reveal how instructional leaders can be the key to creating the conditions for system-wide success. In today's complex educational landscape, leaders must do more than simply model expectations—they must actively shape an environment where teaching and learning can thrive. Drawing on Fullan's (2014) leadership principles, Daryl and Dawn will explore how effective instructional leaders go beyond top-down management by modeling their own learning while fostering collaboration, providing resources, and supporting ongoing growth. By embracing a coaching approach instead of a directive one, leaders can empower educators, promote shared leadership, and drive continuous improvement across their schools. This session will equip you with practical, actionable strategies to create a culture of growth, inspire innovation, and align leadership efforts with systemic success. You'll leave with tools to move away from traditional management practices and instead lead through coaching and empowerment, ensuring that every educator has the support needed to succeed. If you are ready to rethink your leadership approach and create the conditions for transformative change in your school, this session is for you. 

Kymyona Burk is a Senior Policy Fellow at ExcelinEd. In this role, she supports states pursuing a comprehensive approach to K-3 reading policy by assisting state leaders in building new or improving existing K-3 reading policies, with a heavy focus on supporting successful policy implementation. Dr. Burk also serves as Visiting Senior Fellow at the Science of Reading Center at SUNY New Paltz. In this role, she helps lead strategic planning and implementation for the Center’s ongoing expansion as a professional learning support resource for PreK-12 educators across the United States. Dr. Burk has a demonstrated history of building teacher capacity and improving student literacy outcomes across a career in teaching, coaching and state-level administration spanning more than 25 years. She most recently served in Mississippi as the Executive Director for the Jackson Public School District’s Office of Teaching and Learning and led all aspects of the district’s instructional programming. Prior to this, she was the State Literacy Director at the Mississippi Department of Education, leading the state-level implementation of the Literacy-Based Promotion Act (2013), which aims to ensure that all students are proficient readers by third grade. Under her state literacy leadership from 2013-2019, Mississippi’s 4th graders increased 10 scale score points in reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), improving from 50th to 29th in the nation. Dr. Burk began her career as an elementary reading teacher and has also taught middle and high school English. At Jackson State University, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Master of Arts in Teaching English, Master of Science in Education Administration and Supervision and a Doctor of Education in Early Childhood Education. She has been recognized nationally as a recipient of the Reading League's Benita A. Blachman Award for Advancing Evidence Into Practice and the Policy Innovators in Education (PIE) Network Suzanne Kubach PIE Network Weaver of the Year award.

A comprehensive approach to improving literacy outcomes begins with adopting an early literacy policy that supports educators, students, and families in preventing or addressing students' reading difficulties; however, the policy is only as effective as its implementation. In this session, we will explore the landscape of early literacy policies across the United States and discuss strategies for leading a coordinated approach to close the gap between what we know and what we do. 

Janeé Butler, M.Ed., is the Director of Program Design & Implementation at The Center for Literacy and Learning. Born and raised in New Orleans, Janeé’s goal has been to bring equitable education throughout the Greater New Orleans area. She started her career in education in the early childhood sector. As a first-grade teacher, Janee’ quickly made a name for herself by maintaining high student achievement scores in reading instruction. In addition, Janee’ led her teams as a content specialist in foundational reading skills. Her experience as a first-grade teacher earned her a wealth of knowledge in targeted literacy instruction as she sought to develop her capacity in literacy beyond her K-2 experience in the classroom. That pursuit led her to the cognitive processes in reading instruction, equipping her with a knowledge base in dyslexia and the science of reading. Later Janee’ received her master’s degree in educational leadership, allowing her to fulfill roles as a reading interventionist, instructional coach, curriculum expert, and reading specialist. In hopes of propelling her mission of increasing teacher efficacy in teaching reading, Janeé is a doctoral student pursuing her Ph.D. in General Psychology with an Emphasis in Cognition and Instruction. Janee’s efforts to ensure all educators are equipped with the necessary practice to improve their reading pedagogy are seen in her work in content creation and training educators in the science of reading through The Center’s professional development course, Growing Reading Brains (GRB) K-3. Janeé continues to move the needle in teacher training through her collective content development of GRB-Adolescent Literacy and GRB-English Language Learners and the newly updated GRB- K-3 course. She had the honor of serving on the Louisiana Department of Education’s Early Literacy Commission, now serving as the Co-Chair of the Louisiana Literacy Advisory Commission. Janee’ also lends her voice on other advisory panels and spaces for policy in literacy instruction. After over ten years in education, Janeé has a passion for reimagining education for every child, advocating for evidence-based practices in reading instruction supporting the cognitive demands in the brain. 

Unlock the power of collaboration in literacy education with this dynamic session on coaching all stakeholders—teachers, parents, and administrators—to teach high-frequency words effectively. Grounded in the science of reading, this presentation will explore how cognitive principles like orthographic mapping, retrieval practice, and multisensory engagement can transform instruction. Attendees will gain actionable strategies, evidence-based tools, and a clear roadmap for fostering student success through targeted coaching practices in HFW instruction. Whether you're an educator, a parent, or a leader, you'll leave with the knowledge and confidence to champion high-frequency word instruction and empower young readers. 

Phil Capin, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His research seeks to understand differences in reading development and to develop and evaluate the efficacy of instructional practices, primarily for those with difficulties. He is currently the Principal Investigator of an Institutes of Education Sciences Grant focused on improving language and reading comprehension for elementary emergent bilinguals. In addition to advancing our understanding of reading development, instruction, and assessment, a primary goal of his work is to translate research findings in ways that can meaningfully address current challenges that affect educators and their students. Prior to joining academia, Dr. Capin was a special education teacher in El Centro, CA.

Despite their significant potential, many emergent bilingual students experience difficulties meeting grade-level expectations in reading and content-area classes. In this session, Dr. Capin will explore individual and contextual factors that influence the reading development of emergent bilinguals. He will highlight language and reading practices found in his research to improve outcomes for emergent bilinguals and their peers. This session will feature sample instructional materials and tools for evaluating the alignment of instruction with evidence-based practices for emergent bilinguals, making it highly relevant to teachers, administrators, and all those who serve this important population. 

Shelby Damaskos is a dedicated speech-language pathologist (SLP) based in Montana, with a focus on early childhood and school settings. She is licensed by the Montana Speech-Language and Audiology Board, holds a Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), and is a current board member of the Montana Speech-Language and Hearing Association (MSHA). Her passion lies in collaborating with educators, parents, and caregivers to promote speech, language, and social skill development through everyday routines and interactions particularly in public schools and Head Start programs. By working together, she helps create meaningful learning experiences that support children’s growth in these foundational areas. Her interest in early childhood development led her to co-present at the 2016 ASHA conference with Dr. Lucy Hart-Paulson on a topic related to preschool writing instruction. This reflects Shelby's ongoing commitment to improving young children's communication while fostering environments that support learning, growth, and meaningful interactions.

Across the country, early childhood educators are increasingly concerned with the number of children who display speech and language delays. We are well aware of the powerful connection between the way young children learn to talk and subsequently learn to read and write. Language foundations are not only vital for literacy learning, but they are also integrally connected to cognitive growth, social-emotional learning, and executive function development. Join this session for practical strategies early childhood educators may use to enhance speech production, language expression, and social communication for the young children in their care. 

Shawn Datchuk is the Director of the Iowa Reading Research Center and an Associate Professor of Special Education at the University of Iowa. Datchuk is a former K-12 special education teacher, elementary teacher, director of special education, and academic performance director in New Orleans, LA. He received his Doctor of Philosophy in special education from Pennsylvania State University. He researches literacy instruction and assessment, specifically ways to support the concurrent writing and reading development of students with or at risk for disabilities.

In both research and practice, there is a close link between early reading and handwriting. As students learn to commit letter names and sounds to memory, there is a golden opportunity to strengthen these important skills through handwriting. Specifically, brief handwriting instruction (e.g., 10 minutes per lesson) can help students acquire important reading skills and concurrently set a solid foundation for writing. In this session, attendees will learn about the complementary nature of reading and writing development, how to provide brief instruction in handwriting, and how to use the new free web-based applications to create exercises. 

Are you struggling to help students learn how to consistently write complete sentences? This session presents ways to progress monitor sentence writing and evidence-based techniques to improve student accuracy and speed writing sentences. Attendees will learn how to administer and score CBMs and deliver explicit instruction and fluency practice of sentence writing for students with and without learning disabilities. 

Dr. Carolyn Denton is an educational consultant and reading scientist specializing in reading interventions for students with reading difficulties and disabilities, including dyslexia, and students with ADHD. For over 20 years, Dr. Denton collaborated on scientific research in which she developed and evaluated reading interventions for these students. Before completing her Ph.D., Dr. Denton was a classroom teacher and reading interventionist, and she specialized in communicating with educators to help them understand and implement evidence-based practices in classrooms. Dr. Denton was a member of the expert panel assembled by the US Department of Education to develop the What Works Clearinghouse practice guide Foundational Skills to Support Reading for Understanding in Kindergarten through 3rd Grade. She is also the author or co-author of four books and numerous book chapters and journal articles on reading intervention, multi-tiered systems of support, ADHD, and related topics. Dr. Denton has presented numerous keynotes, sessions, and workshops for educators, clinicians, and researchers across the US and in Europe and Asia. Prior to her retirement, Dr. Denton was a professor in the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She now lives in Port Townsend, Washington.

Students who have both Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and significant reading difficulties or disabilities (including dyslexia) are uniquely at risk for a variety of negative educational and life consequences. Dr. Denton led a large scientific study of interventions for children who have both ADHD and reading difficulties. The study examined the effects of ADHD intervention (a combination of medication and parent training) and intensive reading intervention for these students. In this presentation Dr. Denton will describe our current scientific understanding of ADHD, including its definition, characteristics, and causes, as well as the unique characteristics of students who have both ADHD and reading disabilities. She will discuss the scientific evidence regarding intervention for these students and describe and demonstrate components of the intensive reading intervention provided in her study. She will conclude with practical advice to educators on adapting instruction to support the reading success of students with ADHD and reading difficulties. 

Even when provided with generally effective reading intervention, some students do not make sufficient progress to demonstrate adequate annual literacy growth. Slow progress may be related to insufficient instructional intensity, including inadequate frequency and duration of intervention. However, even when they receive intensive interventions, some students require instructional adaptations in order to make accelerated growth. This is frequently the case for students with limitations in working memory and self-regulation, including students with ADHD. In this session, Dr. Denton describes and demonstrates a "toolbox" of instructional adaptations that teachers can implement to help accelerate student progress, without compromising fidelity to an evidence-based reading intervention program. 

Jana Echevarría, Ph.D., is Professor Emerita at California State University, Long Beach where she was selected as Outstanding Professor. Prior to receiving her Ph.D. from UCLA, she taught in general education, special education, ESL, and bilingual programs. A creator of the SIOP Model, her research and publications focus on effective instruction for multilingual learners, including those with learning disabilities. She has presented her research across the U.S. and internationally including Oxford University (England), Wits University (South Africa), Harvard University (U.S.), Stanford University (U.S.), University of Barcelona (Spain) and South East Europe University (Macedonia) where she was a Fulbright Specialist. Dr. Echevarria was inducted into the California Reading Hall of Fame in 2016 and has served as an expert on English learners for the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. 

Multilingual learners are the fastest-growing population in our schools. However, insufficient attention is given to what the science of reading means for students who are learning to read and write at the same time they are learning to speak and understand the language of instruction. In this presentation we will explore the effectiveness of the SIOP Model, an instructional approach that supports the science of reading.  Specific guidance for tailoring instruction to meet the unique needs of multilingual students will be provided. 

As the author of “Uncovering the Logic of English” and CEO and founder of Logic of English, Denise is passionate about translating the science of reading into practice. When her sons struggled to learn to read, she discovered that there are answers to the “whys” of English spelling. Upon seeing her sons go from nonreaders to reading chapter books within months, she realized that this information could help everyone! Armed with that knowledge, she continues her life work of sharing the power of knowing how English works by speaking, writing, and publishing. 

With a move away from leveled readers in recent years, decodable readers have exploded in popularity! But what makes a text decodable? Does this term only apply to some texts, or with systematic instruction, can it apply to all texts? Is the term "decodable" even the right name for this valuable teaching resource? In this session, we will explore the purpose of controlled readers, as well as how and when they can bring the most benefit to students. We will discuss their limitations, specifically in regard to language comprehension, and discover ways they can be used to supplement instruction for emerging and striving readers. 

Unlock the power of collaboration in literacy education with this dynamic session on coaching all stakeholders—teachers, parents, and administrators—to teach high-frequency words effectively. Grounded in the science of reading, this presentation will explore how cognitive principles like orthographic mapping, retrieval practice, and multisensory engagement can transform instruction. Attendees will gain actionable strategies, evidence-based tools, and a clear roadmap for fostering student success through targeted coaching practices in HFW instruction. Whether you're an educator, a parent, or a leader, you'll leave with the knowledge and confidence to champion high-frequency word instruction and empower young readers.

As an assistant professor at Marietta College, Michelle Elia prepares pre-service teachers to teach reading using evidence-based language and literacy practices. Michelle previously served as Ohio Literacy Lead and has taught students in preschool through high school. Michelle is a nationally recognized literacy professional development provider, training educators in literacy instruction and assessment within an MTSS framework grounded in reading science. She serves as a school board member of her local district and president of The Reading League Ohio. A lifelong learner, Elia is pursuing her doctorate in Reading Science at Mount St. Joseph University. Michelle is passionate about teaching and applying the science of reading to the classroom. When she is not talking about reading, her favorite job is being a mom to her three not-so-small children. https://linktr.ee/mjelia

William van Cleave reminded us that “syntax matters” in reading and writing instruction. What makes syntax a multi-tool? Syntactic knowledge enables students to improve semantics, reading comprehension, and written expression.  Syntax should be explicitly taught, focusing on function and connected to content.   In this session, participants will learn how to systematically teach syntax to improve reading comprehension and written expression.  The focus is the function of words in sentences and not about memorizing parts of speech. 

Morphemes are the building blocks of meaning, tools for decoding, and critical structures for syntax. They are truly mesmerizing units of language that, when taught explicitly, can improve students' reading comprehension and written expression. This session will review why and how we should teach to build morphological awareness. Spoiler alert: It’s not about memorizing morphemes! 

Antonio A. Fierro is the Vice President of Professional Learning and Academics with the 95 Percent group and co-author of Kid Lips, a phonetics curriculum for young children. For almost 20 years, he was a member of the national LETRS cohort of literacy consultants led by Dr. Louisa Moats and has led many initiatives nationwide to improve instruction for English learners. Dr. Fierro currently sits on the national board of The Reading League and the advisory board of LETRS 3rd edition.

Ensuring that English Learners (ELs) receive rigorous educational programs is essential for their academic success and equitable access to learning opportunities. Research indicates that ELs often face a "rigor gap," where instruction is unintentionally diluted due to misconceptions about their capabilities. This can lead to lower academic outcomes and perpetuate a cycle of underachievement.  As teachers prepare to work within the complexities of a diverse learning environment, this session will discuss, extend, and add to the instructional practices teachers can use to support culturally and linguistically diverse populations. 

Douglas Fisher, Ph.D., is Professor and Chair of Educational Leadership at San Diego State University and a leader at Health Sciences High & Middle College having been an early intervention teacher and elementary school educator. He was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame in 2022. Doug has published numerous articles on leadership, reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design as well as books, such as The Teaching Reading Playbook, PLC+: Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design, Rigor Unveiled, and Better Learning Through Structured Teaching.

Foundational skills for secondary readers include self-efficacy, word recognition, word knowledge, sentence fluency, language comprehension, and background knowledge. Participants will explore the unique needs of older readers, who often face challenges in decoding, fluency, and comprehension, and learn how to integrate reading support seamlessly with content instruction. Through practical approaches and evidence-based practices, educators will gain tools to boost student engagement, build background knowledge, and foster a positive reading identity, ensuring all students have the skills necessary for academic success.

High expectations.  Rigorous learning.  Support to achieve greatness.  What happens in the classroom, the actions and behaviors of educators, have a profound impact on students’ learning.  But what do rigor and high expectations look like?  How do we recognize rigorous learning experiences?  In other words, what are the observable aspects of rigor?  In this session, we analyze 25 validated indicators of rigor organized into five domains: Relationships, Instruction, Goals, Organization, and Relevance.  Explore each of these and the ways in which educators can convey and maintain high expectations for all students.

Nancy Frey, Ph.D., is a Professor in Educational Leadership at San Diego State University and a member of the International Literacy Association’s Literacy Research Panel. Nancy has published in The Reading Teacher, Theory Into Practice, Reading Psychology, Early Childhood Education Journal, and Educational Leadership on research related to literacy, school leadership, and effective instruction. Current books include The Teaching Reading Playbook, The Mathematics Playbook, Teaching Students to Drive Their Learning, Welcome to Teaching, and the PLC+ suite of books. In 2008 she was given the Early Career Achievement Award by the Literacy Research Association and is a member of the California Reading Hall of Fame. She is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California, and is a co-founder and administrator at Health Sciences High and Middle College. 

Vocabulary is a significant predictor of reading comprehension as well as success in life.  But teaching vocabulary has been neglected and often consists of assigning students words, telling them to look them up, and then testing their knowledge.  Vocabulary development needs to be much more systematic and purposeful to have an impact.  Teachers must select words worth instruction, model and provide direct instruction, create opportunities to use the expanding vocabulary with peers, and then hold students accountable for integrating their word knowledge in their speaking and writing. 

Research in reading dates to 1865 and is the oldest form of educational research. Knowledge of best practices has continued to evolve over the last 157 years. In this session, we use Hollis Scarborough’s reading rope as the organizer. We will explore both word recognition and language comprehension and their reciprocal nature. Readers must develop the skills necessary to quickly and accurately recognize words. Thus, we turn our attention to phonological awareness, decoding, and sight word recognition. In addition, we expand on the reading rope by adding specific strands on fluency and alphabetics as essential components of word recognition. At the same time that foundational skills are being built, language comprehension instruction must also occur. Thus, we add a focus on background knowledge, morphological awareness, and verbal reasoning. 

Rachel Giannini is the founder of the professional development series, Show & Tell Me More, an early childhood specialist, and a video blog host. She currently splits her time as a public speaker, early childhood commentator, curriculum designer, and star of Show & Tell Me More. Rachel’s writing, expertise, and videos have appeared in Vox, The New York Times, Too Small To Fail, HuffPost, Child Care Exchange, and Chicago Parent. In addition, Rachel has an MFA in Museum Education from the University of Illinois and is a volunteer hospital magician for Open Heart Magic. 

Learning to read can be hard! Adding sign language makes it easier! In this workshop, participants will leave with tangible takeaways that they can start implementing the same day. From introducing letter sounds to adding basic vocabulary for story time, learn all the ways sign language can turn literacy into a hands-on engaging lesson. 

Written language is one of the highest forms of language that an individual can obtain.  It is therefore essential for all instructors to have a deep knowledge of the development of writing, typical error patterns for multilingual students and the evidence-based practices for increasing both the foundational and composition skills of each learner. Participants in this session will also learn how to analyze writing samples, identify common error patterns, and apply a process for designing instruction using evidence-based strategies. The goal is diagnostic and prescriptive teaching of writing for ALL students. 

Dr. Lorraine Hammond AM, is an Associate Professor at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia who has worked and researched in the areas of early literacy, high impact instructional strategies, including explicit teaching and learning difficulties since 1990. Awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2002, Lorraine has been recognized by an Australian Government National Teaching Award (2016) for outstanding tertiary teaching and in 2017 the Australian Council for Educational Leadership recognized her work in schools promoting high impact instruction. In 2019, Lorraine received an Order of Australia (AM) for her significant contribution to tertiary education and the community. Lorraine has designed units of work on structured literacy and explicit instruction at Edith Cowan University, including the first post-graduate unit on the Science of Reading Instruction in Australia. Since 2017, Lorraine has developed and presented professional learning on evidence-based literacy strategies for the Kimberley Schools Project in the north of Western Australia in regional and remote community schools as well as the Catholic Archdioceses of Adelaide, Broken Bay, Canberra-Goulburn, Melbourne and Tasmania. In 2024, Lorraine was inaugurated into the Western Australian Women’s Hall of Fame for her work teaching evidence-based reading instruction in schools and at Edith Cowan University.

Sentences are the building blocks of writing and ‘short writing daily, long writing seldom’ has proven to be a highly effective strategy for developing students’ skills in a range of settings in Australian schools. Taking less than 30 minutes per day and combining Tier 2 vocabulary words (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2013) with sentence level writing from The Writing Revolution (Hochman & Wexler, 2024), this session will show how to plan and teach sentence level writing effectively and efficiently using explicit instructional routines.

On Hollis Scarborough's famous infographic, she describes skillful reading as "the fluent execution and coordination of word recognition and text comprehension". This is the goal we have for all our students, but as every practitioner knows, many students struggle to successfully "weave" together the multiple linguistic elements of language comprehension and word recognition to achieve fluent reading. This practical session, presented by two colleagues who support teachers serving diverse learners in two different countries (U.S. and Australia), will focus on defining reading fluency across the grades and identify a process for teachers wondering where to start assessing and intervening with multilingual readers and those with dyslexia. This presentation will feature videos and audio clips of students reading which will be discussed. 

A native of historic Selma, Alabama, Krystal Allen is the Founder & CEO of K. Allen Consulting™, an award-winning former teacher and principal, respected organizational leadership and DEI thought leader, and best-selling author of "What Goes Unspoken: How School Leaders Address DEI Beyond Race". Krystal began her career teaching elementary school, then moving into instructional leadership as an administrator, and in 2017, became a social entrepreneur founding what has become a highly sought after global education and management consulting firm serving over 8 countries; major corporate brands, such as Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft; school systems, nonprofits, and government agencies. Most recently featured within Time Magazine for her thought leadership on racial bias with K-12 classrooms, she was named one of the 2024 top five Education Change-makers within the state of Louisiana, is a 2019 Gambit 40 Under 40 recipient, a 2019 Aspen Institute Ideas Festival Scholar, the 2016 Urban League of Louisiana Activist Award recipient; was named one of the 2022 Most Influential Women in Business in Louisiana by the BRM Regional Chamber of Commerce, and serves on the Board of Directors for several national and state nonprofit organizations that advance educational equity. A first-generation college graduate, Krystal holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, M.Ed. from NLU (Chicago), and pursued doctoral studies at Teachers College, Columbia University. 

From the growing emergence of Al (Artificial Intelligence) to matters of staff retention to funding challenges to cuts in DEI efforts and initiatives, leaders from governing boards to C Suite executives to nonprofit executive directors to middle leaders and managers are faced with a tremendous volume of challenges to solve for. Each challenge presents its own unique and often existential questions for organization's short and long term future, particularly the need to determine how it can either programmatically or holistically as an organization drive sustainability in the work it does, an edge of competitiveness in its unique value proposition with its local, regional, or national landscape; as well as relevance to schools, educators, families, donors, and other key stakeholders constantly making decisions about who can best serve them and support their needs. This training provides practical strategies and key insights to leaders and managers, regardless of organizational type, to help them increase effectiveness, nurture organizational resilience no matter what the policy, funding, or programmatic context faces; and maintain relevance to the communities it seeks to serve. 

Dr. Rebecca G. Harper is a Professor of Language and Literacy in the College of Education and Human Development at Augusta University where she teaches courses in literacy, qualitative research, and curriculum, and serves as the EdD program director.  Her research focuses on writing and critical literacy, and the ways in which authentic literacy can foster engagement, agency, and empathy in students. She is the Director of the Augusta University Writing Project and the author of Content Area Writing that Rocks (and Works)!, Write Now and Write On: 37 Strategies for Authentic Daily Writing in Every Content Area, Writing Workouts: Strategies to Build Students’ Writing Skills, Stamina, and Success, Literacy Practice in Sports and Coaching: Developing Literacy Competencies in Interdisciplinary Environments, and Write From the Beginning: 42 Joyful Lessons to Foster Skilled Writers Every Day. 

Is writing something you love to teach or dread? Love it or hate it, writing is a necessity in education, regardless of the subject area. This workshop will explore how writing can be taught effectively through several venues including rap music, post it notes, commercials, peacock feathers, props, sports programing and social media. Learn how to effectively teach writing and have fun too! 

Andrea Harrell, M.Ed, is a Literacy & Learning Specialist at The Center for Literacy & Learning. She has served in the educational field for over 35 years. As a Literacy Specialist for The Center, she works alongside literacy coaches, administration, and district leaders to ensure students receive high-quality literacy instruction. As a specialist who works in schools and provides professional development, she works to ensure educators are informed and well-trained in evidence-based literacy practices. Her career as an educator includes being a classroom teacher, instructional coach, literacy curriculum coordinator, and building administrator. Mrs. Harrell holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Mississippi State University. Nearly 21 years later, she was eager to further her education because of the literacy crisis she witnessed in her classroom. This led her to pursue National Board Certification in Early and Middle Childhood Reading and Language Arts. She received her master's degree in Educational Leadership from Arkansas State University soon after. She is passionate about her work because she believes everyone deserves the right to read. 

This comprehensive session will equip educators with the knowledge and tools to effectively implement tiered instruction, focusing on the critical distinctions between Tier 1 and Tier 2 support. Participants will gain insights into leveraging data for instructional decision-making and explore the features of DIBELS subtests to enhance both Tier 1 and Tier 2 instruction. For early grades, we'll focus on the role of syntax in reading development, best practices for teaching foundational literacy skills, and strategies for integrating syntax instruction into daily lessons. For intermediate grades, we'll explore evidence-based practices for developing reading fluency, techniques for integrating fluency instruction with comprehension, and strategies for differentiated fluency instruction in Tier 1 and Tier 2 settings. This session will provide educators with a comprehensive understanding of tiered instruction, data-driven practices, and grade-specific strategies to enhance literacy instruction across all tiers of support. 

Jan Hasbrouck, Ph.D. is an award-winning researcher, educational consultant, and author who works with schools and agencies in the U.S. and internationally. Dr. Hasbrouck worked as a reading specialist and literacy coach for 15 years and later became a professor. Her research in reading fluency, academic assessment and interventions, and instructional coaching has been widely published. She is the author, coauthor, and co-editor of several books along with some assessment tools. She continues to collaborate with researchers and school colleagues on projects related to reading interventions, assessment, and instructional coaching. She enjoys volunteering at her grandson’s K-8 school in Seattle. 

These days the curriculum-based measure (CBM) of oral reading fluency (ORF) is widely used in schools across the world. Most schools are using one of the several commercial versions of ORF measures available today, including DIBELS 8th Edition from the U of Oregon, Acadience/mCLASS, easyCBM, AIMSweb, FAST Bridge, or iStation, etc. But what do these ORF assessments actually measure? Why are we relying so much on a 60 second measure of oral fluency on unpracticed text? Is this really fair?  And shouldn't we really be assessing our students' comprehension? This session, presented by an expert in reading fluency and curriculum-based measurement, will answer all these questions so that educators will be empowered to collect the right amount data, using the right assessment tools, and at the end of the day, be able to accurately and efficiently use the data to make the best decisions about our students' instruction and intervention. 

On Hollis Scarborough's famous infographic, she describes skillful reading as "the fluent execution and coordination of word recognition and text comprehension". This is the goal we have for all our students, but as every practitioner knows, many students struggle to successfully "weave" together the multiple linguistic elements of language comprehension and word recognition to achieve fluent reading. This practical session, presented by two colleagues who support teachers serving diverse learners in two different countries (U.S. and Australia), will focus on defining reading fluency across the grades and identify a process for teachers wondering where to start assessing and intervening with multilingual readers and those with dyslexia. This presentation will feature videos and audio clips of students reading which will be discussed. 

Jennifer Hasser, M.Ed., is an internationally recognized speaker, trainer, and educational consultant in the fields of literacy and dyslexia. She is the founder and Executive Director of Kendore Learning, which provides literacy training, curriculum, and materials to educators. Jennifer’s passion for education began in the high school behavior disorder classroom, where she was awarded Special Education Teacher of the Year. Her ongoing interest in the literacy challenges facing schools led to the design, development, and implementation of comprehensive programs for public schools. Her training program and curricula are accredited by the International Multisensory Structured Language Education Council (IMSLEC) and the International Dyslexia Association. Jennifer is also the founder of Syllables Learning Center and the Kendore Cares Foundation, organizations that have helped thousands of struggling readers across the globe. 

Teaching can often feel like a juggling act, especially when we need to address phonics, spelling, vocabulary, grammar, comprehension, and manage behavior all in one lesson! Discover how slight adjustments to instructional methods can leverage the science behind how students learn best and produce remarkable results. Teaching becomes easier when we highlight the connections between spelling, sound, and word meaning with strategies that capitalize on memory and metacognition research. Participants will learn engaging activities that reduce the need for rote memorization and can be used with students of any age to pave the way to vocabulary success. 

Nancy Hennessy is an experienced teacher and administrator who currently works as a literacy consultant. While in public schools, she provided leadership for innovative programming for special need students and professional learning for all educators. Nancy has designed and delivered keynote addresses and multiple virtual and live professional learning events including workshops, podcasts, and training courses on the science of reading, dyslexia & structured literacy. Most recently, reading comprehension has been her focus. She is the author of the book, The Reading Comprehension Blueprint: Helping Students Make Meaning of Text and recently, co-authored a companion text with Julia Salamone, The Reading Comprehension Activity Book: A Practice & Planning Guide for Teachers. Nancy has also written the chapter, Working with Word Meaning: Vocabulary Instruction, in Multisensory Teaching of Basic Skills (4th edition). While serving as a national trainer for Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling, she co-authored LETRS, Digging for Meaning: Teaching Text Comprehension (2nd edition) with Louisa Moats. She is a past president of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) and has served as the vice-president of the North Carolina Branch of IDA. In 2011, Nancy received the International Dyslexia Association’s Margaret Byrd Rawson Lifetime Achievement Award. She was recently honored with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s 2023 Impact Award. Nancy believes we are the sum of all our teachers and that learning is our work. 

Similar to comprehension, knowledge is complex- the sum of all that we have learned and experienced. It is both the result of and vehicle for building deep comprehension.  An informed instructional framework recognizes the connection between multiple sources including linguistic, cultural, text, domain/content and conceptual knowledge and the necessary skills for making meaning. We will surface these connections and their contributions to reading comprehension. Then, take time to delve purposefully into the why, what, and how of developing text structure and content/background knowledge. Our understanding of necessary knowledge sources and related skills is critical to delivering instruction that supports all our students' ability to learn from text reading. 

Dr. Elfrieda “Freddy” Hiebert (Ph.D., U. of Wisconsin-Madison) is the President and CEO of TextProject, a non-profit that provides open-access resources for instruction of beginning and struggling readers. Freddy has had a long career as a literacy educator, first as a teacher of primary-level students in California and, subsequently, as a teacher educator and researcher at the Universities of Kentucky, Colorado-Boulder, Michigan, and California-Berkeley. Her research, which addresses how fluency, vocabulary, and knowledge can be fostered through appropriate texts, has been published in numerous scholarly journals and books. Through documents such as Becoming a Nation of Readers (Center for the Study of Reading, 1985) and Every Child a Reader (Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement, 1999), she has contributed to making research accessible to educators. Freddy’s contributions to research and practice have been recognized through awards such as the Oscar Causey Award for Outstanding Contributions to Reading Research (Literacy Research Association, 2015), Research to Practice award (American Educational Research Association, 2013), William S. Gray Citation of Merit Award for Outstanding Contributions to Reading Research (International Reading Association, 2008), and membership in the Reading Hall of Fame (2008). 

All languages have underlying systems that influence the ease of reading acquisition. In the case of English, both its spelling system (orthography) and meaning systems (morphology) have unique features that require consideration in teaching students to read and write. This presentation will provide a framework for the spelling and meaning systems of English and for the tasks and texts that support students in success as readers and writers. 

This presentation will address the potential of AI to support higher levels of vocabulary learning.  AI has made available tools that can analyze large amounts of language data to identify word features affecting student learning, such as morphology, exposure age, abstraction, and frequency. These insights can help educators and curriculum designers select target words and 

texts more effectively. Leveraging AI-generated insights has the potential to enhance vocabulary acquisition across all grades and subjects, revolutionizing word learning in education. 

Michael Hunter, M.Ed., is a founding partner of Readsters, a small company dedicated to supporting and developing excellent reading instruction, so all students learn to read. Michael found his passion for teaching struggling readers as a volunteer teaching adult nonreaders. He is now dedicated to helping teachers teach every student to read. Michael has co-authored instructional materials with his business partner, Linda Farrell, including Phonics Plug-In ONE & TWO, Practice Packets for Fixing Common Confusions, and Teaching Vowel Sounds. Michael delivers professional development and advises schools nationally. Some of his favorite work with schools includes coaching and modeling in the classroom. This work with students and teachers keeps Michael’s skills fresh. This work also continues to inform the creation of additional instructional materials for beginning and struggling readers of all ages. Michael’s work at Readsters has even taken him to Africa to consult on early reading instruction in tribal languages. 

Fluency programs are often considered the “solution” for struggling readers. This interactive session examines underlying skills necessary for fluent reading along with three critical parts of fluency: accuracy, rate, and prosody. It provides a simple research-based framework for determining which students need fluency, developing instruction to meet individual needs, and assessing growth. The new method includes focusing on accuracy before turning to rate.  It also is effective at getting students to read with appropriate accuracy and rate the first time they attempt a passage.  Participants receive tracking charts based on the three-part framework for fluency instruction. 

Pam Kastner, Ed.D., is an educational consultant and the former state lead for literacy in Pennsylvania at the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) Harrisburg. Currently, Dr. Kastner is honored to serve as a contributing faculty member at Mount Saint Joseph University in the Reading Science Program where she teaches in the Masters’ and Doctoral Program and was honored as the Adjunct Professor of the Year in 2023. Dr. Kastner has presented widely across the United States and internationally. She partners with State Departments of Education and school districts throughout the nation to provide on-site technical assistance, consultation and coaching.  Dr. Kastner serves on the Pennsylvania Literacy Coalition and has the honor of serving as the President of The Reading League Pennsylvania, The Reading League Journal’s Practitioner Editorial Board, and is a member of The Science of Reading: A Defining Movement coalition.

Discover effective strategies for implementing Structured Literacy (SL) practices in intermediate grades to ensure all students access high-quality complex texts. This presentation highlights essential shifts in literacy instruction, such as replacing round-robin reading with more engaging alternatives, fostering effective vocabulary routines, and promoting comprehension through GIST statement writing. This session empowers teachers with the competence and expertise required for deeper text comprehension. 

Devin M. Kearns, Ph.D. is Goodnight Distinguished Professor in Early Literacy at North Carolina State University at Raleigh. He is also a research scientist for the Haskins Global Literacy Hub affiliated with Yale University and the University of Connecticut. Devin studies how students in the elementary grades learn to read and designs instructional programs to better meet the needs of these students. He conducts research to understand the cognitive and neurobiological basis of reading and to help schools better implement multi-tiered systems of support to increase the literacy success of all students. He also works with teachers, school administrators, and district leaders to improve implementation of multi-tiered systems of support for readers in the early and later grades. Devin has seven years of classroom experience as a teacher, literacy coach, and reading specialist. He continues to help schools and districts implement high-quality reading instruction—including demonstrating how to implement evidence-based reading instruction. Devin publishes articles for researchers and educators on reading difficulty and helps schools and districts implement high-quality reading instruction. 

Are your students learning to read—or are they learning about reading? Many of us wonder what students need to know and what teachers need to know, and the line can get very blurry. What do students need to know about … the origins of letter patterns? mouth shapes for pronunciations? syllable structure? the magic-E rule? In striving for thoroughness, educators sometimes share insights about the English language with students. Some information, while valuable for teachers to know, will not improve students’ reading skills and may even create confusion. This presentation clarifies the line between essential reading skills and complex reading knowledge intended only for teachers. You’ll leave with guiding principles to help you determine what to teach and what to save for yourself and share with colleagues. 

As district-wide adoptions of foundational reading programs (often referred to as “high-quality instructional materials” or “HQIM”) continue to transform K-2 Tier 1 foundational reading instruction, many schools and teachers are still grappling with how to meet the needs of all students. Despite the evident value of using HQIM in Tier 1, this has created some problems for implementing Tier 2. Many educators are now unsure how to design an effective Tier 2 system. Some have implemented separate, scripted Tier 2 programs, others are using Tier 1 materials for Tier 2 instruction, and many leave Tier 2 up to classroom teachers. Alignment between Tier 1 and Tier 2 increases the success of students who need additional reading support, but this is not easily achieved. In this session, we describe ways to improve Tier 2 instruction to keep it aligned with evidence-based practices and better align it with Tier 1. We will explore a simple tool that leaders can use to change their Tier 2 system. 

Kari Kurto is the National Science of Reading Project Director at The Reading League. She directs all work related to The Reading League Compass, the Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines, and the Curriculum Navigation Reports. She also leads work to support English Learners and Emergent Bilingual students and runs several communities of practice. Kari is a Path Forward advisory group member and has presented to schools, districts, professional organizations, and state education departments, and she also works as an adjunct professor at Rhode Island College. She formerly worked as a Literacy Specialist at the Rhode Island Department of Education, leading statewide efforts to implement the Rhode Island Right to Read Act. Kari is an Orton Gillingham practitioner who worked at Middlebridge School in Narragansett, Rhode Island, and Rawson Saunders School in Austin, Texas. Before her career in education, Kari worked as a Casting Director in Los Angeles. She and her three wonderful children live in southern Rhode Island. 

Curriculum decision makers frequently ask, "Does my curriculum align with the science of reading?" While many publishers assert that their products are evidence-aligned, how can we verify this claim? The Reading League has been developing resources to assist schools and districts in addressing these inquiries both for K-5 Tier I curriculum and for adolescent intervention materials. This session will outline the Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines (CEGs) and Adolescent Reading Intervention Evaluation Guidelines for Grades 4-12, commencing with a description of the extensive research foundation and proceeding to identify both aligned and "red-flag" practices drawn directly from the research. Participants will also learn how to utilize The Reading League's Curriculum Navigation Reports to assess the extent to which their instructional materials address each component of the CEGs, ensuring that students receive evidence-aligned instruction across all aspects of language and literacy. 

This presentation examines key features of African American English (AAE) and examines variations in sociocultural practices. Learners identify strategies to differentiate between typical and atypical AAE linguistic patterns across phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. The presenters will explore the strong link between language and literacy development, specifically as it relates to evidence-aligned assessment practices, by examining sample assessment questions to note areas of disconnect. This presentation will support educators, reading specialists, and speech-language pathologists in promoting equitable assessment, intervention (where appropriate), and instruction for AAE-speaking students thereby mitigating the misidentification of AAE speakers for remedial programs. 

Susan Lambert serves as the Chief Academic Officer for Elementary Humanities at Amplify and is the host of Science of Reading: The Podcast, an award-winning podcast that explores insights into literacy research. With a career spanning various contexts of education—from elementary classroom teacher to district administrator—Susan has worked both nationally and internationally, shaping educational practices and policies. She holds advanced degrees in curriculum and educational policy and is currently completing her doctoral degree in reading science.

Although they are not identical skills, reading and writing are related and highly correlated. While reading is a receptive process and writing is an expressive process, they share similar purposes and require similar knowledge and skills. In this session we explore how reading skills are strengthened through writing instruction and writing skills are strengthened through reading instruction. Integrating reading and writing instruction strengthens students’ literacy abilities by deepening reading comprehension, enhancing written expression, and boosting engagement. 

Dionna Latimer-Hearn received her B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders with a minor in French Studies from Northwestern University. Following the completion of her degree she worked for the French Embassy as an English Instructor in Montargis, France. She completed her M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology at The George Washington University. She completed her Ph.D. with distinction in Educational Leadership at Notre Dame of Maryland University. Dr. Latimer-Hearn has served as a multilingual speech-language pathologist and educational consultant since 2002, holding positions in France, Illinois, Japan, Maryland, and Texas. Through a number of business ventures, she currently works as a public scholar, educational consultant, and continuing education provider in support of educational organizations and corporations globally. She is the founder and director of REACT Initiative, Inc., a nonprofit organization advocating for equity in education. She is the host of The Culture We Speak, a podcast centering cultural-linguistic diversity and education. Dr. Latimer-Hearn is also the founder and administrator of the Respect the Dialect online community, a platform established to raise awareness about African American English. Her research and advocacy work have earned her prestigious accolades from a number of organizations including the World Education Research Association, the American Educational Research Association, and the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing. For more information or to connect please visit www.dlhearn.net or linktr.ee/dlhearn 

This presentation examines key features of African American English (AAE) and examines variations in sociocultural practices. Learners identify strategies to differentiate between typical and atypical AAE linguistic patterns across phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. The presenters will explore the strong link between language and literacy development, specifically as it relates to evidence-aligned assessment practices, by examining sample assessment questions to note areas of disconnect. This presentation will support educators, reading specialists, and speech-language pathologists in promoting equitable assessment, intervention (where appropriate), and instruction for AAE-speaking students thereby mitigating the misidentification of AAE speakers for remedial programs. 

 

Megan Lorio is the Managing Editor at Family Engagement Lab, a national nonprofit dedicated to fostering equitable family engagement and supporting student learning outcomes by bridging classroom curriculum and at-home learning. She leads content strategy and development for FASTalk, Family Engagement Lab’s family engagement solution. Megan began her career as a Kindergarten teacher in public and charter schools in Washington, D.C. and New York City. After relocating to New Orleans, she became a founding Kindergarten teacher at Bricolage Academy, a charter school focused on advancing educational equity and fostering innovation. She later transitioned to administration, providing PreK-5 teachers with literacy and curriculum support. Megan is deeply passionate about creating meaningful learning opportunities for students and families and is excited to further this mission through her work at Family Engagement Lab. 

In this interactive session for educators and leaders, participants will explore high-impact, equitable, and actionable strategies that families can use to support literacy learning outside the classroom. By focusing on evidence-based practices for collaborating with families, attendees will gain tools to make a meaningful impact on wide-ranging literacy outcomes. This session highlights effective family engagement practices that foster inclusive communication to build authentic partnerships between teachers and families. Through group discussion and guided reflection, participants will evaluate their current practices and consider the specific needs of families in their communities. Participants will use an action planning tool to develop or refine their own family engagement action plans—identifying key, evidence-based strategies that promote equity, access, and sustainable impact on literacy development. Attendees will leave with actionable plans to advance their family engagement work in ways that help scale and sustain efforts to support every student's literacy journey. 

Born in Savannah, Georgia and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Manbo Dr. Kahdeidra Monét Martin is a priestess of Haitian Vodou and a transdisciplinary scholar of language and literacy. Dr. Martin uses critical race and community-based participatory methods to examine raciolinguistics and religious racism in schools. Dr. Martin is an Assistant Professor of Education at Vassar College, where she teaches courses on adolescent literacy, multilingualism and linguistic variation, and developing Africana religious literacy curricula. She received a B.A. in African & African American Studies with a minor in Linguistics from Stanford University and an M.S.Ed. in Teaching Urban Adolescents with Disabilities, from Long Island University. Dr. Martin earned a Ph.D. in Urban Education from The Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and her narrative case study on Black students in independent schools received the 2022 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Qualitative Research SIG of the American Educational Research Association. With Dr. Melissa Schieble and Dr. Amy Vetter, Dr. Martin co-authored Classroom Talk for Social Change: Critical Conversations in English Language Arts (Teachers College Press, 2020), which received a 2021 Divergent Book Award for Excellence in 21st Century Literacies Research. 

While the science of reading discourse has reignited discussions on teaching strategies to support word study and reading comprehension, secondary school teachers often struggle to facilitate effective classroom discussions, particularly on controversial “real world” topics. These hot button topics emerge from virtually everywhere–young adult literature, historical documents, social media, and the home environment. Contrary to emerging trends, Socratic seminars and structured debates are often not the best strategy for holding such discussions. In this workshop, participants will learn a research-based framework for facilitating critical conversations, best practices for preparing for conversations, and families of specific “critical talk moves” to include diverse perspectives and address issues of power and privilege.

Daryl Michel, PhD, consults with organizations nationally and internationally in areas such as instructional coaching, teacher education, disciplinary literacy, learning and lesson study, and curriculum design. He is the founder of Be A Change, LLC, and coauthor of Student-Focused Coaching: The Instructional Coach’s Guide to Supporting Student Success Through Teacher Collaboration (Brookes Publishing, 2022). In addition to his educational consulting, he serves as a project manager for The University of Texas at Austin’s Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk consulting with districts to develop systemwide Multi-tiered System of Supports. Daryl began his career in the education profession nearly three decades ago and, today, continues to follow his passion of learning with and from others and advocating for voices and perspectives to be heard. 

If you work in a school/district that feels like initiative or innovation overload, you are not alone. The fatigue is real! Thus, prioritization is essential! Reeves (2011) concluded that when "focus is combined with other variables--such as effective monitoring, professional learning, assessment, and feedback-then student achievement gains are five times greater than when a failure to focus prevents successful teaching and learning" (p. 4). The Collaborative Problem-Solving Process, described by Hasbrouck and Michel (2022), is a process that grounds decision-making (i.e., academic, behavioral, social-emotional) using student data and results in streamlined efforts. You'll leave with an understanding of the process, including practical examples of how sample sets of student data can lead to a problem definition, systemwide goal(s), and actions for sustained professional learning, lesson study research cycles, principal monitoring, and more. 

Join Dr. Daryl Michel and Dawn Brookhart for an engaging and transformative session that will challenge traditional leadership roles and reveal how instructional leaders can be the key to creating the conditions for system-wide success. In today's complex educational landscape, leaders must do more than simply model expectations—they must actively shape an environment where teaching and learning can thrive. Drawing on Fullan's (2014) leadership principles, Daryl and Dawn will explore how effective instructional leaders go beyond top-down management by modeling their own learning while fostering collaboration, providing resources, and supporting ongoing growth. By embracing a coaching approach instead of a directive one, leaders can empower educators, promote shared leadership, and drive continuous improvement across their schools. This session will equip you with practical, actionable strategies to create a culture of growth, inspire innovation, and align leadership efforts with systemic success. You'll leave with tools to move away from traditional management practices and instead lead through coaching and empowerment, ensuring that every educator has the support needed to succeed. If you are ready to rethink your leadership approach and create the conditions for transformative change in your school, this session is for you. 

Katharine Pace Miles, Ph.D. is an associate professor and the Director of the Advanced Certificates in Reading Science at Brooklyn College, City University of New York (CUNY). Dr. Mile's research interests include orthographic mapping, high frequency word learning, reading interventions, and literacy instruction that is both developmentally appropriate and grounded in the science of reading. She is the author of Reading Ready and Reading Ready for Whole Phonics, and she is the academic advisor for Reading Go. Dr. Miles is the co-founder and principal investigator of CUNY Reading Corps, which improves preservice teacher training and provides free high-dosage tutoring to over 2,000 historically underserved NYC students per year. Dr. Miles is also the founder and president of The Reading Institute, which brings free evidence-based tutoring to striving readers and provides reading science-aligned professional development to teachers.

Dr. Miles will explain why advancing literacy education must address three critical areas: early identification of learning difficulties, effective interventions, and teacher training. She will explain the complexity of early detection, and she will address inequities in providing timely interventions. Dr. Miles will also address challenges faced by in-service and pre-service teachers, including the need for efficient and practical training amidst the realities of post-COVID education. The presentation will showcase grassroots initiatives that serve as models for scalable solutions for broader application. 

Unlock the power of collaboration in literacy education with this dynamic session on coaching all stakeholders—teachers, parents, and administrators—to teach high-frequency words effectively. Grounded in the science of reading, this presentation will explore how cognitive principles like orthographic mapping, retrieval practice, and multisensory engagement can transform instruction. Attendees will gain actionable strategies, evidence-based tools, and a clear roadmap for fostering student success through targeted coaching practices in HFW instruction. Whether you're an educator, a parent, or a leader, you'll leave with the knowledge and confidence to champion high-frequency word instruction and empower young readers. 

Molly Ness is a former classroom teacher, a reading researcher, and a teacher educator. She earned a doctorate in reading education at the University of Virginia and spent 16 years as an associate professor at Fordham University in New York City. The author of five books, Molly served on the Board of Directors for the International Literacy Association and is a New York state chapter founder of the Reading League. Dr. Ness has extensive experience in reading clinics, consulting with school districts, leading professional development, and advising school systems on research-based reading instruction. She provided literacy leadership for nationally recognized literacy non-profits, as well as major educational publishers. 

What is the role of read alouds in the science of reading? What does the most current research show about the linguistic, socioemotional, academic, and even physiological benefits of read alouds? Based on Dr. Ness’s 2023 book Read Alouds for All Learners, we focus on maximizing the potential of read alouds across the content areas, by exploring funds of knowledge, building expressive and receptive vocabulary, and thinking aloud to build comprehension. Join this session to learn an explicit planning process to maximize the instructional benefits of read alouds in all content areas in K-8 classrooms.

For 28 years, Dr. Terrie Noland, CALP, has put her energy into leadership and literacy; first as a teacher and administrator and as a national non-profit literacy leader. Terrie coaches and mentors leaders about the urgent need to align all practices and resources to an evidence-based approach to literacy. Recognized as a national thought leader and an award-winning podcaster with a focus on building a community of literacy champions, Terrie speaks to crowds to hear captivating stories, leadership principles, research, and best practices in literacy, which she always delivers with humor and inspiration. She has extensive experience working with state departments, regional education service providers, and local LEAs to build the framework for evidence-based instruction that needs to be delivered with clear leadership principles. Terrie is a Certified Academic Language Practitioner and has a Ph.D. in Literacy and Educational Leadership. 

Literacy leadership isn’t just about following a convenient path—it's about carving out the high road, where integrity, innovation, and personal growth collide to create lasting change in yourself and in others. In this provocative session, we’ll explore what it truly means to lead literacy on the high road; the road that is often less traveled.  High Road Literacy Leadership is all about growing, listening to others, relying on evidence, exposing vulnerability, confronting data, and raising leaders around you. This session will dive into how to disrupt the status quo and elevate every learner. If you’re ready to lead with courage, vision, and purpose, join us as we follow the path of many schools and districts that have been traveling down the high road! 

Tim Odegard is a Professor of Psychology and holds the Katherine Davis Murfree Chair of Excellence in Dyslexic Studies at Middle Tennessee State University, where he leads the Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia. Dr. Odegard plays a pivotal role in advancing the Science of Reading and currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Annals of Dyslexia and consulting editor for the Journal of Learning Disabilities. He is also a former editor at large for Perspectives on Language and Literacy. As a contributing author to the IDA’s Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading, he has helped shape educational standards in literacy. Additionally, he has served as Vice President of the Texas Dyslexia Licensure Advisory Committee and contributed to the IDA’s Educational Training Initiative. Dr. Odegard’s commitment to enhancing educational opportunities extends beyond dyslexia to broader literacy efforts across North America. His service includes technical consulting for multiple state literacy initiatives, developing online training for state departments of education, and supporting large U.S. school districts. He is a California Reading Difficulties Risk Selection Panel member and serves on the intervention selection committee for Ontario, Canada. He also serves on advisory boards for nonprofit organizations that impact communities nationwide. His numerous accolades include the AIM Institute Founder's Award, the Innovator Award from IMSLEC, ALTA’s Luke Waits Service Award, the Massey-Sexton Dyslexia Advocacy Award from the Tennessee IDA, the Roland H. Waters Teaching Award from the University of Arkansas, and the Research Excellence Award from the University of Texas, Arlington. 

Literacy struggles extend beyond academic achievement, significantly shaping mental health outcomes. Drawing on Kellam’s developmental epidemiological framework, this presentation examines how reading and literacy difficulties contribute to causal pathways leading to mental health challenges. Research highlights that these struggles are not limited to individuals with dyslexia or learning disabilities; instead, they have broader implications for all students facing literacy challenges. Moreover, students with disabilities often experience compounding risk factors that further impact their mental well-being. This session offers attendees a deeper understanding of the intricate relationship between literacy and mental health, emphasizing the importance of early identification, targeted literacy intervention, and systemic support in mitigating these challenges and fostering well-being. 

Melissa Orkin, Ph.D. is a developmental psychologist who specializes in literacy development and supporting the academic and emotional needs of students with learning disabilities including dyslexia. Melissa has served as an educator, researcher, and program director at the Tufts' Center for Reading and Language Research. Dr. Orkin instructs on learning disabilities and reading instruction at Tufts University and contributes to publications on a variety of developmental and executive function skills. Currently, Melissa is a director of the educational consulting group, Crafting Minds, and collaborates with educators across New England as they support a variety of reading needs. 

This presentation integrates best practices from the research on bilingual reading development with practical small group structured literacy routines. Each small group routine is designed to accompany an appropriate text. Over the last decade, there has been consistent empirical support from the fields of both literacy development and language development, for the use of structured literacy instruction with students developing English language skills. Integrating structured literacy and language development into a cohesive small group lesson is challenging and remains one of the barriers to implementation. This workshop features a cohesive backwards planning approach that participants can use with any decodable text to plan a small group, structured literacy routine for multilingual learners. Each lesson plan features six empirically supported strategies that simultaneously develop oral and written language skills. Strategies focus on 1) articulation of English sounds and highlighting cognates 2) combining phonemic awareness and basic vocabulary development 3) enhancing expressions through knowledge of multiple meaning words 4) supporting the development of morphology and parts of speech 5) applying all aspects of word knowledge to connected text, and 6) developing passage comprehension through analytic and generative instruction. In isolation, these six high-leverage practices support translanguaging, literacy engagement, and ensure culturally supportive pedagogy. When they are woven together into a cohesive lesson plan, they streamline instruction and enhance overall language achievement.

Nicole Ormandy, M.S. Ed. is the Head of Research and Product Development at AIM Institute for Learning and Research, where she is responsible for designing professional learning solutions centered around reading, writing, and inclusive practices for culturally and linguistically diverse populations. In consultation with researchers and literacy experts across the nation, Nicole synthesizes and disseminates research, practical classroom practices, and evidence-based strategies through presentations and online course content. Nicole was previously an Elementary and Special Education teacher. She received a Master of Science in Special Education and a CERI Structured Literacy Classroom Teacher certificate. 

Teaching writing can feel overwhelming without a clear starting point, but just as we assess reading to understand readers' needs, a similar diagnostic and prescriptive approach should pave the way for writing instruction. However, assessing writing poses unique challenges, making it difficult for teachers to track students' growth and make informed instructional decisions. This session will explore writing assessment tools that are simple, efficient, curriculum-aligned, easy to interpret, free, and accessible to students, parents, and educators alike. Curriculum-based measurements (CBM) provide a pulse on writing performance and students' needs in comparison to their peers, while writing microstructure rubrics offer insight into foundational skills like syntax, word choice, mechanics, and spelling. Inclusive assessment practices that honor bilingual and bidialectal students' strengths will be incorporated, so that the information gleaned is accurate and supportive of all learners. Equipped with proper assessment data, teachers can create strategic groupings and provide targeted support to strengthen all students’ writing skills. 

Dr. Lucy Hart Paulson, Ed.D., CCC-SLP, is an author and literacy specialist with the mission of bringing research to practice. She is also a speech-language pathologist with many years of experience working with educators and with young children and their families in a wide range of educational settings. In addition, Lucy was an associate professor teaching and conducting research in the areas of language and literacy development and disorders. She provides professional development using a broad-based perspective blending areas of language and literacy together resulting in effective, appropriate, and engaging language-based literacy instruction and intervention for all children. Finally, Lucy is the co-author of the Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) for Early Childhood Educators, 2nd Edition and also for Good Talking Words, 2nd Edition, a social communication skills program for young children. 

Across the country, early childhood educators are increasingly concerned with the number of children who display speech and language delays. We are well aware of the powerful connection between the way young children learn to talk and subsequently learn to read and write. Language foundations are not only vital for literacy learning, but they are also integrally connected to cognitive growth, social-emotional learning, and executive function development. Join this session for practical strategies early childhood educators may use to enhance speech production, language expression, and social communication for the young children in their care. 

Carolin Maney Purser, PhD., is the Vice President of Strategy at The Center for Literacy & Learning, where she leads internal evaluation, external research collaboration, strategic community partnership building, and federal grant writing. Since October 2023, she also leads the evaluation of the Louisiana Statewide Family Engagement Center. In her evaluation efforts, she collaborates with staff, stakeholders, and collaborative partners in designing, executing, analyzing, and reporting quantitative and qualitative data. She has utilized her research and evaluation to document ongoing progress, effectiveness, and support the improvement of current and new programs at The Center. Dr. Purser has expertise in frequentist, Bayesian, and qualitative research methods. Prior to working at The Center, she worked on data and evaluation projects addressing housing disparities in Louisiana, mental health access in public schools, substance abuse prevention and treatment, and workforce training. These projects involved collaboration with multidisciplinary researchers, practitioners, and government agencies. Her work in grant-funded and collaborative applied research projects has helped her maximize rigor of the design, data collection, and analysis in all research and evaluation endeavors, while being mindful of the resources and limitations. 

This session, ideal for all literacy coaches, state-, district- and school-level leaders, focuses on steps that the different actors in the system can take now to improve planning, implementation, and outcomes from literacy-focused professional development. The session draws on lessons learned from implementing and evaluating Louisiana’s Literacy Coach Program (LCP) as well as the larger body of implementation science and literacy-focused job-embedded training. Dr. Purser will discuss what the broader research says about the design and effects of such ongoing job-embedded trainings for educators, schools, and students, and some factors that determine whether a school or school district achieves the expected outcomes of evidence-based and evidence-informed practices. She will then discuss the evolution of the job-embedded coaching model in Louisiana. The speaker will briefly review the findings from the process and outcome evaluations of the Literacy Coach Program delivered through The Center for Literacy & Learning in the state of Louisiana. She will then dig into actionable recommendations for schools, school districts, state agencies, and researchers in developing, implementing, sustaining, and monitoring ongoing literacy coaching services both based on the larger body of research and the local evaluation findings. Come to this session ready to collectively rethink small and big changes at the multiple layers of your system (whether state, school district, or school) to attain the intended positive effects of your literacy (and other) professional training offerings! 

Amy Rhyne currently serves as the Office of Early Learning Senior Director at NC Department of Public Instruction. She has been an educator for over 28 years, serving in various roles including K-12 Director of Academic Support for Stanly County Schools, and School Administrator for 15 years in Iredell-Statesville Schools, where she successfully led the restructuring and turnaround of two low-performing Title I Schools. Prior to administration, she served as an Instructional Coach and elementary school teacher. She received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from Appalachian State University, Master's degree in K-12 School Administration from Gardner-Webb University, Educational Specialist degree at Appalachian State University and participated in Appalachian State University's Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership. Additionally, Mrs. Rhyne served as the 2017-18 NC Southwest Regional Principal of the Year and co-authored a book for practicing educators entitled, How is that BEST for KIDS? Shifting School Culture with Personalized Learning. Mrs. Rhyne currently serves as a board member with NC Partnership for Children and The Reading League North Carolina Chapter. 

Brian Tracy states, “If you want to sail your ship in a different direction, you must turn one degree at a time.” In 2021, North Carolina enacted the Excellent Public Schools Act. This act was an update to prior literacy legislation enacted in 2014. This 2021 modified legislation included a comprehensive statewide approach to tackling the stagnant literacy data that had existed for over a decade in North Carolina. While comprehensive legislation with aligned funding is the first step toward success, North Carolina recognized the need to develop intentional short- and long-term action plans to ensure ongoing sustainability that focused on shifting systems at the state and local levels, overcoming the barriers of local control. Respecting the diversity and uniqueness of districts, schools and classrooms, the Office of Early Learning provided a comprehensive self-reflection tool, which serves as a resource for leaders to examine the overall strengths and opportunities for improvement at the district and school level. This has resulted in strategic coordination and alignment of local literacy systems, as well as data-driven conversations for leaders, teachers, and support staff to establish manageable goals and action steps within a comprehensive literacy system. The framework includes a learning walk protocol that can be used as needed by designated stakeholders to support overall engagement and continuous improvement with literacy processes. Join North Carolina state literacy leaders as they share the comprehensive systems and strategic coordination that have yielded positive outcomes from state to student. 

With her infectious energy and deep expertise, Dr. Kim Richardson is a powerhouse in educational leadership and coaching. Dr. Kim holds a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) designation from the International Coaching Federation (ICF) and serves as president-elect for the Virginia Learning Forward Board of Directors. She’s also part of the VASCD Annual Conference Planning Committee. Dr. Kim’s talents don’t stop there—she created the Radical Learners course, Coaching for Connection, Certainty, and Autonomy, for Jim Knight’s Instructional Coach Group, and she and her district’s coaching program were even spotlighted in Knight’s book, Focus on Teachers. In her current role, Dr. Kim leads professional learning for school and district teams, digging deep into instruction, coaching, and leadership development. Her work is inspired by her dissertation, where she found that great leaders, especially coaches, are enlisted and developed! Among her many roles, Dr. Kim’s all-time favorite was serving as an Instructional Coaching Coordinator, where she built and led the district’s coaching program from the ground up. This initiative has become a cornerstone of the district’s success, providing ongoing training and leadership for coaches and specialists. Her background also includes experience as an elementary school principal, technology specialist, coach, and classroom teacher. Outside the office, Dr. Kim is all about family time with her husband, three sons, daughter-in-law, and her one-year-old granddaughter. She also gets her groove on every Saturday as a Zumba® fitness instructor, dancing her way to joy and energy! 

In this session, we’ll explore the intricacies of change and examine effective approaches for working with resistance. Participants will gain a clearer understanding of complex change and the root causes of resistance. Leave with strategies to foster trust and actionable skills for addressing it constructively.

This session will help leaders and instructional coaches reflect on help and support them in reframing what it means. Participants will engage in reflection and discussion as we investigate strategies to foster a supportive environment where teachers feel comfortable asking for help. Coaches will practice reframing their language, crafting open-ended questions, and building trust to encourage collaborative problem-solving. 

Ricky Robertson is an educator, author, and consultant who assists schools and districts across the country in developing trauma-informed systems of support that foster resilience and success for staff, students, and families. Ricky’s latest book The Other Teachers: A Guide to Psychological Safety Among Educators (Corwin Press) explores the harmful effects of fear-based leadership, workplace bullying, and collective burnout and provides guidance on how to transform schools to support educators’ well-being and collective efficacy. If you are interested in learning more about trauma-informed teaching, you can visit https://www.adlit.org/trauma-and-teaching for free resources for educators made available through a partnership between Ricky, WETA, AdLit, and the National Education Association. If you would like to contact Ricky, you can reach him through www.teachfortrust.com.

Fear-based leadership, workplace bullying, and collective burnout can create psychologically unsafe work environments that harm educators and impede their ability to support students. Psychological safety is the belief, opportunity, and ability to ask questions, suggest ideas, try new strategies, make mistakes, and challenge the status quo without fear of humiliation, retaliation, or punishment from colleagues. Psychological safety is more than just "being nice," it is built through intentional practices that foster effective collaboration within a healthy school culture. In this session, we will explore key components and best practices to build psychological safety and collective efficacy among educators. 

Dr. Jasmine Rogers is a leading national voice in literacy instruction, specializing in culturally competent approaches to teaching. With nine years of classroom experience in charter and DC Public Schools, she saw firsthand how traditional reading instruction often left Black Language-speaking students behind. Her research at American University’s School of Education challenges long-held misconceptions, showing that when teachers receive even minimal training on Black English, their instruction becomes significantly more effective. A sought-after structured literacy coach, adjunct professor, speaker and consultant, Dr. Rogers blends data-driven research with practical classroom insights. She has been featured as a guest on podcasts, led workshops at teacher conferences, and moderated academic panels. Her work not only helps educators recognize unconscious biases but also equips them to better serve linguistically diverse students. Dr. Rogers' mission is clear- to revolutionize literacy instruction by affirming every student's linguistic heritage. 

This session will dive into Dr. Jasmine Rogers' research on the intersection of the Science of Reading and Black Language, emphasizing the critical role of teachers' responses to Black Language within structured literacy lessons. The purpose of this research was to examine the languages used by teachers and students during literacy sessions, focusing specifically on teacher responses to student use of Black Language. The goal is to foster culturally and linguistically responsive teaching practices within structured literacy frameworks. Drawing from her research and her experience as a coach in the DC Reading Clinic's In Schools program, Dr. Rogers will share linguistically responsive strategies that teachers have successfully implemented. Additionally, she will provide actionable guidance for educators seeking to align their teaching practices with the Science of Reading while effectively supporting Black Language speakers. Participants will gain valuable insights into the development of metalinguistic skills, linguistically responsive pedagogy, and instructional strategies that support foundational literacy skills.

Ms. Salamone is a lifelong learner with over twenty years of experience as an educator in both independent and public schools. Her background is in Special Education and literacy, with credentials that include a Master’s Degree in Special Education from Arcadia University. She currently works as an Instructional Specialist at the Haverford School for Boys where she supports Upper School students in navigating the complexities of reading and writing in the disciplines. Additionally, she consults and collaborates with the teaching faculty to improve student outcomes. Julia has also designed and delivered numerous presentations for virtual and live events, including the development of teacher training courses on dyslexia, the science of reading and writing, and structured literacy. Recently, Ms. Salamone, working alongside literacy expert Nancy Hennessy, has co-authored The Reading Comprehension Blueprint Activity Book: A Practice & Planning Guide for Teachers. Julia’s educational interests include reading comprehension, differentiation, student writing, and teacher empowerment.  She resides with her husband, Scott and daughters, Lena and Mila, in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.

Similar to comprehension, knowledge is complex- the sum of all that we have learned and experienced. It is both the result of and vehicle for building deep comprehension.  An informed instructional framework recognizes the connection between multiple sources including linguistic, cultural, text, domain/content and conceptual knowledge and the necessary skills for making meaning. We will surface these connections and their contributions to reading comprehension. Then, take time to delve purposefully into the why, what, and how of developing text structure and content/background knowledge. Our understanding of necessary knowledge sources and related skills is critical to delivering instruction that supports all our students' ability to learn from text reading. 

Joan Sedita is the founder of Keys to Literacy, a literacy professional development organization based in Massachusetts. Joan has been in the literacy field for over 45 years as a teacher, administrator, and teacher trainer. She is the creator of The Writing Rope framework and has authored multiple literacy professional development programs, including The Key Comprehension Routine, The Key Vocabulary Routine, Keys to Beginning Reading, Keys to Content Writing, Keys to Early Writing, Understanding Dyslexia, and Adolescent Literacy. Beginning in 1975, she worked for 23 years at the Landmark School, a pioneer in the development of literacy intervention programs. As a teacher, principal, and director of the Outreach Teacher Training Program at Landmark, Joan developed expertise, methods, and instructional programs that address the literacy needs of students in grades K-12. Joan was one of the three lead trainers in MA for the Reading First Program and was a LETRS author and trainer. Joan received her M.Ed. in Reading from Harvard University and her B.A. from Boston College. 

Reading and writing share the same cognitive processes and oral language base. This session presents an overview of The Writing Rope model for writing instruction (Sedita, 2019) and emphasizes the importance of integrating reading and writing instruction. The Writing Rope represents multiple components of writing instruction as strands in a rope: 1) Critical Thinking (generating ideas and information, stages of the writing process), 2) Syntax (syntactic awareness, sentence elaboration, punctuation), 3) Text Structure (narrative, informational, opinion; paragraph structure; patterns of organization, 4) Writing Craft (awareness of task, audience, purpose; word choice; literary devices, 5) Transcription (spelling and handwriting fluency). This framework will be compared with Scarborough's Reading Rope (2006). Details about each writing strand will be shared along with suggestions for how instruction for multiple skills and strategies support reading as well as writing ability. 

Rebecca D. Silverman is the Judy Koch Professor of Education at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. A former elementary school teacher, Dr. Silverman’s research focuses on language and literacy development and instruction in early childhood and elementary school. Her work has contributed to the research base on supporting vocabulary and other aspects of language that are critical to reading and writing and using multimedia and educational technology to facilitate literacy. She is currently involved in projects related to language-based instruction for multilingual learners (https://www.clavescurriculum.net/), computer-adaptive assessment of language and literacy skills (https://roar.stanford.edu/), and the effectiveness of a supplemental digital literacy program (https://ies.ed.gov/funding/grantsearch/details.asp?ID=5970). Her research has been published in the Review of Educational Research, Reading Research Quarterly, and The Reading Teacher. She is the current Editor-in-Chief of the Elementary School Journal. She serves on the Board of Directors for the International Literacy Association, and she is affiliated with the Stanford Accelerator for Learning, the Stanford Center on Early Childhood, and she serves on the Steering Committee for the Stanford Haas Center for Public Service. 

EdTech focused on supporting literacy has proliferated in recent years. According to a 2019 Gallup poll, 87% of the pre-K through 12th-grade U.S. public school teachers surveyed indicated that they use educational technology to support student learning every day or a few days a week, but 73% of them noted that there is insufficient information about the effectiveness of these tools for supporting student learning. This session will review evidence from a recent meta-analysis on the effectiveness of EdTech for supporting literacy and provide recommendations for teachers, leaders, and developers on how EdTech can be best used to support reading and writing in elementary school. 

Amy Siracusano, MS Ed., worked in public education for over 20 years before becoming a national literacy consultant. Her career has included working as a classroom teacher, administrator, IEP chairperson, and a system-wide literacy specialist. Amy is a member of Decoding Dyslexia Maryland, the Vice Chair of The Reading League National, and an adjunct professor for the Advanced Certificate in Reading Science post-master's program at Brooklyn College in New York City. She is determined to support national efforts in making sure teachers are equipped with deep knowledge of language systems and teaching approaches to ensure all students leave second grade with proficient reading and writing skills. Amy lives in Southern Maryland with her husband Joe and their two daughters, Lucia (17) and Isabella (15). 

For many educators teaching writing can be overwhelming and scary, but it doesn't have to be when you have the right tools and knowledge.  The Not So Simple View of Writing (Berninger and Winn, 2006) indicates that writing instruction falls into two broad categories: transcription and composition.  This research also suggests that young writers need support with executive functions. In this session participants will leave with (1) practical instructional approaches for both transcription and composition skills, (2) tools to support executive functions, and (3) an approach for scoring student writing that will help pinpoint instructional needs.

Many schools across the nation now require screeners to be given.  Most screeners being used include a measure of oral reading fluency (ORF). The question is, do we know what to do when a student scores below the benchmark on an ORF assessment?  This session will peel back the layers of literacy instruction based on data and informal diagnostic tools to plan instruction for students who are disfluent readers. 

Dominique Smith, EdD, is a principal, social worker, teacher, and mentor. Smith earned his Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California and his doctorate in educational leadership at San Diego State University. He is passionate about creating school cultures than honor student voice and building student and educator confidence and competence. Dr. Smith is a national trainer in restorative practices, classroom management, belonging, leadership, and the culture of achievement. He is the winner of the National School Safety Award from the School Safety Advocacy Council and the co-author of The Restorative Practices Playbook, The Social and Emotional Learning Playbook, Leader Credibility, and How Leadership Works. 

In this session, we will engage in discussion on cultivating a sense of belonging within school environments. Dominique Smith will delve into the 11 dimensions of belonging, including practical strategies and approaches aimed at nurturing inclusive communities where every student feels valued, respected, and empowered to thrive. Drawing from his wealth of experience, he will explore the role of empathy, cultural responsiveness, and community-building efforts in fostering a supportive and welcoming atmosphere. Participants will gain actionable techniques to embark on a journey toward building equitable and affirming school cultures, ultimately enhancing student engagement, academic achievement, and overall well-being. 

Dr. St. Martin is the director of Michigan’s MTSS Technical Assistance Center. She is a co-principal investigator for an Institute of Education Science (IES) grant and a State Personnel Development Grant. Dr. St. Martin has been a panel member for the IES Practice Guide, Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9. She has assisted in writing Michigan’s K-12 literacy and dyslexia legislation. Dr. St. Martin is the primary author of the Reading Tiered Fidelity Inventory (R-TFI) and co-author of the District and Regional Capacity assessments. She has more than 25 years of experience in the field of education. 

Laura Stewart is an educator and organizational leader. She has served as a classroom teacher, building and district administrator, adjunct professor, and director of numerous professional development initiatives around the country. Before joining 95 Percent Group, Laura was the Chief Innovation Officer with The Reading League and the Chief Academic Officer for Professional Development at Highlights for Children. Laura presents widely and has written for numerous organizations and publications, including The Courage to Lead and co-authoring The Everything Guide to Informational Text K-2; Best Texts, Best Practices. She is a contributing author to Climbing the Ladder of Reading and Writing: Meeting the Needs of ALL Learners. Laura hosted the podcast “Teaching, Reading, and Learning: The TRL Podcast.” She serves on several advisory boards and was formerly a certified LETRS facilitator. Laura’s position as the Chief Academic Officer at 95 Percent Group suits her perfectly, as her passion is empowering educators to positively impact ALL students and ultimately change the course of literacy achievement in this country. 

As a K-5 literacy educator, you know how critical the daily ELA reading block is for developing strong readers. It must be intentionally structured to give students not only explicit instruction, but also time to meaningfully practice and apply foundational literacy skills. During this session, we will provide non-negotiable criteria to look for in teaching the foundational skills in a Tier 1 setting. Highlights include: 

•Identifying features every literacy leader needs to look for in a strong K-5 foundational skills program 

•Looking at program evaluation tools to understand how they are used to guide the review process 

•Defining evidence-aligned vs. evidence-based resources - what’s the difference and why are both important? 

•Streamlining your ELA resources and discussing why “de-implementation” is necessary 

•Learning why assessment and instruction alignment across tiers is a game-changer within a cohesive MTSS framework 

Stephanie Stollar is passionate about using MTSS as the framework for helping all students become skilled readers. She’s the founder of the Reading Science Academy, an online community where over a thousand educators support each other to improve results in their schools. Dr. Stollar also advises the next generation of education policy leaders in her role as an assistant professor at Mount St. Joseph University. She served as a Vice President at Acadience Learning, provided training and consultation to hundreds of school districts, worked as an Assistant Professor of School Psychology, and as a School Psychologist. Dr. Stollar believes that by supporting all educators, high achievement is possible for every student. 

In the wake of well-intentioned laws requiring dyslexia screening, many educators are exhausted by trying to provide intervention to all of the K-5 students who score below expectation on universal screening. Despite having individual intervention plans and monitoring progress, students are not catching up. This session will explore possible reasons why current practices aren't helping and suggest alternative approaches to using screening data that focus on classroom reading instruction (Tier 1) as the opportunity to reduce the number of students who need intervention.

Lyn is an educational linguist, author, and founder of Lifelong Literacy, an education coaching and training organization. Her goal is to help educators awaken linguistic curiosity in their students using creative, engaging tools and strategies that are based upon scientific consensus as to what constitutes best practice. Lyn creates research-informed professional development seminars, both online and face to face, for teachers and other education professionals. She directs a team of specialist practitioners to deliver high quality literacy intervention at Tiers 2 and 3, and a team of school coaches to deliver the best possible Tier 1 literacy instruction. Her occasional podcast about the lives of prominent education professionals, Loves, Hates and Passions, can be found on Spotify. Her three books, Spelling for Life, Language for Life and Reading for Life continue to attract worldwide acclaim and enjoy places on various bestseller lists. 

The word “grammar” has been known to come with connotations of dry, boring attention to details and rules. Its importance in the curriculum has been questioned for many years, and the answer has been disappointing (to grammar-loving folk anyway). Formal grammar teaching beyond “A noun is a naming word, a verb is a doing word…” has all but left the building, but Lyn Stone wants to bring it back in. In this presentation, Lyn will posit an argument that knowing what the parts of speech are really doing, why they’re put in their categories in the first place, and how to teach all that is an advantage to any teacher committed to raising the quality of reading and writing instruction in the classroom. This session is appropriate for those working with students in primary school, as well as older, striving readers and spellers. 

Reading instruction has come far! But what about spelling? Lyn Stone wants to help press the 'reset' button on spelling instruction. In this talk, she will show all the skills leading up to and away from spelling that can and should be explicitly taught if fluent, strategic writing is a desired educational outcome. Step by step, we will look at those skills together. We will look at the nature of the lexicon and ask and answer the following questions: How do people remember words and spelling patterns? How do children build their sight word vocabularies? What are some of the most efficient practices supporting the development of robust schemas around words? We will discuss phonics pitfalls, high frequency words, and explore systems, practice, and progress monitoring that will help push the reset button on spelling at scale. 

Casey serves as the Policy Director of Early Literacy for ExcelinEd. A former reading teacher, interventionist, and literacy coach, Casey previously served as an Early Literacy Consultant at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction where she worked to implement the Excellent Public Schools Act, North Carolina’s comprehensive early literacy policy. Prior to this, she supported implementation of Mississippi’s Literacy-Based Promotion Act as an Assistant State Literacy Coordinator at the Mississippi Department of Education. Casey earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from William Carey University, a Master of Arts in Intercultural Communication/Missiology from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Specialist in Education degree from William Carey University. 

A comprehensive approach to improving literacy outcomes begins with adopting an early literacy policy that supports educators, students, and families in preventing or addressing students' reading difficulties; however, the policy is only as effective as its implementation. In this session, we will explore the landscape of early literacy policies across the United States and discuss strategies for leading a coordinated approach to close the gap between what we know and what we do. 

Carol Tolman, Ed.D., is a national and international literacy consultant at the state, district, and school levels. As a special educator with over 25 years of public-school experience, she spent 13 of those years designing and implementing innovative, exemplary programs for academically challenged high school students. Along with Dr. Louisa Moats, Dr. Tolman is the co-author of LETRS, 3rd ed. (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling), revolutionary professional development aimed at providing educators with the knowledge necessary to improve literacy rates for all students. Beyond LETRS, Carol is the published author of numerous chapters and articles centering on the knowledge necessary to educate teachers, administrators, and parents as they support children in their journey to becoming proficient readers and writers. More locally, Dr. Tolman is Co-President of The Reading League – New Hampshire, supporting local literacy initiatives and events. As a mother, teacher, presenter, and author, Carol’s life passion centers on her family and on ensuring access to high-quality instruction for every child. She is excited to return to Plain Talk in New Orleans, an area of the country she was deeply involved with as a consultant during Reading First. 

Most educators are familiar with explicit, systematic instruction in foundational skills such as spelling, phonics, and letter formation. However, there are impactful activities that address explicit, systematic instruction in higher level comprehension areas too. Join Dr. Tolman in this experiential session that addresses two often missing links in reading comprehension: language structures and verbal reasoning. We will use writing to improve our reading and listening comprehension as we experience best practices with syntax and cohesive ties.

"Just use a mirror, look at your mouth, and make your mouth look like mine", I'd say as students misspelled words in their journals. As a teacher in elementary, middle, and high schools, I was proud of the knowledge I gained to support students' spelling errors. I quickly learned, however, that there was so much more to consider! Join this session to explore the importance of articulatory gestures, orthographic patterns, and morphemes when responding to students' misspellings. We'll have fun while learning how to 'work smarter, not harder'! 

Dr. Julie A. Van Dyke holds a joint appointment as an Associate Research Professor at the Institute for Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Connecticut, the Yale University Child Study Center, and the Yale-UConn Haskins Global Literacy Hub. Previously, she served as a Senior Research Scientist at Haskins Laboratories for 22 years, where she investigated the cognitive and neural bases of reading and language comprehension. She is also the Inventor and Chief Scientist at Cascade Reading, which is a reading technology that uses Natural Language Processing to provide in-the-moment visual scaffolding of syntactic relationships during reading comprehension. Dr. Van Dyke received her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh under the tutelage of Charles Perfetti, an M.Sc. in Computational Linguistics from Carnegie Mellon University, and B.A. in Linguistics and Computer Science from University of Delaware. Her primary research investigates how memory and syntactic processing interact during reading comprehension, with a special focus on individuals with poor memory or language ability. She is an energetic advocate for translating lessons learned from the cognitive and neuroscience of language comprehension into guidelines for educational and clinical practice. Her advocacy is informed by 5 years as a high school English and History teacher, and by parenting a child with Dyslexia, Developmental Language Disorder, Dyscalculia, ADHD, and Autism. Dr. Van Dyke is devoted to improving learning outcomes for all children and passionate about supporting parents in their quest to help their neuro-diverse child succeed.

Language comprehension is often understood— and taught— as happening at the level of the text, or the paragraph. However over 50 years of psycholinguistic research demonstrates that our brains compute meaning in a word-by-word manner, and that this process is a) fundamentally guided by knowledge of syntax and b) susceptible to unavoidable errors, even in skilled readers. I will describe the word-by-word processing model associated with this evidence-base and explain how memory limitations cooperate with syntactic processing to both support and constrain understanding. As syntax is fundamental to comprehension, the talk will include suggestions for how to develop syntactic knowledge in the classroom, including a demonstration of a free online tool to support learners in developing advanced syntactic knowledge and to assist teachers in teaching it. The desired outcome of this talk is to promote an understanding of syntax as the essential backbone of reading comprehension, and to underscore the importance of both implicit and explicit syntactic instruction to advance comprehension ability. 

Dr. Sharon Vaughn is the Manuel J. Justiz Endowed Chair in Education and the Executive Director of The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk, an organized research unit that she founded with a “make a wish” gift from the Meadows Foundation family. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the first woman in the history of The University of Texas to receive the Distinguished Faculty and Research Award, the CEC research award, the AERA SIG distinguished researcher award, and the Jeannette E. Fleischner Award for Outstanding Contributions in the Field of LD from CEC. She is the author of more than 40 books and 350 research articles, six of which have met the What Works Clearing House Criteria for their intervention reports. She has conducted technical assistance in literacy to more than 10 countries and 30 State Departments of Education and has worked as a literacy consultant on more than 50 technical assistance projects. 

This presentation provides descriptions of the research supporting aligning instruction between Tier 1 and Tiers 2 & 3 to improve outcomes for students with reading difficulties. Examples of instructional practices that can be readily aligned between tiers to ensure that learning is more effective will be presented. Data from studies will be used to illustrate potential effects of this aligned instruction. This presentation will also discuss how to utilize anxiety management practices within reading interventions to improve outcomes. Overall practices that integrate and align instruction across the curriculum will be presented. Opportunities to ask questions and interact around these issues will be provided. 

Join this engaging presentation on the ways in which the Science of Reading has been misunderstood in policy and practice. The Science of Reading knowledge and how it applies to instruction, curriculum and classroom decisions will be presented. Many opportunities to ask questions and engage in this current and high-profile issue around the science of reading will be provided. 

Daniel Willingham is a Professor at the University of Virginia. He trained at the intersection of cognitive psychology and neuroscience and did basic research in human memory for the first 15 years of his career. Since 2007 all of his work has focused on thinking about how findings about the mind and brain might apply to classrooms.  He is the author of several books, including the best-selling Why Don't Students Like School? and most recently, Outsmart Your Brain. His writing on education has appeared in twenty-three languages. In 2017 he was appointed by President Obama to serve as a Member of the National Board for Education Sciences. 

Research shows that student engagement and motivation has dropped precipitously since the pandemic. How can instructors get students to be more consistent in reading assignments, participating in class, and so on? Explanations for student disengagement sometimes blame the instructor (“be more interesting!”) and sometimes blame the student (“have more grit!”) but neither provides helpful direction. In this talk I will describe recent psychological findings on two determinants of motivation: curiosity and feelings of self-efficacy. This research suggests some novel strategies that instructors can bring to their classrooms to increase student engagement. We'll also look at the latest data on how the use of digital technologies (both in school and out) affects student cognition. 

When asked to name our highest hope for schooling, most educators would agree that we want to teach students to think critically; we don't want them merely to learn factual content and to memorize formulas and strategies that solve problems—we want them to be creative thinkers and analyzers. This instructional task has never been easy, but it seems still more challenging today, when students can tap the power of AI at home to generate ideas and solve problems. In this talk I will explain why critical thinking is so difficult to teach, which will in turn suggest curricular and instructional strategies to get around these difficulties. I will also discuss how to adapt assignments to the new realities presented by Chat-GPT, not just to defend against student cheating, but to utilize the power of AI to help students think.

Dr. Nancy Young is an independent Canadian educational consultant providing professional development for an international audience. Dr. Young’s expertise is the development of literacy skills in the early grades, particularly the need to consider WHO, WHAT and WHY in order to determine the HOW of literacy instruction. Long committed to bridging “research silos”, her current work is very much focused on building awareness of the learning needs of students who are advanced/gifted/high potential. Dr. Young is the creator of the translational framework The Ladder of Reading & Writing© (2023) and the co-editor of the book Climbing THE LADDER OF READING & WRITING: Meeting the Needs of ALL Learners (2024). Her website is www.nancyyoung.ca 

Due to low literacy rates, changes to reading instruction described as the “science of reading” are rapidly being mandated in many states/districts/schools, accompanied by lengthy professional development for educators. Do these changes and training opportunities address the learning needs of students who are already reading at the beginning of kindergarten or who progress more rapidly than typical once in the school setting? In this session, referring to her translational framework The Ladder of Reading & Writing© (2023), Dr. Nancy Young will focus on the learning needs of students K-3 who are advanced in reading (AIR). Concepts addressed will include implicit/statistical learning, data-informed instruction, acceleration, across grade grouping, and the connection between appropriate academic programming and social-emotional health. The session will wrap up with Dr. Young emphasizing that equity within the “science of reading” movement requires that the learning needs of students with more advanced skills are both recognized and provided for, therefore educator training must encompass the needs of these students too.