How TED is Transforming my English Class via Secondary Sara

@secondarysara

How TED is Transforming my English Class - Post #1

Secondary Sara: 10.31.2015

Okay, sure - TED talks are cool, and I'm not the only teacher who plays them for my students. Many intuitive educators are playing TED videos at school (or assigning them as homework) to teach public speaking, listening skills, or the talk's content itself.

But this year, my eighth graders will take TED to a whole new level in our classroom.

What Is "Project TED"?

My goal is that, by the end of this school year, each student will graduate from middle school with a recording of his or her own original (mock) TED talk in hand.

How it Works

Watch & Brainstorm:

Pre-assess students in speaking; introduce the concept of rhetoric

Practice watching a speech and making observations about it.

Learn About TED:

Complete a whole-class, non-fiction book study of Talk Like TED by Carmine Gallo.

Journaling & Drafting:

Complete at least 3-4 choice journal entries from a pre-made list of prompts, blending genres and imitating the kinds of talks that real TED speakers give.

Revise, Practice, & Present!

We will be using the pages of my Mock Conference Project to accomplish the following:

Finish revising the drafts of their speeches.  READ MORE >>

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 11.0

Lexical Density: 68.8%

Total word count 189

Unique word count 1305

12 hard words

Sentence count 8

National Literacy & Library Events :: February 2020

National Literacy & Library Events :: February 2020

Literacy & Library Events & Conferences

Events-National & International Events

Events-International: Language Magazine

National African American Read-In

Haiku Writing Month

Library Lovers Month

Feb. 01              Children’s Authors and Illustrators Week

Feb. 01              World Read Aloud Day

Feb. 01              JoLLE Winter Conference Univ Georgia

Feb. 01              Literacy Action Week SCALE UNC

Feb. 02              Take Your Child to the Library Day

Feb. 02              SkillsUSA Week

Feb. 03              Everyone Reading Conference CUNY

Feb. 05              Global School Play Day

Feb. 06              Harry Potter Book Night

Feb. 08              National Reading Recovery Literacy Conf Columbus OH

Feb. 10              February Nonfiction Picture Book 10 for 10     

Feb. 14              Book Giving Day

Feb. 17              Learning Disabilities Association Orlando FL

Feb. 21              Mother Language Day

Feb. 23              Freedom to Read Week  Canada

Feb. 25              NABE Conference Las Vegas NV

Feb. 25              Public Library Association Conference Nashville TN

Feb. 26              Tell A Fairy Tale Day

Feb. 27              Digital Learning Day

State Library Associations :: Conferences

African American Book Events

Book Fairs by State Library of Congress

Children’s Book Council Kid Lit Events

College Children’s & Young Adult Literature Conferences Festivals

Everfest Book Festival Calendar

ILA :: Literacy Calendar Worldwide

Storytelling Events

US Book Festivals

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Pittsburgh PA:: Hemet CA:: London KY

Literacy: Spanning the US

@LiteracyPgh

Literacy Pittsburgh Helps Immigrants Learn English, Integrate

Trib Live: 12.23.2019 by Stephanie Hacke

Oskana Slota knew only a few English words when she moved to the United States from Ukraine six years ago.

But she wanted to learn more. She wanted to be able to communicate with people in her new country. She wanted friends and to be able to help her children with the basics, like going to the doctor.

Through Literacy Pittsburgh’s English as a Second Language classes, she’s found just that.

“I feel better,” said Slota, 28, of Scott Township. “I started speaking, and I can help my child with things, like for example, making doctors’ appointments. It’s important for a mom.”

Twice a week, Slota and a group of women from nations across the world, including Syria, Venezuela and Tajikistan, gather at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Carnegie with Literacy Pittsburgh tutor Carol Logan to work on their English.  WATCH 01:54

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 7.9

Lexical Density: 69.9%

Total word count 136

Unique word count 95

hard words 2

Sentence count 9

Hemet Library

Hemet Literacy Program Gives Adults Reading, Life Skills

PE: 12.20.2019 by Diane A Rhoades

As Christmas Day nears and people get ready to give and get cherished gifts, students in the Hemet Adult Literacy Program already have celebrated.

A Saturday, Dec. 14, holiday luncheon brought them together to share their stories. Looking forward to the lifelong gift of reading, each is thankful for a program that is helping them reach their goals.

Lea Ashworth started as a volunteer tutor in 2003 but soon became a Families for Literacy coordinator and is now the adult literacy coordinator.

“I have always had a huge love of reading and I am passionate about wanting to share that with others,” she said. “I want to help our adult learners with their reading and writing skills so they can have a better quality of life.”

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Some want to search the internet, be able to follow a recipe, help children with homework or read a story to them, interact with their child’s school or teacher, be able to read and understand a rental agreement or help others by reading a medicine label. The program has 90 adult learners and 20 tutors.

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The program, which began in 1985, is paid for by a grant from the California State Library with contributions from the city of Hemet. Free to adult learners, it is offered as a service of the Hemet Public Library, where it is located.  READ MORE >>

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 12.4

Lexical Density: 60.7%

Total word count 219

Unique word count 133

hard words 7

Sentence count 9

Laurel Adult Ed 

& Literacy

39 Graduate From Laurel County Adult Education and Literacy Program

Sentinel Echo: 12.30.2019

Laurel County Adult Education and Literacy graduated 39 alumni Thursday night. Families clapped and cheered throughout the ceremony. Some students will go directly into the work-force, while others begin their college education.

Family, friends, and staff of Laurel County Adult Education and Literacy (LCAEL) gathered Dec. 19 to celebrate the achievements of this year’s graduates. LCAEL saw 39 students earn their GED from July to December this year. Eleven of those graduates participated in the winter graduation ceremony, posing for cap and gown pictures with family and enjoying the traditional hat-toss.

Tina Cook, director of LCAEL, praised the group for their perseverance and reminded them this achievement is something that can never be taken away from them.

“The GED is truly a gateway to college, a certification, a better job. Until you earn your GED, you’re stuck on the other side of that gate,” Cook said. “Now you’re on the right side.”  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 10.7

Lexical Density: 71.9%

Total word count 139

Unique word count 100

hard words 7

Sentence count 9

Dyslexia and the Nonsense Word Conundrum via DTI

Dyslexia and the Nonsense Word Conundrum

Dyslexia Training Institute: 3.31.2017 by Dr. Kelli Sandman-Hurley

The use of nonsense words in intervention programs for reading and spelling to struggling readers is ubiquitous. It is ubiquitous in assessments too. Publishers use the rationale that nonsense words help the teacher and assessor know whether or not the student is able to transfer what they have learned about decoding to new words and this signals progress. The problem with this is twofold. First, many of the nonsense words that are used are not possible letter strings in the English language. (For a detailed and well-support description of this, please read Gina Cooke’s article). Secondly, the English writing system is based on meaning before phonology, so when a student is reading a word with no meaning, it can be impossible to really determine what the correct pronunciation is. In teacher trainings, we always ask the group, how do you pronounce the letter string *? The answer we always get is /chom/ or [ʧɑm] in IPA. The problem with this answer, is that the correct answer is really, we can’t know what the correct pronunciation is until we know what the word is. In the case of a digraph like the meaning and etymology of the word will drive the pronunciation. Look at the following three common words: chip, machine and ache. Their histories drive their pronunciations, so how in the world can a student know which is correct?

Today I observed a very good teacher using letter tiles to teach spelling. She was dictating a list of real words and then veered into the nonsense word territory. What happened during this time is not inconsequential, it is downright confusing to students. Here is the list of words she dictated.  READ MORE >>

Dyslexia Virtual Conference

April 20 - May 8, 2020

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 8.7

Lexical Density: 55.8%

Total word count 278

Unique word count 155

21 hard words

Sentence count 17

In U.S., Library Visits Outpaced Trips to Movies in 2019 via Gallup

In U.S., Library Visits Outpaced Trips to Movies in 2019

Gallup: 1.24.2020 by Justin McCarthy

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Library most frequented by young adults, women and low-income households

Average U.S. adult attended five movies and five live sporting events

Age and income among key factors in frequency of activities

Visiting the library remains the most common cultural activity Americans engage in, by far. The average 10.5 trips to the library U.S. adults report taking in 2019 exceeds their participation in eight other common leisure activities. Americans attend live music or theatrical events and visit national or historic parks roughly four times a year on average and visit museums and gambling casinos 2.5 times annually. Trips to amusement or theme parks (1.5) and zoos (.9) are the least common activities among this list.

Women Visit Libraries Nearly Twice as Frequently as Men

Men and woman report doing most activities at about the same rate, but there are a few key differences:

Women report visiting the library nearly twice as frequently as men do, 13.4 to 7.5 visits.

Men are more likely than women to visit casinos, attend sporting events and visit national or historical parks.

Reports of Leisure and Activities, by Age Group

Reports of Leisure and Activities, by Income Group

Reports of Leisure and Activities, by Children Under 18 in Household

Reports of Leisure and Activities, by Region

Bottom Line

Despite the proliferation of digital-based activities over the past two decades -- including digital books, podcasts, streaming entertainment services and advanced gaming -- libraries have endured as a place Americans visit nearly monthly on average. Whether because they offer services like free Wi-Fi, movie rentals, or activities for children, libraries are most utilized by young adults, women and residents of low-income households.  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 18.0

Lexical Density: 60.2%

Total word count 264

Unique word count 159

17 hard words

Sentence count 8

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Cazenovia NY :: Redlands CA:: Newark NJ :: Coventry RI

Literacy: Spanning the US

@CazPubLib

Helping Adult Learners Succeed — Cazenovia Public Library, Madison County Reads Ahead Focus On Literacy

Eagle News Online: 12.16.2019 by Kate Hill

Cazenovia Public Library (CPL) Literacy Outreach has offered family literacy programs and individualized adult education programs to the community for more than a decade.

Literacy Coordinators Carla Zimmerman and Karen Kogut work with a network of trained volunteer tutors to provide literacy services on site and at two satellite locations — CazCares Food Pantry and New Woodstock Free library.

The CPL adult literacy program operates in conjunction with Madison County Reads Ahead (MCRA).

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“For a lot of the people that we see, it’s very hard for them to sit in a classroom, to show up every day, to do their homework and to be motivated,” Zimmerman said. “By working one-on-one, we are able to create individualized learning plans exactly for that person. We don’t waste any time. We say ‘what’s the shortest amount of time we can spend with you for [you to achieve your goal]?’”  READ MORE >>

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 13.6

Lexical Density: 69.2%

Total word count 156

Unique word count 108

hard words 10

Sentence count 6

@AKSmileyPL

Literacy Volunteers in Redlands

A Diverse Group With One Goal To Change Lives

Redlands Daily Facts: 11.09.2019 by Diane Shimota, Adult Literacy Coord: AK Smiley Library

The Redlands community is known for its commitment to serving others to ensure that everyone has the chance to be employed and educated. Without its volunteers, the Redlands Adult Literacy Program would not be able to meet its goal of helping adults who want to improve their reading and writing skills.

Many people are amazed to learn that approximately one in five adults in the United States has difficulties with literacy. The Redlands Adult Literacy Program currently serves over 100 learners who have requested literacy assistance.

Volunteer tutors learn that adults seek help with their literacy because they want to get a new or better job, help their children with their homework or further their own education. Literacy volunteers come from a wide range of backgrounds: some tutors are retired while others are still employed, some volunteers have an educator’s background, but others have worked in business, the military, or local government. What successful adult literacy tutors have in common is that they have a passion and ability to read, write and speak English, are sensitive to the needs of adult learners, and are willing to assist adult learners in meeting their literacy goals.  READ MORE >>

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Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level    15.3

Lexical Density: 58%

Total word count 93

Unique word count 112

hard words 11

Sentence count 7

@NewarkLibrary

Newarkers Exiting the Prison System Can Find a Fresh Start at Newark Public Library

TapInto: 12.17.2019 by M E Cagnassola

For the thousands of individuals who leave New Jersey’s prison system each year, the barriers to re-entry can feel like insurmountable obstacles.

Newark Public Library is on its way to making that journey more traversable in 2020 through Fresh Start @ Your Library, a two-year program offered in partnership with the State Parole Board, the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and six other participating libraries throughout the state.

Sponsored by the New Jersey State Library, Fresh Start will provide social workers, GED courses and testing, job training and connection to employment opportunities for inmates returning to the Newark community. In addition to Newark, the $628,774 grant awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services is being dispersed across the library systems in Long Branch, Paterson, Trenton, Atlantic City and Cumberland County. The Free Library of Philadelphia will join the initiative in year two of the grant.  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 18.0

Lexical Density: 73.8%

Total word count 145

Unique word count 107

hard words 8

Sentence count 4

Literacy Volunteers
Kent County

Kim Recognized For Passion To Bring Literacy To Others

Warwick Beacon: 12.19.2019 by Tara Monastesse

How do we extend English language literacy to those who need it, long after they’ve exited the school system and entered the adult world?

That’s a question that Youmi Kim, Program Director of the Literacy Volunteers of Kent County (LVKC) program, has worked tirelessly to create a solution for. Since taking on the role of director in the summer of 2017, Kim has overseen the training of literacy tutors and the education of ESL students throughout Kent County. With more than 130 pairs of students and volunteer tutors currently involved in the program, she regularly faces the task of creating optimal teacher-student pairs - but for her, that challenge is one of the best parts of the experience.

On Saturday, November 16th, the Rhode Island Teachers of English Language Learners (RITELL) awarded the title of Adult Practitioner Award of the Year to Youmi Kim. The award cites high levels of commitment and professionalism, as well as going “above and beyond” to assist adult students in the field of literacy.

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Kim holds the unique distinction of being the first immigrant to serve as director of the LVKC program, having moved to America from South Korea roughly five years ago.  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 13.6

Lexical Density: 64.1%

Total word count 206

Unique word count 132

hard words 14

Sentence count 7

5 Ways To Make Reading A Habit via Forbes

5 Ways To Make Reading A Habit

Forbes: 1.23.2020 by V R Ferose

An average person reads less than four books a year while an avid one (like Barack Obama or Bill Gates) reads 50. I read around 10 books from cover to cover every year while skimming through around 50. I only read an entire book when I need to know much more than the summary, where there's something deeper that I find enriching.

1. Start reading from your topic of interest: If you’re a non-reader your first hurdle would be how to start reading. The best way is to read books on topics that you are interested in (football, gardening or cooking, for example) and then look for recommendations, which you can easily get through a Google search.

2. Keep aside some time every day for reading: Set aside an hour every day for immersion in a book of substance.

3. Avoid distraction by reading physical books: Our biggest challenge is to find the time and attention span to not get distracted. Physical books are helpful in keeping us focused

4. When short of time, use Apps like Audible and Blinkist: While there is no substitute for reading, there are some good apps for maximizing the time you have at hand. Listening to audio books while driving is a good technique.  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 8.3

Lexical Density: 68.0%

Total word count 203

Unique word count 138

10 hard words

Sentence count 13

The Nation’s Oldest Student :: Mary Walker via Chapter16

The Nation’s Oldest Student

The Oldest Student

Rita Lorraine Hubbard shares the remarkable life of Mary Walker, who learned to read at age 116

Chapter16: 1.07.2020 by Julie Danielson

Born into slavery in Alabama in the mid-19th century, Mary Walker was freed at the age of 15, moved to Chattanooga in 1917, and learned to read at the extraordinary age of 116. “You’re never too old to learn,” she famously remarked. Author Rita Lorraine Hubbard brings Mary’s inspiring story to young readers in her new picture book biography, The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read.

Dubbed “the nation’s oldest student” by the U.S. Department of Education, Mary — who lived through 26 presidents, outlived her entire family, and eventually became a Chattanooga icon — “studied the alphabet until her eyes watered” at well past the age of 100. As a former slave, once forbidden to learn reading and writing, she finally met her lifelong goal and proudly read from the Bible given to her as a teen by a woman who had told her, “Your civil rights are in these pages.”

Hubbard fleshes out Mary’s extraordinary life in this reverent and loving tribute, illustrated in layered, textured collage art by Caldecott Honoree Oge Mora. On the book’s first spread, Hubbard writes that Mary, as an enslaved girl, watched the swallows soar through the sky and wondered: “That must be what it’s like to be free.” Throughout the book, Mora repeatedly pictures these birds in flight, a symbol of Mary’s freedom and her invincible spirit.  READ MORE >>

Rewordify

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 13.4

Lexical Density: 70.6%

Total word count 221

Unique word count 156

15 hard words

Sentence count 8

Average sentence length 27.6