Creating a balanced literacy program in one’s classroom is tantamount to student success. In this course, participants will be introduced to a medley of literary forms and techniques that will ensure student success. Topics include: author study, literature circles, poetry analysis, RAFT writing, non-fiction and fiction sources, newspaper and magazines, vocabulary study, arguments, etc… Assignments include: raising the proficiency bar, determining and clarifying meaning in texts, distinguishing between text types. In the end your classroom will be infused with literate individuals!!!! Participants will be introduced to a medley of literary techniques. They will be able to comprehend, organize, and orchestrate a balanced literacy program within the confines of their classroom. They will also be able to walk away with a wide array of material for their literate classrooms. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

“Every teacher is a teacher of reading”. Reading and writing are the backbones of education today. Students are required to read and write in all of their subject areas as well as employ their reading and writing skills to meet NYS standardized test requirements. To ensure that students perform well on these exams, to promote lifelong readers and writers, we as educators need to enhance student interest, vision, and comprehension in these areas. In this course, you will learn carefully crafted reading and writing techniques that could be incorporated into any discipline. Lessons and graphic organizers for mathematics, social studies, science, health, art, physical education, career skills, and English language learners will be covered, as well as scaffolding techniques for immediate use in the classroom. The course will focus on creative ways to implement reading and writing into your curriculum. You will walk away with a multitude of ideas and strategies to immerse your students with. Particular focus will be on read alouds, double-entry journals, literature circles, partnered reading and writing, vocabulary splashes, memo writes, and on-demand task writing activities. In the end, teachers and students alike will be refreshed. Everyone will be a lifelong reader and writer, and will see reading as a pathway to success. A must for all elementary and secondary educators!!!!! All work must be submitted no later than October 29th, 2010. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

Course Description: This course is designed to look into the mind of readers. Educators will explore how students think when they are reading subject-matter and texts in your classroom. Do students make the connections and interactions you want them to as they read? Educators will share strategies for reading success with your students no matter what the subject area or age of your students. We will look into what works and what doesn’t and share techniques and reading lessons. This course is a must for all K-12 educators.

Kim Kittredge   Kkittredgeliips@gmail.com

July 15^th –19^th

Do you ever wonder what some of the ingredients are that go into the successful teaching of reading and writing? Both reading and writing comprehension are both complex processes that require lots of effort and various skills.  Some of these skills are often completely neglected while a child follows traditional teaching methods.  As a result, reading and writing often become a cause for a student’s anxiety and frustration.  In this course educators will be given new, innovative and fun techniques for reading and writing teaching methods.  From journaling, to writing projects, to guided reading, or reading with purpose, educators will find the tools to create the perfect recipe for their students to be successful. By the end of this course teachers will be armed with enough “food for thought” to help them be the best teachers of reading and writing they can be.

This course is a must for educators of all grades and levels K-12.

As educators, it is important to stay current and remain interesting and motivated. This will keep our students from becoming restless and disengaged. Let’s find new and interesting ways to do what we do best! This class will explore various and creative ways to address lesson plans, organization and communication. It will offer refreshing ways to reach our students and meet their goals. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

Education today offers our students a world of knowledge and experience. Paired with the many benefits of modern education and standards, come expectations and stress. Standardized tests in particular are known to cause stress and anxiety in many students. Consequently, they may not perform to their true potential. This course will offer an understanding of the angst that some students face and several calming techniques for educators to use with these students. Strategies discussed are easily implemented and can be carried out not only by teachers, but by parents and students themselves. With an open mind and the ability to RELAX, we can help our students reach their full potential. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

  Course Description – Motivating students who have checked out to learning can be extremely stressful. Teachers need a blueprint for introducing more rigor into their classrooms while creating fun-filled activities that are critical thinking and inquiry based. Participants in this course will learn how to effectively address the distinct needs of their students that go beyond their comfort zones and push them toward success. A slew of activities will be completed including differentiated instruction, reading and writing in the content areas, interdisciplinary tactics, cross-cultural techniques, and current websites geared towards success. Both fiction and non-fiction sources will be addressed, as well as science and math strategies for learning. (3 credits/45 hours) – In-service Credit

Diving deeper than Wh questioning techniques, this course will provide teachers of all grade levels strategies to increase student engagement by incorporating various questioning strategies into their daily lessons. How to differentiate questions to engage all learners, including ELLs, G &T and Students with Disabilities will be examined.

Readers of all ages love to share their findings, whether it may be fiction or non-fiction prose. Developing the life-long habit of reading for pleasure is something that we as educators must promote. Too often, the love of reading is lost after the primary grades. This course will highlight the ways in which we can develop and sustain literacy in our classrooms. Participants will learn the shared reading approach. They will comprehend the skills necessary to achieve reading on all levels . Content area literary will be focused on, as well as various websites and annotated bibliography suggestions for teachers. Reading within the content areas will be addressed as well as a multitude of graphic organizers. A must for K-12 educators. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

Students with special needs dominate all classrooms today. Teachers must learn to successfully connect with all types of learners, ranging from those with emotional needs to those with gifted needs. With a wide variety of resources, teachers can effectively master the success of all. Within this course, participants will soar to new heights within their classrooms. They will: · learn the difference between the various learners in their classroom · comprehend the various learning styles that these respective individuals need · hone in on the vocabulary of special needs’ assessment · challenge their students and themselves to a myriad of fiction and non-fiction topics in terms of special needs · comprehend various analytical skills and higher-order thinking skills that students need for success Overall, teachers will walk away with the tools they need for success. *A must for all educators! ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

Student engagement is tantamount in 21st century classrooms. Regardless of subject matter, students need to have techniques that enable them to become self-motivated learners. Providing students with the ability to partake in philosophical discussions and seminars will foster an enhanced understanding of the academic content. In this course, participants will comprehend the unique lessons of the Socratic Seminar and Philosophical Rounds techniques. They will be able to integrate these processes within the confines of their classrooms and enhance the learning environment. A must for all K-12 educators!!!! ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only

An increasing amount of students are diagnosed with speech and language disorders. These disorders can affect a student’s ability to learn and socialize within the school setting. In this course you will learn the terms articulation disorder, fluency, apraxia, voice disorder, and selective mutism and how these disorders present in the classroom. You will learn strategies to use when working with speech impaired students. In addition, you will have an understanding of the impact these disorders have on the social and emotional well-being of our students. This class is part 1 of 2 classes. Both classes can be taken independently of each other. Recommended for ALL Educators! ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service only

  Instructor: Gayle Meinkes-Lumia – gaylelumia@yahoo.com (3 Credits/45 Hours) – In-Service Credit Course Description: Engaging students in successful learning is an art. Keeping them directed and focused is contingent on many factors – all of which will be emphasized and articulated in this course. A myriad of content driven essential skills will be covered – including activities as predicting outcomes, empathy cards, affinity diagrams, common likes, as well as a plethora of creative and compelling take homes, all of which the developing individual needs in order to flourish. Students in all disciplines can benefit from the guided focus and essential content within the confines of the class.  **A must for K-12 educators in all disciplines!!!

The focus of this course will be to provide educators with an overview of the Student Learning Objective process or SLO. According to the NYS Department of Education, a Student Learning Objective is an academic goal for a teacher’s students that is set a the start of a course. SLOs are aligned to Common Core Standards and are used to measure student growth, as well as teacher effectiveness. In this course participants will research the purpose and benefits of the SLO process as well as the required components of SLOs. Participants will learn which educators are responsible for for writing SLOs and how these learning objectives factor into the teacher evaluation system (APPR). In addition, educators will have the opportunity to view and evaluate state provided model SLOs written by NYS educators, across all grade levels/content/specialty areas. Resources will be provided for educators to engage in a “how to” SLO writing process. As a culminating activity participants will write his/her own grade level/content area SLOs. This course will utilize a variety of resources such as videos, webinars, and articles from various websites including: htt:://engageny.org/. Appropriate for all educators K-12, especially specialty area teachers. ON-LINE (3 credits/45 hours) in-service credit only