VALRC

LACES (Literacy, Adult and Community Education System) Data Training
2024-04-16 13:00 - 2024-04-18 17:00 (America/New_York) | Reynolds Workforce Development and Conference Center, 1651 E Parham Rd,, Richmond, 23228, United States

LINCS: ChatGPT for ESL Instruction
2024-04-12 15:00 - 16:00 | Virtual
Artificial intelligence (AI) offers exciting new possibilities for English as a Second Language (ESL) classrooms. In this presentation, Yeonjai Rah explores ideas for leveraging AI in three key areas: 1. As a conversation partner and writing tutor for ESL learners. 2. For developing student-centered and culturally relevant teaching materials. 3. As an aid for ESL evaluators. The thoughtful integration of AI has much to offer ESL education. With the right balance of technology and human guidance, AI can enhance learning experiences for students from all backgrounds.
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EdTech: Strategy Sessions
2024-04-12 13:00 - 14:30 | Virtual
Learn about the new, open BRIDGES digital skills framework. This framework has been the result of a collective effort to expand digital skills instruction and resources. Then, hear an overview of the research-based, inclusive teaching framework called Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and its application with adult learners. At 2:00 pm stick around to join breakout rooms with one of the lightning talk presenters!
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VALRC Lessons from the Field with Cassandra Kramer: Using Digital Literacy to Connect Adult English Learners to Their Families and Communities
2024-04-11 14:00 - 15:00 | Online
Incorporating family-motivated assignments and elements of digital literacy into the ESL classroom can empower adult English learners to succeed in the workforce and at home. In this webinar, join the English Empowerment Center’s Cassandra Kramer to explore mini-projects that can help connect learners to their communities in a digital way. Participants will have the opportunity to work together to create their own family-focused mini project that uses digital literacy. All participants will be able to take the mini-projects highlighted in this presentation and adapt and use them in their own classrooms.
Register here.

VALRC: Multilevel ESOL Classes Webinar Series, Session 3
2024-04-09 15:30 - 17:00 | Virtual
Do you want to tackle the challenges of teaching multilevel ESOL classes? Are you looking to address the varied learning needs of individual students within one classroom and become an effective multi-level teacher?
This 3 part webinar series will present strategies for effective multi-level instruction and planning for ESOL classes or multi-level classrooms. We will discuss the characteristics of a multilevel class, planning for differentiated instruction and implementing different classroom management strategies for effective instruction. Participants will leave the webinar with an understanding of what multilevel classroom needs consist of, how to prepare and plan for individual students needs, and strategies for implementing differentiated instruction in the adult ESOL multi-level classroom. The resources will include articles, videos and supplemental materials.
Objectives:

Understand the factors of a multilevel classroom and how to identify the needs of all students.
Identify strategies to effectively differentiate instruction in both multi level classrooms as well as leveled ESOL classes while accommodating literacy learners and more advanced students.
Discuss next steps for implementation, including adaptation of materials and strategies with a specific group of learners.

Session 3 will focus on grouping strategies and building community.
Register Here

ProLiteracy: Starting to Read: Building Phonemic Awareness and Foundation Literacy Skills with Preliterate ELL Students
2024-04-09 13:00 - 14:00 | Online
Adult students who are just beginning their literacy journey while also still learning to speak English face a unique challenge. Preliterate students have no connection to the sound/letter correlation required to read. Many lack even basic print awareness connecting any symbol to a meaning. In this webinar, we will discuss helping preliterate students develop the skills necessary to begin learning to read and write in their new language.
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This webinar is part of the ProLiteracy Teacher Training Plus Series

VALRC Beginning Literacy Webinar Series: Contextualized Phonics Instruction
2024-04-04 15:00 - 17:00 | Virtual
This webinar will present strategies for contextualizing phonics instruction in the ESOL beginning literacy or multilevel classroom as well as during one-on-one tutoring sessions. We will discuss strategies for contextualizing phonics instruction and walk through the steps of implementing this strategy in different ESOL instructional settings as well as connections between this approach and the science of reading. Participants will leave the webinar with an understanding of this approach, how it benefits ESOL beginning literacy instruction, and strategies for implementing this approach in the adult ESOL classroom.
Register Here

VDOE 2024 Data Office Hours
2024-04-02 14:00 - 15:00

ProLiteracy: What? You Want Me to Write Too? Strategies for the Low Level or Anxious Writers
2024-04-02 13:00 - 14:00 | Online
Writing is just so permanent. How can we help our students get over the anxiety of committing pencil to paper? In this webinar we will present exercises you can incorporate into your lessons that will relieve some of the stress of writing and encourage students to share their ideas.
Register
This webinar is part of the ProLiteracy Teacher Training Plus Series

Literacy Minnesota: Comprehension Strategies for Intermediate-Level Readers
2024-03-29 14:00 - 16:00 | Online
Research shows that explicitly teaching a set of comprehension strategies is a great way to help intermediate-level readers maximize their understanding of texts. Come learn a handful of great comprehension tools that will help students develop critical thinking skills and comprehension skills.
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DARS WINDMILLS: Harness the Power of Inclusion
2024-03-28 14:00 - 15:30
Windmills has a proven history of assisting those with and without disabilities to better understand the culture of disability in the workplace.
We will be rotating the following modules:

Fact or Fiction: Jan 25
Whose Fault: Feb 22
Perspectives: Mar 28
Taking Emotions out of Emotional Disabilities: Apr 25
Profiles (coming May 23)
AT and Reasonable Accommodations (coming June 27)

Pre-registration is required. Register HERE.

LINCS: Digital Skills: Plugging Them into Instruction
2024-03-28 14:00 - 15:00 | Virtual
Jeff Goumas and Rachel Riggs of World Education are spilling the tea (and coffee!) on some exciting updates to the Bridges Digital Skills Framework and SkillBlox. New features on these resources will help you plug more digital skills into instruction. Join us for this casual session to hear about the new features and share challenges and solutions as a community.
Register Here

LINCS: Exploring the IET for English Learners Desk Aids
2024-03-28 13:00 - 14:00 | Virtual
Join us for a live LINCS event with Jessie Stadd, Education Technical Assistance and Research Specialist with RTI International to learn more about the Integrated Education and Training (IET) for English Learners Desk Aids.
Register Here

VALRC: Science of Reading Overview
2024-03-27 16:00 - 18:00 | Online
This session presents a basic overview of the science of reading and effective reading instruction, including alphabetics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. During the session, we discuss strategies for each component of reading and how to use them in the classroom. Participants will leave with resources for teaching each component.
Register

VALRC-TSTM: Civics Education PLC
2024-03-26 15:30 - 17:00, 2024-03-19 15:30 - 17:00, 2024-03-12 15:30 - 17:00 | Online
Do you want to learn more about the classroom-ready lessons and other resources in the Teaching the Skills that Matter (TSTM) Toolkit?
Do you want to gain ideas for incorporating civics education and workforce preparation skills and activities into your teaching?
Do you want to work with experienced facilitators and colleagues around the state to adapt TSTM lessons to support your adult learners?
If you answered “yes,” then join us for the Spring 2024 TSTM: Civics Education Literacy Professional Learning Community (PLC). This three-week, ten-hour PLC is streamlined for instructors and designed to help teachers harness the power of the TSTM Toolkit in their current classroom or learning environment.
This PLC includes:

3, 90-minute “live” PLC sessions, held Tuesdays from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on March 12, March 19, and March 26;
Online collaboration and sharing with your PLC colleagues and facilitator; and,
A 90-minute follow-up session on Tuesday, April 30, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. focused on sustaining TSTM.

Registration for this event is now closed. If you have questions about TSTM, contact Hillary Major at VALRC.

ProLiteracy: “What are They Really Saying?” Helping Students Read Between the Lines and Make Inferences
2024-03-26 15:00 - 16:00 | Online
Students preparing for the HSE exams often focus too much on what’s explicitly present in a text. This may allow them to recall specific details and find evidence, but it hinders them from making inferences and drawing conclusions. In this webinar, learn how to help students dig deeper to make inferences about what’s being implicitly stated in the text.
Register
This webinar is part of the Teacher Training Plus series

The Little Things You Can Do to Make a Big Impact on GED® Math Performance
2024-03-26 14:30 - 16:00
Content Session:
The Little Things You Can Do to Make a Big Impact on GED® Math Performance
Presenter: Ronald Allan Cruz
Description: Sometimes the little things students ignore could mean the difference between passing or failing the GED® Mathematical Reasoning Test. This session will focus on what teachers need to pay attention to in terms of what students do during problem-solving exercises that could help significantly improve students’ performance on the test. This session will also suggest strategies to break those bad math habits and provide tips to sustain effective problem-solving practices.

Topic of the Day: How can you break the cycle of those students who score between 140 and 144?
Presenter(s): Kelly Dages (Fifth Theory), Ann Evers, GED Testing Service
Description: Do you have a student that:

Gets a Green on GED Ready test but doesn’t pass the GED test?
Repeatedly scores between a 140-144 on the GED test?
Won’t schedule the GED test or does, but then doesn’t show up for it?

The GED TestPrepped Coaching Program Course will teach you how to break these cycles.
The program will help you identify non-academic skills where your students struggle such as, Motivation, Responsibility, Confidence, Resiliency, etc. Learn how to
work with your students to build a successful test-taking mindset.

LINCS Coffee Talk: Using AI Tools in Civics Education
2024-03-25 15:00 - 16:00 | Virtual
Leverage the power of AI tools to target and tailor the creation of level-appropriate civics course material. Re-apply these prompts to highlight and connect the language and civics content in IECLE classrooms to facilitate student leadership in the workforce and the community-at-large.
Register Here

EdWeb: Science of Reading Week
2024-03-25 - 2024-03-28 | Online
When schools and districts connect knowledge of the science of reading with instruction, we can realize exponential power for change. These panels are designed to address the needs of every educator, school administrator and district leader, empowering you with knowledge of structured literacy to forever reshape students’ academic journeys.
Join EdWeb and Lexia for four days of inspiration, guidance, and expert advice to unlock literacy learning
for every student through the science of reading. Webinars are 12:00-1:00pm Monday March 25 – Thursday March 28. Register for individual webinars or the whole week.
Register

LINCS: What's Your Story?
2024-03-22 15:00 - 16:00 | Virtual
Many of our students come to us with significant trauma that impacts their ability to learn. How can we help students learn to tell their stories and engage in the self-reflection needed to heal? Join our guest presenter, Odilia Rivera-Santos, with the Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island to learn about “What’s Your Story?”—a process where writing leads to healing.
Register Here

LINCS: Let's Talk: Virtual Learning Communities to Support Practitioners
2024-03-22 12:00 - 13:00 | Virtual
Join the LINCS Professional Development and Program Management group moderators in this coffee chat to discuss virtual learning communities – their characteristics, support for practitioners, and best practices in planning and implementation. We welcome you to listen, learn, and share your experiences!
Register Here

VALRC ESOL Beginning Literacy Webinar Series: Using the Language Experience Approach to Integrate the Components of Reading
2024-03-21 15:00 - 17:00 | Virtual
Do you work with adult ESOL learners who are building their literacy skills? Are you looking for an engaging and asset-based approach to ESOL beginning literacy instruction that allows for the integration of all four components of reading?
This webinar will present strategies for utilizing the language experience approach (LEA) in the ESOL educational setting as a strategy for integrating all four components of reading–alphabetics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension–into instruction. We will discuss LEA, walk through the steps of implementing it, and look at strategies for using the student-generated text for activities related to all four components of reading. Participants will leave the webinar with an understanding of the language experience approach, how it benefits ESOL beginning literacy instruction, and strategies for implementing this strategy in the adult ESOL classroom. The resources will include options for ESOL beginning literacy curricula and supplemental materials.
Register Here

NEDP for Non-NEDP Staff
2024-03-14 16:00 - 17:00, 2024-03-12 13:00 - 14:00
The most successful National External Diploma Program (NEDP) providers take a whole-agency approach to NEDP. Learners benefit when instructors, administrators, and support staff who have NOT been trained in NEDP understand the fundamentals of the program.
Join us for a one-hour crash course in NEDP for non-NEDP staff. Impress your coworkers with your fluency in NEDP terminology! Demolish your agency’s NEDP silo!

Tuesday, March 12th at 1:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 14th at 4:00 p.m.

Register for either session at https://casas-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIpd-iorjgsGNASu2k1mcvJjZszN-OuhDwC

VALRC: Multilevel ESOL Classes Webinar Series, Session 2
2024-03-14 15:30 - 17:00 | Virtual
Do you want to tackle the challenges of teaching multilevel ESOL classes? Are you looking to address the varied learning needs of individual students within one classroom and become an effective multi-level teacher?
This 3 part webinar series will present strategies for effective multi-level instruction and planning for ESOL classes or multi-level classrooms. We will discuss the characteristics of a multilevel class, planning for differentiated instruction and implementing different classroom management strategies for effective instruction. Participants will leave the webinar with an understanding of what multilevel classroom needs consist of, how to prepare and plan for individual students needs, and strategies for implementing differentiated instruction in the adult ESOL multi-level classroom. The resources will include articles, videos and supplemental materials.
Objectives:

Understand the factors of a multilevel classroom and how to identify the needs of all students.
Identify strategies to effectively differentiate instruction in both multi level classrooms as well as leveled ESOL classes while accommodating literacy learners and more advanced students.
Discuss next steps for implementation, including adaptation of materials and strategies with a specific group of learners.

Session 2 will focus on a deep dive of differentiation by the process and the product.
Register Here

Literacy Minnesota: Teaching Intermediate Alphabetics
2024-03-13 14:00 - 16:00 | Online
Teaching intermediate alphabetics (syllables, prefixes, suffixes, root words) is a great way to help students build their decoding and comprehension skills. Come learn a variety of fun and easy-to-use routines and activities for helping intermediate-level readers develop these important tools.
Register

Boot Camp 2.0 - Building on Success
2024-03-13 09:00 - 12:00
Boot Camps have proven a worthwhile strategy in providing instruction for students who are one test away from a high school credential. For many of these students, the focus has been on math. However, we know that this strategy can and will work for other areas as well. This virtual session, Boot Camp 2.0, is designed to look at next steps and to look at some critical questions, including, but not limited to:

1) How do we define success?

2) How has our enrollment criteria impacted both program and student success?

3) What can we do to better target our curriculum to best meet the needs of our students?

4) What testing strategies should we be incorporating into our curriculum to ensure students are prepared not just for the content, but for the testing experience?

5) What is the best way to ensure that we provide boot camps on an ongoing basis?

Join us on Wednesday, March 13 from 9:00 a.m. – noon for Boot Camp 2.0 – Building on Success. This will be an interactive session, so be sure to bring and be ready to share examples of your own successes and challenges with Boot Camps.

If you have specific questions about content and logistics related to providing Boot Camps that you would like to see answered during this session, please forward those to Susan Pittman, skptvs@gmail.com.

Register for this session here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMuc–trjwiGdefnnVO5yEFUBeTY-M7FnoT

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with information about joining the meeting.

Literacy Minnesota: Developing and Practicing Reading Fluency
2024-03-11 19:30 - 21:30 | Online
Come and review the important role of fluency in reading instruction. We will discuss the three key components of reading fluency and look at a variety of activities tutors and teachers can try. We will talk about the mechanics of doing fluency practice via Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or any other remote tutoring tool (including the phone!). Participants will have plenty of opportunity to ask questions and share resources.
This workshop will be most useful for instructors working with low-intermediate to advanced readers.
Register
