Dr. Dana Robertson, a middle aged white man, wears a blue and white plaid button down shirt and glasses. He smiles for the camera.

Children Experiencing Reading Difficulties: Reconceptualizing Instruction to Accelerate

This webinar will present an approach to instruction that intentionally considers elements of motivation and engagement, intensity of instruction, and cognitive challenge to accelerate the reading achievement of lower-performing readers.

Drawing from a set of high-leverage instructional practices squarely under the teacher's control, teachers will see how adaptively incorporating these practices into classroom and intervention instruction gives students access to and support to meet reading and knowledge building with success. By re-conceptualizing their approaches to working with struggling readers, teachers increase the likelihood that students will not only develop component skills related to reading but also integrate these components and develop the conceptual expertise that anchors future reading and learning. 

Date: Tuesday, April 5, 2022, from 5:00 to 6:15 p.m. EST

Continuing and Professional Education
School of Education Webinars April 2022
Cost: $25 / webinar

Contact:  Heidi Anne Mesmer, School of Education (hamesmer@vt.edu)

Virginia Educators Applying Reading Science (VEARS) Webinar Series

In response to the urgent need to translate reading science for K-12 educators, Virginia Tech is hosting four webinars on timely, educational topics. The goal of the series, entitled Virginia Educators Applying Reading Science (VEARS), is to clearly and succinctly  interpret research based strategies and techniques in ways that are directly applicable to the classroom. Each webinar targets a specific strategy or series of techniques, and brings pragmatic translations of research to teachers. The webinars will minimize broad “ideas,” and  “theories,” and emphasize pragmatic “How-tos” taken directly from applied studies. 

For example, shared reading, a technique that models the alphabetic principle for pre literate learners, is grounded in a body of applied work that specifies particular steps and teacher actions. VEARS webinars will connect teachers to research-proven strategies that they can use in their classrooms immediately.

Note:  Each webinar is a stand alone offering. There is no need to take all 4 of the offered webinars.