Literacy Matters: News You Can Use
March 2008
FOR-PD would like to take time to announce our new director, Ms. Saioa de Urquiza, M.Ed. Saioa is currently serving as FOR-PD Interim Director. Saioa brings knowledge of large scale educational projects and also has experience with the FOR-PD project. Vicky Zygouris-Coe, Ph.D. continues to serve as principal investigator of FOR-PD; she also functions as associate director. The two will be working closely with the FOR-PD team. Please feel free to contact us with questions and feedback about FOR-PD.
Sincerely,
The FOR-PD Staff
State Board of Education Approves World-Class Science Standards
From “The Core: News from the Florida Department of Education“: The State Board of Education (SBE) recently approved the revised Science Sunshine State Standards (SSS). Based on leading national and international science standards, the revised Science SSS incorporate the latest scientific research, concepts, and techniques that form the educational foundation for students to compete in the global economy of the future. District science curriculum will be aligned to the revised standards beginning in the 2008-09 school year and the Science Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) will begin testing students on the material in 2012.
The UCF College of Education Announces the 10th Annual Literacy Symposium
Come join us for a day of learning focused on celebrating literacy, learning more about reading in the content areas, technology and literacy, motivating students to read and learn from quality literature, improving literacy, and preparing our students for the future! This is a free professional day for all elementary and secondary educators, including literacy coaches, library media specialists, reading specialists, and administrators.
This year's keynote speakers include Douglas Fisher, Ph.D., is a Professor of Language and Literacy Education in the Department of Teacher Education at San Diego State University, the Co-Director for the Center for the Advancement of Reading at the California State University Chancellor’s office, and a classroom teacher at Health Sciences High & Middle College. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design as well as books, such as Creating Literacy-rich Schools for Adolescents (with Gay Ivey), Improving Adolescent Literacy: Strategies at Work (with Nancy Frey) and Teaching English Language Learners: A Differentiated Approach (with Carol Rothenberg). He has taught a variety of courses in SDSU’s teacher-credentialing program as well as graduate-level courses on English language development and literacy.
Our afternoon keynote will be Edward Bloor. Edward Bloor is the author of five critically acclaimed young adult novels: Tangerine, Crusader, Story Time, London Calling, and Taken. He was a middle school teacher in Broward County, Florida, and a high school teacher in Brevard County, Florida, before joining Harcourt School publishers, where he is an executive editor. His newest novel, Memory Lane, will be published by Random House in 2009.
All Literacy Symposium information, including registration, can be accessed at http://education.ucf.edu/litsymposium/details.cfm
Looking Ahead: April is National Poetry Month
Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in April 1996, National Poetry Month (NPM) brings together publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools, and poets to celebrate poetry and its place in American culture. Thousands of businesses and non-profit organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events.
The goals of National Poetry Month are to:
- Highlight the extraordinary legacy and ongoing achievement of American poets
- Introduce more Americans to the pleasures of reading poetry
- Bring poets and poetry to the public in immediate and innovative ways
- Make poetry a more important part of the school curriculum
- Increase the attention paid to poetry by national and local media
- Encourage increased publication, distribution, and sales of poetry books
- Increase public and private philanthropic support for poets and poetry
Table of Contents
About the Literacy Newsletter
FOR-PD's Literacy newsletter deals specifically with literacy and learning for K-12 teachers of Florida's public schools. As you read and review our newsletter you will find information on local, state, and federal literacy news, upcoming conferences, celebrations, sources of funding, resources on the World Wide Web, and resources you can use with your students. The participant section answers pertinent questions participants have about the course and provides helpful tips for successful completion. We hope that this newsletter will provide educators with useful information to support their literacy development and the work they do with Florida students.
We welcome your feedback on how we can better support you and help you grow professionally. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or comments.
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Last Updated:
March 17, 2008