Words Their Way in the COE Today!

On Tuesday, June 21st from 9am to 3pm, 38 Lincoln Parish professional educators joined Dr. Carrice Cummins, Dr. Libby Manning, and Dr. Kim Kimbell-Lopez from the Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership in the College of Education at Louisiana Tech University for a Words Their Way Workshop in Woodard Hall in the new College of Education Literacy Center. Teachers came from each of the Lincoln Parish elementary schools, and many administrators joined as well. Central Office Elementary Lead, Sherry Boyd was also in attendance and has been a great advocate for the use of the tool in the schools she serves. Dr. Bryan McCoy, Department Chair for Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership noted that this workshop was a "fantastic opportunity to engage with K-12 educational professionals to strengthen both the teacher education programs and K-12 classrooms." Words Their Way is a trademarked product through Pearson Learning Services. The system focuses on " word study for phonics, vocabulary, and spelling instruction," as noted on their website www.pearsonschool.com. The faculty enjoyed a full day of professional development activities and modeled instruction delivered by the University professors. "This voluntary workshop was hosted at no charge, and is an extension of the strong existing partnership between the Louisiana Tech University College of Education and the Lincoln Parish Schools," noted Dean Schillinger. In addition to the exciting event today, the trio of outstanding literacy educators will be hosting a regional conference in Shreveport/ Bossier at the Tech Center from June 28- June 30. This is the first annual conference of its kind and is titled Powerful Instruction: Developing Readers, Writers, and Thinkers. For more information about the upcoming conference, please visit the Eventbrite site at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/powerful-instruction-developing-readers-writers-and-thinkers-tickets-22048621019?aff=erelexpmlt . There is limited space available for those interested in registering.