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Literacy by the Lakes

Monday, June 4, 2018

Faculty in Literacy Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will again host Literacy by the Lakes, this August 10th-11th. The goal of the initiative is to support PK-12 school-based teams of educators in developing and sustaining the literate lives of children and youth. Literacy by the Lakes is a yearlong partnership, beginning with the August institute and continuing through the 2018-19 school year.

School-based teams will identify an area of focus for meaningful literacy instruction during the institute and work toward that focus throughout the school year. Teams are provided access to professional books, children’s or young adult literature, consultation with literacy faculty and graduate students from UW-Madison, and opportunities to learn from other school teams.

Mara Johansen, a 7th-grade communications teacher from Mosinee, participated in Literacy by the Lakes the last two years, and thoroughly appreciates the professional contacts provided, along with the network of teachers created. “This conference gives you a huge resource of teachers around the state who are committed to trying new things to help their students be engaged, active participants in their learning, and these teachers are willing to share out their successes with others.”

At this year’s institute, professors Dawnene Hassett and Mary Louise Gomez and others will provide sessions on:

  • Equitable literacy practices as essential to building a just society
  • Reading and writing that are engaging to students
  • Dialogic classrooms as fertile spaces for literacy learning and intellectual and relational growth
  • Writing and drawing interactively from complex texts
  • Innovation, imagination, and play as essential to literacy success and literate practice

Along with the sessions, time is provided for discussion and planning within and among teams. Middleton High school English teacher, Jennifer Mathison-Ohly emphasizes the lasting effects of the work done through Literacy by the Lakes. “I am still asking questions, still learning from the resources that have been shared with me, and still connected with the educators and professors I have met. I am a better teacher because of my time spent with Literacy by the Lakes.”

Literacy by the Lakes is offered at a reduced cost to teams. Registration is $150 per person, which includes the two-day registration, meals, lodging, professional books, children’s and young adult books, and other supporting materials for the 2018-19 school year.

For more information, including how to apply, see the Education Outreach and Partnerships website.