As texts grow more complex, so must students' comprehension strategies. This session focuses on teaching students how to monitor understanding, infer, summarize, and synthesize information using explicit instruction, modeling, and collaborative practice.
Learning Objectives:
Teach flexible, transferable comprehension strategies


Scaffold deep thinking through modeling and guided practice


Use text-dependent questions to drive comprehension

Online Book Study - The Writing Rope A Framework for Explicit Writing Instruction
Author: Joan Sedita

Audience: K–8 Teachers, Literacy Coaches, Specialists, and Interventionists
Writing is a complex task that draws on multiple strands of literacy and language. In this 6-session book study, educators will explore Joan Sedita’s Writing Rope—a comprehensive framework for delivering explicit, systematic writing instruction. Each session will focus on a different component of the rope: critical thinking, syntax, text structure, writing craft, transcription skills, and the importance of integrating these strands into cohesive, high-impact instruction.
Participants will collaborate with colleagues to reflect on their current writing practices, explore evidence-based strategies, and walk away with tools they can immediately apply in their classrooms, small groups, or coaching settings.

Learning Objectives:
Participants will:
Understand the five strands of the Writing Rope and how they develop skilled writers


Learn instructional strategies that explicitly support writing development in grades K–8


Explore the connection between writing and reading, vocabulary, syntax, and content learning


Reflect on current writing instruction and identify areas for improvement


Plan for implementation using classroom-ready tools and templates

Writing Foundations in K–2
Description:
Writing in the early grades lays the groundwork for expression, language development, and content learning. This session highlights developmentally appropriate writing practices including modeled, shared, and independent writing across genres.
Learning Objectives:
Support emergent writers through scaffolded instruction


Use routines like interactive writing and sentence stems


Build stamina and confidence through daily writing opportunities

Description:
Students in grades 3–5 must learn to organize ideas, support thinking with evidence, and write with purpose across genres. This session offers strategies for planning, modeling, and conferencing that help students grow as independent writers.
Learning Objectives:
Teach clear structure and organization across writing types


Use mentor texts and feedback to develop voice and craft


Support revision and elaboration through targeted mini-lessons