Breakout Session B

Session B1

Marcy Newbold
    Auburn High School
Jenna Grites
    Westville High School
Cassie Hulett-Graham
    Illinois State University High School
Paul Krogmeier
    Normal Community High School
Bob Broad, bob.broad@ilstu.edu
    Illinois State University
Room: Redbird E
Audience: General

WritingWATCH: An Online Resource for Teachers of Writing
Six writing teachers created a new online resource: “WritingWATCH.” (WATCH stands for “Writing Assessment Teachers’ Clearinghouse.”) This blog helps teachers of writing promote and defend assessment practices that support the best teaching and learning. Presenters will demonstrate the blog and discuss the process of working together to create it.

Session B2

Lauren Collen, lauren.collen@harlem122.org
    Machesney Elementary
Room: Beaufort
Audience:  Elementary

Beyond Multicultural:  Looking at Books for Elementary Students through a Lens of Accuracy and Authenticity
Could there be books in your elementary classroom that present an inaccurate, biased, stereotyped, or prejudicial view of persons of color, ethnicity, disability, etc.?  How would you identify those books? What should you do with them? Utilizing many examples and a myriad of resources, we will look deeply and thoughtfully into this important topic.

Session B3

Rick De Leon, rdeleon@lths.org
    Lockport Township High School
Room:  Redbird F
Audience:  High School

Online Close Reading and Authentic Discussion using Google Docs

In this interactive session, participants learn to actively close read literature/informational text for comprehension and analysis, building upon each others’ thinking through threaded questioning/discussion. The presenter will model online feedback strategies for learning and techniques to improve students’ analysis skills as students read, write, and discuss authentically for learning.

Session B4

Rachel Shore, rshore@coalcityschools.org
    Coal City Middle School
Josh Piper
    Farmington Central Junior High School
Room:  Fell A
Audience:  Middle/High School

Shakespeare to Social Media, and Beyond
Meeting students where they are while retaining the classics is always difficult unless you marry the two together. Using Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, students will recreate classic text into a meaningful and relevant medium, all while developing analytic skills and bridging the gap between complex texts and modern communication methods.

Session B5

Betsy Geiselman, Betsy.geiselman@cchs165.com
Jessie Anderson
    Carbondale Community High School
Room:  Fell B
Audience:  High School

Leave Me at Lenox Avenue: Contextualizing Poetry of the Harlem Renaissance
Poetry from the Harlem Renaissance is rich, not only in its language, or in its discussion of racism and discrimination, but also in its treatment of class, gender, and art. This presentation will offer resources and activities to help teachers situate the Harlem Renaissance in its historical, artistic, and physical context.