Literacy Now

The ILA Google Hangout on Air highlighted the benefits of and strategies for reading aloud in the classroom. Our guests also talked about some of their favorite books for using in the classroom. Use this list to beef up your classroom library.

From Jennifer Estrada, program development and management, LitWorld:

The Gift of Nothing
By Patrick McDonnell (2005)

Giraffes Can’t Dance
By Giles Andreae (1999)

Roxaboxen
By Alice McLerran (1991)

Miss Rumphius
By Barbara Cooney (1982)

The Dot
By Peter H. Reynolds (2003)

Ish
By Peter H. Reynolds (2004)

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend
By Dan Santat (2014)

Exclamation Mark
By Amy Krouse Rosenthal (2013)

Whoever You Are
By Mem Fox (1997)

Harry Potter series
By J.K. Rowling (1997)

From Steven Layne, author and professor of literacy education, Judson University in Illinois:

The Magic Hat 
By Mem Fox (2002)

My Little Sister Ate One Hare 
By Bill Grossman (1998)

Love the Baby 
By Steven Layne (2007)

Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey 
By Maira Kalman (2002)

Donuthead
By Sue Stauffacher (2003)

Bridge to Terabithia
By Katherine Paterson (1977)

On My Honor 
By Marion Dane Bauer (1986)

Because of Winn Dixie
By Kate DiCamillo (2000)

Stand Tall
By Joan Bauer (2002)

This Side of Paradise
Steven Layne (2001)

Almost Famous
Joan Bauer (2012)

Harris and Me 
By Gary Paulsen (1993)

Unwind
By Neal Shusterman (2007)

The Shadow Club
By Neal Shusterman (2002)

The Rules of Survival
By Nancy Werlin (2006)

Stargirl
By Jerry Spinelli (2000)

Counterfeit Son
By Elaine Alphin (2000)

Whale Talk
By Chris Crutcher (2001)

From Pernille Ripp, classroom teacher and founder, Global Read Aloud:

Crenshaw
By Katherine Applegate (2015)

The One and Only Ivan
By Katherine Applegate (2012)

One for the Murphys
By Lynda Mullaly Hunt (2013)

Fish In A Tree
By Lynda Mullaly Hunt (2015)

Coraline
By Neil Gaiman (2002)

Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin
By Liesl Shurtliff (2014)

Circus Mirandus
By Cassie Beasley (2015)

Orbiting Jupiter
By Gary D. Schmidt (2015)

All American Boys
By Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely (2015)

Fish
By L.S. Matthews (2003)

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass
By Meg Medina (2013)

Weekends with Max and His Dad
By Linda Urban (2016)

The Crossover
By Kwame Alexander (2014)

Pax
By Sara Pennypacker (2016)

Raymie Nightingale
By Kate DiCamillo (2016)

The Nest
By Kenneth Oppel (2015)

The Thing About Jellyfish
By Ali Benjamin (2015)

Night Vision
By Ella West (2014)

House Arrest
By K.A. Holt (2015)

It’s that exciting time of year again: Time to peruse the offerings and register for the International Literacy Association 2016 Conference & Exhibits from the comfort of your computer or mobile device.

Select from a number of packages and sessions—from Preconference Institutes and Literature Luncheons to a full-day Edcamp—and don’t forget to book your hotel while you’re at it!

What you’ll need:

• Computer (or mobile device)
• Internet access
• IDs (ILA member or customer number/password, student ID, guest’s full name/phone number)
• Credit card

Tips before you get started

• Check out the ILA 2016 Conference website for information including General Session speakers, conference highlights, and frequently asked questions.
• The iPlanner offers details on sessions and Preconference Institutes.
• While registering, do not use your browser’s “back” or “forward” buttons. There are “previous” and “next” buttons on the registration site you can use without losing the information you’ve already entered.
• After completing each page, use the “next” button to move on.

Login

If you are an existing ILA member or customer, use your ILA username and password to log in. If you’ve purchased a book from ILA, you should also have a login you can use for registration (so please don’t create another). If you’re visiting us for the first time, go ahead and create a login here. Be sure to click the “LOG IN” button at the bottom of the page once you’ve entered your information.

Registration info

There are basic questions here. If you have a login, it will automatically populate the required fields, except for emergency contact information.

Now you’ll be able to choose if you want to register for the ILA 2016 Conference or book your hotel room. It doesn’t matter which you opt for first; you’ll be able to add the other now or later.

The second registration page will ask for more detailed information.

Make your choices

On this next page, you'll customize your ILA 2016 Conference experience. Note: the prices here are discounted member prices. If you are not a member, join here to get the discount.

Add to your ILA 2016 Conference experience

Here you can add a Preconference Institute—like “Igniting a Sense of Wonder: Fueling Curiosity, Empowering Learning”—to your itinerary and have the chance to sign up for the popular Author Meetup, where attendees will be able to spend time chatting with children's authors, in addition to walking away with an autographed book from each writer in your preferred reader age group (4–8, 8–12, or 12+). Both of these ticketed sessions have a separate fee that will be included at checkout. This is where you can also request special assistance at the conference, should you need it.

To get inspired by award-winning authors, add a Literature Luncheon on the next page.

Bring a friend

Next, if you’d like to add a guest, you may do so for $75. Guests may not attend educational sessions, but will be able to visit the Exhibit Hall and attend any Literature Luncheons for which you are registered.

Getting to know you

Answer a few brief questions so we can get to know you a little better. These questions help us improve our conference and member services. You will also be able to request special assistance, should you need it. Please make sure to read the Cancellation Policy carefully.

Add your hotel and check out

Now it’s time to add your hotel reservation (if you haven’t already), or check out only for the ILA 2016 Conference. You can also review your badge here.

All set!

Once you’ve finished, you’ll receive your confirmation here. See you in Boston!

Reading aloud is a staple in most classrooms today, no matter the grade. Join experts in the subject Tuesday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. ET when they discuss read-aloud benefits and strategies on ILA’s next Google Hangout on Air.

Steven L. Layne, noted author and professor of literacy education at Judson University in Illinois, is the author of In Defense of Read-Aloud. In it, Layne presents historical and contemporary research supporting read-aloud as best practice and poses the question, “Why doesn’t our practice match our verbalized intent?” He has often reached out to classroom teachers to guide them in best practices of the strategy.

Pernille Ripp is a dedicated seventh-grade teacher who founded Global Read Aloud (GRA). From its inception in 2010, this growing literacy initiative has united more than 500,000 students in 60 countries. Over social media and in correspondence, Ripp has inspired teachers to join her literacy campaign. She has recently developed a creative community through Edmodo, encouraging teachers to also collaborate and network during GRA. In addition, Ripp is an author and the cofounder of EdCamp MadWI.

Jennifer Estrada joined the LitWorld team shortly after its founding in 2008 and moved into program development and management as LitWorld grew into a leading organization in literacy and social-emotional education and advocacy. She is a passionate advocate and educator who works with children and youth in communities throughout North America, Europe, and Africa. After receiving her MSc in International Education from Oxford University, Jennifer returned to LitWorld and divides her time between the New York and California offices with her primary base in New York.

Watch the Google Hangout on Air live at literacyworldwide.org/youtube. The broadcast will also be archived at the same location.

During the Hangout, expect the guests to make suggestions on how to maximize the value and importance of read-aloud, in addition to sharing lists of their favorite books for the practice.

The Hangout on Air will be live-tweeted. To join the conversation on Twitter and have a chance to win a copy of Layne’s In Defense of Read-Aloud, use #ILAhangout.

Some educators see technology in the classroom as the bright and shiny thing that will keep students engaged. Others believe so strongly in the use of texts that they eschew the use of electronics in education.

But it doesn’t have to be one or the other, says Kristin Ziemke. This Apple Distinguished Educator believes it’s more important to balance both text and tech—it’s all in the navigation.

Join Ziemke Feb. 11 at 8 p.m. ET for the next #ILAchat on Twitter for her perspective on transferring modeling, scaffolding, and other best practices into the digital learning environment.

Ziemke is a teacher and staff developer. She is the coauthor of Amplify: Digital Teaching and Learning in the K–6 Classroom (Heinemann) and Connecting Comprehension and Technology (Heinemann).

Follow #ILAchat and @ILAtoday at 8 p.m. ET Feb. 11 to join the conversation about how to find a place for both traditional text and technology.

To engage students in writing, educators have turned to an approach that has one name but many forms: interactive writing. Interactive writing is the process of discussion and negotiation between student and teacher to better develop and encourage young writers. But diving into this process can be a bit daunting.

Enter Irene C. Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell. Join these interactive writing experts Jan. 14 at 8 p.m. ET for the next #ILAchat on Twitter, where they’ll lay out the basics of interactive writing and give practical suggestions on how to use the method in the classroom.

Fountas, a professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA, has been a classroom teacher, a language arts specialist, and a district consultant around the world. She publishes resources for comprehensive literacy programs that quickly become staples for literacy instruction across the United States.

Pinnell is Professor Emeritus in the School of Teaching and Learning at The Ohio State University. She has extensive experience in classroom teaching and field-based research, and in developing comprehensive approaches to literacy education.

Fountas and Pinnell have both individually and as a team researched in depth how students learn best and published several books, including Interactive Writing: How Language & Literacy Come Together, K–2 (Heinemann, 2000).

Follow #ILAchat and @ILAtoday at 8 p.m. ET Jan. 14 to join the conversation about how interactive writing can support and encourage emerging writers.