The AIU's Reading Achievement Center (RAC) provides services and support designed to increase student learning and achievement in reading. The center's programs and services provide Allegheny County educators access to high quality professional development,  materials and resources to transform and sustain effective literacy instruction in grades pre-K to 12. RAC offers cohort based professional development at the AIU, as well as customized, onsite curriculum support and professional development.

2018-2019 Professional Learning Opportunities

 The K-3 Reading Apprenticeship Model

12 day series – $3,800 per participant

• An initial session of intensive, comprehensive training in reading history, pedagogy, theory, research and proven instructional practice
• Monthly follow-up trainings to build depth and breadth of professional knowledge and application
• All materials (including student materials and professional resources)
• Monthly (or as needed) on-site technical assistance and corrective feedback
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

September 18-19
October 9-10
November 7-8
December 6
January 17
February 13
March 19
April 23
May 15

Registration:  https://rac2018k-3.eventbrite.com

RAC REFRESHER – K-3 Reading Apprenticeship for Grades K & 1

Grades K & 1 (No Cost)

What's New in Primary Reading?

• RAC K-3 Reading Apprenticeship Alumni can participate in a daylong session to refresh their knowledge and engage in best practices in literacy
• Materials and Act 48 provided
• This session is geared to those who currently teach Kindergarten or Grade 1 and have participated in a past RAC K-3 Reading Apprenticeship Cohort
• Registration is limited

 Date: October 4

Registration: https://rac2018refreshkand1.eventbrite.com

RAC REFRESHER – K-3 Reading Apprenticeship for Grades 2 & 3

Grades 2 & 3 (No Cost)

What's New in Primary Reading?

• RAC K-3 Reading Apprenticeship Alumni can participate in a daylong session to refresh their knowledge and engage in best practices in literacy
• Materials and Act 48 provided
• This session is geared to those who currently teach Grade 2 or Grade 3 and have participated in a past RAC K-3 Reading Apprenticeship Cohort
• Registration is limited

 Date: October 5

Registration: https://rac2018refresh2and3.eventbrite.com

Text Dependent Analysis: Effective Instructional Practices

4 day series – $600 per participant, 4th-8th grade ELA teachers

This four-day series focuses on effective teaching practices for helping students overcome some of the biggest struggles with the text dependent analysis (TDA) portion of the PSSA. Sessions will focus on teaching students how to understand the prompt, read and write for analysis, determine the best evidence, and craft the essay. Participants will engage in modeled research-based and classroom-tested activities to strengthen their own instruction.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

September 25
October 23
December 4
January 24

Registration: https://rac2018TDA.eventbrite.com

 Cultivating Comprehension

4 day series - $600 per participant, 3rd-7th grade ELA teachers

This professional development series consists of four full days of training that focus exclusively on the literacy domain of reading comprehension. Targeted for teachers in grades 3 to 7, the content is directly aligned with the PA Core standards and state test expectations.  Participants learn techniques to design reading instruction that meets the standards’ rigorous expectations, both for literature and informational text.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

October 30
December 12
January 30
March 6

Registration:  https://rac2018CultivatingComp.eventbrite.com 

Teaching Writing

4 day series - $600 per participant, 4th-8th teachers

Teaching Writing is a four day workshop series aligned to the writing instruction necessary to meet the demands of the PA Core standards. Designed for practical application in grades 4-8 ELA classrooms, participants engage in instructional practices based on current research on what makes a difference in student writing. Topics include teaching academic form, increasing the frequency of writing opportunities, providing effective and timely feedback, incorporating writing into reading, incorporating grammar instruction into reading and writing, conducting document reviews of student work, and teaching mode-specific writing for the PSSA TDA and writing prompts.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

October 24
December 5
January 23
March 5

Registration:  https://rac2018teachingwriting.eventbrite.com 

Adolescent Literacy Institute

4 day series – $600 per participant, middle and high school English and Reading Teachers

The Adolescent Literacy Institute is a series of workshops for teachers in grades 7 to 12 focused on research-based literacy practices that support students as they become college and career ready. Specifically aligned with brain research on how adolescents learn, this workshop series engages participants in the research behind and modeling of effective reading and writing instruction for the secondary grades.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

October 16
November 14
January 15
February 26

Registration:  https://rac2018AdLit.eventbrite.com 

Comprehension, Close Reading and Complex Text: Laying the Foundation K-2

4 day series – $400 per participant, K-2 ELA teachers

Transitioning students to the demands of the PA Core Standards is not a job just for teachers in the tested grades! This three-day series will support teachers in the primary grades in aligning their instructional practices to the PA Core. Participants will engage with teaching informational text, text dependent questions, close reading, scaffolding instruction using complex text, annotating text, designing rigorous tasks, and incorporating academic vocabulary into students’ vocabularies, specifically focusing on how to implement these concepts into everyday practice.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost

Dates:

October 18
November 15
January 9
February 6

Registration: https://rac2018k-2Foundation.eventbrite.com 

PART 2: Comprehension, Close Reading and Complex Text: Laying the Foundation K-2

3 day series – $300 per participant, K-2 teachers who have taken Comprehension, Close Reading and Complex Text:  Laying the Foundation during the 2016-17 or 2017-18 School Year

This 3-day course will provide primary teachers with additional information and strategies related to the ELA Shifts including close reading and writing using evidence from text.

• All materials are included
• Administrators may accompany their registered participants to any or all sessions at no cost
• Must have participated in the first course to be accepted into this session

Dates:  January 10, February 7,  March 7

 Registration:  https://rac2018primarycloserdgpart2.eventbrite.com

 RAC Reading Specialists’ Network

4 sessions – No Cost

Join the RAC Reading Specialists’ Network for an opportunity to connect with other reading specialists in Allegheny County.  Each session will feature research-based best practices and strategies to support reading specialists in being effective in their role as they work with students, teachers, and parents in all three tiers of literacy.  The network is open to Reading Specialists who have participated in the 2017-18 Network as well as new participants. 

Dates:  October 3, November 2, January 11, March 21

Registration:  https://2018racreadingspecialist.eventbrite.com

 English Language Arts (ELA) Symposium

2 days (no cost) 

2018-19 Topic: Content Area Reading and Writing

The Reading Achievement Center provides two annual symposiums that focus on expert literacy practices aligned to the PA Core standards along with modeled instruction that meets the rigor of the standards.

Dates:

November 13 (3rd - 5th ELA Teachers)  Registration: https://aiu3-5symposium2018.eventbrite.com
January 29 (6th- 8th ELA Teachers) Registration: Opens December 2018

Reading Achievement Center Resources:

The RAC room has limited samples of effective commercial programs and other educator resources to supplement and enhance classroom instruction and out-of-school learning. Reading Achievement Center staff are available to assist districts in reviewing curricular and instructional materials.

Contact heather.moschetta@aiu3.net or lisa.yonek@aiu3.net for more information.