Literacy Training in Zimbabwe

One of my job responsibilities includes traveling to various locations to train teachers in literacy strategies. My objective is to empower teachers with additional tools for their teaching strategies toolbox. I’ve traveled to urban middle schools and high schools, community colleges and universities, literacy centers and libraries, and a myriad of other sites to train teachers, paraprofessionals, and tutors. I’ve met hundreds of teachers and students, and in the process, I’ve witnessed a variety of different backgrounds and needs. Once in a while, I have experiences while training that teach me life lessons, whether it be a lesson learned about how literacy strategies unlock a struggling student’s world of learning, or feeling inspired by a teacher’s passion.

This year I had a unique training opportunity. I traveled to Zimbabwe to provide literacy training for people in various remote villages where such services had never been provided. During this experience, I learned life lessons about individual dignity and the hierarchy of needs—physical, social, and educational. We drove on long, bumpy, dusty roads without air conditioning and proper suspension, and we traveled with little water and food. We traveled through and camped in wild game parks, witnessing rare sightings of wild animals and waking up to the sounds of the competing roars of lion prides. Although the conditions were not ideal, I felt privileged to have had the opportunity to interact with teachers and students that few people will ever get to meet.

Literacy Training in India at Pathway

Last month, my colleagues and I had the opportunity to visit Pathway India, a non-profit organization located in southern India that serves underprivileged and handicapped children. Pathway educates, empowers, and enlightens the students they serve by providing vocational and academic training, rewarding students for their contributions, and sustaining an environment in which the students feel safe, loved, and confident in their abilities to contribute using their knowledge and talents.



We had an opportunity to train the teachers at one of Pathway's schools located in rural Chennai. We also had the opportunity to conduct a training for English teachers in the surrounding area and were privileged to have Dr. Swaminathan in attendance.







Pathway India recently published their latest newsletter article which documents our recent visit. It can be accessed here. To learn more about this organization, visit their website at http://pathway.org.in/, or visit their Facebook page: Pathway India.

Forum for Adult Emerging ELL Readers

I have written a blog post before about ELL-U, a free online resource for professional development. I am pleased to be moderating a forum hosted by ELL-U later this month. Following is the information provided by ELL-U that has been recently disseminated.

Be sure to stop by the ELL-U community forums to join the online discussion with Heidi from April 22 - May 3, 2013. ELL-U is excited to have Heidi join the community to share her expertise in first- and second-language literacy and reading, language learning strategies, learner characteristics, pronunciation, and computer-assisted language learning. 

  

Heidi is the Curriculum and ESL Director at Reading Horizons where she oversees curriculum development, training, and research. In addition, she is also a current member of the international association of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), Inc. and has presented her research at the international convention. She also served as President of the Intermountain-TESOL (I-TESOL) affiliate from 2008-2009 and currently serves as Secretary on the I-TESOL Board.

Be sure to check the ELL-U Forums and Discussion page to participate in this special discussion. For additional information, email info@ell-u.org. 

Thoughts on Purpose

I was recently asked to share my thoughts on purpose with my company--why I do what I do. Purpose is one of the tenets of our company creed. I have blogged about purpose before. A few blog posts that illustrate my purpose for doing what I do include the following: 
Lessons Learned from Life
The "Homeless Wanderer"
The Value of Literacy
Post-India: Thoughts on Service
Teaching the Homeless to Read
Curriculum Vision -- Helping Struggling Readers
Success Stories in Learning to Read
Why Do We Do What We Do?

A few highlights of my job include (but, of course, are not limited to):

• Traveling to India to help with literacy efforts among the leprosy-affected: Post-India: Thoughts on Service, Ensuring Success with English in India, Back in India, A Day in My Life in India, More On a Day in My Life in India, Abolishing the Stigma of Leprosy by Teaching Children to Read in English, A Documentary on Humanitarian Efforts in India)
• Visiting NYC to conduct trainings and needs assessments for NYC Public Schools and Public libraries: New York City Public Schools Teach Students to Read, New York City Public Schools Teach Students to Read: Part 2, Literacy Training in the Bronx...and in Your Own Backyard, Opening Doors to Literacy in New York City Public Libraries)
• Traveling to the Middle East to promote reading instruction: English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East, English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East: Part 2, Phonics for Arabic Speakers in the Middle East) 
• Tutoring a gentleman in his 60's who has never learned how to read: Adult Education and Family Literacy Week 2011: Teaching Struggling Readers, On the Journey to Read, On the Journey to Read: Part 2, Teaching the Homeless to Read)
• Consulting, training, and researching literacy instruction for children, middle school- and high school-aged students, and adults (for both native English speakers and non-native English speakers), and writing curriculum that meets the needs of these individuals. I've visited a variety of settings to fulfill this purpose, some of which include prisons, urban and rural K-12 schools, community colleges and universities, adult education sites, non-profit groups, and charter schools, including the largest school for homeless children in the U.S.: Teaching Literacy in Strategies to Homeless Children and Individuals in Secure Care Facilities.
• Engaging in humanitarian service opportunities, specifically in the areas of teaching English and literacy, as well as empowering teachers with strategies to teach these skills through teacher training with the goal of maintaining autonomy and sustainability. As mentioned above, I have traveled to India for this purpose, as well as to various islands in the South Pacific. I plan to travel to Africa to conduct teacher training in the (hopefully near) future, as well.

Part of the purpose for this post was to respond to the request to share my thoughts on purpose with my company. But another impetus for this post was to provide a more personal side to my blog. I understand that most people find this blog organically when searching on the Internet for specific ESOL- and literacy-related topics; however, I also occasionally have friends and associates who are genuinely interested in what I do. Whether you are a "stranger" or a friend, thank you for visiting this blog!

Video on New Reading Software

This blog post is on a semi-personal note as I have decided to post a new video that was recently launched which showcases the new Reading Horizons Discovery software that encapsulates my work life over the last two years. My colleague Stacy Hurst and myself discuss some of the components of the software that help beginning readers learn effective reading strategies and assist teachers with tracking student progress. Although it is not evident in this video, suffice it to say that many hours of mental energy has gone into creating this product that now lives up to the quality of the curriculum that it teaches. But the effort has been worth it. Helping individuals learn to read is rewarding work.

Watch the video here.

Success Stories in Adult Literacy

I have blogged before about my experience tutoring a gentleman in his 60's who is learning to read for the first time. (See my blog posts here, here, and here.) As many of my colleagues and associates are aware, I have developed a passion for literacy--especially adult literacy. I love hearing success stories of individuals who have overcome the monumental obstacles of illiteracy and who are now confident and productive members of society. I recently heard a Canadian radio interview with such an individual who is a recipient of a literacy award. He is a father and a cancer survivor. He mentioned using the Reading Horizons program to help him learn how to read, which is the software program I helped to author. It is stories like these that remind me of why I do what I do. 

Listen to the interview here. 

See videos of other inspiring success stories here.

Opening Doors to Literacy in New York City Public Libraries

Last fall I conducted a literacy training for literacy and English as a Second Language teachers and tutors in the Bronx. (See my post about it here.) I recently returned to New York City where I helped conduct a follow-up literacy training, this time for five of the previous attendees who supervise the literacy teachers and tutors throughout the city at New York City Public Libraries. The purpose of this training was to train the supervisors on how to become certified Reading Horizons trainers. The training was held at the Bronx Library Center (down the street from one of Edgar Allen Poe's homes). This three-day training consisted of method review, explicit strategy instruction in decoding and spelling skills, as well as instruction on conducting consistent, teacher-directed practice. The attendees also had an opportunity to participate in peer coaching as they each took a turn teaching a skill and receiving feedback from the group. I am impressed with these individuals' competence, as well as their passion and drive to help teach literacy and English to speakers of other languages.

Aside from the training itself, I witnessed something magical going on within the walls of this library. Each day as I walked out of the training, I saw kids from the Bronx gathered around computers after school. I saw parents and children checking out books together. I saw middle school and high school kids meeting at the library to collaborate. I saw adults standing next to book shelves, books open and eyes scanning the pages, taking in the words like they were a refreshing drink of water. Libraries are magical places. I am grateful to be able to participate (in a very small way) in the amazing literacy programs offered throughout New York City. I am aware that there are several other libraries throughout the country doing similar things, whose efforts I applaud, as well. Libraries are magical places. They open the doors to education like no other.

Why Do We Do What We Do? An Inspiring TED Talk

Here is an inspiring TED talk that causes me to reflect on why I do what I do for my profession. As a little background on myself, I completed a Masters degree in  Teaching English to Speakers Other Languages (TESOL). I have taught English in the U.S. and in various countries around the world. In addition to teaching English with the intention of helping individuals improve the quality of their lives, I have discovered another passion in my current position as the Curriculum Director at Reading Horizons: Literacy. I have blogged about creating literacy curriculum in my blog post here.

A colleague introduced me to this TED talk by Simon Sinek entitled "How Great Leaders Inspire Action." It is worth 18 minutes of your time to watch and reflect on why you do what you do.

Free Webinar on the Essential Need for Orton Gillingham-Based Reading Instruction

Kathy Chapelle-Muncy, MS Ed. Reading and Literacy and teacher trainer, presented a great webinar on March 22, 2012, hosted by Reading Horizons on the essential need for  explicit and intensive phonics instruction for struggling readers, as well as the importance of delivering this type of instruction through an Orton Gillingham-based methodology. The Orton Gillingham approach refers to instruction that is multisensory, stepwise, cumulative, and language-based. A recording of this webinar is available here.

During the Q and A session at the end of the webinar, Kathy mentioned the Reading Horizons online pronunciation tool. A link to preview this tool is available here. For more questions and answers from the webinar, see the Reading Horizons blog post here.

The next webinar will be held April 19, 2012, by author Sarah Collinge. Her webinar is entitled, "Movitating Readers: Collaboration, Challenge, Competence, and Choice." You can register for the webinar here.

For other free webinars hosted by Reading Horizons, go here.

ESL Trail Blog 2011: Year in Review

With the end of the 2011 upon us, I thought I would provide a snapshot of highlights and popular posts of 2011, along with other interesting facts.


Following are the top ten countries from where the most page views of ESL Trail have originated:
1. United States
2. Canada
3. China
4. United Kingdom
5. Philippines
6. Germany
7. Ukraine
8. Australia
9. Russia
10. France


Following are the most popular posts written in 2011:

• ESL Pronunciation Tip: The Three Sounds of the Suffix -ED
• ESL Pronunciation Tip: Syllable Stress and the Schwa
• ESL Pronunciation Tip: Rising and Falling Intonation in WH- and Yes/No Questions
• Listening Strategy Training Activity

Highlights of 2011 include the following:

• Visiting NYC four times to conduct trainings and needs assessments for NYC Public Schools and Public libraries. (See my blog posts: New York City Public Schools Teach Students to Read, New York City Public Schools Teach Students to Read: Part 2, Literacy Training in the Bronx...and in Your Own Backyard)
• Traveling to India to help with literacy efforts among the leprosy-affected. (See my blog posts: Post-India: Thoughts on Service, Ensuring Success with English in India, Back in India, A Day in My Life in India, More On a Day in My Life in India, Abolishing the Stigma of Leprosy by Teaching Children to Read in English, A Documentary on Humanitarian Efforts in India)
• Traveling to the Middle East to promote phonics instruction. (See my blog posts: English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East, English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East: Part 2, Phonics for Arabic Speakers in the Middle East) 
• Tutoring a gentleman in his 60's who has never learned how to read. (See my blog posts: Adult Education and Family Literacy Week 2011: Teaching Struggling Readers, On the Journey to Read, Teaching the Homeless to Read)

I am optimistic that 2012 will prove to be an equally-exciting year!

A Documentary on Humanitarian Efforts in India

If you followed my blog earlier this year about my efforts to promote English and literacy among the leprosy-affected in India, you may be interested in this documentary by Doug Jardine that was aired this past Sunday on Utah Business Matters. It will also be aired this next Sunday. Following is the link to the documentary on YouTube:

Rising Star Outreach Documentary

The documentary illustrates the three-fold mission of Rising Star Outreach: microfinance, education, and a mobile medical clinic. Much of the video on the documentary was shot while I was in India earlier this year. Other volunteers featured on this documentary include Shaun Parry (founder of Promethean Spark), Stacy Tookey, and David Archuleta, all of whom were also among the volunteer corps on my expedition earlier this year.

See my other blog posts about India from January/February, 2011, here:
Post-India: Thoughts on Service
Ensuring Success with English in India
Back in India
A Day in My Life in India
More On a Day in My Life in India
Abolishing the Stigma of Leprosy by Teaching Children to Read in English

See my other blog posts about India from May, 2008, here:
English Language Instruction and Teaching in India
Why the English Language? Why Literacy? Why India?

Teaching English and Literacy Skills to Rising Star Outreach Students in India

On the Journey to Read

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I have the privilege of working with a gentleman in his sixties who has never learned how to read. As you can imagine, his illiteracy has affected his ability to find and keep a job, which has become quite a discouraging problem for him. There aren't a lot of jobs out there that don't require at least a minimal level of reading ability. And when you can't read AT ALL, which is this gentleman's case, your ability to compete for jobs that are available is definitely compromised.

Yesterday I worked with this gentleman for two hours on just five letters of the alphabet. I admit that I thought we would get through more content than we did. But that is where he's at right now, and he's comfortable with that. He was soaking it in. We practiced the names and sounds of the letters, practiced the concept of the slide, and began to sound out three-letter words. We would exchange high-fives to celebrate his successes, and we discussed vocabulary meaning and real-life application with each word as we went along. He is definitely motivated to learn, and he's already talking about what he will be able to do in another couple months after getting some more reading skills down. But I recognize that consistency and self-motivation will be a key to his success. He's committed himself to review and practice on his own at home (he offered to do that before I even had a chance to make that suggestion), and he will continue to do some independent work on the Reading Horizons software program to supplement our one-on-one instruction time.

As I think about the beginning of his journey to learn how to read--something he has never been able to do up to this point in his life--I think about some things I need to keep in mind as I continue to work with him that hopefully could be relevant to you in your particular educational and life-learning contexts. I'm sure you have your own list of ideas, as well, so feel free to share them.

Teaching Literacy Strategies to Homeless Children and Individuals in Secure Care Facilities

This has been the year of travel! My job has taken me to various places around the nation and the world to present, train, and observe literacy instruction. This year, I have traveled to New York City twice, India, the Middle East, New Orleans, and Washington, D.C. Last week, I traveled to Phoenix, Arizona. The purpose of my trip to Arizona was two-fold: 1) to present literacy strategies at the Arizona Correctional Educators Conference in Tempe; and 2) to make site visits to locations where literacy training is being implemented. 
 

I had the privilege of visiting the Children First Academy in Phoenix, the largest school for homeless kids in the nation, which is part of the Sequoia School District. Sequoia Schools are non-profit, K-12 public charter schools. I had heard about Children First Academy in January, and I was very intrigued by it. I had visited their website and read the speech that one of the students gave at a fundraiser. (It's amazing, by the way, as it provides a glimpse into the realities of life as a kid who comes from a homeless background. You can read Janet's speech here.) When I arrived at the school, I was greeted by Dina Gerdon, Community Development Director, and warmly welcomed by the principal and superintendent. This school has been using Reading Horizons since the beginning of January, and they have grown to love the program. There is a new principal at the school, and he said the first thing the teachers said to him when he arrived at the school was, "Don't take our Reading Horizons away!" The superintendent and I then had an engaging conversation about the importance of reading and literacy, and we discussed implementing a program for parents to learn to read English along with their children at Children First Academy. I'm very impressed with the support the principal and superintendent offer the school, including professional development, technology, and other resources.

Why Phonics for ELLs Webinar Links

I would like to thank all of those who attended my webinar yesterday about teaching phonics to English Language Learners (ELLs). If you missed it and you're interested in the power point presentation slides and/or viewing the recorded session, you can access them here.

One of the attendees at the end of the presentation inquired about ideas for specific phonics strategies they could teach in their classroom. I recommended visiting the Online Workshop link available on the Reading Horizons website. You'll notice that the link to this free resource is included on the above link as well, in case others are also interested in practical ideas for teaching phonics strategies.

In response to another attendee's question, I mentioned a free online pronunciation tool that can be accessed here.

I thought I would share one attendee's reactions to the webinar:

I watched the Webinar this morning and found it very interesting.  It supported my belief system completely toward the subject of phonics.  I am 70 years old and this is year 43 for teaching in schools.   My age group was not taught phonics when we were in lower grades of school, and I am the world's worst speller.  We were taught to read by sight words. So I am a victim of one not learning phonics, and I know for a fact how important new reading techniques are for our children and now my grandchildren. Thanks very much. 

Did you learn anything new from the information presented? Was there something in particular that stood out to you? Your comments are welcome!

Free ESL Webinar - Why Phonics for ELLs?

Now that I'm back in town for awhile, I was asked by Reading Horizons to conduct a free ESL webinar on April 13th at 11:00am MST. I've chosen to talk about why phonics is relevant for English Language Learners (ELLs). Specifically, I will address the relevancy of teaching phonics to ELLs, specific English language skills that ELLs gain, and reasons for teaching phonics to ELLs of various levels. Since this topic addresses one of the objectives of my blog, I thought I would mention it here in this blog post.

If this is something of interest, you can register for the webinar here.

Also, for a list of other informative webinars, click here.

(In case you missed it, download the webinar here.)

New York City Public Schools Teach Students to Read: Part 2

I spent the last week in New York City following up with administrators, teachers, and students at several public high schools that I visited the first week in January. The purpose of my visit this time around was to discuss the Reading Horizons pilot that is currently being conducted there. I visited one or two public high schools each day, riding the subways to various parts of the city, including Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan, and walking to the historical school buildings (some days in the rain and snow, which added to the adventure). In this blog post, I wanted to provide a snapshot of what I experienced there by including a highlight of each day:

Reactions to the TESOL Conference 2011 in New Orleans

The Reading Horizons booth at TESOL 2011

The TESOL Conference this year was held in New Orleans March 16-19. I spent much of my time at the Reading Horizons booth--not because I was supposed to, but because I chose to. I enjoy reconnecting with people there, as well as meeting new people, learning about what they do, and discussing their English interests and program needs.

I presented twice at the conference--once on Friday at 11:00am about the Reading Horizons v5 software, and once on Saturday at 10:00am on silent reading fluency rates. Both presentations were a success. I was particularly pleased that I had a good turnout to my presentation on Saturday morning, considering that it was the last day of the conference. One gentleman from Morocco who attended my Saturday session saw me in the conference center later that afternoon and told me how much he enjoyed my presentation and that it was the best presentation he’d been to all week. That was a generous compliment. I captured him on film and included the video below.

English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East: Part 2

I am on the plane heading back to the States after spending two weeks in the Middle East learning about English needs in this part of the world and sharing the Reading Horizons program with English teachers and administrators. I wanted to document my experiences while they are fresh on my mind and before I head off to my next destination in a couple of days. I learned much about education in the Middle East and specific English learning needs after visiting several schools and talking with students, English teachers, and administrators.

One of the things I value most about traveling, especially traveling abroad, is the opportunity it affords me to meet individuals of various cultural backgrounds who have amazing life stories to share. I am often inspired by the life experiences of those I meet. I likewise value the opportunity I have to share Reading Horizons strategies and watching teachers' reactions to what the program has to offer.

A few highlights of my experience include the following:

English Teaching and Learning in the Middle East

The first morning after I landed in Doha, Qatar, I was awakened at 4:30 in the morning to the sound of a Muslim call to prayer over a loud speaker. I awoke a little disoriented, but then was reminded quickly where I was. I was in the Middle East, where I was going to be spending the next two weeks meeting with students, teachers, and administrators to discuss their English needs. I would also be presenting the Reading Horizons program, a phonics-based approach to learning English. I was looking forward to the people I would meet and the opportunity I would have to share these exciting strategies that I have grown to appreciate.

Back in India

The Peery School

I arrived at Rising Star Outreach yesterday afternoon. It's beautiful here! After the driver picked me up from the airport in Chennai, we took the hour-and-a-half drive to the Rising Star Outreach campus. When we arrived at Rising Star and we pulled into the driveway, I was amazed at the beautiful landscaping and the changes that have taken place since my visit two-and-a-half years ago. There is an additional wing of the school that has been added on. There is now a playground for the children. A dining hall has been added where the children eat. A beautiful guest house was built for volunteers. I'm excited to be back again helping at the school. Since I've arrived, I've taught some classes, met with teachers, visited the Bindu Art School, and helped at a leprosy colony. There's plenty of work to be done every day.

The Volunteer Guest House

Mary (English teacher) in the computer lab using Reading Horizons

I have heard some wonderful anecdotal feedback about how wonderful the Reading Horizons program is working here. I chatted with some of the house mothers and teachers yesterday while the children were playing, and they were so excited to find out that I worked with Reading Horizons. They said they love the program and that it is helping them so much. A couple of the older students were there, as well, and they were excited to tell me that they love the program, too.

Student excited to show off her writing and art work

I played with the children on the playground today. The children call me "auntie." I’m glad to be back.