We are excited to announce a three-part interactive workshop brought to you by the Utah State Board of Education and the News Literacy Project. Each interactive workshop is 90 minutes long and will provide hands-on opportunities to explore resources, strategies, and engaging activities to help students foster critical thinking and information literacy skills.
For more information and to register see attached informational flyer or visit bit.ly/UtahNLP2025<https://bit.ly/UtahNLP2025>
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LEAs have the duty to select instructional materials that best correlate to the core standards for Utah public schools and graduation requirements. (UCA 53G-4-402(1(a)). Posting of resources by USBE staff curriculum content specialists does not imply the resources have received official endorsement of the State Board. Educators are responsible to ensure use of these materials complies with LEA policies and directives.
See the opportunity below.
Naomi Watkins, Ph.D.
Secondary English Language Arts Specialist
Utah State Board of Education
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From: Davina Sauthoff via library-media <library-media(a)lists.uen.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 18, 2024 8:00:00 AM
To: library-media(a)lists.uen.org <library-media(a)lists.uen.org>
Subject: [Library Media] 📚✨ Invitation to Join a Statewide "Battle of the Books" Development Committee 📚✨
Dear Utah School Librarians,
I am thrilled to announce an incredible opportunity to participate in the development of a statewide "Battle of the Books" competition. This initiative aims to promote reading, literacy, comprehension, and critical thinking among students across Utah. It will also foster collaboration, communication, and teamwork, serving as a positive and enriching activity championed by the passionate and dedicated school librarians of Utah 🎉
What is the Battle of the Books?
This competition (official name to be determined by the committee) is designed to:
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Promote reading, literacy, comprehension, and critical thinking skills 🧠 among Utah students.
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Foster collaboration, communication, and teamwork. 🤝
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Create an engaging and enriching activity championed by the USBE. 🌟
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Reinforce our commitment to educational excellence and prioritizing literacy. 📚
How can you be involved?
We are forming three committees (Elementary, Middle, and High School) that will play a crucial role in shaping the competition by:
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2024-2025 School Year:
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Choosing a captivating name for the competition! 🤔
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Selecting the book lists for each level 📖
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Developing the competition framework and rules 📝
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Creating training materials and resources for participating schools 💻
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Designing a promotional plan to generate excitement and participation 📢
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Creating tools for gathering feedback and ensuring continuous improvement 📈
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Establishing an awards and recognition plan to celebrate student achievement 🥇
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2025-2026 School Year:
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Launching and supporting the first year of the competition! 🚀
Commitment and Benefits:
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Committees will meet virtually on a monthly basis. 💻
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Your expertise and insights will directly shape a statewide literacy initiative. 💡
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You'll have the opportunity to collaborate with fellow librarians across Utah. 👥
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This is a chance to promote literacy and a love of reading statewide. ❤️
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A stipend of approximately $600 per librarian for their dedicated time and effort. 💰
Join the Battle of the Books Committee!
If you are interested in participating on a committee, please complete this short form<https://forms.gle/92BbdnrQhhJEAksn7> by January 8, 2025. 📝
Your expertise and dedication to literacy are invaluable to the success of this initiative. I am excited to work together to create an engaging and impactful reading competition for our students.
Warm regards,
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Join the USBE Library Media list serve<https://lists.uen.org/mailman/listinfo/library-media>
LEAs have the duty to select instructional materials that best correlate to the core standards for Utah public schools and graduation requirements. (UCA 53G-4-402(1(a)). Posting of resources by USBE staff curriculum content specialists does not imply the resources have received official endorsement of the State Board. Educators are responsible to ensure use of these materials complies with LEA policies and directives.
Hello everyone,
Below is the recording and resources from our December Secondary ELA webinar, "Gen AI: Artificial Intelligence as a Learning Tool for Language Classrooms" with Matt Winters, USBE AI Education Specialist. This session is full of valuable insights you won't want to miss!
Access the webinar recording and resources<https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1kaK_GqW3ppE52OlFtcwUOZC2_af1wpeo?us…>
Join us again on Wednesday, January 15 from 4:00 - 5:00pm as I host our next webinar:
Boost Student Writing with the Model-Practice-Reflect Cycle
Unlock your students' writing potential with this one-hour webinar on explicit writing instruction! Discover how the Model-Practice-Reflect cycle can transform your secondary ELA classroom. Learn to explicitly teach essential strategies, provide effective modeling, and guide students toward confident, independent writing across all genres.
REGISTER NOW<https://schools-utah-gov.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrfuGqqDosH9Smt4tpdMjxV…>
Any questions? Please reach out!
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Join a cohort of 35 Utah educators in grades 4+ to develop knowledge and skills in literacy intervention in the middle grades! (While priority is given to educators in grades 4-8, the cohort is open to educators who teach grades 9-12, too).
This cohort will participate in a virtual, synchronous book study of Literacy Intervention in the Middle Grades: Word Learning, Comprehension, and Strategy Instruction, Grades 4-8<https://www.guilford.com/books/Literacy-Intervention-in-the-Middle-Grades/F…> with added professional learning support and opportunity to implement your learning with your students.
* Digital book copies are free for cohort members
* 1.5 USBE credit offered for active participation (must live attend 75% of book study meetings, complete reflections, and submit evidence of classroom implementation to receive credit)
Virtual Synchronous Book Study Meetings (via Zoom) will meet on the following Tuesdays in 2025 from 3:45 - 5:00pm:
* January 14
* January 28
* February 11
* February 25
* March 11
* March 25
* April 15
These book study meetings will be led by USBE Secondary ELA Specialist, Dr. Naomi Watkins, and will provide an opportunity for you to deepen and extend your learning from the readings, collaborate with colleagues across Utah, and provide you with additional practice to implement your learnings with your students.
Applications accepted by December 16, 2024.
Notices of acceptance into the cohort will be sent no later than December 18, 2024.
APPLY NOW<https://forms.gle/whpx6U6PcPhrns6q9>
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Join us for our second Secondary ELA Professional Learning Webinar of the 2024-25 school year. See attached flyer.
Gen ELA: Artificial intelligence as a learning tool for language classrooms
Monday, December 16, 4:00 - 5:00pm
Presenter: Matt Winters, USBE AI Education Specialist
Using the secondary ELA standards as a backbone for discussion, we will explore a variety of AI tools and integrations that can help support learners in a variety of lesson plans including reading, writing, speaking, and listening. No prior AI experience is required for this session.
All webinars are recorded and available for later viewing.
Register to attend live and/or receive the recording<https://schools-utah-gov.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrc--grz4jE9wM2rVS1rw55…>
Interested in earning 0.5 USBE credit? LEARN MORE<https://forms.gle/x7KfrvfZ3AoZeE16A>
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