| Please join the Resource Materials and Technology Center for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing (RMTC-DHH) and the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind (FSDB) for Working with the Experts: Deaf/Hard of Hearing - Fingerspelling Our Way to Reading. This day-and-a-half workshop will provide in-depth, hands-on practice of the intervention. The training will be conducted in American Sign Language (ASL). Fingerspelling Our Way to Reading, created by the Center on Literacy and Deafness (CLAD), is an evidence-based literacy intervention specifically designed for students who are deaf/hard of hearing (DHH) in grades K-2.
Intervention Description:
The US Department of Education - Institute of Education Sciences (IES) funded the establishment of the National Research and Development Center on Literacy and Deafness (CLAD). Research conducted by CLAD suggests that fingerspelling may provide a pathway to decoding words and strengthening print recognition by building phonological awareness. Fingerspelling provides a one to one direct relationship between fingerspelled words and printed English words. Fingerspelling Our Way to Reading “is an evidence-based, supplementary literacy program for students who are deaf and hard of hearing in K-2nd grade. The program has two components, a 3-day per week fingerspelling program and a complementary 2-day per week reading comprehension program. The fingerspelling program enhances phonological awareness of fingerspelled words, which increases expressive and receptive fingerspelling skills and identification of printed words. The reading comprehension program provides additional reading opportunities using fingerspelling words in sentences and stories that are used in each unit.” (University of Colorado Boulder, n.d.).
RMTC-DHH Program Requirements:
RMTC-DHH and FSDB are collaborating on this project to offer 20 spots for this highly interactive training. It is suggested participants have at least intermediate American Sign Language (ASL) skills to be able to implement this program. The program does not have any spoken language components. The students receiving the instruction must be using ASL or have emerging sign language skills in kindergarten through second grade. The presenter will deliver the training in ASL at an academic level. At this time, only Florida participants who are teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing will be permitted to attend this training.. It is suggested that participants be able to commit to implementing this program three to five days a week. Learning Objectives: Upon completion of each session, participants will be able to:
- provide explicit bilingual instructional strategies to promote fingerspelling phonological awareness, word reading, reading comprehension, reading fluency, and vocabulary.
- develop weekly lessons organized around fingerspelling word families.
- plan specially designed instruction to provide children with extensive practice in fingerspelling and reading words.
In-Service Points: If participants wish to earn in-service credits towards the renewal of a Florida Educator’s Certificate, it is recommended that they contact their school district’s professional development office BEFORE beginning a professional learning opportunity to verify the requirements that must be fulfilled. RMTC-DHH will provide a certificate upon completion of the course. The suggested inservice points for this training is up to nine points.
Trainer Bio: Randi Mitchell is Executive Director of Curriculum and Professional Development at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind. Her first five years in education, she used creative and innovative methods to teach Kindergarten before pursuing her passion in professional development and educational technology. Randi has her bachelors in Elementary Education and Deaf Education with endorsements in Reading and ESOL from Flagler College, a Master of Education in Professional Education and Educational Leadership from the University of North Florida, certified in SKI-HI, and a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert. Randi is one of the faces behind FSDB Pineapple PD, an initiative at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind that opens the walls of the classrooms so viewers can see tools, strategies, and teaching methods happening on campus in a 2-3 minute video.
Nearby Hotels (not included): 1) Holiday Inn Express Vilano Beach 2) Hampton Inn Vilano Beach 3) DoubleTree Historic St. Augustine 4) Country Inn & Suites Historic St. Augustine 5) Hampton Inn Historic St. Augustine
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