November 2017
In this issue:
 The Literacy Team at the Oklahoma State Department of Education in the Office of Curriculum and Instruction is comprised of five fabulous and intelligent ladies. We are here to support you as you navigate through the world of literacy instruction. Contact us at any time with questions, professional development opportunity inquiries, or any instructional guidance that we can assist you with.
Main Office Number: 405. 521.4096
The Team:
- Danielle Calvin, Director of Elementary ELA, danielle.calvin@sde.ok.gov
- Amber Donaldson, Director of Secondary ELA, amber.donaldson@sde.ok.gov
- Sharon Morgan, Director of Early Childhood, sharon.morgan@sde.ok.gov
- Melissa Ahlgrim, Director of RSA, melissa.ahlgrim@sde.ok.gov
- Timmie Spangler, Director of Instructional Materials and Library, timmie.spangler@sde.ok.gov
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 Brenda Chapman, Director of Social Studies and Financial Literacy
Did you know that our talented State Director of Social Studies and Financial Literacy, Brenda Chapman, holds an active license to practice law? There are many outstanding facts about Brenda, but the most amazing is her phenomenal ability to bring history and social studies to teachers and students in a fun and relevant way, all the while holding on to the true intentions and integrity of the standards.
Mrs. Chapman visits many schools, districts, and organizations bringing professional development and social studies support to instructional leaders throughout our state.
Feel free to contact Brenda at anytime with your most challenging social studies, history, or geography questions. You will never stump her. She's super duper smart! You can reach Mrs. Chapman by email at brenda.chapman@sde.ok.gov, or just give her a call- 405.522.3523.
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 Find Your Rhythm
Very little captivates an audience of students more than a powerful read-aloud. It is surely one of the most joyous times of the day as students hang on every word read and every page turn to anxiously see what happens next. What makes this so magical? It is simple - we love how reading a great book can instantly transport us to somewhere else in the world. But here’s the catch: for many people, math does not hold the same pleasure that reading does. One lesson we should take from reading is to fall in love with math - at least just a little tiny bit - so we can honestly teach with curiosity and enthusiasm. Though this may seem a little bit touchy-feely or far-fetched, but if you swap out math for reading, it sounds perfectly natural. After all, while it is unfortunately too commonplace for people to claim they hate math, it is nearly unthinkable for an adult to say the same about reading.
So, let’s harness the power of the read-aloud to capture the excitement of reading and math in one book - I Got the Rhythm by Connie Schofield-Morrison.
Nothing says rhythm more than words such as bop, tip, and tap. These are fun words that will put some pep in your step and help kindergarten students decode simple CVC words along with generating a huge list of rhyming words.
But the fun doesn’t stop there because the rhythm spills right over into math as students should be encouraged to duplicate, complete, and extend repeating patterns of sounds and movements in a variety of contexts. Let's also take those rhythmical words and sort them into sets based upon their size or shape.
When teachers read aloud, they are teaching their students to love reading AND math too!
Contact Robbyn Glinsmann, Director of Elementary Math, for more information on Math and Literacy.
robbyn.glinsmann@sde.ok.gov
405.522.3522
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Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum Student Essay Contest
The Memorial’s 17th Annual Student Essay Contest allows students the opportunity to share their views on relevant topics while engaging them in the lessons of the Memorial.
The 2017 Student Essay Contest encourages students to think about the significance of healthy debate and how promoting civility is more important than ever in uniting our society.
Students in grades 5-12 may participate. Participating students are eligible to win a cash prize and have the opportunity to be recognized in a ceremony at the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum in March, 2018.
Over 1,000 students participated in last year’s contest. From those essays, teachers submitted their top selections, resulting in nearly 500 entries. Winning essays came from students in Oklahoma and Missouri.
Visit the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum's official site to get the complete rules and regulations, as well as teacher and student registration forms.
Letters About Literature
Letters About Literature is a reading and writing contest for students in grades 4-12. Students are asked to read a book, poem or speech and write to the author (living or dead) about how the book affected them personally. Letters are judged on state and national levels.
Teachers, please go to http://read.gov/letters to review the online teacher's resource page for specific tips and to download the free Teacher's Guide.
Messenger of Memory
Students engage directly with the history of the Holocaust and the personal memories of Holocaust survivors by viewing a survivor or rescuer video testimony from one of the approved websites and responding to the contest prompt by creating original work of art, film, film, poetry, and/or prose.
- Entries must be postmarked by February 2, 2018, or submitted digitally by February 5, 2018
- Three student representatives from each school, their teacher and principal are invited to attend the awards ceremony on March 9, 1018
- First and second place students, their teachers and schools will be awarded cash prizes in each category
- Each first place student, their teacher and a parent will be invited to participate in an expense-paid study trip to Los Angeles, CA from June 24 to June 28, 2018
To request a contest packet email cioffi@chapman.edu
To register your school or for more information visit
chapman.edu/holocaust-arts-contest
 The English Language Arts Consortium is a group of district ELA instructional leaders. The roles range from Department Heads, District Level Curriculum Specialists, Instructional Coaches, to Superintendents.
We meet once a month (usually the 3rd Friday) in the district that volunteers to host. During this time, we collaborate and strategize all things reading and ELA. The goal is to provide a space to discuss challenges and successes with those in like positions.
Would you join us? Here is the link to sign up for the consortium email list group.
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Hello fellow English Language Arts (ELA) educators. The Office of Assessment is planning an ELA item writing workshop to create new test items for the Oklahma State Testing Program ELA assessments, and we would like your feedback as we schedule the dates for this meeting. If you have any interest in attending, please fill out the survey so that we can see which dates would be most convenient for Oklahoma teachers.
Complete the survey HERE!
Thank you!
Christina McCreary
ELA/Social Studies Assessment Specialist
Oklahoma State Department of Education
christina.mccreary@sde.ok.gov
(405) 522-3302
Oklahoma Academic Standard ELA Frameworks
The ELA Frameworks for Oklahoma Academic Standards were released mid-October. This site provides support and guidance as ELA instructional leaders strive to fully understand and strategically implement the OAS-ELA in their classrooms, sites, and districts. These supports were created by ELA professionals in classrooms and districts throughout the state. We will continue to develop, add, and enhance our resources on a continual basis. Visit the ELA Frameworks at elaokframework.pbworks.com to access an vast amount of resources at your fingertips!
Professional Development Opportunities
LETRS Trainings:
LETRS - Module 4: December 4 & 11, 2017, Choteau, OK
LETRS - Module 4: December 6-7, 2017, Lawton, OK
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