ConferencePresentation     Last Friday, March 13th, Mary Lacen Kinkel and I were able to present at the Virginia State Reading Association’s “Reading is Magical” Annual Literacy Conference. The Conference took place at the Richmond Marriott Hotel and Greater Richmond Convention Center in Richmond, Virginia from March 12th to March 14th. Our 50 minute presentation theme was “Motivational is Marvelous: Engaging Strategies for Adolescent Readers.” The presentation included: information regarding who are adolescent readers; research-based engaging reading strategies for adolescents; and instructional practices and resources for teachers to use in their classrooms. There were a variety of participants who attended our session including graduate students, undergraduate students, program professors, administrators, reading specialists/coaches, and classroom teachers. I believe that this opportunity to present allowed me to network with professionals from around the state, as well as prepared me for future presentations that I may be required to give in my career.

     ConferencePictureThroughout the conference, I was able to visit a variety of vendors, attend numerous concurrent sessions, and attend the general session with featured speaker Richard Allington. I especially enjoyed the concurrent sessions led by my fellow classmates because I was able to learn new literacy ideas and see their hard work come to life! I even gained a wealth of free resources and leveled texts from vendors such as Pearson, McGraw-Hill Education, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Overall, presenting at the “Reading is Magical” VSRA Conference was a highlight in my Graduate career thus far and I have expanded my knowledge of teaching literacy by attending this annual event!