Friday, March 15, 2013

Heartland AEA Introduces Tales 2 Go Audiobooks

Heartland AEA is excited to announce the purchase of Tales 2 Go audiobooks for elementary, middle and junior high school students. Tales 2 Go is an award-winning audiobook service that streams thousands of titles from leading publishers and storytellers to desktop or laptop computers. You'll find popular titles and some old favorites. All have professional narration. Titles range from two minutes to two+ hours. You can search by character, age, grade, level, story type, and more.

Go to www.mackin.com/via and log in with the online database username/password. Click Databases, click Tales 2 Go, click Read Now.

Audiobooks and the Common Core
Audiobooks have been used in classrooms for decades because listening builds critical listening, comprehension and fluency skills.  Oral language precedes written language (i.e. developmentally), making listening an important component of language acquisition. In fact, there are reading methods such as The Daily 5 that include listening as a component of reading instruction.  Also, the Common Core Standards spell out specific Listening and Speaking skills required of all primary grade students. 

Tales 2 Go will be another effective resource to support literacy instruction. Some students may want to check out the book from the school or public library and follow along as they listen to the book. If you are looking for audiobooks that also include the text, don't forget BookFLIX, TrueFLIX, and the audiobooks (cassette or CD) and accompanying books available for checkout from Heartland AEA.

Assessing Academic Rigor Course in Ames

As promised, we have scheduled another Assessing Academic Rigor course this spring in Ames. Please see below for the course dates and registration.

Assessing Academic Rigor
April 11, 23 and May 2, 9, 2013
8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Activity Number: AD013999991302
*Please note location changes

Seats are still available for our centrally-located course. Click here for more information.

Leading RtI with Kevin Feldman on May 10

On May 10, Heartland AEA will host Dr. Kevin Feldman, a leader in the field of Response to Intervention (RtI), for a one-day professional learning opportunity focusing on coaching to support the implementation of RtI. Dr. Feldman’s major contributions are in the areas of building vocabulary and academic English, assisting struggling readers, preventing early reading failure, linking assessment to instruction, developing school - wide content area reading support models for elementary, middle and high schools, differentiating instruction to meet the full range of learners, and accommodating and accelerating ELL/Special Education and other high risk students.

Click here for a flyer which can be distributed to interested educators.

Leading RtI with Kevin Feldman
May 10, 2013
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m
FFA Enrichment Center, DMACC Campus (1055 SW Prairie Trail Parkway, Ankeny)
Activity Number: SI015699111301