In honor of the recent Position Statement on the Role of Nonfiction Literature (K鈥�12), 楼凤天堂 will host a webinar series meant to dive deeper into several of the component areas of the position statement throughout the month of June. This series is reserved for 楼凤天堂 members only. Additional information and registration links are below.
Please contact profdev@ncte.org with any questions.
Series Events
Session 1: Overview鈥攍ed by Mary Ann Cappiello, Xenia Hadjioannou, and Jason Chin
June 6, 2023, 4:30鈥�5:30 p.m. ET
The co-chairs of the position statement writing group will lead a session exploring grounding information on nonfiction in K-12 education, including nonfiction鈥檚 prominent tie to urgent educational challenges, 楼凤天堂鈥檚 work with nonfiction over time, as well as the history of children鈥檚 nonfiction literature. Input from the field on changes in practice tied to the statement will also be explored.
Facilitated by
Mary Ann Cappiello is a professor of language and literacy at Lesley University where she teaches courses in children鈥檚 literature and literacy methods. She is the coauthor of Text Sets in Action: Pathways through Content Literacy (Stenhouse, 2021), cofounder of and , and a former chair of听.
Xenia Hadjioannou is an associate professor of language and literacy education at the Berks campus of Penn State University. Her scholarship focuses on literacy methodology, children鈥檚 literature, and preparing teachers to work with diverse students, including emergent bilinguals. She is president of the of the 楼凤天堂 Council of Teachers of English.听
Jason Chin is a celebrated author and illustrator of children鈥檚 books. He received the Caldecott Medal for , written by Andrea Wang, and the Cook Prize for . Watercress was also named a Boston Globe鈥揌orn Book Honor Book. His book was awarded a Caldecott Honor, a Sibert Honor, and the 楼凤天堂 Orbis Pictus Award. His other acclaimed nonfiction titles鈥�, , , and 鈥攈ave received numerous starred reviews and other accolades. He lives in Vermont with his wife and children.
Session 2: Writing Instruction and Visual Literacy
June 13, 2023, 4:30鈥�5:30 p.m. ET
Facilitated by听
Xenia Hadjioannou is an associate professor of language and literacy education at the Berks campus of Penn State University. Her scholarship focuses on literacy methodology, children鈥檚 literature, and preparing teachers to work with diverse students, including emergent bilinguals. She is president of the 听of the 楼凤天堂 Council of Teachers of English.听
Melissa Stewart has written more than two hundred science-themed nonfiction books for children, including the Sibert Medal Honor Title , illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen. Her most recent title is , illustrated by Rob Dunlavey. Melissa cowrote , edited the anthology , and maintains the award-winning blog . Her highly regarded features a rich array of nonfiction reading and writing resources.
Paula Yoo is a prolific TV writer/producer, freelance violinist, and author of several books for children, including her award-winning debut young adult nonfiction book,听. Her next book, , examines the 1992 Los Angeles uprising鈥檚 impact on the Korean and Black American communities, and will be released in April of 2024. She lives in Los Angeles, California.
Duncan Tonatiuh听(toh-nah-tee-YOU) is an award-winning author-illustrator. He is both Mexican and American. He grew up in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and graduated from Parsons School of Design and Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts in New York City. His artwork is inspired by pre-Columbian art. His aim is to create images and stories that honor the past, but are relevant to today鈥檚 people, especially children. He currently lives in San Miguel with his family but travels in the United States often.听
Session 3: Research Processes and Information Literacy
June 15, 2023, 4:30鈥�5:30 p.m. ET
Facilitated by听
Kari Johnston听is a fifth-grade bilingual teacher in Austin, Texas. She holds a master鈥檚 in curriculum and instruction with a focus in bilingual/bicultural education from The University of Texas at Austin. She is passionate about creating opportunities for her students to see themselves reflected in the classroom, often through literature. She teaches critical thinkers who know that without appreciating every perspective their learning is incomplete. She works in partnership with families and centers her work on authentic opportunities to leverage student voice.
Ruth Lowery is associate dean for graduate studies and faculty affairs in the College of Education at the University of North Texas (UNT). She is also a professor of children鈥檚 literature in the Department of Teacher Education and Administration at UNT. Her research focuses on children鈥檚 literature, immigrant and multicultural literature, and the adaptation of immigrant and minority students at risk of school failure. Lowery has over 100 publications including seven books on these topics. She is immediate past-president of the of 楼凤天堂. Her motto, 鈥淛ust read,鈥� encapsulates her love of reading and belief in sharing great literature with readers of all ages.
Traci Sorell Best-selling author and Cherokee Nation citizen Traci Sorell writes inclusive, award-winning fiction and nonfiction in a variety of formats for young people. In 2023, she shares听, a Kirkus Reviews starred nonfiction picture book听biography听illustrated by Arigon Starr,听and听, a middle grade fiction novel-in-verse co-authored with Charles Waters. Traci is a two-time Sibert Medal and Orbis Pictus Award庐 honoree for her nonfiction work. Her first five books have received awards from the American Indian Library Association. Learn more at .
Session 4: Critical Literacy
June 20, 2023, 4:30鈥�5:30 p.m. ET
Facilitated by
Denise D谩vila is a children鈥檚 literature and literacy education scholar at the University of Texas, Austin. She works within historically marginalized communities to examine the language, literacy, and cultural practices of young children and their families. Denise is a former fellow of 楼凤天堂’s Cultivating New Voices among Scholars of Color (CNV) program and a former chair of 楼凤天堂 Orbis Pictus Award庐 for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children Committee. Denise started her career as an elementary school teacher who loved reading picturebooks with her students. Twitter: @ddavila_atx
Roberta Price Gardner is an associate professor of reading and literacy education at Kennesaw State University where she also serves as the graduate program coordinator for the MEd program in elementary and early childhood education. She is a CNV fellow, former chair of 楼凤天堂’s Elementary Section Steering Committee, and co-director of PDCRT. Roberta is a former early childhood and elementary school librarian. She is coeditor of the book听Reading and Teaching with Diverse Nonfiction Children鈥檚 Books: Representations and Possibilities (2021). Her research interests include Black children鈥檚 literature and literacies, diverse nonfiction, and the aesthetics of reading. Twitter: @robertapgardner
Elizabeth Rusch is the award-winning author of more than 20 books, which have received multiple starred reviews from听Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, The Horn Book, Booklist, School Library Journal, and the BCCB. Her work听has won the Golden Kite Award, the听Subaru Prize, the Cook Prize, and the Green Earth Award, and has听landed on听many best-of-the-year lists produced by听ALA, 楼凤天堂, NSTA, Bank Street College of Education,听Kirkus,听SLJ, and NBC News. New nonfiction includes and , due out from Greenwillow this fall.
Session 5: Independent Reading and Reading Instruction
June 27, 2023,听 4:30鈥�5:30 p.m. ET
Facilitated by
Patricia (Trish) Crawford is passionate about children’ s literature. She is an associate professor in the Language, Literacy and Culture program at the University of Pittsburgh, where she works with aspiring teachers and researchers. She is Editor in Chief of Early Childhood Education Journal.
Trish Bandr茅 is the reading instructional specialist for Salina Public Schools (Kansas), USD 305, where she works with literacy coaches and teachers to increase their knowledge of best practices in literacy instruction. She is a former elementary teacher and associate professor of reading education and serves as treasurer of the of the 楼凤天堂 Council of Teachers of English.
Barb Rosenstock听combines playful language and deep research into lively nonfiction books for today鈥檚 children. Her听work听has been recognized with听a Caldecott Honor,听Golden听Kite Award, South Asia Book Award, Sydney Taylor Honor, multiple 楼凤天堂 Orbis Pictus recognitions, and regularly appears on听state award and annual best book lists.听Barb loves听to visit schools and share ideas about reading and writing with students. She grew up in Chicago, where she lives with her family and hundreds of books. For teacher materials and other information visit听 follow her on Twitter (@barbrosenstock) or Instagram (@brosenstock).