About Me

For over 15 years, I have been providing professional learning to teachers. I am passionate about supporting literacy skills for the 21st century. My work with districts includes planning at the district level and following those initiatives through into classrooms. The majority of my contracts are long term, spanning several years and allowing me to build relationships with staff to customize their professional learning needs.

As a Literacy Specialist, I provide K-12 professional development to ensure strong core instruction. Much of my recent work has been in implementing Common Core Standards. It has allowed me to put my training in backwards design and curriculum mapping to work. I have been both curriculum mapping and implementing standards in classrooms. I have implemented K-8 literacy programs with guided reading, best practices in writing instruction, as well as reading and writing in the content areas in middle and high schools. This includes support within the classroom, working side-by-side with teachers and students.

I have extensive experience with implementing literacy skills in content area classrooms including reading and writing in the content areas, content literacy strategies and skills, as well as disciplinary literacy skills reflected in Common Core Standards. This is reflected not only in past projects, but in my current research. 

In addition, I have been heavily involved in Response to Intervention, including assessment, intervention and progress monitoring. I’ve facilitated building-wide interventions, as well as implemented a variety of reading assessments to ensure all students make adequate growth. Beyond training teachers how to administer the assessments and interpret the results, I also give teachers strategies to use in their classroom based on assessment data. This has included both workshops and modeling within the classroom.

Within all of these literacy initiatives, I work with teachers to integrate digital tools in meaningful ways. Within 1:1 initiatives, I specialize in building online reading and research skills to support 21st Century learning.  My focus is always using technology to learn, not just learning to use the technology. 

Approved Administrator Academies

Struggling Readers Can Comprehend Complex Text! Comprehension Interventions in Grades 3-12 #894

Literacy Instruction and Common Core State Standards: What should it look like K-12 #891

Reading is Thinking! Comprehension in the Disciplines (3-12)

Leading Differentiated Instruction #1259

Supporting Literacy with Digital Tools #889

Using Assessments to Drive Instruction: Analyzing Data and Developing PD to Improve Literacy Teaching & Learning (K-5) #1564

Creating Formative & Summative Assessments Aligned with Reading & Writing Standards (K-12) #1246

Current Projects

Mid-sized Suburban District, 2008-Current
Initial contract included workshops for reading and writing in content area classrooms. Next, provided professional learning to support literacy program K-8, including refinement of literacy interventions. Recently supported curriculum alignment and implementation of Common Core State standards and Next Generation Science Standards curriculum development. This has included CCSS curriculum mapping, facilitating workshops and extensive modeling and coaching within K-2 classrooms, CCSS curriculum work and workshops to support balanced literacy 3-5 with modeling in classrooms, unit development and literacy strategies 6-8.

Mid-sized Urban District, 2011-Current
Initial contract included workshops and modeling and coaching in classrooms to support 1:1 technology initiative and refine 6-8 literacy interventions. Later provided professional learning to develop units to support Common Core State Standards in grades K-8. Currently coaching in classrooms to support Common Core ELA standards and implementing an academic vocabulary initiative, as well as support reading interventionists.

Small Rural District, 2012-Current
Provide professional learning to support transition to Common Core State Standards in grades K-8. his has included workshops and classroom coaching to support balanced literacy in K-8, as well as content literacy strategies 6-8 within a 1:1 environment. Currently facilitating literacy assessment development for standards-based report cards. 

Large Suburban District, 2007-Current
Provide literacy professional learning to special education teachers to support balanced literacy in core instruction and assessment, implementation and progress monitoring of interventions. This includes problem solving for IEP students not making adequate growth.

Mid-sized Urban District, 2015-Current
Provide literacy professional learning K-8 teachers to support Common Core ELA implementation in a 1:1 environment. Working closely with district Instructional Coaches, we have increased teacher capacity in understanding the rigor of Common Core ELA Standards, modified curriculum maps, and developed common assessments. In addition, I have worked closely with the junior high to support a building-wide writing initiative, including implementing writing strategies and developing writing rubrics for science and social studies classrooms.

Small Surban District, 2015-Current
Provide literacy professional learning K-8 teachers to support Common Core ELA implementation. This has included curriculum mapping and assessment development, as well as working with content area teachers to implement writing for formative assessment.

Large Urban District, 2016-Current
Provide literacy professional learning to reading specialists and interventionists to refine Response to Intervention programs. We began by implementing consistent assessments across the district, along with a standardized process for identifying students for intervention. Currently we are refining intervention programs, including aligning interventions to student needs, best practices for instruction within the intervention, and analyzing progress monitoring data.

Large Suburban Disrict, 2009-2012; 2016-Current
Provided workshops to implement balanced literacy K-8 and content literacy strategies 6-8. Provided professional learning to support guided reading in grades K-5 including workshops, modeling and coaching within classrooms. Also supported 6-8 teachers in beginning transition to Common Core Standards. Currently supporting junior high teachers in a 1:1 setting to implementreading and writing workshop in ELA classrooms, as well as refine assessment practices for standards-based gradin

Contact me for references or information about any of these projects. 
-Kellie