Building Readers Who Want to Read: Science of Reading for Elementary Libraries

AFTER YOU ATTEND THIS COURSE, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO:

• Understand the key role of the school librarian in supporting early literacy development.
  
  
• Understand the potential impact librarians can have on addressing the current literacy crisis.
  
  
• Define the science of reading and differentiate it from other early literacy teaching methods.
  
  
• Identify and apply the "big six" literacy skills and competencies.
  
  
• Develop strategies for effective collaboration between librarians and classroom teachers to increase student literacy rates.
  
  
• Design literacy-focused activities and programs that can be implemented in a school library setting.

THIS COURSE CONSISTS OF 5 ON-DEMAND MODULES:

Module 1: The Librarian's Role in Literacy Development

What is the role of the school librarian in helping children develop early literacy? What kind of impact can librarians have on the current literacy crisis? This opening module will discuss practical ways librarians can get involved in promoting and developing student literacy. Leave with a clear understanding of the scope of your role and how best to make a positive difference at your school.

Module 2: The What and Why of the Science of Reading

What is the science of reading and how is it different from other methods for teaching early literacy? What are the "big six literacy skills and competencies," and how can you apply them at your school? This module will cover the foundations of current literacy research and discuss tips for helping students gain confidence while reading.

Module 3: Making Sense of Book Selection Aligned with the Science of Reading

How can you help readers select books for different purposes? How can you critically evaluate and select texts for your instruction that better align with the science of reading? This module will discuss how to support readers and book selection for a variety of purposes, including growing reading accuracy and automaticity, gaining new knowledge, exploring a new topic, and falling in love with a new author, genre, or series. We will also discuss the use of decodable texts, problems with early leveled texts, and when to encourage students to make the leap to more complex texts. Leave this session better prepared to evaluate and recommend texts that support the science and joy of reading.

Module 4: Librarian and Teacher Partnerships to Promote Literacy

How can librarians and classroom teachers partner together to increase student literacy rates? This module will discuss ideas for integrating the library more fully into classrooms through robust partnerships with faculty. Leave with a plan for how to build and maintain meaningful relationships that center student literacy.

Module 5: Literacy-Enriching Library Programming

What types of activities or programs can you lead in your library to support literacy? This final module will detail successful school library programs and give you practical ideas to take back to your library. Leave with both large- and small-scale program strategies to engage students in the joy of reading.

COURSE ADVISOR

Dr. Katie Egan Cunningham, Professor and Program Director of Teacher Education at Sacred Heart University

Dr. Katie Egan Cunningham supports teachers to bridge the science of reading with the joy of learning. She is an Associate Professor and Program Director of Teacher Education at Sacred Heart University where she teaches courses in foundational literacy skills, dyslexia, children’s literature, and social and emotional learning.

Katie is the author or co-author of five books for educators including Shifting the Balance: 6 Ways to Bring the Science of Reading into the Upper Elementary Classroom. She has degrees from Princeton University, New York University, and Columbia University. Katie lives with her husband, two sons, and Goldendoodle in the woods of Connecticut.

COURSE INSTRUCTORS

Dr. Elizabeth Dobler , Professor at Emporia State University in The Teachers College and author of Reading the Web: Strategies for Internet Inquiry

Jess Hesselberg , Youth Services Librarian, Bemis Public Library in Littleton, CO

Tim Jones , School Librarian, 2025 School Library Journal School Librarian of the Year, 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker, and the 2023 NAMLE K-12 Media Literacy Teacher of the Year.

Dr. Rita Reinsel Soulen, PhD , Assistant Professor, MLS Library Science, Interdisciplinary Professions, College of Education, East Carolina University

Vincent Hyland , Library Coordinator, North Brooklyn, Office of Library Services NYCDOE

WHO SHOULD TAKE THIS COURSE:

This course is geared toward elementary librarians serving preK-3rd grade students.

THIS WILL BE A SELF-PACED, ASYNCHRONOUS COURSE.

EXPECTED TIME COMMITMENT:

This course includes 5 modules, each designed to take approximately 3 hours to complete. You can move through the content at your own pace and on your own schedule. You'll earn 15 hours of PD credit and a School Library Journal certificate of completion.

ON-DEMAND ACCESS:

You'll have access to all course materials for six months.

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION:

Complete the course and earn 15 professional development credit hours. We provide a certificate that is emailed to you.

ACCESSIBILITY:

All video sessions feature auto captioning. Please email course-support@libraryjournal.com upon registration if you require any special accommodations and we will make our best efforts to facilitate them.

SUPPORT:

For support with online courses, please contact course-support@libraryjournal.com.

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GROUP RATES

We offer discounts for groups of 3 or more.

  For larger groups of 15 or more, we offer the option to apply group rates across multiple courses to receive significant discounts. For more information, select “Bulk Course Credits Packages” in the form below.

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