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Literacy Today July/August/September 2021

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Return

to Joy

• Focusing on the

joy of returning

in person

• Helping students

develop a joyful

reading relationship

• Igniting a sense of

wonder and curiosity

in your classroom

LITERACY TODAY

July/August/September 2021

Volume 39, Issue 1

Featuring these literacy experts:

■ Sara K. Ahmed ■ Nell K. Duke ■ Chad Everett ■ Steve Graham ■ Jimmy Kim ■ Donalyn Miller

■ Cornelius Minor ■ Ernest Morrell ■ Molly Ness ■ Timothy Rasinski ■ Kate Roberts

■ Timothy Shanahan ■ Nicole Patton Terry ■ Yong Zhao ■ And more!

Attend live or review on-demand recordings at your convenience.

ILA DIGITAL EVENTS

Online Learning. Online Resources. Online Community.

Members Save More

ILA members enjoy special rates on

digital events and can access the

ILA at Home Webinars (featuring today’s

top literacy leaders) for free!

Timely Topics

Dig deep into the issues you’re facing right

now: hybrid and distance learning, equity

and access, social-emotional learning, and

many other important topics.

Interactive Discussions

Choose from various event formats that allow

you to participate in live Q&As with speakers,

connect with other attendees via chat, and

have lively discussions in real time.

On-Demand Access

Watch wherever you are, whenever you want.

Your registration gives you access to on-

demand recordings that you can review as

many times as you’d like for up to a year.

Expand your library of digital PD resources!

literacyworldwide.org/DigitalEvents

Contents

LITERACY TODAY

Volume 39, Issue 1

July/August/September 2021

EDITORIAL STAFF

Managing Editor Colleen Patrice Clark

Editor Christina Lambert

Intern Paige Savitt

ILA LEADERSHIP

Executive Director Marcie Craig Post

2021–2022 BOARD MEMBERS

Robert J. Tierney, University of British

Columbia, President; Kenneth Kunz, For the

Love of Literacy, Vice President; Stephen G.

Peters, The Peters Group, Immediate Past

President; Kia Brown-Dudley, The Education

Partners; Danielle V. Dennis, University of

Rhode Island; Rachael Gabriel, University of

Connecticut, Storrs; Carol Jago, California

Reading and Literature Project at UCLA;

Annette M. Kiberu, GEMS Cambridge

International School; Molly Ness, Fordham

University; J. Helen Perkins, University of

Memphis; Dana A. Robertson, Virginia Tech;

Laurie Sharp, Tarleton State University

ADVERTISING

For information, contact Nicola Wedderburn

at advertising@reading.org. Acceptance of

advertising does not imply endorsement.

ABOUT US

Literacy Today is the membership magazine

of the International Literacy Association, a

nonprofit that strives to empower educators,

inspire students, and encourage teachers

with the resources they need to make literacy

accessible for all.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

Literacy Today (ISSN 2411-7900) is included

in the cost of ILA membership. To join, visit

literacyworldwide.org.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

800.336.7323

customerservice@reading.org

EDITORIAL

800.336.7323 x 446

literacytoday@reading.org

Write to Literacy Today, PO Box 8139, Newark,

DE 19714-8139, USA.

MAILING LIST RENTALS

ILA rents mailing lists only to groups approved

by the Association. Members can have

their names removed from lists rented by

writing to ILA Customer Service or emailing

customerservice@reading.org.

EDITOR’S NOTE

LIT BITS

ILA UPDATE

LITERACY LEADERSHIP

Finding the Joy in Choice: Helping Students to

Skillfully Choose What They Read

Classrooms That Spark Joy: Creating Bright

Moments Inside Our Literacy Classrooms

The Joys of a Literacy-Oriented Family: Providing Opportunities to Read for All

RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE

Experiencing Windows and Mirrors: Using Diverse Literature to Increase

Reading Achievement in Students of Color

Humor and Oppression: The Queer Work of Radical Joy in Critical Literacy

Education

Opportunities for Word Learning: Promoting Vocabulary Acquisition With

Vocabulary Talk Moves

FEATURES

Return to Joy: Avoiding Deficit Mind-Sets, Embracing Student Learning, and

Finding the Joy in Being Back Together

34 Shifting Perceptions: Examining Our Mind-Sets This School Year to Help

Students Develop a Joyful Relationship With Reading

THE ENGAGING CLASSROOM

Literacy in Mathematics: Bringing Clarity to a Misunderstood Content Area

40 The Joy of Self-Discovery: Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBTQ+ Students

Reaching Out and Reaching In: Challenging Students to Be Reflective

Poetry Is Joy: Using Poetry as a Tool for Student Engagement

Virtual Celebrations: Creating Spaces That Highlight Students’ Work in a

Digital Setting

Developing Agency: How Connection-Rich Environments Impact a Reading

Intervention Setting

Empowering Students With Digital Skills: Digital Literacy as a Pathway to Joy

in Learning

THE ILA NETWORK

The Road to ILA National Recognition

EVENTS

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

EDITOR’S

NOTE

ur inspiration for this issue was a word

we heard come up repeatedly during ILA

Next, our monthlong virtual learning

event held last October: joy.

It’s not a word that’s used in education

nearly as often as it should be, but when

you think about it, it encompasses so

much that we do talk about, particularly

motivation and engagement.

Developing motivated and engaged

learners can start with joy.

I encourage you to read the Note From

the Guest Editors on the following page

for more on what this means. Rhonda M.

Sutton and Tamera Slaughter embody joy.

They were the perfect collaborators to

invite to work with us on this important

issue. They took the word and showed us

what it can accomplish in the classroom,

particularly in the frame of what it means

as we return to school this year.

This issue marks the start of volume

year 39 for Literacy Today, and in the spirit

of new beginnings, I want to share that

the magazine will continue to have guest

editors for each issue moving forward.

We tested the waters with this idea back

in September when Amanda Goodwin

and Robert Jiménez, coeditors of ILA’s

Reading Research Quarterly journal,

served as guest editors for our issue on the

science of reading. (You can find that at

literacyworldwide.org/sor if you missed

it.) We see this is an opportunity to further

elevate voices in the field, and we believe it

will only add to the magazine’s rich history

as a valued member resource.

The magazine is driven largely by

members, so remember that you can

reach out any time if there is a topic you’d

like to see or write about by emailing

literacytoday@reading.org.

Warmly,

A NEW START

Colleen Patrice Clark

Managing Editor

cclark@reading.org

IMPORTANT BOOKS FOR

A CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE CLASSROOM

New books from bestselling authors

New books from bestselling authors JASON REYNOLDS and

and SHARON M. DRAPER to help teachers and

to help teachers and

students better understand, empathize with, and acknowledge the needs of those around them.

OUT OF MY HEART

By Sharon M. Draper

HC: 9781665902168

eBook: 9781665902182

On Sale 11/9/21

Ages 10 & up; Grades 5 & up

STUNTBOY, IN

THE MEANTIME

By Jason Reynolds

Illustrated by Raúl the Third

POB: 9781534418165

eBook: 9781534418189

On Sale 11/9/21

Ages 7–12; Grades 2–7

The

long-awaited

sequel to Out

of My Mind!

Illustrated

middle

grade fiction

@SSEdLib

81472 ILA Out of My Heart Stuntboy.indd 1

6/3/21 3:58 PM

literacyworldwide.org | July/August/September 2021 | LITERACY TODAY

LITERACY TODAY | July/August/September 2021 | literacyworldwide.org

others and express their authentic

selves

Meaning making as a way to

understand the larger world

Classroom applications that

empower teachers to trust

themselves to create joyful

environments

Bridging research and practice

to nurture joyful reading

opportunities

And more!

This issue shares a sample of

what is possible when you embrace

joy, ignite curiosity and wonder, and

seize opportunities to shift literacy

teaching and learning. We hope you

will continue to be open and accepting

as you deepen your learning through

the joy in literacy.

Happy New Year!

EMBRACING JOYFUL

LEARNING

—Rhonda M. Sutton and

Tamera Slaughter

This issue shares

a sample of what

is possible when

you embrace joy,

ignite curiosity

and wonder, and

seize opportunities

to shift literacy

teaching and

learning.

FROM THE

GUEST EDITORS

he idea of joy in literacy instruction

stemmed from several ongoing

conversations we’ve been having

with educators. We noticed there

was a common theme that stood out

rather boldly, a thread of wanting to

reconnect with the joy of teaching

and the reality that teachers, leaders,

and students are overwhelmed,

exhausted, and anxious about what’s

to come with the reopening of schools.

We want this back-to-school

issue to put you in the mind-set of

joy. At the same time, we also want to

highlight the joy of diversity. In this

issue, the voices of educators of color

are centered as they reflect on the

theme of Joy in Literacy Instruction,

born from the following description

we developed:

Literacy is wondering.

With wondering comes feelings of

great pleasure and happiness along

with anticipation of discovery.

Instilling joy in literacy engages the

mind and heart so that one is

open and accepting without

expectation or attachment to

the wonders of learning and the

complexities of life.

We believe that tapping into the

place deep inside where the sun is

always shining and the knowledge

that everything is just as it is

supposed to be creates openness and

acceptance without expectation or

attachment.

In this issue, you will find

articles on the following:

Play as process for

experimentation and discovery

Authentic, real-world experiences

that create space for students to

develop understanding of self and

Rhonda M. Sutton (rmsutton

@trustyouconsulting.com),

CEO, lead consultant, and

professional certified coach

at Trust You Consulting,

and Tamera Slaughter

(tamera.slaughter@gmail

.com), a professional learning

facilitator and education

advocate, are the guest

editors of this issue of

Literacy Today.

Rhonda M. Sutton

Tamera Slaughter

literacyworldwide.org | July/August/September 2021 | LITERACY TODAY

Our next ILA Webinar, Tackling

Tough Topics Through Middle Grade

Literature, will be held on Wednesday,

July 14, 5:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m. ET. Four

middle grade authors—Barbara Dee

(My Life in the Fish Tank), Donna

Gephart (Abby, Tried and True),

Supriya Kelkar (That Thing About

Bollywood), and Hena Khan (Amina’s

Song)—will discuss the importance of

using fiction to introduce tough topics

to middle grade readers. To register for

this free event, visit literacyworldwide

.org/digitalevents.

Our next ILA Intensive: Supporting

Multilingual Learners With

Translanguaging Strategies, will be

held on Sept. 14, 1:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m.

ET. The event will feature keynotes

from Ofelia García and Kate Seltzer

and will also include sessions from

Carla España, Luz Herrera, Shakina

Rajendram, and Heather Woodley.

More details, including registration

information, will be available in mid-

July at literacyworldwide.org/

digitalevents.

Mark Your Calendars

New Instructional Practices

Instructional Practices, updated weekly, are grounded

in research on the topics of families and communities,

literacy teaching and teachers, schools and schooling,

and student learning. The following were added

recently:

Integrating Diverse Literature for Youth in Literacy

Learning Experiences

Diversity and Family Literacy

Virtual Peer Coaching

Digital Citizenship

Engaged Reading for Adolescents

View these and more at literacyworldwide.org

/get-resources/instructional-practices.

The recently launched ILA Career Center places new career

opportunities right at your fingertips. Search and apply to top jobs

at institutions that value your credentials and access career

resources, job searching tips, and tools. For more information,

visit careers.literacyworldwide.org.

NEW! The ILA Career Center

LIT BITS

The Results Are In

Congratulations to the newly elected members of the ILA Board of Directors, including

our new vice president, Kenneth Kunz. Kunz is the founder/director of For the Love

of Literacy, a professional development organization in New Jersey. He has been

serving as a member-at-large on the Board since 2018. In addition, he is president of

the New Jersey Literacy Association and a board member of Little Free Library. Kunz’s

term began July 1, 2021. He will become president of the Board on July 1, 2022.

Our three new Board members-at-large for the 2021–2024 term are

Carol Jago, associate director, California Reading and Literature Project at

University of California at Los Angeles

Molly Ness, associate professor, Fordham University, New York

Dana A. Robertson, associate professor, Virginia Tech

To learn more about our newly elected leaders, visit literacyworldwide.org/vote.

Kunz

Jago

Ness

Robertson

LITERACY TODAY | July/August/September 2021 | literacyworldwide.org

Digital Events Archive

The following ILA Digital Events were held in May

and June and are now available to view on demand:

ILA Children’s Literature Intensive: Creating a

Culturally Responsive Classroom Through Books, an

ILA Intensive with Saraciea J. Fennell, Cynthia Leitich

Smith, Meg Medina, and more ($99.00)

Disrupting Instructional Paradigms by Embracing

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, an ILA Webinar with

Glendaliz Martinez Almonte (free for all)

Writing Instruction That Grows Writers Through a

Focus on Feedback and Process, an ILA Webinar with

Sarah M. Zerwin (free for all)

Check out the archive at literacyworldwide.org

/digitalevents to register for these events and more.

Reading Research Quarterly’s second special issue

on the science of reading is now available online.

Journal subscribers can log in to their account

to access the full issue, but a preview, along with

more ILA resources on the science of reading, can

also be viewed at literacyworldwide.org/sor.

Jack Cassidy, professor emeritus at both Texas A&M University-Corpus

Christi and Millersville University in Pennsylvania, died on Saturday, May 22.

Cassidy was a past president of the International Reading Association (IRA,

now the International Literacy Association, ILA) from 1982 to 1983. Read

more about his contributions to the organization at literacyworldwide.org

/remembering-jack-cassidy, including his well-known What’s Hot, What’s

Not survey, and consider donating to the Texas Association for Literacy

Education (texasreaders.org/jack-cassidy-memorial). The donations

will be used to establish the Jack Cassidy Scholarship Fund for graduate

students in reading or literacy education.

A Friend and a Mentor: ILA Remembers Past President Jack Cassidy

Continuing the Conversation

literacyworldwide.org | July/August/September 2021 | LITERACY TODAY

ILA Book Award Winners Announced

ILA recently announced the 2021 winners of the Children’s and Young Adults’ Book

Awards, highlighting both fiction and nonfiction works that exemplify the best

from rising stars in the literary field. The annual awards program recognizes newly

published authors who exhibit exceptional promise in the children’s and young

adults’ book fields; eligible titles must be the author’s first or second.

The 2021 award winners are as follows:

Primary Fiction

Winner: Magnificent Homespun Brown:

A Celebration. Samara Cole Doyon.

Tilbury House.

Honor: I Talk Like a River. Jordan Scott.

Neal Porter Books.

Primary Nonfiction

Winner: This Is a Seahorse. Cassandra

Federman. Albert Whitman & Company.

Honor: The Big Bang Book. Asa Stahl.

Creston Books.

Intermediate Fiction

Winner: Brother’s Keeper. Julie Lee.

Holiday House.

Honor: When You Know What I Know.

Sonja K. Solter. Little, Brown Books for

Young Readers.

Intermediate Nonfiction

Winner: The Suffragist Playbook: Your

Guide to Changing the World. Lucinda

Robb and Rebecca Boggs Roberts.

Candlewick Press.

Honor: Lizzie Demands a Seat!

Elizabeth Jennings Fights for Streetcar

Rights. Beth Anderson. Boyds Mills &

Kane.

Young Adult Fiction

Winner: The Magic Fish. Trung Le

Nguyen. Random House Children’s

Books.

Honor: The Lucky Ones. Liz Lawson.

Random House Children’s Books.

Young Adult Nonfiction

Winner: The Black Friend: On Being a

Better White Person. Frederick Joseph.

Candlewick Press.

The University of North Georgia is the latest recipient of ILA National Recognition With

Distinction—the highest institutional honor awarded by ILA. ILA National Recognition for the

Preparation of Literacy Professionals recognizes outstanding literacy preparation programs in

the United States with ILA National Recognition or ILA National Recognition With Distinction.

By receiving ILA National Recognition With Distinction, University of North Georgia’s

Elementary Education program demonstrated that it adheres to a rigorous set of standards for

preparing literacy professionals and exceeds ILA’s benchmarks.

The ILA National Recognition and ILA National Recognition With Distinction honor

outstanding licensure, certificate, and endorsement programs that prepare reading/literacy

specialists and elementary/intermediate classroom teachers. For more information, visit

ilanationalrecognition.org.

University of North Georgia Recognized for

Excellence in Literacy Professional Preparation

LITERACY TODAY | July/August/September 2021 | literacyworldwide.org

Journal

Spotlight

Journal of Adolescent & Adult

Literacy Seeking Contributions

The Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy (JAAL) is seeking

contributions for feature articles. JAAL provides a global forum of peer-

reviewed research and praxis to reframe adolescent and adult literacies.

The editors are particularly interested in articles that elevate contextual

factors and diverse populations of literacy learners across the globe.

Topics may include adolescents’ and adults’ consumption and

production of visual, digital, and print-based texts in and out of school,

literacy learning in community contexts, and disciplinary literacies.

For more information, see the author guidelines at

literacyworldwide.org/journals.

JAAL is also seeking submissions for the following

types of articles:

Viewpoint: Literacy in the News provides an outlet for scholarly

interpretation or reflective response to literacy topics presented in mass media publications. Inquiries

including a 250-word abstract should be addressed to lahenry@salisbury.edu.

Forum: Common Discourse offers a forum to connect educators across the instructional spectrum

on a variety of topics that span the boundaries of literacy contexts. Inquiries including a 250-word

abstract should be addressed to hdporter@salisbury.edu.

Media Review: Authentic Texts for Teaching and Learning reviews print and multimodal texts that

inform teaching and related educational practices. Each issue features texts for/aimed at adult and

adolescent learners and texts for pedagogy and practice. Inquiries including a 250-word abstract

should be addressed to sheahaa@wwu.edu.

Discussion: Curriculum Case Studies features case studies about practitioners’ experiences enacting

curriculum in school and community contexts, including how practitioners can resist, modify, and

otherwise counter standardized curriculum and policy mandates. Inquiries including a 250-word abstract

should be addressed to sanchezl@sc.edu.

Discussion: Multilingual Lives highlights the role of multilingualism in adult and adolescent literacy,

providing a space to think critically about the intersections of language, race, power, and literacy. Inquiries

including a 250-word abstract should be addressed to tcwilliamson@salisbury.edu.

Column: Policy in Context publishes a critical analysis of current or forthcoming national and/or state

policies influencing literacy learning or practices in an educational, community, or family context. Inquiries

including a 250-word abstract should be addressed to zanc@umn.edu.

Welcome to all of our ILA literacy leaders and

readers from across the globe! Depending

on your current time, space, and place in the

world, this special issue of Literacy Today may

lead you to conceptualize the meaning of joy

and refocusing its importance for teaching

and learning in different ways. Although the

COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly left many

languishing and longing to connect, it is my

hope that this issue finds you flourishing and

feeling once again reconnected with family,

friends, and colleagues. On behalf of the

ILA Board of Directors, know that the ILA

community welcomes you with open arms no

matter how you show up to unpack joy and

consider the crucial role we play in supporting

our students.

Because one of the key ingredients to

joy is building trust, it goes without saying

that we are honored and humbled that you

continue to recognize, contribute to, and

lean on ILA’s resources and programs as

the trusted international voice for literacy

research and bridges to practice. I am

confident that our strategic plan prioritizes

key areas for the future success of ILA with

joy at the heart.

When my colleagues and I first wrote

about the concept of joy in Literacy

Changemakers: Bringing the Joy of Reading

and Writing Into Focus for Teachers and

Students (Guilford), we emphasized the

following belief:

“Helping students realize their potential as

readers and writers is an experience that will

bring great pleasure and happiness to all of

those involved.”

Joyfully Together

ILA UPDATE

As you have now learned how to navigate

synchronous, asynchronous, in-person,

hybrid, hy-flex, blended, simultaneous (the

list goes on) learning environments, at ILA

we believe these words are still at the core of

the important work we carry on as a literacy

community.

For our colleagues in Australia, Brazil,

Nigeria, and other regions plugging away

this winter, with sights set on the summer

ahead, consider taking joy in some of the risks

you have taken to impact your readers and

writers thus far. How have you focused your

energy on ensuring that the comprehensive

literacy needs of all learners are or have been

met? What new and innovative strategies and

techniques have grown your practice? What

role has ILA played in contributing to your

growth as a literacy professional?

ILA members in countries including China,

Iran, Mexico, Russia, and the United States are

preparing to start a new school year and are

exploring ways to build trust and promote a

growth mind-set before prioritizing goals to

accelerate learning based on students’ needs.

What steps will you be taking to let students

Regardless of where you are at

this moment in time, prioritizing

joy in our classrooms has never

been more important, and we are

proud that you stand committed

to this work with ILA.

literacyworldwide.org | July/August/September 2021 | LITERACY TODAY

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