Author: rarcweb

Parents and Reading Workshop

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RARC is now accepting applications for the 2018-19 Parents and Reading Workshop
 
Each year, the RARC works with one school to facilitate a Parents and Reading Workshop that includes free books!  Parents and children attend this fall 2018 workshop together and will leave with books to take home. This workshop is designed to help schools with a financial need provide books to families.  A flier is attached with additional information.

Requirements :

● At least one staff member at the school must be a CURRENT RARC member

● Students in the school must have a financial need for books (50% or more reduced lunch)

● Parents must attend the HOUR long RARC workshop at school with their children/students

● School groups, such as Title 1, CIS, PTA, etc., will be invited to support the workshop

 
Applications due by 3/9/18.  Apply online at:  http://bit.ly/RARCparents2018

Reading Teacher of the Year

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Do you know an outstanding teacher of literacy?
 
The RARC is collecting nominations for our 2017-18 Reading Teacher of the Year.    
The 2017-18 RARC Reading Teacher of the Year will be honored at a special celebration in the spring and will receive a $500 award  to use in the classroom to promote literacy. 

Use this link to nominate: http://bit.ly/RARC2018RTOY

Anyone may submit a nomination, but all nominees must be a member of RARC.  Additional information is provided below.
 
All nominations must be submitted by 2/1/2018

OFIE T. RUBIN READING TEACHER OF THE YEAR

Richmond Area Reading Council Guidelines and Application Form

The Richmond Area Reading Council is pleased to announce that we are collecting nominations for our local council’s Reading Teacher of the Year.   In addition to the honor of representing the RARC in the state’s Reading Teacher of the Year process, the RARC recipient will also receive $500 to use in the classroom to promote literacy.  The RARC Reading Teacher of the Year Committee will review all information received, and the selected RARC Reading Teacher of the Year will be submitted to be considered for the VSRA 2018-19 Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year.
The Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year is selected by the VRSA and honors exemplary literacy instruction in the classroom.   Each year, every local council nominates one outstanding teacher of reading to compete for the VSRA Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year.   The candidate selected as the VSRA Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year will receive a $1000 Professional Development Award at the VSRA conference banquet in 2019.
To nominate an outstanding colleague:  Please complete the form located at http://bit.ly/RARC2018RTOY VSRA 2018-19 Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year.
.  Once the nomination is received, we will ask your colleague to submit additional required materials.  
Requirements:
  • The candidate must be a member of RARC in the 2017-18 school year.  If selected as the RARC RTOY, the candidate must be a member in the 2018-19 school year to be eligible for the VSRA 2018-19 Ofie T. Rubin Reading Teacher of the Year.
  • The candidate must teach reading a minimum of one third of each school day to students in grades K­12.
Once nominated, all applicants will be asked to complete the following:
  • The candidate’s vita (2 pages) 30 points
  • The candidate’s philosophy of reading education (1 page) 20 points
  • Proposal for using the $500 RARC award to further literacy instruction (1 page) 30 points
  • Two letters of recommendation (principal, supervisor, or colleague) 10 points each
  1. A digital photo (jpg file) of the candidate
Timeline:
  • All RARC nominations must be received by February 1, 2018
  • The applicant must submit all supporting materials listed above by March 15, 2018.
  • All nominees will be recognized at the RARC RTOY celebration (to be held in late April or early May 2018).
Supporting documents should be mailed to:
Kathy Rohr, Reading Teacher of the Year Chair
13418 Greenwood Road
Glen Allen, VA 23059
krohr@henrico.k12.va.us
(w) 804.226.8765    (c) 804.814.6102

Writing Extravaganza!

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The Richmond Area Reading Council is pleased to announce this year’s Young Writers Contest and Annual Writing Extravaganza!  
This year we are requesting that all entries in the Young Writers Contest be in the genre of historical fiction, short story.
The Writing Extravaganza, which will celebrate the talents of the finalists of the Young Writers Contest, will be held in April.  Local author Steven K. Smith, author of The Virginia Mysteries, will be the keynote speaker. Exact date and location of the Annual Writing Extravaganza will be announced in January 2018. Finalists in the Young Writers Contest will receive an official invitation to the Writing Extravaganza in March 2018.
Students in grades 3 – 12 are eligible to submit entries in this year’s RARC Young Writers Contest. Winter break may present a perfect opportunity for interested students to begin working on their entries. However, entries MUST be completed independently by each student. Entries may also be completed at school. Entries are due on Feb. 9, 2018. Teachers are asked to submit no more that 5 entries per class (or class period). Thank you!
A flyer and official entry form may be obtained by clicking on the following link:
Teachers, who teach in Hanover County, may submit entries and entry forms via the pony to Doris Favale at Pearson’s Corner Elementary or Megan Kanner at Beaverdam Elementary.  Addresses are posted on the flyer and entry form for those who teach in districts other than Hanover County.
Please direct questions to Doris Favale  – dfavale@hcps.us or
Megan Kanner –mkanner@hcps.us
We look forward to receiving several entries this year and are excited to celebrate the efforts of the many young writers in the various districts represented by the Richmond Area Reading Council.
Sincerely,
Doris Favale and Megan Kanner
RARC Young Writers Contest Coordinators

Register TODAY for the VSRA Conference

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VSRA conferenceWe are so fortunate to be the host city for the annual VSRA conference March 8-10th, 2018 at the Richmond Convention Center.  Registration is NOW OPEN, with early bird deals ending January 8th.  Be sure to check out the VSRA site for more information about registration.

There are so many amazing speakers lined up for the event that you will not want to miss!  Check out the featured speakers here!

Fall Conference PowerPoint

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Thank you to everyone who came out to our annual fall conference last week at Greenwood ES.  It was great to see so many new and familiar faces!  Tracy Robertson shared some great information about the upcoming changes to the Standards of Learning.  Click the following link to access her PowerPoint: RARC_2017

Don’t forget, the deadline for the Teachers as Readers grant is next Tuesday, 10/31. Click the following link for more information: RARCTeachersasReaders2017.  You can apply online as well! It’s a great way opportunity to create your own collaborative learning experience with colleagues!

 

Teachers as Readers Group Grant

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Is there a professional book that you want to read, but don’t want to have to buy?  RARC has the solution for you – apply for our Teachers as Readers grant!
Teachers as Readers Grant
The Richmond Area Reading Council is pleased to offer two grants for groups of teachers to purchase, read, and discuss children’s literature or professional books that further literacy instruction. One $250 grant will be awarded to a group from an elementary school, and one $250 grant will be awarded to a middle or high school group. A total of $500 we be awarded each year. Applications can be mailed in or submitted digitally.
Deadline to apply:  October 31, 2017
Reading Teacher of the Year
Know an outstanding literacy teacher?   Nomination forms for our Reading Teacher of the Year will be released soon!

Join RARC today!

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Summer is winding down—hopefully you had a chance to recharge your batteries for the 2017-2018 school year!

We are pleased to announce that membership is open for 2017-2018 school year!
Your membership in RARC gives you free admission to our local RARC conferences and a discounted registration fee for the annual VSRA conference(held in Richmond this year!)

Our RARC board has already been hard at work planning for this year and we have some exciting new ideas for the year.   We look forward to collaborating with YOU as we engage students, parents, teachers, and the community to promote a life-long love for literacy!

To become a member of RARC/VSRA for the 2017-2018 year:

  1. Go to www.vsra.org
  2. Click on the link on the VSRA homepage.
  3. Complete the membership form.
  4. Don’t forget to click on the SUBMIT button (scroll down to bottom of page).

Things to know: 

  • Select Richmond Area as your council – your membership is for both VSRAand RARC!
  • Members can pay via PayPal or by check.  On-line payment is encouraged.  If using a check, follow the directions on the screen.  Membership is not complete until payment (online or check) is received.
  • Members are asked to use personal emails, to prevent VSRA emails from being blocked or going to spam.

Don’t delay – cross RARC Membership off your “to-do” list before going back to school!

We look forward to this year and wish you all the best.

See you in October at our fall conference!

RARC Celebration and Cathy Collier Slides

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We were so excited to see so many of you at our spring conference on Tuesday!  Cathy’s presentation was engaging, and offered 7 great tips for teaching vocabulary.  Below you will find the link for her presentations.  We hope you can try out one of her ideas before June!  RARC Vocablary Distributed Copy (c)cathycollier2017

The school year is winding down…. time for our annual RARC celebration!

Join us at Brio Tuscan Grille (Stony Point Fashion Park) on 5/11 to meet other folks who love to teach reading, enjoy some tasty snacks, and see what else RARC can offer.  

We will also honor our Reading Teacher of the Year nominees and celebrate this year’s winner along with other recipients of RARC grants and awards.

Full details are located in the attached flier.

Link to RSVP:  http://bit.ly/CelebrateRARC

We hope to see you there!