Building Wings

A free resource with 20,000+ digital books for educators and literacy advocates. Monarch Reader is LIVE! Building Wings is honored to continue the legacy of Tar Heel Reader with a new name and a new website. This online portal offers an age-respectful reading experience for all beginning readers, including those who are older or who benefit from text-to-speech, changeable font sizes, background color options to provide increased contrast, and the opportunity to explore books using alternative access such as switches, AAC devices, touch screens, or a mouse, to name a few. View the benefits and supports offered on this new website and access Monarch Reader's digital library of 20,000+ books. https://bit.ly/3u5Gryv

As an educator, you may be used to getting emails from trusted sources, but at the start of the school year, you no longer receive them. This issue occurs frequently in organizations that remove whitelisted email addresses over the summer. There is an easy remedy, and we've outlined how to whitelist your favorites for Gmail and Outlook, including laptop, desktop, and mobile apps: https://lnkd.in/grH2gw37

Get the school year started with best practices for developing and implementing IEPs with actionable tips from Michael McCormick. This is a three-part, on-demand webinar series covering: 🔹 Crafting Effective IEPs 🔹 Meeting Strategies for the IEP Team 🔹 IEP Implementation Success Factors Request access to any or all of these free webinars at: https://bit.ly/3TPa15G #SpecialEducator #IndividualizedEducationProgram #IEP

The school bell's about to ring, and I'm excited for a new school year! 📚🎒 Back-to-school time always gets me thinking about the amazing potential in every learner, especially those with complex needs. It's our change to make sure every learner gets the resources, support, and routines they need to shine. 🌟 This year, I'm super pumped about the launch of Monarch Reader (formerly Tar Heel Reader), the world's largest accessible library. Monarch Reader caters to all learners. It's an incredible tool that helps educators create personalized literacy experiences from decodable books, the DLM books, PRC collects and more - experiences that can really make a difference. As we get our classrooms ready, tweak our lesson plans, and set our goals, let's keep inclusion and accessibility at the forefront. Together, we can create learning environments where every learner feels valued and capable of reaching their dreams. We can ensure every educator has a solid, evidence based comprehensive curriculum. We can ensure relationships start off strong or build from last year. Here's to an amazing school year full with growth, discovery, and success for everyone! #BackToSchool #AllMeansAll #BuildingWings #Readtopia #Inclusion #SpedEd #MonarchReader #SpecialEducation #Autism

Do you prefer a great beginning to the school year, a great ending ~ or both? We wish all educators and students a great start to the 2024-25 school year! #BackToSchool #K12Education #Teachers #SchoolOT #SchoolSLP #SchoolLibrarian #SchoolAT #Principal #DirectorOfSpecialEducation #CurriculumCoordinator

Making literacy learning meaningful and relevant by building background knowledge. "That's the magic we want for our students – to see literacy as a two-way street, reflecting their world and opening doors to new ones." ~ Trisha Johnson Read more about "WhyWhat You Know Matters." https://lnkd.in/gyPnx4NN

Do you have any favorite night-before-the-start-of-school traditions? Principal Zac Bauermaster, shares what he places on the desk of every teacher at Providence Elementary School (Solanco School District) in Lancaster County, at the beginning of the year: https://lnkd.in/gJ3xwE8F

In a recent webinar on Funding for Instruction Aligned with Science of Reading, Ruth Ziolkowski outlined how educators can become advocates and can show others how IDEA Part B funds can be braided together with ESSER III funds to purchase research-based literacy curriculum solutions such as Readtopia and ReadtopiaGO. But, you need to act quickly. If you want to advocate for the use of ESSER III funds, schools have to obligate how they will be used by September 2024. If you need help with this, contact us at SOAR@BuildingWings with the state your school is in and the help you need, or view an on-demand recording of Ruth's webinar at: https://bit.ly/3TgyD5g #LiteracyInstruction #ScienceOfReading #ESSERIII

Know anyone new to special education? Ten tips for educators providing special education services for the first time and please comment with your suggestions too! https://bit.ly/3LzpAsV #NewTeacher #SpecialEducationTeacher #SchoolOT #SchoolSLP #IEPTeam

"There is an abundance of research that says when we pair symbols with words, we are making it harder for students to learn to read." If you or someone you know is using a reading curriculum with symbol-supported text, this message from Dr. Karen Erickson helps to identify why this is not a research-supported literacy instructional practice. https://lnkd.in/ghWJ8_rx