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Leaders of Literacy Podcasts2020-07-06T15:32:26-04:00

Welcome to our Podcasts

School Readiness episodes focus on the research, resources, and programs that highlight the importance of ensuring that children have access to the best available resources prior to entering school and

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Attendance episodes focus on research, resources, and programs that work towards reducing chronic absenteeism in the early grades in order to establish good attendance habits and combat chronic absence. 

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Extended learning episodes focus on research, resources, and programs to support students when they are not in school.  The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading emphasizes the need for summer programming

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High-Quality Instruction episodes focus on providing teachers with research-based professional learning and resources on high-quality, standards-aligned instructional materials, best teaching practices, and learning environments that will lead to student

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Meet the Team

Becky Lewis

Early Literacy Specialist

Becky has 10 years of classroom experience as a general classroom teacher and Literacy Specialist working with students in grades K-12. She spent the majority of that time in an elementary setting, where she obtained her National Board Teaching Certification in Early and Middle Childhood Literacy. This is Becky’s 2nd year working on the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. Her love of literacy, learning, and children motivates her to continue to develop her knowledge of early literacy development and pass that knowledge on in order to provide all WV children with the best educational experiences possible.

Maggie Luma

WV Campaign for Grade-Level Reading State Lead

Maggie is an employee of the West Virginia Department of Education where she is the State Lead for the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading as well as the Literacy Coordinator in the Office of Special Education and Student Support. Prior to her role at the department, she was an Early Literacy Specialist working on the Campaign. Maggie’s passions include writing, reading, and talking to anyone who will listen about writing and reading! Although her first few years of teaching began in two other states, she is happy to call Huntington, WV home for the past seven years.

Brittany Fike

Early Literacy Specialist

Brittany has experience working in the classroom with students from preschool to fifth grade. Her background in Elementary and Early-Childhood Education, as well as Special Education and Autism has led to her passion for helping those in the education community provide the best opportunities possible for all children. This is her first year working on the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. She is excited to use her background and experience to help strengthen the learning opportunities for all children in our state.

Christy Schwartz

Early Literacy Specialist

Christy has 10 years of educational experience and holds Bachelor’s degrees in Printing Management and Elementary Education as well as a Master’s degree in Special Education-Gifted. As a teacher, she was honored to serve on several state leadership teams and the WV Commission for Professional Teaching Standards, but her most cherished successes included 86% of her 2015 students and 72% of her 2016 students achieving proficiency on the WV General Summative Assessment.  Growing up in rural WV, Christy’s favorite childhood moment was when the Bookmobile arrived up the hollow, and she is excited to be in her 4th year on the Campaign to share the joy of literacy with the next generation.

Brandie Turner

Early Literacy Specialist

Brandie has 11 years of experience in the classroom working with preschool special education, gifted education, and teaching kindergarten, 2nd, 3rd, and 6th grade regular education. This is Brandie’s 3rd year working on the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. Along with her experience and expertise, her passion for education and training drives her desire to help educational organizations and systems be the best they can be.

Latest episodes

Explore our professional, curated podcast content.

Episode 15:  Summer Learning Loss and the Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic

Today I am talking with my colleague and fellow State Early Literacy Specialist, Brandie Turner, about Summer Learning Loss and the projected effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on those losses.

Show Notes

Episode 14:  Interview with Dawn Miller

Interactive read alouds are one of the most powerful practices that both educators and parents have to increase children’s vocabulary and knowledge about the world. Today, I sit down with Read Aloud West Virginia’s Executive Director, Dawn Miller, to discuss how this organization is spreading the practice, power and magic of interactive read alouds across West Virginia.

Show Notes

Episode 13: Interview with Kelly Bryant and Mimi Browning

Remote learning is something that most educators have limited knowledge and experience in navigating, but something almost all educators are learning to navigate during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This episode follows the remote teaching and learning journey of two inspirational teachers, Kelly Bryant and Mimi Browning, from Logan County.

Show Notes

Episode 12: The Power of Interactive Read-Alouds

Classroom “read alouds” have traditionally been part of the elementary classroom for a very long time. However, the way in which we read aloud to children has evolved into an interactive process with the power to increasingly enrich children’s literacy skills. Today, I am talking with my colleague, Christy Schwartz, about what interactive read-alouds are and the power they have to develop children’s literacy skills both in and out of the classroom.

Show Notes

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