Montreal, October 9, 2015 - More than 500 teachers from private elementary schools in the regions of Montreal, Montérégie, Laval, Laurentides, Lanaudière, Center-du-Québec and Outaouais are participating in a day today intensive reading training. The Reading is Discovering colloquium aims to equip teachers to develop students' taste for reading and improve their literacy skills.
“Reading is a key element of school perseverance and success,” recalls Patrick L'Heureux, coordinator of preschool and elementary education services at the Federation of Private Educational Institutions. The conference allows teachers to learn about research in the field of teaching reading and to discover teaching innovations that have proven their worth. "
During the day, participants participate in various workshops to discuss winning strategies to help their students become good readers. Some workshops deal more specifically with the strategies to be favored with students who have to deal with learning disabilities or neurological problems.
Participants have the opportunity to hear a talk by youth author Bryan Perro, author of Amos Daragon, who has managed to capture the attention of many boys who are a priori reluctant to read. Also, an exhibitors' fair promotes meetings with different publishers and allows teachers to familiarize themselves with new products.
"Young people entering school today have a radically different relationship to reading from that of previous generations," explains Jean-Marc St-Jacques, President of the Federation and Director General of Collège Bourget. They were born in the digital age and are used to interacting with content. Also, many of our students have a mother tongue other than French. Some have never even seen, before entering school, books written with our alphabet. We have great reading challenges to overcome, but we are fortunate to live in an age where there is a tremendous array of children's books and technologies that make reading more dynamic and engaging than ever. "
To consult the conference program, Click here.