On January 18, 2023, T-TAC ODU hosted The VESOL Alliance at the Newport News Marriott. This unique professional learning event offered a range of high-interest sessions and free resources to over 80 attendees from across regions 2 & 3. Our expert presenters shared VESOL-referenced lesson plans that can be used to engage learners of all ages. If you were not able to join us, don’t worry! We will share a few of the great lesson plans for you to try with your students.
Attendees learned about Whole-Group Opportunities to Respond that can be used to review VESOL content across the school year. Some of the more popular response options were individual white boards, gestures, and pinch cards.
The VESOL Alliance went beyond the traditional lecture-style format of professional learning. Our attendees participated in a fully interactive and experience some great hands-on lessons!
Specialists from T-TAC ODU and T-TAC William & Mary were on hand to lead sessions related to reading, science, and assistive technology. We will share more of these lesson plans in future editions of the newsletter, but for now, enjoy two of the lesson plans offered at the event.
The Snowy Day: A Multi-Grade Level Read Aloud
T-TAC Specialist, Erin Saxon, presented this lesson as a great way of guiding students through an interactive read aloud, complete with sensory activities and great teaching questions. Don’t forget to download the Question Matrix to use with the books that you read with your students.
Educators who attended The VESOL Alliance were treated to an experience they will not soon forget. T-TAC Specialist, Lisa Gehring and Director, Laura Beller, adapted this great lesson from FORSEA Institute of Marine Science. Your students will brave ice cold buckets of water to explore the effects of blubber in Marin animals. You will also want to download the data sheet.
One of the highlights of The VESOL Alliance was bringing in some great local educators to model a few of the lessons that they use in their classrooms. Huge thanks to Joy Tanner, Robin Stubbs, and Beth Maul for being generous with their math lessons! To learn how to access these resources, check out T-TAC ODU Math Specialist, Dr. Tamara Smith-Moyler’s post, New VESOL Math Resources Available!
The VESOL Alliance offered a great opportunity for educators to explore some of the great resources offered by T-TAC ODU. Be sure to visit our Free Lending Library, where you can create an account and have a wide range of resources mailed to your school. You can also request some of our many curriculum publications or check out our upcoming professional learning opportunities.
The VESOL Alliance was a great event, but don’t forget that T-TAC ODU specialists are here to support you year-round. For questions or support with VESOL-based instruction, contact Daniel Biegun- dbiegun@odu.edu. We hope that you will join us at future events. Until then- Happy Teaching!
