The Chicago Literacy Group is delighted to announce the line-up for our 14th Annual Summer Institutes this July and August. Each of this year’s Institutes will tap into the most current research on how the brain learns, building connections from the science of learning to the realities of teaching.
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Registration is first come, first served. Once capacity is reached for each Institute, registration will close.
Alongside the science of reading and writing is a vast body of research exploring the science of teaching and learning. What does research say is essential for educators to know in order to ensure that our students retain what we have taught them?
Developing an understanding of cognitive load theory and the relationship between memory and learning is key to making our teaching stick. Institute 1 will uncover essential and brain-friendly instructional strategies that will elevate students’ engagement and achievement across all content areas and at any age. Educators will leave this session understanding why and how to design predictable and explicit lesson structures to introduce new learning as well as meaningful and manageable activities to support students’ ongoing practice of that learning over time.
Institute 1 Structure, Logistics + Cost: This 2-day Institute is offered twice (July 13-14 or August 5-6), so teachers can select the timing that works best for them. The July 13-14 session will take place at Holden Elementary, while the August 5-6 session will be held at Kilmer Elementary. This is an Institute for educators in PreK-8 grades. The registration fee is $350, and participants receive 10 hours of CPDU credit. |
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The conversation in the last few years has focused heavily on the science of reading, but what about writing? What does research say is essential for children to learn the skills, cognitive processes, and behaviors that proficient writers need to flourish? What does every child need to be taught in order to become a writer?
Institute 2 will focus on the two big “C”s of writing development – conventions and composition. Participants will leave with the understanding of how to teach students the foundational skills of writing (spelling and syntax) alongside the teaching of cognitive and composition skills (such as knowledge of genre, structure, and the writing process). Our goal is to equip each educator with the knowledge and clarity to effectively balance the teaching of both conventions and composition by effectively using the model of gradual release of responsibility.
Institute 2 Structure, Logistics + Cost: Institute 2 is a 2-day session, which takes place on July 15-16, 2026, from 9 am–3 pm at Holden Elementary in Chicago, IL. This is an Institute for educators in 1st-8th grades. The registration fee is $350, and participants receive 10 hours of CPDU credit. |
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Research is increasingly clear that self-regulation and executive function skills have a profound impact on students’ academic success – even greater than language or intellectual ability. What strategies, structures and tools can we incorporate into our teaching to develop well-regulated classrooms?
This Institute will explore the science behind the development of executive function and regulation skills from infancy to adulthood. Educators will uncover opportunities to explicitly and implicitly teach self-regulation, both through literacy instruction as well as in isolation. Teachers will leave with a strong understanding of factors that influence the development of executive functioning, along with explicit lesson plans and routines to sustain students’ ongoing regulation.
Institute 3 Structure, Logistics + Cost: Institute 3 is a 2-day session, which takes place on July 20-21, 2026, from 9 am–3 pm at Kilmer Elementary in Chicago, IL. This is an Institute for educators in K-8th grades. The registration fee is $350, and participants receive 10 hours of CPDU credit. |
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Researchers have uncovered the importance of writing in developing reading comprehension. Science tells us, too, that the pathway to successful writing about reading begins with the development of oral language comprehension.
What, then, are ways we can leverage shared reading and writing strategies to support students’ thinking about text? How can we guide students in transferring these skills to their independent reading and writing? In what ways can we explicitly connect ongoing and authentic instruction to the skills and tasks assessed on standardized tests?
Educators will leave Institute 4 armed with strategies, tools, and resources that they can utilize right away in their classrooms to create strong readers, writers and test-takers.
Institute 4 Structure, Logistics + Cost: Institute 4 is a 2-day session, which takes place on July 22-23, 2026, from 9 am–3 pm at Kilmer Elementary in Chicago, IL. This is an Institute for educators in 2nd-8th grades. The registration fee is $350, and participants receive 10 hours of CPDU credit. |
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We know the importance of vocabulary and morphological knowledge in supporting reading comprehension. But what does research say are the most effective processes for teaching vocabulary? What are ways to ensure transfer, so that students expand their language skills when speaking and writing?
Institute 5 will provide guidance for setting up daily (and brief!) vocabulary lessons. This session will guide teachers in selecting key vocabulary words from complex text, utilizing a structure for teaching individual words as well as high-leverage roots and affixes, and making vocabulary and morphology instruction an interactive experience. This Institute is designed for educators looking for ways to make the teaching of vocabulary and morphology more explicit, interactive, and impactful.
Institute 5 Structure, Logistics + Cost: Institute 5 is a 2-day session, which takes place on August 3-4, 2026, from 9 am–3 pm at Kilmer Elementary in Chicago, IL. This is an Institute for educators in PreK-8th grades. The registration fee is $350, and participants receive 10 hours of CPDU credit. |
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You two are fantastic! You are knowledgeable, positive, and inspiring. You understand that teaching is challenging and change is the only constant. You deliver information in a way that is accessible and manageable.
What worked? EVERYTHING! Carissa you are absolutely fabulous and so gifted and talented at what you do. You can tell you have a true passion for it as well and it shines through! I have never learned so much, had so many "ah ha" moments, or had so much fun at a workshop!
Carissa is so engaging, and clearly presents the work in a way that is clear and concise. She is truly a master of her craft and I love learning from her!
Fabulous PD. I'm fired up to teaching writing this school year!
It was by far the best writing professional development seminar I have attended!
Maria did a wonderful job presenting. She is extremely knowledgeable and very friendly.
I greatly appreciate the professionalism and knowledge of both literacy coaches, Maria and Carissa. They are an invaluable asset to me as a teacher, as well as to my school!!
This was a fabulous three days, and I'm thrilled to have been able to get to participate. Maria, you've made me so excited to start the literacy workshop in my classroom this year!
I love Maria and Carissa and the resources they provide for me as a teacher and teacher leader in my building. Going into my third year with CLG, I felt very confident about planning.