The IDA Speaker's Showcase

Thanks to the Alabama Branch for featuring so many Speaker Showcase speakers in their October Conference. I was honored to present a session on Story Frames for Teaching Literacy: Using Narratives as a Bridge to Informational Text, as well as a Structured Literacy Symposium on Vocabulary and Background Knowledge. Our next Speaker Showcase Auction begins November 6, but you may preview our presentations now at:

 https://www.32auctions.com/2026SpeakerShowcase

On the way back home, I had an interesting encounter with Walt Whitman. Read about it HERE. 

WALT WHITMAN AT THE BIRMINGHAM AIRPORT

I ran into Walt Whitman at Birmingham Airport this weekend as I returned home from a speaking engagement at the Rise to the Challenge conference in Hoover, sponsored by the Birmingham Branch of the International Dyslexia Association and the Alabama chapter of ALTA. He was in a little room just off the C Concourse.

I entered to find a film of people from all over Alabama reciting verses from "Song of Myself." It was part of the Whitman Alabama project. Filmmaker Jennifer Crandall traveled across Alabama, recording ordinary people in the middle of their everyday lives as they recited lines from the great American poet. Her project highlights our shared interconnectedness while offering a fresh perspective on a beloved poet. I'd honestly never paid much attention to Whitman except for the quotes I've seen here or there. I prefer my poetry in smaller doses and am more a fan of Edgar Allan Poe or more recent poets like Elizabeth Bishop, Pablo Neruda, and Mary Oliver, but Crandall's project handled the pieces of Whitman's poem in segments with movement, music, and visual imagery that made it immediate and noteworthy.

The project includes a segment of a judge in drug court reciting a verse to the addicts in his courtroom, a farming family going about their daily chores, the mascot of the Golden Tigers during a football game, inmates at two Alabama penitentiaries, and much more. Check out the videos and learn more about the project at Whitman, Alabama, and if you are ever at the Birmingham Airport, stop by Concourse C for a little Walt Whitman.

RISE TO THE CHALLENGE CONFERENCE

This Thursday, I'm excited to give two presentations at the Rise to the Challenge Conference, organized by the Alabama Branch of the International Dyslexia Association in conjunction with the Alabama chapter of the Academic Language Therapy Association. My morning presentation draws on a chapter from my book, Story Frames for Teaching Literacy: Enhancing Student Learning Through the Power of Storytelling. The focus of the presentation is on Using Narratives As a Bridge to Informational Text. 

One of my favorite types of resources is Narrative Non-Fiction Picture Books. They are ideal for bridging the gap to informational text because they often overlap. 

Later this month, I will explore a new book by one of my favorite authors, Beth Anderson, called The Patriot and the Pox: George Washington's Battle to Save the Continental Army. It was just released on September 29, 2026, perfectly timed with our nation's 250th anniversary. It would be a great book to use to introduce a Revolutionary War theme even for Middle School and High School students.

Check out my book, Story Frames HERE.