Author and Educator Dr. Richard Allington Visits Racine to Help Students Get Reading Ready

RACINE, Wis., Jan. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Renowned author and educator, Dr. Richard Allington will visit Racine on Thursday, February 16 as part of the Racine Reads: Dream Big! author series. The second in the series, Dr. Allington will share best practices, tips and methods to teach reading with educators and parents.

"We are very fortunate to have Dr. Allington visit us as part of our program," said Ann Laing, Interim Superintendent Racine Unified School District. "Bringing someone of Dr. Allington's caliber to Racine truly enhances our Racine Reads: Dream Big! program. This is truly a community-based program and his presentations will be targeted to the people who help our children read. Parents, teachers, teachers-to-be, all will be able to learn some tips and tricks to help children improve their reading skills."

Racine Reads: Dream Big! is a community-based initiative that challenged the city's elementary school children to read one million books this school year. The program reaches more than 10,000 elementary school students in nearly 500 public, private and parochial classrooms across Racine. The Racine Reads: Dream Big! program is sponsored by SC Johnson and is a partnership with the Racine Public Library along with the City of Racine, Racine Elementary Schools, the Racine Civic Centre, Racine Literacy Council, Family Literacy of Racine, Cops 'N Kids, and Girls Inc.

Dreaming Big with Better Reading Skills

Dr. Allington has written more than 100 research articles and multiple books on teaching reading including Classrooms that Work: They Can All Read and Write. Dr. Allington is the second author to visit Racine as part of the Racine Reads: Dream Big! author series. He will be followed by Rosemary Wells, author of the popular Max and Ruby books who will visit Racine in April.

While in Racine on February 16, Dr. Allington will speak at two events. 

Educator Event: What Every Reader Needs Every Day

4:30-6:00 p.m. at the Golden Rondelle Theater (located at the SC Johnson corporate campus). The event is free and open to educators and education students throughout Southeastern Wisconsin. Reservations are required and can be made by contacting the Golden Rondelle at (262) 260-2154 or [email protected]

Parent Event: Reading at Home Every Day of the Year

7:00 p.m. at the Golden Rondelle Theater (located at the SC Johnson corporate campus). The event is free, but reservations are required and can be made by contacting the Golden Rondelle at (262) 260-2154 or [email protected]

Author and Educator Background

Dr. Richard L. Allington, Professor of Education at the University of Tennessee, was an elementary school classroom teacher and a director in poor rural schools prior to beginning his career as a teacher educator and instructional researcher. His research interests include reading/learning disabilities and effective instruction especially in classroom settings.

Dr. Allington has served as president of the National Reading Conference and the International Reading Association (IRA). He received the William S. Gray Citation of Merit from IRA for his contributions to the organization and the profession. He also was co-recipient (with Dr. Anne McGill-Franzen) of the Albert J. Harris Award for contributions to improving professional understanding of reading/learning disabilities and was elected to the Reading Hall of Fame.

Upcoming Events:  

March 2, 2012 – Read Across America Day

The National Education Association's (NEA) Read Across America Day, now in its 13th year, is a program focused on motivating children and teens to read. To support Read Across America Day, which coincides with Dr. Seuss' birthday, Racine Reads: Dream Big! will implement a volunteer program placing community and business leaders in every elementary school classroom throughout Racine. 

March – Battle of the Books

Each year, the Racine Public Library coordinates a Battle of the Books literature contest for Racine's fourth- and fifth-grade students. Teams are composed of up to four students representing area public and private schools. In preparing for the tournament, participants read and become knowledgeable about the content of approximately 40 books selected for the Battle by youth services librarians. Meets are held over a four-week period at the Library and highest scoring teams are declared the champions. To date, the Library has seen a 40 percent increase in the number of teams registered, which is a direct result of Racine Reads: Dream Big! because the teams are sponsored by teachers who haven't participated before but are active in the Racine Reads program.

April 26-27, 2012 – Author Visit: Rosemary Wells

The author of the popular Max and Ruby children's book series, Ms. Wells will be in Racine to meet with families during a free community presentation the evening of Thursday, April 26.

Racine Reads: Dream Big! Celebration

The program will officially culminate with a community-wide celebration at the end of the school year.

For more information on events related to Racine Reads: Dream Big! visit www.racinereads.org or the program's Facebook page.

SOURCE Racine Reads: Dream Big!