​Celebrations at Canad Inns Destination Centre Fort Garry
1824 Pembina Hwy | Winnipeg, Manitoba

• 7:30 AM – Check-in Opens
• 9:00 AM – Session Begins
• 11:45 AM - 1:00 PM – Lunch (On Your Own)
• 1:00 PM – Session Continues
• 3:00 PM – Book Draws & Giveaways

Free parking available on site, but we are expecting over 300 teachers. We encourage carpooling and arriving early! LUNCH IS NOT​ INCLUDED. There are many restaurants in the area. Morning and afternoon snacks are included. 

Editor’s Note: RCGW extends thanks to Manitoba Education and Training ELA Consultant Angela Burdett for her assistance in answering our many questions. 

Since 2017, Manitoba Education and Training (MET) has been implementing the new ELA Curriculum Framework through a phased-in model. Across the province, many school teams and groups of teachers have gathered to discuss and explore their practice through the new curriculum framework. We at RCGW continue to field questions from teachers in the field, so we reached out to MET for some updates.

Last month, in Off to a Great Start, we recommended teachers read the Manitoba English Language Arts Curriculum Framework – April 2019 Draft. (Read it online at Maple today!) Teachers can inquire and explore the many avenues for digging deep into language and inquiry under the new framework. We are pleased to hear that MET expects to have the latest iteration of the Curriculum Framework and the new Maple group, "The ELA Place," available later this fall. 

The revised framework will be shared as "A Living Document" rather than a "Draft" to better reflect the emergent nature of the curriculum. MET is in the process of redesigning and renaming the current Maple group "Reflecting on and Moving Forward With the New ELA Curriculum" to "The ELA Place." The new group will be a more interactive space where educators can explore the framework and wraparound supports from multiple entry points. It will evolve over time as teachers shift practice and become more familiar with the new framework and as MET receives feedback from teachers in the field. If you’re already a member of the current group, you’re all set – you won’t need to join anything new. You will receive an invitation from Maple to join the new group and you simply follow the directions provided.  

One exciting part of The ELA Place is the Stories of Practice. This is where educators can go to see the stories of Manitoba teachers enacting the practices and living out this curriculum in their classrooms. In the future, MET hopes to include many "stories of practice" that represent all grade bands and many contexts. If you’ve begun to implement the new curriculum, we at RCGW and MET would love to hear your stories. Get in touch with us!

Finally, RCGW offers its congratulations to former MET ELA and Literacy Consultant Shelley Warkentin, who moved to Seven Oaks School Division earlier this year. We also welcome the new Senior Years ELA and Literacy Consultant Vicky McMahon to her position at MET. We look forward to continuing our longstanding collaboration with MET and to bringing you, our members, the latest information to support your teaching. 

The Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg is excited to announce that past president and long-time board member Cathy-Ann Winters has been appointed as the International Literacy Association (ILA) Provincial Coordinator for Manitoba! 

Cathy-Ann has been a long standing member of the Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg, the Manitoba Reading Association and the International Literacy Association. She has served on the RCGW board as the MYRCA Representative,  President Elect, President, Past President and Journal Editor. Cathy-Ann is a Vice Principal at Dakota Collegiate Institute in the Louis Riel School Division and has recently become a Reading Apprenticeship facilitator, supporting literacy instruction across Manitoba. Cathy-Ann is dedicated to inspiring cultures of collaboration, learning focused relationships and personalized learning. She has been a Classroom Teacher, a Student Services Teacher, a Literacy Itinerant Teacher and an Instructional Support Teacher. Cathy-Ann received her Masters in Educational Administration from the University of Manitoba where her learning focused on instructional leadership and effective school planning. 
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RCGW's Board of Directors welcomes Cathy-Ann into her new role and looks forward to working closely together over her term.