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2024 Literacy Texas Annual Conference

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The Literacy Texas Annual Conference is THE event for educators, nonprofit administrators, and organizations working with literacy in Texas. Learn about the latest research in the literacy field. Rub shoulders with experts and connect with like-minded people. Most importantly, leave with the tools, relationships, and inspiration you need to continue making a difference.

click here for registration & scholarship info

2024 Conference Basics

Monday, July 29 – Arrival, check-in, exhibitor set-up, VIP Reception & Exhibitor Grand Opening
Tuesday, July 30 – Conference Day 1
Wednesday, July 31 – Conference Day 2

The theme of the 2024 conference is “Literacy and Beyond”, and our hashtag is #LitTX24.

find all conference info here

An intriguing balance of abilities

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October is Dyslexia Awareness Month

Dyslexia is a learning difference, one that specifically affects language processing. 

Dyslexia is many things, and among them, it’s an intriguing balance of abilities.

“The advantage of dyslexia is that my brain puts information in my head in a different way.”
Whoopi Goldberg
Actor

Some basic facts about dyslexia

Dyslexia is a specific learning difference that affects reading and spelling ability, along with literacy skills development. It’s a different way of dealing with language in the brain. The most common form of dyslexia interrupts a student’s ability to split words into their component sounds, which makes sounding out words and spelling extremely challenging.

People are born with dyslexia, and it runs in families. It’s estimated that between 15 and 20% of Americans have some form of dyslexia, but the majority of people who have it don’t know that they do.

There’s more to dyslexia than getting words mixed up or out of order – and some people with dyslexia never even display this symptom. Since dyslexia affects how the brain processes language, someone might:

  • Memorize words but be unable to sound them out
  • Substitute words in sentences for other words that make sense
  • Have difficulty with handwriting
  • Show confusion with directions (left and right, before and after, over and under – this is where the reversal of “b” and “d” might show up, a symptom of dyslexia many people know)
  • Find recall difficult, especially for names and words
“If anyone ever puts you down for having dyslexia, don’t believe them. Being dyslexic can actually be a big advantage, and it has certainly helped me.”
Richard Branson
CEO, Virgin

Some distinct advantages

While dyslexia – especially when undiagnosed – can definitely cause people a lot of frustration and problems, there are some distinct advantages to the condition. People with dyslexia often have:

  • Heightened levels of creativity
  • Higher levels of intelligence
  • Greater artistic and mechanical abilities
  • Outside-the-box thinking
  • Ability to see the big picture and connect ideas
“I didn’t succeed despite my dyslexia, but because of it. It wasn’t my deficit, but my advantage. Although there are neurological trade-offs that require that I work creatively [and] smarter in reading, writing and speaking, I would never wish to be any other way than my awesome self. I love being me, regardless of the early challenges I faced.”
Scott Sonnon
Professional Athlete

Preparing for success

Perhaps most importantly – dyslexia needs specific interventions. The earlier a person is diagnosed with dyslexia and given personal help, the better, but it’s never too late.

Effective instruction for people with dyslexia is:

  • Personal to their specific needs, including in pace
  • Delivered one-on-one or in very small groups
  • Repetitive, to allow lots of practice and error correction
  • Positive and encouraging 
“Dyslexia is not a pigeonhole to say you can’t do anything. It is an opportunity and a possibility to learn differently. You have magical brains, they just process differently. Don’t feel like you should be held back by it.”
Princess Beatrice
UK royal family

Sources and further reading

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Literacy means –

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It’s still July, but we’re looking ahead to September.

Why?

September has multiple opportunities to celebrate all things literacy. It’s National Literacy Month, just for starters, and on September 8 we celebrate International Literacy Day.

And then there’s AEFL Week! Adult Education and Family Literacy Week raises public awareness about both the need for, and value of, adult education and family literacy. Its goal is to increase support for basic education programs for US adults with low literacy, numeracy, and digital skills.

Advocates across the country (that’s all of us!) can use this opportunity to shine a bright, bold spotlight on the benefits of adult education and family literacy, the obstacles to access, and the great work your local programs are doing with adults and families.

And in some great news, a lot of the preparation work has already been done for you:

Find details about actions, events, messaging, and more, on this dedicated AEFL Week page from COABE (the Coalition on Adult Basic Education).

Use this toolkit from ProLiteracy to get prepared with what you want to say and do for literacy in your local community this September.

And keep it local, too! Refresh your mind on Texas literacy facts and stats, download any of the graphics below to use on your social media, and stay tuned for more ideas and suggestions for messaging about literacy in Texas.