Published: July 11, 2008 06:07 pm         

County teachers meet to discuss new initiative

By Melanie Patterson

The North Jefferson News



Hundreds of Jefferson County teachers spent the day in Fultondale Thursday.

They were at Fultondale Elementary School for the annual Elementary Back to School Conference for Jefferson County schools.

Lillian Hunsinger, director of curriculum and instruction for Jefferson County schools, estimated that 700 teachers attended the conference.

She said teachers were invited to attend the sessions, but it was not a requirement.

Fultondale Elementary was also the site for the conference last year.

The conference is put on by the Jefferson County Office of Curriculum Instruction.

The department’s two supervisors organized the workshop. The reading supervisor is Diane Cheatham and the math supervisor is Selena Florence.

The conference was broken into two components: Reading and math.

“We’re working on math standards for specific grade levels,” said Hunsinger. “We’re focusing on how to reach all learners.”

Teachers also learned about a new reading series that Jefferson County schools adopted this year.

Hunsinger said the Jefferson County Board of Education adopts a new reading series every five years.

Elementary school classes in grades Kindergarten through six will receive new textbooks from the Reading Street series by publisher Scott Foresman.

Representatives from Scott Foresman presented the information for Thursday’s reading classes.

Hunsinger, who served as a classroom teacher and principal for several years before transferring to the central office, said she wants to ensure that all elementary teachers are on the same page while teaching reading and math.

“We want to be sure everyone can use the new material with fidelity,” she said.