Class of 2024: Cap and gown pickups begin April 15 at the Harriman and Oak Ridge bookstores. Bookstore hours are 8am-4:30pm ET Monday-Thursday. Visit the commencement ceremony webpage for additional info.
Sept. 10, 2019
By Bob Fowler
Roane State staff writer
The vitally important role of reading to children is the subject of a shared reading workshop from 1:15 to 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, 2019 in the Community Room of Roane State Community College's Cumberland County campus.
The free event is open to all those interested in helping create a life-long love of reading in children.
"The workshop is designed to help parents, caregivers and current and future educators learn about the benefits and methods of interactive reading, particularly parent-child shared reading," said DeAnna Stephens, an associate English professor at Roane State.
"Amazing growth occurs in a child's brain before the age of 3," she said. "Reading with an adult, particularly with a parent, offers a child tremendous advantages in terms of IQ, vocabulary development, and future academic achievement."
"Older children whose parents still read with them experience enhanced oral language skills and spelling ability while retaining their love of reading into adulthood."
Presenters are educators from the Cumberland County School District: Dr. Rebecca Farley, supervisor of curriculum and instruction (grades 3-8), and Dawn Hall, a reading instructional coach for the school system.
"We will be providing information regarding the importance of reading to your children and the effects that it has," Farley said. She said she'll also talk about the current status of the Cumberland County School System as well as state and regional goals to improve reading proficiency. Initiatives that the school system has in place to help boost reading skills will also be mentioned, Farley said.
"Now that my own daughter is almost 2, I wonder if I am doing all that I can to encourage her interest in reading," Stephens admitted. "I've always been interested in the process of how one learns to read and how parents and caregivers might influence that process."
For more information, contact Stephens at stephensdd@roanestate.edu, or Cumberland County Campus Director Holly Hanson at hansonha@roanestate.edu.
Roane State is a two-year college providing transfer programs, career-preparation programs and continuing education. Founded in 1971, the college has campuses in Crossville, Harriman, Huntsville, Jamestown, Knoxville, LaFollette, Lenoir City, Oak Ridge, Wartburg and Clinton. For more information, visit roanestate.edu or call (865) 882-4554.
Remember, eligible adults can now attend Roane State tuition-free with the new Reconnect grant. Learn more at www.roanestate.edu/reconnect.
Roane State Community College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, ethnicity or national origin, sex, disability, age, status as protected veteran or any other class protected by Federal or State laws and regulation and by Tennessee board of Regents policies with respect to employment, programs, and activities. View full non-discrimination policy.
