Alicia Smith, President Emerita of IDA Ontario, has been a trailblazer in literacy advocacy. Under her leadership, IDA Ontario became a top authority in literacy best practices. Alicia views literacy as a social justice issue, advocating for all children to read. In her honor,

New year, new adventures - a quick re-read of this gem before I start teaching a course this week in the Memorial University Reading Development and Instruction program! …and yes, I’m procrastinating taking down the tree!

Applications now open for this on-campus Literacy M Ed cohort - Mount Saint Vincent University , Nova Scotia

Our front page today. Happy 181st birthday to Canada's national newspaper.

At last year's conference, these t-shirts were our speaker thank you gifts - and they unexpectedly turned into a VERY hot commodity! We listened - this year they’re available for all attendees in our merch store. LitLearn attendees, check your email for a link to the store.

In a first-day-of-March-Break-tradition, I'm tuning into the AIM Research to Practice Symposium today. This year's topic is implementation science - a huge thanks to AIM Institute for continuing to host this fantastic free learning opportunity.

Congratulations to Nellie Caruso, winner of the OMLTA/AOPLV Helen B. St. John award! Nellie is a Toronto District School Board teacher and member of the ONlit team. A true trailblazer, Nellie is a leader in structured literacy in French Immersion. Her knowledge, dedication, and leadership inspire us all!

🙌 It’s almost time!!! 🙌 IDA Ontario

"Every Manitoba student in kindergarten to Grade 4 will be screened for early reading skills to ensure that no student falls behind in their studies. Our government understands early identification is important to support the student’s growth as a reader." news.gov.mb.ca/news/index.htm…

Heading home after a great few days in Prince George BC with some wonderful educators. A long plane ride means lots of time to revisit this old favourite - my copy from undergrad! Inspiration for a fun new course I am lucky to be able to teach at Mount Saint Vincent University!

Anna Stokke Mike Hastie Sarah Powell Yes, sadly it seems so - but educating our students based on evidence - in math, reading, writing, science, etc., — should be standard, rather than take a human rights inquiry. 🧐

And we’re off - #LitLearn2025 has begun! So looking forward to a wonderful weekend of learning with this incredible crowd of educators from Ontario and beyond.

Navigating the public school system can be overwhelming for parents of dyslexic children in the regular English program or French immersion. This handbook was written by the Dyslexia Canada team with families in mind. Download it now: drive.google.com/file/d/1HB0ohx…

Loving my embedded mnemonics pins (see the p and k on my lapel) that I was so generously given ! The IDA Ontario Literacy and Learning Conference is incredible! MSJ alum Dr. Una Malcom and the entire IDA Ontario team think of EVERYTHING! Una Malcolm (she/her) IDA Ontario #LitLearn2025

“It’s pay now or pay later. We ignore this at a child’s peril.” Closing out IDA Ontario #LitLearn2025 with the incomparable Dr. Reid Lyon.

One of my favourite parts of the IDA Ontario conference is celebrating fabulous Ontario educators! Biggest congratulations to A Humber, Mme Rowlatt, Lori McCaw, and Angela Turner (not pictured). These incredible educators are working to ensure all children learn to read

Celebrating in beautiful St. John’s with my best travel buddy, @AliciafromTiny - saying cheers to the end of year 2 of ONlit, a wonderful course at MSVU, and the end of my term as IDA Ontario president. Grateful for these incredible opportunities and excited for what’s next!

Homeward bound after a marathon 3 weeks of travel: working with incredible NFLD educators in St. John’s, a week with Anita Archer at the Explicit Instruction Academy in Portland, & then wrapping it up with a wonderful week with my MSJ family - including a fabulous office mate ❤️

A rare non-work trip - this time to Valentia Island, truly one of the most beautiful corners of the planet 🇮🇪☘️ Tayto cheese & onion crisps, pub hangouts, plenty of time to unplug - and not a single journal article was read. Great craic!

A new open access article in Annals of Dyslexia 📚 "Thoughts on the Definition of Dyslexia"—we propose a concise, evidence-based definition to guide identification and support. Linda Siegel Read here: rb.gy/8p4m9z #Dyslexia #ScienceofReading Mount Saint Vincent University