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17 th Annual Frontier College
Reading Circle Conference
Friday Nov. 6 & Saturday Nov. 7, 2009
Invitation to the 17 th Annual Frontier College
Reading Circle Conference in Toronto
Please join us for the 17 th Annual Frontier College Reading Circle
Conference (in Toronto) on Friday and Saturday, 6 & 7 November 2009.
Literacy is an essential skill for healthy and strong individuals, families
and communities. At Frontier College, we also believe that literacy is a
right. Since its inception 110 years ago, Frontier College volunteers,
staff and supporters have worked to strengthen families and communities by helping
children, youth and adults learn to read, write and achieve their literacy goals.
As part of its commitment to building stronger and healthier communities through
improved literacy, the annual Frontier College Reading Circle Conference offers free
workshops to staff and volunteers from community agencies as well as parents and
individuals. A total of twelve workshops are being offered at this year’s Reading Circle
Conference.
Focus of workshops
Friday’s workshops : For staff and volunteers who organize programs.
Saturday’s workshops : For staff, volunteers and parents who work directly with children.
Space is limited and will be filled on a first come first served basis. To ensure that the
conference is as accessible to as many people as possible the number of participants from
agencies/ organizations is limited to a maximum of 3 persons. Deadline for registrations
is Monday, 2 November 2009.
At the conference, Frontier College will also be officially launching the Toronto Directory
of Children and Youth Learning Support Program – an online (internet based) listing of
literacy programs in Toronto that are available to children and youth.
See you there!
Casey Sabawi
Community Coordinator, Toronto Community Team
Frontier College
Email: csabawi@frontiercollege.ca
Tel: 416-923-3591 or Toll-Free: 1800-555-6523 (ext. 317)
With thanks to our generous supporters:
Ontario Ministry of Education

Location: Frontier College, 35 Jackes Avenue, Toronto, ON, M4T 1E2
Tel: 416-923-3591, or Toll-Free Tel: 1800-555-6523
Schedule for Friday and Saturday:
9:00 to 9:30 am : Registration and Light Breakfast
9:30 to 9:45 am : Welcome & Launch of online Directory
9:45 to 12:15 pm : AM (Morning) Workshops*
12:15 to 1:00 pm : Networking Lunch
1:00 to 3:30 pm : PM (Afternoon) Workshops*
3:30 to 4:00 pm : Frontier College Book Room Open House
* Different workshops are being offered on Friday and Saturday.
The Frontier College Book Room distributes free donated books to community literacy programs.
Conference participants will have the opportunity to tour the Book Room and take away some
books for use at their own programs.
Workshops for Friday, Nov 6: For staff and volunteers who organize programs
9:45 am – 12:15 pm How to Evaluate &
Present the Impact of
Your Program
1:00 pm – 3.30 pm How to Evaluate &
Present the Impact of
Your Program
Beyond Bake Sales:
Funding
Opportunities for
Small Agencies
Setting Up and
Running a Reading
Program
Training Reading
Circle & Homework
Club Volunteers *
Volunteer
Management *
*We regret that the venue for this particular workshop is not wheelchair accessible.
Workshops for Saturday, Nov 7: For staff, volunteers and parents who work directly with kids
9:45 am – 12:15 pm Making Reading &
Writing Fun Using
Drama
1:00 pm – 3.30 pm Literacy for the
Whole Group!
Storytelling:
A Survivor’s Tale
Child Behaviour
Management Skills
ESL Activities for
Children *
*We regret that the venue for this particular workshop is not wheelchair accessible.
Tutoring Techniques
to Teach Children How
to Read *
How to Register:
• Register online at the following link:
http://frontiercollege.wufoo.com/forms/17th-frontier-college-reading-circleconference/
• Agencies and organizations are encouraged to register participants together.
• If you are unable to fill out the online registration form, contact Casey Sabawi at
csabawi@frontiercollege.ca or 416-923-3591 ext. 317 for a registration form.

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS FOR FRIDAY, Nov 6 (AM Workshops)
Focus: Staff and volunteers who organize programs.
AM Workshop 1: “How To Evaluate And Present The Impact Of Your Program”
Funders are now asking for more documentation about program impact. Through its
research, Frontier College has developed easy-to-use evaluation techniques that can be
used in a variety of programs. Through this workshop, you will learn about qualitative and
quantitative evaluation methods, how to analyze data, and effective ways of writing reports
and presenting impact.
Presenter’s Bio: Maureen Anglin is the Ontario Regional Manager at Frontier College. She
has worked with a wide range of community organizations to build their capacity to deliver
literacy programs. Maureen has conducted research projects for Frontier College on child,
adolescent and adult literacy programs. Maureen has a Master’s in Adult Education, and a
Bachelor of Education degree.
AM Workshop 2: “Beyond Bake Sales: Funding Opportunities for Small Agencies”
In today’s turbulent economy all organizations are looking to maximize resources. This
workshop will cover some of the basics to secure funding for your program(s) or
organization. Some of the components covered will include: (1) What are your funding
needs? (2) How do you demonstrate the impact of your programs? (3) Potential sources of
funding. (4) Best practices in applying for funding and working with donors. (5) How to
source in-kind donations.
Presenter’s Bio: Dan Khimasia is the Director of Program Development at Frontier
College and has worked with the organization for 15 years. He has experience in fund
development at the local, provincial and national levels.
AM Workshop 3: “Training Reading Circle & Homework Club Volunteers”
(We regret that the venue for this workshop is not wheelchair accessible)
In this workshop, we will examine the training materials used by Frontier College trainers
in workshops for reading circles and homework clubs. This workshop is especially useful to
organizers who have experience in running reading circles or homework clubs and would
like some ideas on how to prepare their volunteers to work with the children.
Presenter’s Bio: Sandra Huehn is a Community Coordinator with Frontier College’s
Toronto Community Team. She has 20 years of experience as a community organizer and
trainer. She is the author of A Frontier College Tutors Guide: Reading and Writing with
Children and Youth.

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS FOR FRIDAY, Nov 6 (PM Workshops)
Focus: Staff and volunteers who organize programs.
PM Workshop 1: “How To Evaluate And Present The Impact Of Your Program” (Repeat)
Funders are now asking for more documentation about program impact. Through its
research, Frontier College has developed easy-to-use evaluation techniques that can be
used in a variety of programs. Through this workshop, you will learn about qualitative and
quantitative evaluation methods, how to analyze data, and effective ways of writing reports
and presenting impact.
Presenter’s Bio: Maureen Anglin is the Ontario Regional Manager at Frontier College. She
has worked with a wide range of community organizations to build their capacity to deliver
literacy programs. Maureen has conducted research projects for Frontier College on child,
adolescent and adult literacy programs. Maureen has a Master’s in Adult Education, and a
Bachelor of Education degree.
PM Workshop 2: “Setting up and Running a Reading Program”
Discuss steps in setting up and running programs for parents and children, from choosing
your site, volunteer recruitment, outreach to selection of books and many other issues. This
is a great workshop for anyone who is not yet with a literacy program but would like to
start one.
Presenter’s Bio: Johanna Goering is Coordinator of the Frontier College New Readers
Bookstore. She has worked with Frontier College since 2006. Johanna has also coordinated
the training and placement of university student volunteers with community agencies that
run homework clubs and reading circles.
PM Workshop 3: “Volunteer Management”
(We regret that the venue for this workshop is not wheelchair accessible)
In this interactive workshop, we will discuss best practices around volunteer recruitment,
orientation, screening, training, ongoing support and appreciation. We will also examine
the opportunities and challenges of working with volunteers. Participants will be
encouraged to share their questions as well as their experiences with managing volunteers
in their organization.
Presenter’s Bio: Ken Martin is a Community Coordinator with Frontier College’s Toronto
Community Team. He has worked for Frontier College since 1999. Ken helped to design and
implement Frontier College’s volunteer screening policies and procedures. He currently
oversees the recruitment, orientation, training and ongoing support of close to 200
volunteers from U of T (Scarborough and St. George) and the community.

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS FOR SATURDAY, Nov 7 (AM Workshops)
Focus: For staff, volunteers and parents who work directly with children.
AM Workshop 1: “Making Reading and Writing Fun using Drama”
This hands-on and creative workshop will demonstrate to participants how drama and
literacy can be interwoven to make reading an enjoyable experience for all children
regardless of age or reading abilities. Techniques covered will include tableau, author's
chair, choral reading techniques and writing in role. Workshop participants will be
encouraged to participate in the various activities in small groups, similar to what they
would encourage the children in their programs to be doing. Poetry, tongue twisters, props,
costumes and an all-around fun time await all participants! Each participant will also
receive a hand out detailing the strategies and activities used throughout the workshop.
Presenter’s Bio: Sheri Alcordo (TDSB, MEd, HBA, Bed) has been a full time teacher at
Driftwood P.S. in North York for the past 15 years. She has worked with a diverse group of
children, including those who have special needs in the areas of ESL, learning disabilities
and giftedness. Sheri does inclusive teaching and has created this workshop in order to
show participants easy and fun techniques which will encourage ALL children to read and
write in an entertaining way! Sheri has presented this workshop to a variety of groups
including new and experienced teachers, parent groups and community groups such as
reading circle leaders.
AM Workshop 2: “ Storytelling – A Survivors Tale”
How to survive a room full of kids with nothing but books, props, and a handful of rhymes;
this practical and participatory workshop will help you to determine when to read, rhyme
or flee. We will examine some of the best children’s books for reading with groups of two to
forty-two. You will have the opportunity to listen to stories and tell stories. Our focus will
be for children aged 3 to 7.
Presenter’s Bio: Dave Page has worked in Family Literacy for the past fifteen years. For
thirteen years he worked at Frontier College, and helped to develop the Reading Circle
program model. For the past two years he has been at the Macaulay Child Development
Centre, where he is one of four Toronto Early Literacy Specialists who run literacy
programs and workshops at Ontario Early Years Centres.
AM Workshop 3: “ESL Activities for Children”
(We regret that the venue for this workshop is not wheelchair accessible)
The workshop will help volunteers and staff members involved in Homework Clubs and
Reading Circles meet the needs of English Language learners. The course will look at some
of the issues involved in ESL as well as how to help program English Language learners.
Participants will participate in and learn practical activities that can be used in their
programs.

Continued from “ESL Activities for Children”...
Presenter’s Bio: Anne Creighton is a grade six teacher with the Toronto District School
Board. Her background includes over twenty-three years ESL teaching experience in
Toronto, Beauport (PQ), and Fredericton, (NB) at the elementary, secondary, adult non
credit, and university credit levels. She also has more than fifteen years FSL teaching
experience in Toronto and Mali (Africa). Over the last twenty-five years, Anne Creighton
has gained community and volunteer experience in Toronto, Quebec (PQ), Nicaragua,
(Central America), and Mali (Africa).
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS FOR SATURDAY, Nov 7 (PM Workshops)
Focus: For staff, volunteers and parents who work directly with children.
PM Workshop 1: “Literacy for the Whole Group!”
Play along, sing along, just enjoy along! This afternoon will see participants playing a
variety of group games to include everyone. We will have a musical portion to the
afternoon to reinvent the sing-a-long of the past and make it a part of the present. This
presentation is low tech, high fun and big inclusion!
Presenter’s Bio: Kym McOuat has been at the Barrie Public Library for eleven years, six of
which she has enjoyed with the Children and Youth Services department. Her main interests lie
in literacy that includes everyone and everything. She is currently working toward a Masters in
Library and Information Sciences through the San Jose State University in California. Kym will
be facilitating the workshop with Juhan Puhm.
PM Workshop 2: “Child Behaviour Management Skills”
The goal of this workshop is to extend knowledge of volunteers and staff who work directly
with children concerning strategies on how to deal with the complex behaviours of
children and youth. We will discuss “normal” behaviours and examine why children
misbehave.
Presenter’s Bio: Danny Anckle is the Executive Director of Leave Out ViolencE (LOVE), a
national violence prevention organization specifically geared to working with youth.
PM Workshop 3: “Tutoring Techniques to Help Children Learn How to Read”
(We regret that the venue for this workshop is not wheelchair accessible)
How do children learn how to read? In this workshop, we will examine strategies and
techniques to teach children the mechanics of reading including word families, word attack
skills, strategies for practicing reading and the language experience approach. This
workshop is especially helpful for volunteers who work with children from kindergarten to
grade 3.
Presenter’s Bio: Sandra Huehn is a Community Coordinator with Frontier College’s
Toronto Community Team. She has 20 years of experience as a community organizer and
trainer. She is the author of A Frontier College Tutors Guide: Reading and Writing with
Children and Youth.

17 th Annual Frontier College
Reading Circle Conference
Friday Nov. 6 & Saturday Nov. 7, 2009
Directions to the Conference
• Frontier College is located at 35 Jackes Avenue, Toronto.
• Jackes Avenue runs in an east-west direction and is located 3 blocks south of the
intersection of Yonge St. And St. Clair Avenue, on the east side of Yonge.
• Frontier College is in the red brick house at the end of the street.
By TTC (Subway)
• Exit at St. Clair station
(located on the Yonge
subway line)
• Walk south on the east side
of Yonge Street. Turn left on
Jackes Avenue, which is 3
blocks south of St. Clair
Avenue.
Driving
• Please note that there is no
street parking on Jackes
Avenue.
• There is a Green P parking
lot one block north of Jackes
Avenue, with entrances on
Rosehill Avenue and
Pleasant Boulevard.
• Limited street parking is
also available on Woodlawn
Avenue, 1 block south of
Jackes Avenue.
LOST? Call Frontier College at: (Tel.) 416-923-3591, or (Toll-Free Tel.) 1800-555-6523