• Discover the latest research on how learning to read changes the brain, leading to higher-level cognitive skills and social-emotional competence.

• Learn how classroom literacy instruction and associated group social interaction directly impact brain maturation.

• Review data on the effective, evidence-based literacy intervention Fast ForWord, which leverages the science of reading.

Martha Burns, PHD, CCC-SLP

Dr. Martha Burns is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Northwestern University and has authored four books and over 100 journal articles on the neuroscience of language and communication. Dr. Burns' expertise is in all areas related to the neuroscience of learning, such as language and reading in the brain, the bilingual brain, the language to literacy continuum, and the adolescent brain. Dr. Burns is a Fellow of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Director of Neuroscience Education for Carnegie Learning.

Megan Jensen, Director of Instructional Design, Literacy (K-5)

Megan Jensen is a former reading specialist with experience developing K-12 writing instruction and blended professional development across the United States, as well as literacy and library programming abroad. Her work upholds her belief that every student can learn and that there is transformative power in supporting students in reading and writing about their worlds. She holds a B.A. in English from UCLA and an M.A. in International and Comparative Education from Teachers College, Columbia University.