Teaching Sentences with Intention: Differentiation, Language, and Transfer

Presented by Shawn Datchuk, Ph.D., M.Ed., Director, Iowa Reading Research Center, University of Iowa; and Cheryl Lundy Swift, Ed.D., Director, Professional Learning, Learning Without Tears

Sponsored by Learning Without Tears

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Ensuring that all students benefit from sentence-level writing instruction is both an equity issue and an instructional imperative. In the December 2025 edWebinar Sentence Writing: The Overlooked Element of the Science of Reading, Dr. Shawn Datchuk and Dr. Cheryl Lundy Swift provided the research base for why writing is essential to reading and why reading, in turn, strengthens writing. One of the Top 25 edWebinars of 2025, the session struck a chord with educators eager to put research into practice.

This follow-up edWebinar tackles a common and pressing challenge: How do we ensure that sentence-writing instruction works for ALL learners? Attendees will learn how to intentionally scaffold, differentiate, and extend sentence-writing instruction so all students can actively participate in instruction through oral and written language. In addition, the session equips attendees with tools to help students construct varied and rich sentence types used in essay writing, such as compound and complex sentences.

Educators will explore grade-specific routines, language supports, and instructional adjustments that ensure sentence writing instruction is developmentally appropriate, accessible, and inclusive while maintaining high expectations across diverse K–3 classrooms.

This edWebinar will be of interest to kindergarten through third-grade teachers, school leaders, and district leaders.

View the first edWebinar, Sentence Writing: The Overlooked Element of the Science of Reading

Dr. Shawn Datchuk is Professor of Special Education at the University of Iowa and the Director of the Iowa Reading Research Center. He is a former K-12 special education teacher, elementary teacher, and academic director. He received his Ph.D. in special education from Pennsylvania State University. He researches evidence-based methods to improve the sentence writing and related literacy skills of K-12 students with and without disabilities. He has over 30 peer-reviewed publications, has delivered 70+ conference presentations, and has been awarded over $6 million in federal and state funding. He serves on the editorial boards of eight peer-reviewed journals and is the Chair of the Research Committee of the Division for Learning Disabilities of the Council for Exceptional Children.

Dr. Cheryl Lundy Swift has been a dedicated and innovative educator for over 25 years. Dr. Lundy Swift currently serves as Learning Without Tears’ Professional Learning Director where she leads the curation of professional learning experiences for teachers and school leaders worldwide. Dr. Lundy Swift also serves as the podcast host of Literacy Matters: Empowered Conversations where she interviews reno