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«Back to all edWebinarsEvery Student, Every Text: How Language Comprehension Skills Support Access to Complex Texts
Tuesday, August 25, 2026 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EDT
Presented by Lainie Augensen, Former Educator, Success Lead, Great Minds; and Daniel Velasco, Former Educator, Regional Director of Implementation Services, Midwest & Plains Regions, Great Minds
Sponsored by Great Minds
Learn more about earning a CE certificate and our accessibility features.
Complex texts challenge students in different ways. Effective scaffolds start with one question: what might make this text challenging for students?
In this edWebinar, we’ll explore how five things shape comprehension: background knowledge, vocabulary, language structures, verbal reasoning, and literacy knowledge. We’ll also look at how text and task demands can reveal where students may need support before, during, and after reading.
Attendees will leave with a practical framework for centering the text in planning, pairing text and task demands with student needs, and choosing scaffolds that are purposeful, targeted, and responsive.
In this edWebinar, attendees will learn:
- How background knowledge, vocabulary, language structures, verbal reasoning, and literacy knowledge of text types shape understanding
- How to identify the comprehension demands in a text—and what they can reveal about student needs
- How to provide targeted support while keeping students in grade-level content
This edWebinar is built for K–8 classroom teachers, literacy coaches and specialists, curriculum leaders, and school and district administrators.
About the Presenters
Lainie Augensen is a Success Lead at Great Minds, where she partners with districts to bring high-quality instructional materials, including Geodes®, to life in classrooms. Lainie has nearly a decade of experience coaching teachers, leading curriculum implementation, and building school systems that support student success. Coming from a family of educators, she finds joy in reading and is passionate about inspiring that same joy, curiosity, and confidence in teachers and students.
Daniel Velasco is the Regional Director of Implementation Services–Midwest & Plains Regions at Great Minds, where he leads a team of implementation leaders and coaches who directly support a portfolio of district partners, ensuring high-fidelity implementation of high-quality instructional materials. With a background as a school principal and instructional coach, he has direct experience translating research into practical, classroom-ready strategies. Daniel has spent his career helping educators bridge the gap between rigorous content and student access—from leading multi-campus literacy turnaround efforts to coaching districts on aligning instruction to student needs. He holds an M.Ed. in educational leadership from Columbia University.
Learn more about earning a CE certificate and our accessibility features.
Join the Teaching Reading and Writing community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.
Great Minds® is founded on the belief that education should be rich in knowledge and accessible to every child. Founded by a group of education leaders in 2007, our team brings together teachers and scholars to create exemplary instructional materials that deepen teacher impact and improve student outcomes. Our programs, including Arts & Letters™, Eureka Math®, Eureka Math²®, Geodes®, PhD Science®, and Wit & Wisdom™, all provide joyful rigor, spark and reward curiosity, and build knowledge.
Great Minds PBC is a public benefit corporation.
