Glacier Creek Middle School sixth grade literacy and social studies teacher Aly Raffel and special education teacher Allie Warner recently talked with WMTV 15 News about the school’s efforts to strengthen students' literacy skills over the past five years.
They explained how educators have focused their professional development on literacy, including strategies to build vocabulary, strengthen comprehension and incorporate reading skills into subjects beyond language arts. They also discussed the school-wide implementation of new literacy curriculum from Savvas Learning Company.
Raffel said the changes have pushed students to take on more challenging material.
“It’s more of a heavy lift from the student end,” Raffel told WMTV 15 News. “And their stamina is growing and their willingness to try is growing from our previous curriculum.”
Warner said the curriculum provides opportunities for students with different learning needs to work with the same material as their classmates.
Rather than giving students different reading materials based on their abilities, teachers now provide support such as sentence starters, additional vocabulary instruction and simplified material before class to help students engage with the same texts.
Warner said she has seen students’ confidence grow and watched them become more willing to tackle writing assignments independently.
Sixth grader Jyoti Dey, who is in Raffel and Warner’s literacy class, said literacy is among her favorite subjects. She shared advice for students who struggle with reading: start small and build confidence along the way.
Educators' efforts to strengthen literacy skills and reading proficiency contributed to Glacier Creek Middle School earning the highest possible rating of Significantly Exceeds Expectations on the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s annual state report card last year.
Watch their full interview on WMTV 15 News.