In June 2018, nearly 50% of students in grade 1-3 require intensive Literacy support.

We have a very diverse student population with a broad range of needs. We have students who are English Language Learners, students with complex special needs and disabilities, students living in poverty, students with significant social/emotional needs, students with significant academic needs and students who need both challenges and support to reach new potentials. We need to create learning opportunities and environments to meet the needs of all of our students.

We have many students who experience anxiety, difficulty with self-regulation, and ineffective social skills.  We need to examine and understand the reasons behind the behaviors we are seeing so that we can adopt a school wide approach that will support all our students to become the best they can be.

​How might we improve the reading achievement of all of our students who are reading significantly below grade level in our school?

How might we create learning opportunities and environments that meet the needs of each student?

How might we develop, implement and reinforce school wide models to promote and support a safe, caring and healthy environment for all members of our learning community?

How will using intensive, small reading groups affect the reading achievement of those students who are not yet meeting expectations in reading?

What is the effect of the Reading Intervention Teacher program with our most at risk primary?

What other strategies can we use to continue improving Literacy skills for our students?

What do we believe about providing personalized learning opportunities for each student?

What information do we need in order to be able to provide personalized learning opportunities for each student?

What are strategies and tools we can use to provide personalized learning opportunities for each student?

How do we know that providing personalized learning opportunities is helping each student to succeed?

In order to support the development of Literacy skills, we have diversified our programming to ensure that every child who is not fully meeting grade level expectations in reading is receiving direct reading instruction above and beyond what is provided in the regular classroom setting.

Reading Intervention Teacher program: Our Reading Intervention Teacher is specifically trained to use the Fountas & Pinnell Leveled Literacy Intervention program. Our RIT works with small groups of 2-3 students or with individual students for 30minutes each day in order to provide intensive support for literacy development. Parents are involved and committed to completing the daily at-home reading work with their children.

Literacy Intervention Support program: Our Literacy teacher is also trained to use the Fountas & Pinnell Leveled Literacy Intervention program. Our Literacy teacher works with small groups of students on a regular basis each week. The intervention emphasis for these students is time-on-text and daily practice as well as the development and reinforcement of a variety of literacy skills.

Reading Together: This program is delivered by trained volunteers. Students in this program work individually with a volunteer reading instructor. The intervention emphasis for these students is regular time-on-text and overall reinforcement of literacy skills.

Reading Intervention Project groups: Our teachers are engaged in training and the implementation of strategies to target the development of Literacy skills for their most at-risk students. We have approximately 50% of our teaching staff currently involved in project work specifically around reading intervention strategies.

Technology: Our school has invested in technology and apps to support the development and reinforcement of Literacy skills.

Buddy Reading: Our students work together in multi-age pairs to practice and reinforce literacy skills.

Additional community involvement: We have community groups, such as our Vernon Vipers hockey team members, who come into the school to read with individual students. Our community volunteers provide students with additional time-on-text and the opportunity to practice reading strategies.

Our staff is working on developing an understanding of options and strategies that can be utilized/implemented in order to provide personalized instruction and learning opportunities for each student.

Effective Practice Meetings: target teacher professional development

Weekly Collaboration Time: teachers work in Action Teams to collaborate, develop understanding, create/design strategies that can be implemented in order to support student learning.