Reading Recovery in the News - June 2010

National reading award presented to Weston school
Weston & Somerset Mercury - Weston, England
June 30, 2010

A WESTON primary school has won a national award for the way it teaches children to read.

The accolade was presented to Reading Recovery teacher Justine Greenwood of Oldmixon Primary School last week by the Every Child A Chance Trust.

...Headteacher Martin Greenwood said: "We are delighted to win this award which recognises the achievement, hard work and dedication of our Reading Recovery teacher.

"Reading Recovery is now a major feature in our school's efforts to raise standards in reading and is having a massive impact for the children across the school.
 

Have you ever asked yourself if your child is reading and writing at age appropriate level?
Boston Examiner - Boston, MA
June 29, 2010

Are you worried that your child may not be reading and writing at his/her age level? Your child's school can assist with your concern.

Psychologist and educator Dame Marie Clay from New Zealand developed the "Reading Recovery" program. She researched this topic for over 30 years and finally developed the program that is being used in many countries as well as Canada.
 

Wisconsin district's stimulus dollars target early literacy
Education Daily - West Palm Beach, FL
by Wangui Njuguna
June 25, 2010

The Sheboygan Area (Wis.) School District targeted two problems with its federal stimulus dollars: reading problems among its low-income students and looming layoffs of some of its English teachers.

The district directed federal dollars to modify an elementary school program to target first-graders struggling with emergent literacy. …The schools already had reading interventionists and used the Reading Recovery program, so the goal was to add another dimension by providing the lowest-performing students an additional 30-40 minutes of daily intervention through small-group instruction.  …Under the ELI program, each of the five [Title I] schools receives a reading interventionist who is trained in emergent literacy and how to keep a running record of students’ progress.

Based on the Rigby Benchmark PM, the 94 first-grade students who participated in the program last year are making great strides toward proficient and advanced levels.

… At the Washington School for Comprehensive Literacy and Jefferson Elementary School, all participating first-graders are now proficient or advanced. Students are also making progress in Sheridan (94 percent), Longfellow (80 percent), and Grant (72 percent) elementary schools. Similar progress is seen at the second grade level. (See Complete Article for Program Details)

Delight as Lainesmead collects national award
Swindon Advertiser - Swindon, Wiltshire, England
June 25, 2010

LAINESMEAD Primary School has outshone 19,000 primary schools to scoop a prestigious national award for the way it teaches its pupils to read.

The award was presented to four pupils, reading recovery teachers Helen Byrne and Sarah Burgess and head Jeannette Turner at London Zoo on Tuesday.

Bristol primary schools honoured for helping kids to read
Bristol24-7 - Bristol, England
June 25, 2010

Two Bristol primary schools have won national awards for the way they teach children to read.

Filton Avenue Infants and Waycroft Primary School were two of only 32 out of 19,000 primary schools in the country selected for the award.

The awards were presented in London this week, by the Every Child A Chance Trust charity, which is backed by the government and leading businesses and charities.

The awards recognise schools with an outstanding record in working with children who struggle to read and need intensive one-to-one support.

Study shows gains in reading proficiency at Shawano district
Shawano Leader - Shawano, IL
By Nathan Falk
June 24, 2010

Even though the school year is over, teachers and students in the Shawano School District elementary schools are celebrating achievement through a program begun three years ago.

“Since we have changed the curriculum and adopted the Comprehensive Literacy model in 2006, we have seen great growth in the students’ performance,” said Gail Sarnwick, Reading Recovery teacher at Lincoln Elementary School.

New principals named at Kirkwood, Shimek
Iowa City Press Citizen - Iowa City, IA
June 23, 2010

Kirkwood Elementary Principal Bart Mason announced to staff last week that he was leaving to become a regional administrator with the Grant Wood Area Education Agency in Cedar Rapids. He will be replaced by Anita Gerling, the former Grant Wood Elementary assistant principal who was named the new half-time principal at Shimek Elementary last month. Taking over as principal at Shimek will be Terry Dervrich, a reading recovery teacher and language arts resource specialist, or LARS, who had been appointed as Gerling’s replacement at Wood.

...Dervrich has been a teacher in the Iowa City School District since 1987, teaching kindergarten and Title I classes at Twain, Lincoln, Penn and Mann elementaries. She said her more recent jobs as a LARS and reading recovery teacher have prepared her for the principal’s position.
 

Bates says goodbye to school board
Newton Citizen - Covington, GA
June 17, 2010

COVINGTON — Newton County Board of Education member C.C. Bates may be returning to her home state of South Carolina after living in Newton County since 1997, but that doesn’t mean she won’t miss her time here.

Bates, who has served on the school board since January 2007, participated in her last school board meeting on Tuesday night. She announced in January that she would resign from her post in June to take a new job at Clemson University.

...“I have always wanted to work at the university level,” she said. “I will be teaching graduate courses in reading to lead teachers who will then go back to their districts and teach their teachers. Next year, I am most looking forward to teaching, but I am also very excited about the research piece of my position.”
 

Boswell teachers honored
Journal and Courier - Van Horne, IA
June 15, 2010

The Benton Community School Corp. has named Barb Holmes its teacher of the year.

Holmes is the Title I literacy coordinator and Reading Recovery teacher at Boswell Elementary School.

Guest column: Focus efforts on children reading earlier
jconline.com - West Lafayette, IN
June 14, 2010
by Maribeth Cassidy Schmitt

A recent story in the Journal & Courier ("Most 3rd-graders behind in reading, report says," June 3) reported on a nonprofit children's advocacy group that released a report outlining its concern about a national test showing that most fourth-graders start the year behind in reading.

The call to action in the Casey Foundation's report, titled "Early Warning: Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters," is consistent with state efforts to provide an instructional framework and accountability efforts to insure that all children are proficient readers by the end of third grade.

At Purdue University's Center for Literacy Education and Research in the College of Education we share this concern, but we would like to see the goal for success aimed at an even earlier stage -- first grade.

School board balances budget but draws $1.1 million from reserves
Rainy River Record - Ontario, Canada
June 8, 2010

At the June 1, 2010 Board Meeting, the Rainy River District School Board approved the 2010-2011 balanced budget of $46,814,466. The budget process priority was to prepare a fiscally responsible budget that promotes programs which support achievement for all students. …The new budget will allow the Board to support the new Early Learning Program at North Star Community School, and to support existing programs such as, Full Day Senior Kindergarten, Reading Recovery, Student Achievement Teachers, and aboriginal education programming.
 

Budget Committee Recommends Balanced Budget for Approval
NorthumberlandView.ca - Ontario, Canada
June 8, 2010

Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board Trustees, sitting as the Board’s Budget Committee, tonight recommended a balanced budget for approval by the Board. Presented by administration for consideration by the committee, the balanced budget of $368,920,545 includes additional funding to support a number of key areas of focus for the Board.

The Budget includes $785,436 to support the launch of a reading recovery program. The Reading Recovery program dedicates specially trained teachers to work one-to-one with low-achieving first graders – the students who are not catching on to the complex set of concepts that make reading and writing possible.

“We know that what children learn in the first few grades of school sets the foundation for their future success,” says Lloyd. “Quality early learning opportunities provide children with a greater chance for success and achievement throughout life – and we believe the reading recovery program will benefit those kids who need it the most.”

Reading Recovery teachers meet with the Mayor
Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools - Nashville, TN
June 7, 2010

The Reading Recovery Teacher Leaders-in-training, Greta Cetas and Nicki McGowan, and Jill Speering, Metro's resident Reading Recovery teacher leader, came together this week for a special meeting. The teacher leaders-in-training are currently finishing a program offered at Ohio State University. Their participation in this program was made possible by Mayor Karl Dean's support and raising of $50 thousand to fund the training program. The teachers will return to Nashville in mid-June to begin the training of 24 new Reading Recovery Interventionists position.