The Morongo Unified School District has announced the expansion of its Reader by 9 initiative, a district-wide campaign aimed at ensuring all students achieve reading proficiency by the end of third grade.
Research shows that reading proficiency by third grade is a critical milestone in a child’s education. Children not proficient in reading by this time are more likely to struggle academically in later years and are at greater risk of not graduating from high school. The Reader by 9 initiative addresses these challenges by providing targeted support, resources, and innovative teaching strategies to help every student reach this important goal.
Originally launched two years ago by the district’s United for Literacy team, it was implemented in all kindergarten classrooms last year with training primarily for all kindergarten teachers and included monthly meetings, in-classroom support, quarterly training sessions and more. As a result, those classes showed about three-times growth in literacy from Fall to Winter when compared to other elementary grade levels.
The initiative includes regular assessments through the iReady program to identify students who may be at risk of falling behind, providing timely interventions and support tailored to each student’s needs. It also includes implementation of the Magnetic Reading Program, literacy challenges through Footsteps2Brilliance, access to digital books and more.
MUSD literacy coach Katie Fleishman said, “Research over the last few years has really shown us how the science of reading impacts our students. When we read, we’re activating three parts of our brain simultaneously and to learn how to do that students have to go through ten developmental stages.”
This year, the district will expand this focused training to first grade teachers with the plan to continue expanding to a new grade level each year.
Parents will be notified throughout the year of different partnership opportunities including Bingo for Books events, take-home literacy challenges and more. The district also partners with local libraries, community organizations and volunteers to create a supportive literacy environment beyond the classroom.
