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Show Education Wed/Thurs/Fri, October 10-12, 2018 The Park Record. Editor: Carolyn Webber Alder education@parkrecord.com 435.649.9014 ex.15718 UTAH YOUTH OPIOID SUMMIT SET FOR FRIDAY The Utah Youth Opioid Summit is set to take place at Vivint Smart Home Arena on Friday, Oct. 12, during the state’s Utah Solutions Summit. According to the event’s website, the youth summit is scheduled to take place from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and is free. Students from grades six through 12 are encouraged to attend with their parents and school administrators, faculty and counselors. Guest speakers will talk about the dangers of opioid addiction and invite teens to take action against opioid use in their communities. For more information and to register, visit https://utahsolutionssummit.com/ schools-registration/. EVENT AT THE LEONARDO TO DISCUSS DYSLEXIA The Joseph James Morelli Scholarship Fund is helping to host an event on Tuesday, Oct. 16, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at The Leonardo in Salt Lake City. The event, called Dyslexia: A Lifelong Journey, will include a discussion about the challenges young adults with learning disabilities face after high school. Leaders in the dyslexia field, including representatives from the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education, will talk about what is being accomplished in the field to support students with dyslexia. The event is free and open to the public. To RSVP, visit https://bit.ly/2ynLKIy. LIBRARY TO HOLD SCHOOL OF WIZARDRY EVENT The Summit County Library is set to host an event titled School of Wizardry at the Kimball Junction Branch on Oct. 27. The class is set to take place from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Wizards between the ages of 9 and 12 are invited to attend, but they must have an acceptance letter. For more information, visit the library circulation desk. The Park Record A-7 LAWSUIT CONTINUES AGAINST DISTRICT, A-8 INFANTS TAKE LEARNING INTO OWN HANDS, A-8 www.parkrecord.com A-7 WED/THURS/FRI, OCTOBER 10-12, 2018 The district spells out revised literacy goals It plans to use Wilson Fundations to increase skills for early readers CAROLYN WEBBER ALDER The Park Record If a child makes it past the third grade without mastering the ability to read, it is likely they will not be a highly literate adult. Teachers, administrators and researchers have been aware of the fact for years, but now the state of Utah is aiming to ensure that elementary schools are doing their best to promote early literacy. In response to the state Legislature’s new literacy goals, the Park City Board of Education recently approved an updated K-3 early literacy plan focused on the Wilsons Fundations program. The Legislature increased accountability in first and second grades by setting standards and raised the target percentage of literacy proficiency in PARK RECORD FILE PHOTO Saylor Dahl, a kindergartner at Trailside Elementary, and Ellen Folke, a volunteer with Intermountain Therapy Animals, reads to Benno, a five-year-old Bernese Mountain dog, during class last year. The Park City School Distrit is emphasizing literacy at an early age to ensure that as many students as possible are reading at grade-level. The teachers are gaining skills and knowledge and also have additional resources and support in providing that reading instruction,” Julie Hastings, elementary curriculum specialist third grade from 48 percent to 60 percent. Districts throughout the state must attain the goals in order to receive state funding for literacy education. The Park City School District has already been achieving the state’s goals, but the district wants to do more. Now, kindergarten classes must increase proficiency on end-of-year reading tests by 11 percent. The goal for first, second and third grades is to move more students performing below or well below benchmarks at the beginning of the school year to at or above benchmarks by the end of the year. The percentage of students improving varies for each grade. Julie Hastings, elementary curriculum specialist for the district, said the district is ahead of the curve because of its Wilson Fundations program, but still has a long way to go. The Wilson Fundations program, which focuses on phonetic awareness and phonics, was first piloted at McPolin Elementary School a couple years ago. It has been in place in all kindergarten, first and second grade classes in the district since last school year. This school year, the program is being rolled out to all third grade classrooms. The district also recently added interventionists at all of the elementary schools to help students struggling with reading, Hastings said. Hastings said the roll-out has gone well, and that teachers in particular have welcomed the new program. Only preliminary data from test scores is available, though, making it difficult to see the whole picture. Still, Hastings said there are some markers that show the district is moving in the right direction. In an assessment from the Park City Education Foundation, 90 percent of teachers said Fundations has worked in their classroom. Teachers also reported having more confidence in identifying struggling readers and helping readers of all abilities reach their goals. “The teachers are gaining skills and knowledge and also have additional resources and support in providing that reading instruction,” Hastings said. HELP THEM GO BIG AS THEY GROW BIGGER Trade In. Trade Up. Save Big. CANYON MOUNTAIN SPORTS Canyons Village (435) 615-3440 Teachers have shared stories of small successes, as well. They have seen noticeable differences when students with Wilson Fundations experience enter the classroom. At McPolin last year, first and second grade testing scores showed a larger percentage of students making a year’s worth of growth or more compared to other elementary schools in the district. But Andrew Caplan, president of the Board, said at the last Board meeting that the total data he has seen from the cohorts is “scary.” The number of students below the benchmarks appears to have increased after implementation, he said, and he worries that not all students are being helped with the program. Hastings said at the meeting that the Please see Literacy, A-8 |