Early Literacy

  • A thumbnail with two female school administrators with the text "Spotlight Johnson County Schools"

Building a Vision, Empowering Readers: Johnson County Schools’ Literacy Journey 

2025-12-02T07:41:31-05:00December 3rd, 2025|Categories: Featured|Tags: , , , , , , , |

https://youtu.be/E65yIgGGsQc In Johnson County Schools, literacy isn’t just a subject; it’s a mission. With a little over 3,000 students across five elementary schools, one middle school and one high school, this eastern Kentucky district is proving that a shared vision and strategic systems can transform student outcomes.  A Vision [...]

  • A group photograph of approximately 45 diverse students of various ages posing together in front of a purple illuminated geometric wall and a pattern convention floor. Many wear white JCPS lanyards and some are holding small green or blue signs. A few specific students, including one in a historic costume and others with matching spirit shirts, are visible. The students are smiling and looking at the camera.

Redefining Learning: How JCPS is Aligning Vision and Resources to Transform Student Literacy

2026-03-19T13:57:43-04:00July 29th, 2025|Categories: Standards Newsletter|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) is on a mission to transform what teaching and learning look like for every student. At the center of this work is Journey to Success, an initiative that goes beyond access to grade-level content and empowers students to actively engage in their learning, demonstrate their [...]

Brooks Elementary Teachers in Bullitt County Make the Shift to Explicit, Systematic  Instruction in Foundational Skills

2026-03-19T14:49:54-04:00May 19th, 2025|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Brooks Elementary is currently in its first full year of implementing a resource developed by the University of Florida Literacy Institute called UFLI Foundations, an explicit and systematic program for teaching students foundational reading skills. Teachers from kindergarten to grade 3 are using UFLI in their Tier 1 instruction. With [...]

  • A female teacher stands patiently as a young student points to a sentence on a large wall-mounted monitor during a class on a multi-colored number grid rug. Approximately 15 young children are seated, listening, with one child in the foreground raising their hand. The classroom is filled with educational posters, charts, currency and math displays, and shelving with books and colorful bins. The sentence on the screen reads 'Ron rips paper.'

Greenup County Kindergarten Teacher Finds Success Through Internalization of High-Quality Instructional Resources

2026-03-19T14:56:49-04:00April 29th, 2025|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Kindergarten teacher Cassie Thompson at Argillite Elementary in Greenup County faced a unique challenge this year: Implementing two new high-quality instructional resources (HQIRs), Magnetic Reading Foundations and Wit and Wisdom, for the first time. With eight years of teaching experience and a strong dedication to student success, Thompson approached this [...]

  • Elementary School Children playing the game Operation in School

Teachers at Lebanon Elementary Say They’ve Gone from Overwhelmed About Teaching Reading to Thriving

2026-03-19T15:06:27-04:00April 1st, 2025|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Lebanon Elementary School (LES) in Marion County, KY, is in its first year of implementing the Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) Listening and Learning Strand for grades K-3, emphasizing language comprehension through engaging, content-rich read-alouds. Teachers at LES are seeing increased student engagement and deeper connections between content and real-world [...]

  • A wide-angle photograph of an active elementary school classroom with corrected, naturalistic colors and balanced lighting. A female teacher with a pattern headscarf, wearing a bright pink sweatshirt, stands centrally, observing a young student in a grey hoodie who is working at his desk. Several students are seated at blue and black desks; some use pencils, others rest on their arms.

Knox County First Grade Teacher Develops Love for Teaching Reading

2026-03-19T15:13:21-04:00December 10th, 2024|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

First grade teacher Presley Peyton Stuber at Flat Lick Elementary School in Knox County is in her fifth year of teaching. This year is her second year teaching first grade and first time teaching from a high-quality instructional resource (HQIR) for reading and writing. When asked to explain what she [...]

  • Call for Early Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Submissions

Call for Early Literacy and Numeracy Screening and Diagnostic Assessment Submissions 

2024-12-18T12:53:21-05:00November 1st, 2024|Categories: Standards Newsletter|Tags: , , , |

Call for Early Literacy and Numeracy Screening and Diagnostic Assessment Submissions   The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has engaged in a comprehensive process to identify valid and reliable universal screeners and diagnostic assessments for reading and numeracy as required by KRS 158:305 and KRS 158.8402. New [...]

  • five individuals engaged in an educational small-group literacy activity around a large wooden table in a color-corrected and upscaled elementary classroom with natural light. A female teacher with long brown hair, wearing a rich teal-green jacket over a magenta-pink shirt, is seated centrally and looking toward the left student.

Students Engage in Foundational Skills Through Multi-Sensory Learning

2026-03-19T15:24:26-04:00October 1st, 2024|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: , , , , , , , |

At South Marshall Elementary in Marshall County, students are diving into foundational literacy through fun and interactive instruction. During a recent foundational skills lesson, students engaged in a variety of multi-sensory activities designed to reinforce their understanding of letters and sounds. They practiced stretching and tapping out sounds in words [...]

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