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District committee recommends Amplify Science for K-6; board to review purchase next meeting
Summary
A curriculum committee recommended the Amplify Science K-6 program for adoption and presented cost estimates: a five-year purchase serving about 2,500 students with an estimated per-student cost near $40 per year; the recommendation will return for board approval.
District curriculum leaders recommended Amplify Science for K-6 instruction after a multi-stage review of nine options, team presentations from four vendors and classroom piloting.
Erica Finders, lead for preschool-through-sixth-grade curriculum, said the committee included eight teachers, two instructional coaches and an administrator who scored materials against established criteria. The committee considered student workbooks, online simulations, teacher guides and unit-by-unit hands-on kits before recommending Amplify Science.
"We looked for alignment to standards, supports for multilingual learners and special education, and materials that scaffold across grades," Finders said. Presenters showed sample student investigation notebooks, hands-on kits and an online teacher interface similar to district literacy platforms.
District staff presented a five-year budget estimate, saying the program would serve roughly 2,500 students and cost about $40 per student per year over the term. The presenters said the program offered integrated reading and writing supports and was more rigorous than the district's current materials.
The board did not take final action Monday; staff said the adoption will return for approval at the next meeting.
Why it matters: Science adoption affects classroom instruction, materials procurement and teacher planning across the elementary grades. The committee emphasized materials that support language development and provide hands-on investigation and online simulations.
Administrators said the adoption and associated purchases would be structured over multiple years and that itemized costs and funding sources will be included in the forthcoming approval packet.
