Salem details three-year rollout and supports for WIT & WISDOM elementary literacy program

Salem school officials presented the district’s implementation timeline and supports for the WIT & WISDOM elementary literacy curriculum during the Salem School Board meeting on May 13, saying the program moved from pilot to full kindergarten-through-grade‑5 use in the 2024–25 school year and will expand professional development for grades 6–8 next year.

The program’s rollout matters because district leaders said WIT & WISDOM emphasizes grade‑level complex texts and “knowledge building,” which they called a shift from the prior workshop-style approach and a step toward more explicit, evidence-based literacy instruction. Tara Bizidlow, the district’s director of literacy, told the board the process began in 2022 with a literacy professional learning community, a year of pilot work in 2023 and a districtwide full implementation this school year.

“We formed that PLC group … we read research, analyzed our district data and set priorities,” Bizidlow said, describing a pilot year in which about 22 teachers across the district tested two resources and 11…