York Elementary showcases new literacy curriculum, kindergarten–first grade instruction

York Elementary staff presented the board with a building spotlight on the school’s kindergarten and first-grade literacy block, describing how a set of four instructional components is being used together this year to strengthen early reading skills.

The presentation, made during the April meeting of the New Philadelphia City Board of Education at York Elementary, said the school combined a new Wit & Wisdom curriculum with Heggerty phonemic-awareness routines, a phonics foundation program and structured independent practice (referred to in the presentation as “geos”) to address the eight components of reading such as background knowledge, vocabulary, language structures, verbal reasoning, word recognition, decoding and sight recognition. A speaker identified in the transcript as Mrs. Tabacco described literacy as "the ability to read, write, speak, and listen in a way that lets us communicate effectively." She said she works with kindergarten through second grade and that the program’s RACE format (restate, answer, cite, explain) helps scaffold writing and evidence-citing skills over time.

School staff demonstrated classroom activities and student work. Presenters highlighted repeated readings of texts, group re-enactments, vocabulary journals and student-authored narratives as classroom strategies. Several students demonstrated their work in front of the board, explaining story settings, problems and resolutions and showing vocabulary journals that pair words with pictures. The presentation noted that the current year is the first year using Wit & Wisdom at York and that staff are beginning to see the curriculum’s pieces align with other supports to accelerate learning.

The presenters repeatedly emphasized that curriculum materials must be paired with strong instruction. The spotlight thanked York teachers, intervention specialists and building staff for planning and implementation; staff said kindergarten screening was completed efficiently this year and credited custodial and support staff for setup and logistics.

The board did not take formal action on the spotlight; it was presented for information. The presentation was followed later in the meeting by other agenda items including financial approvals, personnel actions and policy votes.