Hiawatha staff tell Othello board targeted curriculum, exemplar planning lifted student performance

Hiawatha Elementary School teachers presented to the Othello School District board on classroom alignment, common teaching scripts and exemplar planning that staff say are driving midyear gains in reading and math. Teachers also recognized students who advanced through regional Math Is Cool competition and qualified for state-level contests.

The presentation, led by Hiawatha staff and followed by classroom examples from kindergarten through sixth grade, outlined a coherent set of practices: common teaching scripts for ELA targets, shared graphic organizers, backwards planning using exemplars, and coordinated PLC time for grades 3–6. "My name is Kayla Spore. I'm a third grade teacher at Hiawatha, and I was part of our target committee," Spore said, describing the common script and graphic organizers the team developed.

Math Is Cool coaches and students were recognized before the presentation. A Math Is Cool coach introduced the sixth-grade team that practiced weekly since October and placed second at regionals; the team qualified for the state "Masters" competition in Moses Lake for a second consecutive year.

Hiawatha staff summarized midyear assessment trends from internal and commercial measures. The presenters described a building goal of a 6% increase in both math and English language arts by the end of the year, and cited midyear STAR and interim-assessment growth: an average midyear effect size of about 0.3, roughly an expected year-and-a-half growth trajectory if sustained, plus an 8% average ELA STAR gain (grades 2–6) and a 5% average STAR gain in math so far. The presenters also reported grade-level fluency improvements (example: a roughly 25-point increase in third-grade fluency compared with the prior cohort and a 10-point increase in second grade), and said the staff is working to align math with the clarity they have built in ELA.

Teachers described the practical classroom tools that support the district goals. First-grade teacher Neddy Vasquez explained teams developed Google Slide lessons and other shared materials so students encounter consistent language and formats as they advance. Fifth-grade teacher Nikki Sams described the exemplar-planning process: teams create the end product they want students to produce, then design instruction and rubrics to match.

District and school staff emphasized that much of the work involves time-consuming collaboration: sub days, PLCs and iterative revisions of scripts and exemplars. Melissa Rocha, who guided the student-experience portion of the presentation, showed classroom video clips illustrating shared language around topic, evidence and note-taking across K–6.

Board members and attendees praised the staff and the students. A parent and a sixth-grade student offered public comments thanking Hiawatha staff for their work.

The district said the school will continue to monitor STAR, ESPA and interim assessment data and intends to complete year-end comparisons to determine whether midyear gains translate into the targeted +6% on spring assessments.