Sumner School District outlines ELA goals, new curriculum choices and SBA strategies

Sumner School District curriculum leaders told the Board of Directors that the district is aiming for 80% of 3rd-, 5th- and 8th-graders to meet Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) benchmarks by 2026 and described how new curriculum adoptions, benchmark assessments and classroom supports will be used to reach that target.

The presentation from Darla Ochner, director of elementary curriculum, Cassie Meath, director of curriculum for secondary, Steve Schulen, executive director over secondary, and Beth Eichmann, executive director for elementary, framed the work around a district focus on “tier 1” classroom instruction, routine benchmarking and targeted professional development. Ochner told the board the presentation was intended to give trustees “some base knowledge around what literacy looks like at that tier 1 level across the district in all grade levels.”

District leaders said the ELA budget totals roughly $400,000 across elementary and secondary programs and primarily covers maintenance items: classroom set purchases, consumable materials at the secondary level, curriculum adoption work and professional learning. The team emphasized measuring progress toward SBA throughout the school year, not only when state results arrive in June. Ochner described the district’s use of benchmark tools — AIMSweb in elementary and MAP in middle school — as predictors to guide instruction and early interventions.

To help teachers and students understand how the SBA scores are derived, Ochner used a “marble jar” analogy to explain item difficulty and computer-adaptive scoring: some test items are weighted as “large marbles” because fewer students answer them correctly, while others are “small marbles,” she said. District staff said principals now have disaggregated secondary data that allows them to compare performance across teachers and use those comparisons in building-level professional development.

On curriculum adoption, Meath said the district recently completed a multi-stakeholder adoption process for middle and high school ELA and recommended different products for each level so the district can vertically align work through framework writing. She said middle schools were recommended My Perspectives and high schools StudySync; an elementary adoption is planned for 2027–28. The adoption teams collected feedback from more than 2,000 students and dozens of teachers, Meath said; teacher feedback highlighted contemporary selections, scaffolded supports for diverse learners, culturally responsive materials and tasks that demand complex thinking.

The presentation reviewed existing interventions and acceleration policies. District staff said WIN time and other intervention blocks continue for students needing extra support, and the district has honors and advanced pathways at the secondary level. The board was told that the district automatically enrolls 8th graders who scored a Level 4 on 7th-grade ELA into 9th-grade pre-AP or honors English; staff notified families last year and reported that about 100 8th graders were automatically accelerated and six families declined the placement.

Administrators highlighted family and community engagement initiatives tied to literacy, including book vending machines donated by parents and participation in the Imagination Library for eligible pre‑K students. Staff also flagged the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) work on new ELA standards as an item they are monitoring and said they will adjust frameworks and curriculum guidance if the state standards change.

The presenters asked the board to support continued investment in professional development and data tools so teachers can use interim assessments to track SBA-related skills and tailor instruction. They said the district will continue analyzing cohort and teacher-level data and refining frameworks to support both remediation and acceleration.

Board members asked about differentiation for students who master grade-level work early. Schulen and Ochner said the district is working on more consistent strategies to challenge students within core instruction and noted that new secondary curriculum vendors provide teacher guidance and alternative texts by Lexile to support differentiation.

District leaders emphasized the focus on tier 1 instruction, ongoing assessment, and curriculum-adoption timelines as the primary levers the district will use to pursue the 2026 SBA goals.