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Amherst Central presents elementary literacy and math curriculum updates, expands screening and interventions
Summary
District staff described expanded universal screening, new diagnostic and progress-monitoring practices, adoption of decodable readers and interventions (Wilson, SPIRE, EQuIPP), and an elementary math rollout tied to sustained professional development.
District curriculum leaders presented an overview of elementary curriculum changes, assessment updates and sustained professional learning intended to improve early literacy and math outcomes.
Dr. Shanahan, the presenter identified in the transcript, told trustees the district offered 73 distinct professional-development opportunities for elementary staff between May and October and is aligning curriculum review with a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS). She outlined a three-part curriculum review cycle: curriculum development (content and scope), instructional delivery (approaches and strategies), and assessment of efficacy. “We offered 73 different unique professional developments in the elementary level,” Dr. Shanahan said, describing sustained, job-embedded training paired with work on scope-and-sequence documents and lesson templates.
On assessments, presenters described using a universal screener (referred to in the transcript as "FastGrid") three times a year and following up scores below the 30th percentile with diagnostic instruments, including an oral reading fluency measure (RCBM) extended to grades 1–5 and an informal decoding inventory aligned to interventions. Staff said progress monitoring occurs every other week for tier-2 students and weekly for tier-3 students; presenters committed to providing current tier distributions to the board in a future report.
Literacy changes include shifting classroom practice to more decodable texts for decoding practice, piloting increased pacing in kindergarten classes based on teacher-collected data, and scaling targeted interventions so students receive evidence-based supports earlier. The transcript cites district use or piloting of Wilson, SPIRE and EQuIPP interventions and a decision rule that children who know fewer than about 20 letter names/sounds will use predictable text while those above that threshold will move to decodable readers for decoding practice. Presenters also described creating an internal, teacher-facing website to centralize scope-and-sequence documents, lesson templates and assessment resources.
On math, the district is rolling out the New York version of the Eureka curriculum through fifth grade and has partnered with an area BOCES instructor (named in the transcript as Tricia Hussle) for sustained professional learning. The district reported adopting a grade-level math diagnostic and linking it to interventions developed in partnership with Buffalo State University to guide K–5 math intervention instruction.
Board members asked for the district’s current distribution across the research-based tier targets (80% tier 1, 10–15% tier 2, ~5% tier 3). Presenters said current figures were not on hand at the meeting but that they would be provided in a board report; presenters noted incoming kindergarten risk at about 30% and described local pilots to reduce that rate.
Next steps: staff will supply the requested tier percentages and a follow-up board report detailing screening and intervention implementation timelines.
