Melinda Solafoda, the district’s preK–6 content coordinator, told the Pembroke School Committee on Jan. 13 that teachers chose FOSS after two years of professional learning community work and a range of publisher reviews. She said teachers selected FOSS primarily for its hands-on science kits and classroom feasibility, with pilot units targeted at grades K–2, 3–5 and fourth-grade energy units. "It was really the hands on component that drove them," Solafoda said, describing classrooms where students investigate phenomena, use science journals with sentence starters and engage in three-dimensional learning.

Solafoda said four teachers are piloting each of the selected grade-level units (sound & light for first grade, water & landforms for second grade, and energy for fourth), and that kits are intended as a largely permanent, one-time capital purchase with consumables that will need replenishment on a cycle the presenter described as roughly every four years. She emphasized that FOSS supports literacy and speaking-and-listening skills through embedded science notebooks. "It has ready to use vocabulary and slides... those instructional materials have been well received by staff," she said.

On assessment and standards, administrators said FOSS materials map to crosscutting concepts in state standards but cautioned that direct comparisons between publishers are difficult; the district would develop benchmarks and interim assessments if it moves from pilot to adoption. Solafoda said the pilot affords teacher feedback and classroom observation data that the district would use to measure retention and inform rollout decisions.

Separately, the committee heard an update on the Simplify Writing pilot, now in its second year and adopted by more teachers than the science pilot. Solafoda described a rubric-driven pre/post assessment the program provides: teachers enter scores into a spreadsheet that automatically generates growth metrics. The district is collecting that data as part of the pilot and said a fuller analysis of growth will follow once units conclude. "One of the greatest things I saw... was teachers working through their prewriting and calibrating scores together," she said.

Administrators noted some digital components and simulations are embedded for older grades, and that the district also uses Edgelastic for online assessments as students progress. Several committee members asked how the programs fit into the budget; Solafoda and the superintendent said the FOSS kit purchase is the larger near-term capital ask while annual consumables and districtwide supports would be budgeted separately.

Next steps outlined by staff include continuing teacher feedback from pilots, developing benchmarks if the committee moves to adopt, and presenting cost details and budget requests in upcoming budget-cycle meetings.