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Cheltenham administrators recommend Amplify CKLA adoption, outline next year’s K–5 math and science plans
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Summary
District leaders told the Educational Affairs Committee they will propose Amplify CKLA for K–5 ELA, continue Foundations for early phonics, and enter a K–5 math adoption next year after Envision’s contract ends; they highlighted inquiry‑based science shifts tied to new PSSA/STEALS alignment and plans to mitigate teacher prep needs.
Dr. Savage told the Educational Affairs Committee the district will present K–5 ELA materials for board adoption in June, saying, “we do have the samples of the K to 5 ELA instructional materials that we are going to propose to adopt for the 26, 27 school year through the board in the June meeting.”
The administration recommended Amplify CKLA as the core K–5 ELA program and said Foundations will continue as the district’s phonics and phonemic awareness program in year one of implementation to ground structured literacy work. A curriculum supervisor added that interventions such as IXL will remain the tier‑3 support and that CKLA skills will be phased in over the following year.
On mathematics, administrators said kindergarten classrooms shifted to Trapezium this year and the district has been using Envision grades 1–5. Because the Envision contract is in its final year, the district plans a vendor adoption cycle next year: “we will go into adoption for k to 5 mathematics next year,” an administrator said, emphasizing a selection process that will include teachers, principals and community members to vet materials before any recommendation to the board.
Science leaders described a move toward inquiry and hands‑on units (Mystery Science K–2, Open Science 3–5, and updated NGSS‑aligned secondary materials). They warned that the state’s assessment structure is changing: 5th‑ and 8th‑grade PSSAs will be cumulative across grade bands under the new STEALS framework, which administrators said requires curriculum and scheduling adjustments so students get sustained exposure rather than infrequent science lessons.
Board members raised practical concerns about device use, offline options and data on student outcomes. Dr. Savage said the district’s elementary instructional framework constrains when computers are used and that Chromebook stations were provided to keep devices in school rather than send them home. She added the district uses external vetting tools (EdReports, Pennsylvania Department of Education lists) and its own adoption rubrics to judge materials’ quality and alignment.
The administration plans to bring formal adoption recommendations to the board and to continue piloting and teacher training before full implementation.
