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Instructional coach: new K–5 ELA rollout uses shared-reading model, pacing changes and extra supports for teachers
Summary
Instructional coach Magie Binder told the board the district deployed a new K–5 ELA curriculum with three daily 45-minute blocks (shared reading, interactive instruction, differentiated instruction), professional development, pacing guides and supports for new staff; district will post pacing guides and lists online for parent access.
Magie Binder, an instructional coach, briefed the board on K–5 ELA implementation after the district purchased a new curriculum. Binder said the curriculum was delivered in May and teacher training and PLC work began over the summer and into the school year. "We purchased the curriculum and it arrived in May ... teachers began teaching the curriculum week two," Binder said.
Binder explained the instructional design: a 45-minute shared-reading block in which every student has a paperback text for coral (choral) reading, a second block of interactive instruction, and a 45-minute differentiated-instruction block for targeted phonics and decoding. She described anchor charts, paired reading and module-based culminating writing tasks. Binder said buildings adjusted schedules to create three 45-minute blocks and in many classrooms extra adults or monitors assist during the differentiated block.
She described professional development already delivered (a half-day overview, eight hours of vendor online modules, and building-based coaching), and said report cards and assessment guides were updated as part of implementation planning. Binder acknowledged early challenges — teachers previewing complex texts and difficult themes — and said district coaches will continue to support staff through year two.
On parental access, Binder said the district did not mail a full book list because it is extensive, but that pacing guides and links to vendor resources will be posted so parents can review texts and lesson plans; a parent letter introducing the curriculum went home at the start of the year. She said preliminary local benchmark (DIBELS) data and internal checks will show earlier signals of impact, while MAP assessment gains may take a longer (3–5 year) cycle to emerge.
The board asked about supports for new teachers, assessment alignment and how families will be alerted to potentially sensitive topics in texts; Binder said administrators, counselors and community advocates had been consulted for texts expected to raise heavier themes and that teachers are being supported before student exposure.
