Superintendent's Update - February 18, 2022

BOARD OF EDUCATION AGENDA CALENDAR
The agenda calendar is tentative until posted formally the Friday before each meeting. The calendar can be found HERE.

EARLY LITERACY

Elementary Reading Specialists provide reading instruction to identified students in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, oral language, vocabulary development, comprehension, and writing. The partnership and collaboration between classroom teachers and the Reading Specialist are critical in determining what students can demonstrate with agility and what instruction is required to increase grade-level reading proficiency. Reading Specialists analyze student reading growth and provide teachers with specific information regarding student strengths and instructional development areas.

Recently, Reading Specialists received training in an intervention to build phonemic awareness in upper-grade students. Once this foundational skill is acquired, many students find decoding and writing less laborious increasing reading fluency and comprehension. We are proud to offer another tool for our Reading Specialists to add to their suite of interventions, allowing them to address specific areas requiring additional instruction based upon student assessment.

As readers develop competence with particular reading skills, the intervention may change as evidenced by assessments and classroom teacher input. Reading Specialists modify their instruction to meet their students' individual needs. This collaboration is critical in accelerating students' growth. The classroom teacher and Reading Specialist work in partnership regarding strategies that allow the student to continue making progress without additional reading support.

GREAT NEWS FROM FOOD SERVICES!

The PAUSD Food Services Department is proud to announce it is restarting the reusable lunchware program at the elementary school sites.

Addison and Walter Hays elementary schools will restart the program on March 1. The remaining elementary school sites are scheduled to tentatively restart after spring break.