Teachers Pursue Training in Science of Reading

More than 50 teachers and staff members from the Northfield Public Schools have signed up for an intensive training that district officials describe as a “game-changer” for teaching early learners how to read.

The Minnesota LETRS Science of Reading Professional Learning Courses provide 144 hours of instruction in how to teach reading skills based on brain science. The Minnesota Department of Education is offering the optional training to K-5 classroom teachers, administrators, elementary special education teachers, and other elementary reading specialists and coaches from across the state at no cost to the participants, through funding appropriated by the state legislature. Because teachers and staff complete the training outside of school hours, the Northfield district is paying them for their time.

“We think this will make a huge impact, and that impact will be immediate in terms of student learning,” said Hope Langston, director of instructional services for Northfield Public Schools.

Langston said the science behind this method of teaching reading is not new, but the approach is different from what many teachers in the district learned when they were in college.

Click here to listen to a KYMN Radio interview with Hope Langston about LETRS training.

Family Mastery Kits Provide Extra Reading ‘Scoop’

All first- and second-grade students in the Northfield Public Schools now have access to reading kits that help them decode words, practice fluency, and master other literacy skills they need to become confident readers.

The Collaborative Classroom Curriculum family mastery kits were piloted two years ago with first-graders at Bridgewater Elementary School, using funding through the Move 5 Kids initiative. The pilot was repeated last year with first-graders at Spring Creek and supported through building funds. Based on the positive pilot results, the Northfield school district decided this year to provide the kits to all the first- and second-grade teachers at Bridgewater, Spring Creek and Greenvale Park.

Northfield Promise Coordinator Laura Turek said students who don’t pass a unit mastery test receive a kit containing specific books, instead of the regular books in a bag, along with a letter of explanation to the parents or guardians. The students work with an adult (a parent or an aide) on that particular literacy skill for two weeks, outside of class time, before retaking the test.

“This is considered an extra scoop that targets specific reading skills for students who are not quite mastering at the same pace as the rest of the class,” Turek said.

Rice County PRIMEtime Receives Afterschool Grant

The Rice County PRIMEtime out-of-school-time network was one of 21 youth-serving efforts in Minnesota to receive a Believe and Build Afterschool grant, out of 75 applicants. The $772,915 grant will support the network in serving youth in grades K-12, particularly those most disengaged from learning during the past two school years, at seven sites throughout Rice County. 

Rice County PRIMEtime provides out-of-school-time and summer enrichment programs for more than 2,000 Rice County youth at four youth/community centers and three full-service community schools. Each program site shares common components, including youth leadership, STEAM activities, sports & recreation, academic assistance and homework help, service learning, cultural responsiveness (including LBGTQ+, gender-specific and/or cultural-specific supports), and access to transportation.

The Believe and Build Afterschool grants were announced in February and are facilitated by Ignite Afterschool and Youthprise. They are funded with a grant from the Minnesota Department of Education through the American Rescue Plan Act, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund.

Thousands of Books Donated in February

Northfield Promise collected about 4,000 new and gently used books for children and youth through February’s month-long book drive. Students in the elementary school reading support programs each received two to three books in March before spring break, and 200 books were used to stock the bookshelves at a Habitat for Humanity “quad” home that was recently dedicated to four families with a combined seven children. Other donated books will support summer reading at the Greenvale Park Community School and will supply community bookshelves, the Community Action Center in Northfield, the YMCA free book carts, and Little Free Libraries across the community. 

Northfield Promise extends its thanks to the Northfield Rotary Club for raising awareness of this project (and for supplying the new bookcases for the quad home), to Content Bookstore for promoting and contributing to the event, and to all the generous donors in the community. 

If you didn’t get the chance to donate, there is still a need for Spanish-language books at the PreK-2 grade levels. Book collection bins are available year-round at the following locations: the lobby of the Northfield Area Family YMCA lobby; the main entrance to the Community Action Center of Northfield entrance; the lobby of the Northfield Community Education Center (look for the Book Monster!); and the lobbies of Bridgewater, Greenvale Park, and Spring Creek Elementary Schools (open September through June). For more information, contact Laura Turek, laura@healthycommunityinitiative.org

Photo: 200 books from the February book drive were donated to the Habitat for Humanity “quad” home that was recently dedicated to four families with a combined 7 children. The Northfield Rotary Club supplied a brand-new bookcase for each home.

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