Skip To Main Content

District Literacy Plan

The Centennial Public Schools community is committed to ensuring that each student reach or exceed grade level standards and benchmarks. These benchmarks are crucial in reading; research strongly points to the fact that students who are not reading at or above grade level by Third Grade have difficulty catching up later in school. As part of this literacy milestone, the Minnesota State Legislature adopted statutes to frame the work that ensures that all students Read Well by Third Grade. 

Minnesota Statute 120B.12 requires that all school districts: 

  • assess students’ level of reading proficiency and identify students not yet reading at grade level. 
  • notify and involve parents/guardians of students who are not yet reading at grade level. 
  • intervene and accelerate learning growth for students who are not yet reading at grade level.
  • ensure that elementary teachers have appropriate training and support to provide comprehensive, scientifically-based and culturally sensitive instruction. 
  • adopt and post a “Local Literacy Plan” to ensure that all students are reading at or above grade level by the end of third grade by July 1 of each year. 

The goal for all students to Read Well by Third Grade requires sustained engagement and commitment from our community of stakeholders. The Centennial Public Schools curriculum is designed to provide a solid base for instructional planning. School board members can make policy decisions and provide resources to support and maintain an excellent program that meets our students’ needs. Administrators and the Systems Accountability Committee can provide resources and equipment needed to support and maintain an excellent program that meets our students’ needs. Teachers use research-based instructional strategies and engage in professional development on scientifically-based reading instruction. Parents/guardians can talk to and read with their children at home, thereby building strong foundational literacy skills. Students can engage in literacy play and study. With ongoing support and engagement from all of our stakeholders in the literacy needs of our children, we believe that we can prepare each student to achieve success. 

Assessing Literacy Proficiency

Assessment Methods and Data

Throughout the school year, teachers, administrators and school staff are involved in regular data reviews to help inform instruction. These regular reviews of student data ensures that each student, regardless of their level of reading ability, receives appropriate instruction geared to meet their needs. Where student achievement data suggests any student or student group is not making adequate growth to meet grade level expectations, a system of instructional supports and interventions will be employed. 

Post-assessment literacy data is submitted to the Minnesota Commissioner of Education. Our goal at Centennial public school is for students to meet or exceed grade level state benchmarks and standards in reading, as demonstrated by the following performance indicators: 

Grade Assessment Grade Level Proficiency
K FastBridge earlyReading Composite At or Above the National 40th Percentile
1 FastBridge earlyReading Composite At or Above the National 40th Percentile
2 FastBridge aReading At or Above the National 40th Percentile
3

FastBridge aReading

MCA Reading

At or Above the National 40th Percentile

Meets or Exceeds

 

Core Instruction, Interventions and Supports

Centennial uses the Benchmark Advance curriculum for literacy instruction, which provides a solid base for all students. The curriculum provides grade-level materials for all students along with leveled texts to match student reading abilities for small group and independent instruction. There are also specialized instructional materials for English Language Learners as well as an intervention materials. This curriculum has been aligned to the Common Core standards and incorporates scientifically based reading instruction. Teachers receive training on how to consistently implement this program. All students benefit from whole group and small group instruction and other interventions as deemed necessary. Grade levels spend a minimum of two hours daily on reading instruction employing whole group, small group and individual instruction as needed. 

Centennial’s framework for literacy development provides a tiered model of instruction and supports for all students. Core elements include: clear identification of students’ needs, a tiered system of support that is based on strong core instruction, regular, frequent monitoring of all students and changing interventions when students are not making progress to their expected level. Interventions and instructional supports are available to students not reading at or above grade level in grades Kindergarten through Grade 3. The goal for all students (whether those below, at or above grade level) is to make one or more year of growth in reading every year. 

All students are instructed in their targeted growth areas by a licensed teacher. Some identified students receive additional minutes of reading instruction in their school week. Services during the school day are provided in a variety of formats based on student needs. Models of intervention include, but are not limited to: 

Additional instructional flexible group with classroom materials

  • Example: Phonemic Awareness lessons
  • Example: Phonics work with Phonics Readers and making words
  • Example: Fluency work with repeated reading of classroom text
  • Example: Comprehension work with strategy application, discussion and writing to read strategies

Direct instruction with a research-based reading intervention program and practice with teacher

  • Benchmark Spring Forward (phonics/word recognition, phonological awareness, print concepts, fluency, and text comprehension)
  • Benchmark Steps to Advance

Direct instruction in targeted goals with CERF teacher, Title I teacher, or MN Reading Corps Member

  • Benchmark Advance Steps to Advance
  • Benchmark Spring Forward
  • MN Reading Corps interventions 

Tiers of Instructional Support

Reflection & Review

The Centennial Public Schools core curriculum and tiered interventions are effective for many students. Based on the previous five years of data, Centennial Third Graders have consistently outperformed the state average as well as surrounding districts on the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments. Results of the 2019 Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment released by the Minnesota Department of Education revealed that Centennial Public Schools students continue to achieve at high levels in reading as 74.5% of Centennial’s third graders met or exceeded the standard. This is an increase from 2015-2016 when 69.8% of Centennial’s third graders met or exceeded the standard. 

Our interventions are working for most, but not all students. We will continue to improve our ability to use data to ascertain student learning objectives, personalize the intervention, and measure its effectiveness. Continued staff collaboration between classroom teachers, interventionists, and specialists to align instruction and intervention, with parents/guardians as partners, will allow us to continue to increase the number and percentage of students reading well by third grade. 

CERF teachers from each elementary school, the District Literacy Coordinator, elementary principals, the Director of Teaching and Learning and the School Board were all involved in the creation of this working document. As part of continuous improvement within the Centennial Public Schools, the plan will be evaluated and updated with the goal that all Centennial Public School students “Read Well By Third Grade.” We will continue to solicit community, parent/guardian and staff input about this plan throughout the upcoming year.