Dear Greenwood Families
As we close out another exciting, successful school year, we wanted to take the opportunity to share how proud we are of how our students grew and performed academically this year. Instruction and data remain at the forefront of all we do, so we want to share some of our students’ assessment growth and highlight some of our math and reading instructional practices that have contributed to our students’ academic growth and success.
Throughout the year, our students take a variety of assessments designed to measure their proficiency in key academic areas such as math, reading, writing, and science. These assessments play a crucial role in understanding our students’ academic progress and identify areas where we can provide additional support.
Our teachers do a fantastic job of planning and collaborating with each other to ensure students participate in purposeful and engaging learning experiences in response to the data gathered by our varied assessments. Our teachers in all grades participated in weekly common planning meetings that focused specifically on math and reading, during which time, teachers reviewed and analyzed class- and grade-level data to prepare for differentiated and focused whole and small group instruction and shared best instructional practices for teaching math and reading. Our teachers also engaged in ongoing meetings with our reading and math coaches for individual and grade level specific support.
Additionally, based on our assessment data, our teachers were also able to identify students who demonstrated a need for small group, intensive support. Thanks to Greenwood’s “all hands on deck” approach to learning, these students were able to receive academic support from our dedicated team.
Below is an overview of some of the assessments our students participate in and the growth they have achieved this year.
SOLs (3rd - 5th)
The Standards of Learning (SOL) assessments provide a broad measure of student achievement across the state and help us gauge how our students compare to their peers in other districts. These assessments also break our data down into subgroups to help us ensure we are meeting the needs of all of our students. Our school achieved over a 90% pass rate in reading and math.
iReady (Kg - 5th)
iReady was our digital math and reading program for this year. Our students took a diagnostic assessment built into the program three times this year. The diagnostic assessment is used to gain a deeper understanding of each student’s individual strengths and weaknesses. The program then provided targeted, personalized instruction in the form of lessons students completed each week. Our students demonstrated remarkable improvement in their reading and math skills this year, which was reflected in higher scores on their iReady reading and math diagnostic assessments.
PALS (Kg - 2nd)
The Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) is the Virginia Department of Education sponsored literacy screener that is designed to give a snapshot of critical literacy skills at a single moment in time and to identify children at high risk for reading problems. If students are identified as needing additional support, they receive intervention (i.e., extra instruction) to help them make progress.
ORF (1st - 5th)
The Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) Benchmark is an assessment administered three times a year and helps to track student’s progress and identify areas where students may need additional support. The ORF is a curriculum-based measure that evaluates a student’s reading rate and accuracy compared to grade-level normed benchmarks. Students who are below or well-below the benchmark may be at risk for reading difficulties, and teachers can plan targeted instruction or intervention to support them. Oral reading fluency has consistently been found to have a high correlation with reading comprehension.
While we celebrate our students’ achievements, we also recognize the importance of ongoing improvement. Over the summer, we will continue to dive into our data to identify areas of weakness, inform our instructional strategies, and provide the best possible education for your children. We have a never ending thirst for personal and professional growth.
We appreciate your ongoing support and involvement in your child’s education. Together we can ensure that our students not only meet but exceed their academic goals. Thank you for a wonderful school year. We look forward to continuing this journey with you and your children in the upcoming year.