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Reading Program
Reading Program
2025-2026 Cheraw Primary Literacy Reflection Tool
Section A: At Cheraw Primary oral language serves as the foundation for literacy development. Students with strong oral language skills can better understand and engage with written language. Activities like group discussions, read-alouds, storytelling, and conversations support the development of vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structure, which are critical for text comprehension. Phonological awareness refers to the ability to recognize and manipulate sounds in spoken words. This is crucial for developing decoding skills. Early literacy instruction focuses on teaching students to identify and work with sounds, such as syllables, rhymes, and individual phonemes. Activities like rhyming games, clapping syllables, and segmenting sounds are commonly used. Phonics is the relationship between letters and sounds, enabling students to decode words. Mastery of phonics allows students to read unfamiliar words independently. Systematic phonics instruction teaches letter-sound relationships, helping students to decode and spell words. Teachers follow LETRS’ explicit scope and sequence for teaching, practicing decoding strategies, and word-building activities. Reading fluency involves reading with speed, accuracy, and expression, which allows students to focus on understanding the text rather than decoding individual words. Fluency is developed through repeated reading, choral reading, paired reading, and the use of leveled texts. Teachers assess fluency to ensure that students can read at an appropriate pace while maintaining comprehension. Vocabulary knowledge is critical for understanding what is read. The more words a student knows, the better they can comprehend a text. Vocabulary instruction involves teaching the meaning of words through explicit instruction, context clues, word analysis, and exposure to rich and varied texts. Activities include word maps, semantic webs, and direct teaching of academic vocabulary. Comprehension is the goal of reading. It involves understanding, interpreting, and analyzing text to make meaning. To build comprehension, teachers use strategies such as questioning, predicting, summarizing, making inferences, and connecting texts to students’ prior knowledge. Instruction is scaffolded with modeling, guided practice, and opportunities for independent reading. Ongoing assessments in each of these areas are crucial to monitor students’ progress and identify areas where they may need additional support. Teachers use tools such as oral reading fluency checks, phonemic awareness tests, comprehension questions, and vocabulary quizzes to inform instruction as well as progress monitor progress towards a domain. Finally, Cheraw Primary follows the district’s implementation of iReady as a tool to monitor student growth. i-Ready serves as a comprehensive educational tool combining an adaptive diagnostic assessment and a personalized instructional program for our students in grades K-2 in reading. It provides teachers with data to group students, tailor instruction, and monitor progress throughout the school year.
Section B: Teachers at Cheraw Primary lean on the science of reading ideals and foundational literacy skills to provide a research-based framework. This framework guides word recognition instruction and assessment. These approaches are crucial for building strong reading skills in PreK-2nd grade students, focusing on decoding, phonemic awareness, phonics, and sight word recognition. Below is an overview of how Cheraw Primary assessments and instruction for word recognition align with these approaches. The science of reading refers to a body of research that explains how children learn to read and the most effective instructional practices. It emphasizes that reading development involves both word recognition and language comprehension, forming the "Simple View of Reading." Word recognition assessment and instruction focus on students’ ability to decode unfamiliar words by applying phonemic awareness and phonics skills. The science of reading emphasizes the importance of teaching students to manipulate phonemes, which is critical for developing early word recognition. According to the science of reading, word recognition should be taught through explicit, sequential instruction, particularly in phonics, ensuring that students are mastering the essential skills at each stage of literacy development. Following the LETRS scope and sequence ensures structured literacy and developmentally appropriate instruction for all students at Cheraw Primary School. Structured literacy refers to a teaching approach that is direct, explicit, and systematic, which is essential for students who struggle with reading or have dyslexia but beneficial for all students. Instruction in phonics is sequenced, progressing from simple to complex sound-letter relationships. Assessments measure students’ knowledge of letter-sound correspondence and their ability to apply phonics rules to read and spell words. Students are regularly assessed on how quickly and accurately they recognize words through timed readings or fluency checks. Instruction includes repeated practice of high-frequency words and decodable texts to improve word recognition speed and fluency. High-frequency word instruction ensures that students can quickly recognize common words that may not follow regular phonics rules. Assessments like decoding inventories help track their progress. As students’ progress, structured literacy includes instruction in the structure of words, such as prefixes, suffixes, root words, and spelling patterns. Spelling inventories and morphological awareness assessments gauge understanding. Literacy instruction often incorporates multisensory techniques, like using sight, sound, and touch (ex: tracing letters, using manipulatives), to help students retain word recognition skills. Foundational literacy skills, which form the base for all future reading development, include phonological awareness, phonics, word recognition, and fluency. These skills enable students to decode words efficiently, paving the way for fluent reading and comprehension at Cheraw Primary. At our K-2 school, we use the “science of reading” to help our students become strong readers. This means we rely on research from many experts who study how children learn to read and write. There are different ways to understand reading, like the Simple View of Reading, The Reading Rope, and the Active View of Reading. Even though these models explain reading in different ways, they all agree on some important things: young readers need to learn how to hear and play with sounds in words (called phonemic awareness) and how letters and sounds work together (phonics) so they can figure out new words. We know that learning to read isn’t just about sounding out words; it’s also about understanding what those words mean. That’s why we focus on both word recognition and language comprehension. Our teachers give clear and step-by-step lessons that help children build these skills. Lessons are fun, use different ways of learning, and start with easy skills before moving to harder ones. This helps our students become confident and automatic readers over time. To make sure every child gets the right support, teachers use different tools to check reading skills, such as listening to students read out loud, looking at how they study words, and using sentences for spelling and writing. These checks follow state standards and make sure we are teaching in the best way to help every young reader succeed.
Section C: Cheraw Primary uses universal screener data and diagnostic assessment data to systematically identify students in PreK-2nd grade who are not demonstrating grade-level reading proficiency. This data guides and determines targeted intervention pathways, focusing on either word recognition or language comprehension deficits, based on students' specific needs. Teachers use i-Ready as the school wide universal screener. The universal screener is administered to all students at the beginning, middle, and end of the school year to quickly identify those who are not meeting expected grade-level benchmarks in reading. Screeners help teachers identify students who are at risk for reading difficulties and need further assessment. The results of these screeners do not provide a complete diagnosis but flag students for more in-depth evaluation. After students are identified by the universal screener as at-risk or below grade level, diagnostic assessments are administered to pinpoint specific reading challenges. These diagnostics are more detailed and help determine whether a student’s difficulties stem from word recognition or language comprehension. Word recognition deficits, such as difficulties with phonological awareness, phonics, or decoding skills. Language comprehension deficits, including challenges with vocabulary, syntax, and understanding meaning in text. During the diagnostic assessments, teachers use a variety of evaluations from LETRS as well as other data catching measures to determine and progress monitor student needs. Once universal screener and diagnostic data are collected, a data team meets to analyze the results. This data-driven process helps to determine the student’s specific needs and direct them toward the appropriate intervention pathway. Teachers then take the results to provide a precise understanding of the student's reading difficulties, which is crucial for designing targeted interventions within the classroom. We also have special intersession weeks focused on helping students who are struggling or at risk. This year students who need extra support in reading, writing, or math will take part in small, focused groups during these weeks. Students are chosen based on their grades, attendance, and iReady scores. Certified teachers lead these groups to make sure students get the help they need. Additionally, many of our students will be invited to attend summer school in June for more support if needed.
Section D: Cheraw Primary School has a comprehensive system in place to ensure that parents understand how they can support their child as a reader and writer at home. This system emphasizes ongoing communication, resources, training, and collaboration between parents and the school to foster literacy development outside of the classroom. Parent Workshops and Literacy Nights are planned throughout the school year. These workshops are designed to educate parents about the school's reading and writing curriculum, the skills pupils are learning, and how parents can support these skills at home. Parents engage in hands-on activities and teachers model strategies that parents can utilize at home to help their child. Parents also receive handouts and guides that provide examples of literacy activities and reading strategies they can use with their children. Our 4K students take home books to help them practice reading with their families. By the end of the school year, every 4K child has built a large collection of books to enjoy at home.
Teachers send home grade-level appropriate books, including decodable readers to ensure pupils have access to text that matches their reading ability. Parents are encouraged to read with their children daily and track reading progress using reading logs. Teachers provide tips for asking comprehension questions to deepen their understanding. Parent-Teacher conferences are conducted to discuss student's reading and writing progress and to provide specific strategies tailored to their child's needs. Progress Reports are distributed so parents can track their child's development and understand where additional support may be needed. The school sends out a monthly newsletter with literacy tips and ideas for family reading activities. Teachers send out weekly newsletters on ways to support literacy at home. Cheraw Primary School encourages parents to celebrate literacy milestones at home. This fosters a positive attitude toward reading and writing, making literacy a family priority!
Section E: Effective monitoring of reading achievement and growth is crucial for ensuring that PreK-2nd grade students reach grade-level proficiency in reading. Teachers systematically monitor reading progress and make informed decisions about interventions based on data. Cheraw Primary holds regular data review meetings where teachers, interventionists, and administrators analyze student reading data. These meetings occur once a month to discuss student progress and determine whether interventions need to be modified. Cheraw Primary follows a Multi-Tiered System of Support approach to provide targeted interventions based on data presented by the team. Tier 1 is core reading instruction for all students. Teachers use differentiated strategies to meet diverse learners' needs in the general education classroom. Universal screening helps identify students who need additional support. Tier 2 is targeting small-group interventions for students identified as needing extra help based on screening and diagnostic data. These students typically receive supplemental instruction in small groups for 20-30 minutes several times a week, focusing on areas like phonics, fluency, or comprehension. Tier 3 is an intensive, individualized intervention for students who demonstrate significant reading difficulties. These students receive daily, one-on-one or small-group instruction, often with an Early Literacy Interventionist. Progress is closely monitored, and the interventions are more intensive and frequent than Tier 2. Depending on the severity of reading difficulties, progress is monitored weekly or bi-weekly for students in intervention programs. Tier 2 and Tier 3 students are monitored more frequently. The school sets typical and stretch growth goals based on i-Ready assessments. These goals help focus efforts on improving reading outcomes across the school and are revisited throughout the year to assess progress. When students demonstrate sustained improvement (as evidenced by progress monitoring and reassessments), they can exit Tier 2 or Tier 3 and return to regular classroom instruction. If necessary, students are referred for special education services when they fail to make adequate progress despite intensive interventions.
Classroom teachers conduct frequent formative assessments to track student progress in real-time. Teachers use a combination of tools to gather and check on student progress. Anecdotal notes are used throughout the day and during reading conferences. Oral Reading Fluency passages are used to check fluency and accuracy. While daily reading comprehension checks are gathered through check list, questioning and discussions during whole group read alouds and small instructional groups. Each teacher maintains records of student reading achievement and tracks individual growth. Teachers use reading portfolios to store reading and writing samples, fluency scores, and comprehension assessments. Teachers adjust instruction based on the data collected from these assessments. For example, a teacher may provide additional phonics practice to a student struggling with decoding or assigning higher-level texts to a student who is reading above grade level. Teachers regularly send home parent reports on their child's reading progress, including results from universal screeners, progress monitoring, and interventions. Teachers provide detailed information on the specific reading skills their child is working on and strategies for supporting reading development at home. During parent-teacher conferences, teachers discuss data from screeners, diagnostics, and classroom assessments, providing parents with a clear understanding of their child’s reading strengths and areas for improvement.
Progress monitoring provides regular, ongoing assessments of students receiving interventions to ensure they are making adequate growth toward reading proficiency. Teachers use progress monitoring data to alter instruction and intervention. If a student is not showing sufficient growth, the intervention may be intensified or adjusted to better meet the student’s needs. By utilizing universal screening, diagnostic assessments, progress monitoring, and a tiered system of support, the school effectively monitors reading achievement and growth at both the classroom and school levels. Data is used continuously to inform intervention decisions and ensure that all students in PreK-2nd grade are on track to achieve grade-level reading proficiency.
Section F:
Teachers at Cheraw Primary receive ongoing professional development on how to interpret reading data and adjust instruction based on student needs. This includes training in using screening and diagnostic tools, progress monitoring, and data-driven decision-making. Teachers receive targeted professional development in the science of reading, a body of research that explains how children learn to read, and the most effective methods for teaching literacy skills. This training emphasizes the five key components of reading instruction. Phonemic Awareness helps students recognize and manipulate sounds in spoken language. Phonics teaches the relationship between letters and sounds to decode words. Fluency develops the ability to read text accurately, quickly, and with expression. Vocabulary builds word knowledge to enhance comprehension. Comprehension teaches strategies for understanding, interpreting, and analyzing text. LETRS professional development is a research-based approach based on The Science of Reading. Teachers learned about the latest research and best practices in reading instruction, including how to implement structured literacy, which aligns with the science of reading to support students in acquiring foundational skills. At Cheraw Primary, professional development, workshops and seminars are led by literacy experts, reading specialists, and certified trainers with expertise in the science of reading and structured literacy approaches. Structured literacy professional development focuses on reading instruction that is explicit, systematic, and sequential, focusing on the structure of language at multiple levels. Training ensures teachers understand how to implement structured literacy practices in the classroom. Teachers are trained to deliver reading lessons that are clear and specific, using modeling and guided practice to teach skills like phonics and word decoding. Educators are taught to follow a logical sequence when teaching reading skills, gradually building on students' prior knowledge. They learn how to break down complex skills into manageable steps. Teachers also learn to use data from assessments to tailor their instruction and interventions based on individual student needs. Training includes the use of multisensory approaches, where students engage in multiple senses to help reinforce reading concepts. Teachers practice using tools like letter tiles, sand trays, and movement-based activities to enhance literacy instruction. The training covers strategies to support struggling readers. Teachers are trained to recognize the signs of reading difficulties and implement targeted interventions aligned with structured literacy principles. The school provides access to a literacy coach and a LETRS trained principal who works closely with teachers to model effective reading instruction strategies, observe classroom practices, and offer feedback. The literacy coach helps teachers implement structured literacy approaches and use data to refine their instructional practices. Throughout the year, the coach revisits and offers needed support with LETRS. Teachers participate in regular MTSS and PLC grade level meetings focused on literacy instruction. In these meetings, they discuss student data, share effective practices, and collaboratively solve challenges related to reading instruction. By providing comprehensive, ongoing training based on the science of reading, structured literacy, and foundational literacy skills, the school ensures that PreK-5th grade teachers are well-equipped to deliver high-quality literacy instruction that meets the needs of all students. Cheraw Primary provides continuous training which empowers teachers to use evidence-based practices, differentiate instruction, and provide targeted interventions that support reading proficiency across grade levels.
Section G: Analysis of Data
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Strengths |
Possibilities for Growth |
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Teachers are utilizing LETRS scope and sequence.
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Update classroom libraries and the school literacy library to include decodable text as well as various genres of fiction and nonfiction texts.
The focus of PLC meetings will be to provide professional development with understanding and implementation of explicit instruction from the research of Anita Archer to improve tier 1 instruction.
Decrease the percentage of students at Does Not Meet across all grade levels
Teachers new to our school will be LETRS trained.
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Section H: Previous School Year SMART Goals and Progress Toward Those Goals
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Goals |
Progress |
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Goal #1 Reduce the percentage of first graders scoring Does Not Meet in the fall of 2024 as determined by MAP/i-Ready from 90 % to 80% in the spring of 2025. |
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Goal #2: Reduce the percentage of second graders scoring Does Not Meet in the fall of 2024 as determined by MAP/i-Ready from 86% to 76% in the spring of 2025. |
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Section I: Current SMART Goals and Action Steps Based on Analysis of Data
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Goals |
Action Steps |
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Goal #1
In order to meet the state goal and district goal of 75% of all students at meets or exceeds, Cheraw Primary will reduce the percentage of first graders scoring Does Not Meet (<24.7) in the spring of 2025 as determined by i-Ready from 43% to 40% in the spring of 2026.
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• Professional development focusing on explicit instruction • Progress monitor students by assessing targeted goals • Analyze foundational skills data in all grade levels to improve classroom instruction and increase awareness of students’ needs.
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Goal #2:
In order to meet the state goal and district goal of 75% of all students at meets or exceeds, Cheraw Primary will reduce the percentage of second graders scoring Does Not Meet (<24.7) in the spring of 2025 as determined by i-Ready from 35% to 33% in the spring of 2026. |
• Professional development focusing on explicit instruction • Progress monitor students by assessing targeted goals • Analyze foundational skills data in all grade levels to improve classroom instruction and increase awareness of students’ needs.
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