The Dubuque Community School District will host two sessions to introduce parents to the district’s new LEAD21 literacy program. The sessions will be held at Thursday, Sept. 20, with one beginning at 5:45 p.m. at Marshall Elementary School and a second beginning at 6:30 p.m. at Carver Elementary School. Parents of students in kindergarten through fifth grade are encouraged to attend.
The sessions, which will last about one hour and will be presented by a representative from McGraw-Hill, are designed to give a look into what the new curriculum is and how it will benefit student learning.
LEAD21 is designed to transform the way reading is taught in order to better meet the needs of today’s students. A product of McGraw-Hill Wright Group, it is built around five key goals that make up its acronym: Literacy expanded, Equity ensured, Acceleration achieved and Differentiation defined – all to foster 21st century learning.
The program’s aim to expand literacy is achieved through multiple opportunities for students to engage in both verbal and written communication in both traditional and electronic formats. It is also designed to provide a structure to ensure equity among various levels of learning. Through the program, teachers get a system by which they can make a lesson plan meet the needs of the different learners in their classrooms.
Using the newest research, LEAD21 has also built in a teacher support system called the gradual release of responsibility. Through this method, teachers can move advanced learners into more complex texts at a faster pace while also effectively meeting the needs of struggling readers. When using this type of instruction, students can be given more complex text for their instruction.
For more information, contact the DCSD School and Community Relations Office at (563)552-3020.
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