Literacy program aims to empower students to read on grade level by third grade
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A literacy program enacted by Henrico County Public Schools two years ago aims to ensure that all students are ready on or above their grade level by third grade.
The LifeReady Literacy program, which began in the fall of 2020, focuses on giving students access to a significant variety of diverse texts through digital libraries as well as intervention for students and student groups who aren’t reading at their grade level, according to HCPS Director of School Quality Ann Marie Seely. The program also provides teachers access to better instructional materials to teach literacy to their classes, as well as access to reading specialists.
The Henrico County school district currently employs 52 reading specialists, 30 of whom are serving in Title 1 schools, according to Seely, who discussed the program with the county’s school board during its Oct. 27 work session.
One of the goals of the LifeReady program is to emphasize literacy as important in all school subjects, not just English. In classes such as physical education, knowing key words and terms or reading instructions require literacy, Seely said.
“Literacy naturally lives in all subject areas,” Seely said. “It’s not just reading an article about cooking if you’re in a cooking class, it’s more about the skills of critical thinking, writing in the workplace, and what that looks like in different careers.
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Also at the board’s work session, officials discussed the school system’s “Handle with Care” program, which allows law enforcement officials to inform school personnel about students who have been involved in traumatic incidents and who may need extra support and attention, according to HCPS Emergency Manager Cortney Berry. This program was implemented at the beginning of this school year.
“For example, when police encounter children on the scene of an incident late at night, they make contact with school representatives to ensure they handle the students with care at school the next morning,” Berry said. “The details of the trauma are never shared, it’s simply a notification.”
