ARI Literacy Leadership

The Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) is a statewide K-3 initiative committed to supporting the development of high-quality instruction that will prepare all students with the literacy skills needed to meet or exceed grade-level standards. The goal of the ARI is to significantly improve reading instruction and ultimately achieve literacy among all public school students.

Winter can be a time for renewed collaboration and implementation of new plans. The Alabama Cogs for Success will continue to drive our collaborative work this semester. Consider the following:

• How has your leadership impacted data-based decision making?
• Has your school experienced growth in this area?
• During the fall semester, how has data-based decision making impacted instructional changes in your school?
• How will you plan to continually improve in this cog?
• How can the Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) support you and your school?

Our work this semester and beyond will consist of digging deeper into each Cog as we use the mid-year data to inform our actions. It is important to remember the cogs do not operate in isolation. All cogs should be in motion simultaneously to improve student achievement.

Each component in the school-wide system for literacy is like a cog working with other gears in a complex machine. The components are critical for improving reading proficiency. They contain the criteria that inform practices, processes, and the overall strength of services delivered to improve reading achievement.

• Leadership and Implementation Teams
• Universal Core Instruction
• Intervention
• Data-Informed Decision Making
• Assessment
• Professional Learning
• Community and Family Involvement

The school leadership team, which includes teachers from various grade levels and administrators, will lead efforts to embed essential components of reading instruction into all school structures, including developing and updating professional development related to literacy assessment and instruction.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

• Analyze data and plan data meetings with the local reading specialist and assistant principal(s).

• Analyze the effectiveness of instruction and interventions (Tier 1, 2, & 3) based on mid-year data results.

• During the weekly planning meeting with the LRS, discuss coaching implications based on MOY data.

• Collaboratively develop look-fors for instructional walk-throughs based on data and coaching support that has occurred.

• Follow-up with the LRS with Bridge to Practice on explicit instruction.

• Develop strategies and resources for the parent or legal guardian to use at home to help the students succeed in reading with consideration of home language (share Family and Community Involvement Videos and QR Codes).

Alabama's SoR Spotlight Schools were selected based on their strong commitment to Alabama's K-3 learners. SoR Spotlight Schools not only meet the requirements of the Alabama Literacy Act by ensuring K-3 faculty participated in SoR training, such as Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS), but also showed student progress in reading achievement as evidenced by the grade three reading outcome data between 2019 and 2024. These schools continue to enact best practices in leadership alongside effective foundational literacy instruction.

We invite you to view this short video about the 2024-2025 SoR Spotlight School Visits.

This link lists the upcoming dates and locations for SoR Spotlight School Visits.

Improving literacy achievement is incumbent on discussions about the current state of literacy achievement. Discussions regarding literacy data must become a regular part of the school climate.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

It is hard to believe that winter is here, and we are halfway through the current school year. As we begin the second semester, it is important to remember that just as every snowflake is unique, so are students. Every student has a fingerprint that identifies them. Are you ensuring that every fingerprint is being identified as well as their needs? What does their mid-year data reveal about their progress? Keep this in mind as we take a deep dive into mid-year data. What implications do you identify school-wide? Are there unique needs in specific classrooms and individual students? As school leaders, we play a vital role in these important collaborative conversations. As you lead your teams to make data-informed adjustments, don’t forget to focus on the accomplishments as well. Remember to keep the focus on students and student growth.

Have you considered the following data points for discussion?

• Portfolios and mastery of essential standards for third grade
• Mastery of essential standards for K, 1, and 2
• ACAP Practice Test data demonstrating mastery of standards
• Formative assessment gathered in daily instruction

Here are a few conversation starters that are great reminders that there is POWER in our words:

• The number of students that I have at or above benchmark are__________.
• The number of students that have improved and progressed from one level of instructional support to the next are_________.
• The strategies and instruction that worked are________.
• The specific areas that I saw growth are______ because_______.
• For the students who did not make adequate growth, my instructional implications are__________.

The ARI Data Inquiry Protocol contains suggestions to guide leadership teams in making data-informed, outcome-driven decisions.

The Alabama State Department of Education and the DRC have released the ACAP Practice Test. After test administration, we are forged with the responsibility of analyzing the data, celebrating strengths, and identifying areas of need. Once the needs are identified, planning purposeful instruction in response to those needs is the most important part. It’s imperative to take those next steps that will propel students forward. Without action, there is a possibility of little to no growth. The ACAP Practice Test gives schools the opportunity to target and plan instruction around specific standards and plan explicit instruction that responds to specific class, group, and individual needs. There is no better way to increase student achievement! During one of our recent Leadership Labs, Dr. Brittany Harris at Eutaw Primary and her team shared a tool they use to analyze ACAP Practice Data. The tool is linked here for your viewing. Thank you to Dr. Harris for sharing this.

Evidence substantiates that every student is receiving effective, differentiated Tier 1 core literacy instruction from high-quality research-based curricula and instructional strategies aligned to state standards.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

The Alabama Literacy Act defines fluency as the ability to read with accuracy, appropriate rate, and proper expression. In terms of oral reading, the term fluency “….refers to efficient, effective word recognition skills that permit a reader to construct the meaning of text. Fluency is manifested in accurate, rapid, expressive oral reading and is applied during, and makes possible, silent reading comprehension” (Pikulski & Chard, 2005. P. 510 – LETRS Unit 4 Session 6). When children can read fluently, it’s easier for them to understand what they’re reading. They will be able to read easily and with expression – which enables understanding and makes reading a lot more enjoyable!

Evidence-Based Instructional Practices for Teaching Fluency:

• Fluency Focus Area #1: High-Frequency Word Fluency (LETRS Unit 3 / p.213)
• Fluency Focus Area #2: Phrase-Cued Oral Reading (LETRS Unit 4 / p. 300)
• Fluency Focus Area #3: Simultaneous Oral Reading (LETRS Unit 4 / p. 301)
• Fluency Focus Area #4: Partner Reading (LETRS Unit 4 / p. 303)

Fluency develops gradually over time and through practice. It’s important to progress monitor fluency frequently and make instructional adjustments accordingly. Don’t get stuck in response mode only. Look “upstream” to get in front of problems before they happen. ~ Dan Heath, Upstream

Book Summary and Notable Quotes from the Leadership Book Upstream

Audio from The Principal Radio Featuring Dan Heath- Upstream

For more information and demonstrations of these evidence-based practices, watch the ARI Fluency Video on our YouTube channel.

Valid and reliable screening instruments and progress-monitoring assessments of reading achievement are used. These tools are clearly specified and used to guide instruction.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

Alabama teachers prepare students for ACAP testing each day by utilizing the Alabama 2021 ELA Course of Study Standards. ACAP resources are available to support teachers as they plan for instruction and assessment. The ACAP Summative Blueprints explain the domains (reporting categories) and possible points. The ACAP Summative Performance Level Descriptors describe what a typical student scoring at each performance level can do. The ACAP Summative Instructional Supports are designed to help educators engage students in exploring, explaining, and expanding their understanding of the content standards.

Considerations for Using ACAP Summative Resources:

• Pacing & Planning → Blueprints
• Instruction → Instructional Supports, Retired Questions, & PLDs
• Assessments → Item Specs, Retired Questions, & PLDs

Have the new Item Specifications and other documents with your staff? They are amazing and offer additional information that can be utilized by teachers when planning. Utilizing these documents supports teachers as they plan standards-based instruction while using core programs as a resource. Updated ACAP resources are linked below.

Additional instruction designed to meet students' specific needs is provided, while at the same time, accelerate growth toward grade-level benchmarks. Students needing acceleration also receive appropriate interventions to close the gap with grade-level expectation.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

As we begin a new semester, it is important to reflect on items that we have completed while simultaneously determining our focus for the future. Documentation in PowerSchool Analytics & Unified Insights is very important to the Alabama Literacy Act. Where is your school in the process of creating or entering SRIP information on students? What about Tier 3 intervention documentation? Are teachers entering LAP documentation for their 3rd graders? Mid-year data meetings can be a great time to discuss these responsibilities to ensure that your school is on track. Consider adding a PowerSchool Analytics & Unified Insights temperature check to your agenda!

The CALT (Certified Academic Language Therapist) repository is now available to explore! This resource was created to provide user-friendly, practical information for those curious about CALTs and their role in supporting literacy success. Whether you’re a teacher or administrator, the repository includes an array of resources designed to build understanding and awareness of this certification.

Professional learning is an integral part of the schoolwide system for increased literacy achievement. Professional learning includes the skills and knowledge needed to improve teaching and is aligned to research-based principles and instructional practices.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

The Alabama Reading Initiative invites you to view the new ARI website! The website will be continually updated with information, details, and links for:

• The Alabama Literacy Act
• Coaching
• Cogs for Success
• Struggling Readers Beyond Grade 3
• Institutions of Higher Education/ Educator Preparation Programs
• ARI News and Updates

The Alabama Coaching Framework sets the standard for how coaches in any content area conduct their work in Alabama. The coaching cycle is a standard process coaches and educators use to implement professional learning to improve student outcomes and educator practices. ARI uses a student-centered coaching model to guide the work. This coaching model was developed by Diane Sweeney and Leanna Harris and always keeps students at the center of coaching.

- The Student-Centered Coaching Guide for K-3 Literacy in Alabama Schools, page 10

When expectations feel overwhelming, it's easy to wonder, "Can one person truly make an impact?" The answer is YES! Every small step you take has the potential to leave a lasting and positive footprint on the instruction and achievement in your school. It's not about the size of your actions; it's about the intention and commitment behind them. When an LRS leaves a deep footprint, it means that the instructional best practices, strategies and routines will likely continue long after the coaching session is over.

Here are a few ways ARI local reading specialists are leaving deep footprints:

• Becoming think partners with teachers to sort student work and create instructional next steps based on current data

• Modeling successful instructional strategies grounded in the science of reading

• Increasing the understanding and implementation of standards-based instruction

• Growing teacher confidence through co-teaching and weekly collaboration

• Celebrating data growth as a result of coaching cycles

How deep is the footprint you are leaving?

During the November Coaching Community, information was shared with local reading specialists (LRS) about John Hattie’s Barometer of Influence, which helps educators understand the impact of various teaching practices on student achievement. Explicit instruction has been identified as a powerful practice, with direct instruction falling into the category having the highest impact on student achievement.

LRS also explored the Reading Rockets article 16 Elements of Explicit Instruction (Anita L. Archer, Charles Hughes), as well as the three parts of an explicit lesson. As part of the Coaching Community Bridge to Practice, remember to share your learning about explicit instruction with your principal. The bookmark provided at Coaching Community can be utilized to support teachers during instructional planning.

Questions to consider when planning:

• Is the instructional focus aligned to the grade level 2021 ELA COS and based on the SoR?

• What previous student evidence can inform our instructional decisions?

• How can the instruction be refined or enhanced with SoR instructional strategies?

• Are the routines and practices explicit, systematic, and sequential?

• What specific areas in the lesson need more focus and time?

Just as fluency has been highlighted for instructional leaders and families, this component is also an important part of student-centered coaching cycles. Fluency begins with the development of letter naming fluency. Knowledge of letter names and fluency of letter naming in Kindergarten are among the best predictors of later reading success. The Alabama Literacy Act defines fluency as the ability to read with accuracy, appropriate rate, and proper expression. This makes silent reading comprehension possible.

Local reading specialists can support teachers as they analyze student data to identify potential areas of growth in the critical area of fluency and plan evidence-based instructional strategies to develop fluent readers. By determining how students are performing in relation to fluency standards, the LRS and teacher can create learning targets for students. This video link provides LRS with information about fluency within student-centered coaching cycles, including partnerships and conversations before, during, and after the coaching cycle.

This article represents a framework to enhance our understanding of fluency and suggest practices that support the development of foundational skills. By transitioning from a simple to a multifaceted understanding of fluency, educators can gradually foster reading automaticity throughout students' literacy experiences.

The More You Know: How Teaching Multiple Aspects of Word Knowledge Builds Fluency Skills

Both community and family are involved and actively contributing to the social, emotional, physical, academic, and occupational growth of students.

- Adapted from LETRS for Administrators

The ARI Winter Family Newsletter contains valuable family and community literacy resources designed to engage and support student learning before and after school this winter. We encourage you to take the time to review these resources and share them with others in your community. Please let us know how we can assist you with your family and community literacy initiatives this school year. Together, we can achieve more!

You can see current and past issues of the ARI newsletters on our new ARI webpage under “ARI News & Updates.” You may sign up to receive the release of these newsletters here.

The Alabama Reading Initiative has developed a video for parents and families that provides a family-friendly explanation of the important literacy component of fluency.

Included in this video are:

• Explanations of key terms within fluency
• Ideas and activities to support fluency
• Strategies to build improved fluency

This can serve as a valuable resource for families as they support their students beyond the school day. The video link is included below.

The Alabama Reading Initiative invites you to join us on our social media platforms. These different platforms are serving as powerful communication avenues for key literacy topics, instructional ideas, and supports for instructional leaders, local reading specialists, teachers, and families.

Let's stay connected!

The information included in this document is done from the perspective of improving LITERACY instruction for students and is only intended to outline support that directly relates to literacy instruction. Please use any resource links with discretion, as their position statements are their own and not necessarily representative of ARI and the ALSDE. Usage of any materials should be with adherence to rules and regulations of the Alabama State Department of Education.