Title I - Sutton Elementary Title I Plan
Title One School Plan
Sutton Elementary School
Describe your two-step process for identifying students.
How is the pool of educationally disadvantaged students identified?
Our Rank Order Form uses the results of Sutton Central School’s benchmark assessments in reading and math. These include standardized tests such as AIMSweb literacy and numeracy, EnVisions math, and Fountas & Pinnell reading assessments. Each raw score is translated to its national percentile which is then used for qualifying points. Homeless and migrant students automatically qualify regardless of the date they enter school, and in accordance with Every Child Succeeds Act of 2015 Foster Youth and Juvenile Justice Provisions, any students in this target group will also be monitored to determine need for academic response.- How will you select the neediest students?
The second step in our selection process takes all of the information from the above mentioned Rank Order Form and adds data from secondary diagnostic assessments as well as teacher recommendations and students’ Title 1 histories. A Secondary Assessment Form is completed for each and every student who receives at least one point on the Rank Order Form. Title 1 Interventionists meet with the RTI team following the completion of each benchmark assessment period to review each student’s status individually. Consensus is met to determine those to be offered Title 1 services with the neediest students receiving priority consideration. Monitoring of student progress is frequent, and fine-tuning of instruction is based on student response to the intervention. Weekly RTI meetings enable the team to intensify or change interventions if the need arises.
Describe how your Title 1 instructional program is in addition to the Title 1 student’s basic reading/math program that is delivered by district staff. We need to know from your description that the Title 1 program services are supplemental to what the child is required to receive by law. In order to be in compliance with the law, your program must be able to identify how the services provided by the Title 1 staff to Title 1 students are in addition to what every other child receives as part of his/her basic education.
Sutton School has created specific times during the school day for Tier 2 instruction based on the RTI model. These times, set aside for both reading and math instruction, are outside the Tier 1 times when classroom teachers deliver whole-class core instruction. During these RTI (Response to Intervention) times, each student in the school receives instruction that fits his/her needs either in a small-group or individually, with no new concepts being introduced. All Title 1 instruction occurs during these specific times.
Describe how your instructional support model uses only research-based strategies for improving achievement of your Title 1 students.
Instructional support is based on the core reading and math programs that are used in the classroom and are designed to reteach and reinforce the concepts taught during classroom instruction.
Describe the curricula you have chosen to support your Title 1 students. Explain how it is accelerated and of high quality and will assist Title 1 students to reach the standards set in the State’s curriculum frameworks.
The programs we have chosen are designed to rebuild the critical foundations for reading and math by focusing on basic concepts to more complex operational work. This includes the Journeys reading program, and enVisions math program. We also use Focus Math, Building Fact Fluency, On Cloud 9, Fountas & Pinnell Leveled Literacy Intervention, and Scholastic guided reading. Both the Journeys and enVisions programs have intervention and reteaching components that support the core instruction provided by the classroom teacher. These programs are research based and aligned with the Common Core State Standards. By providing supplemental support to the Title 1 students, the goal is for them to reach the grade level standards by the end of the school year.
Describe how you have minimized removing children from the regular classroom during regular hours for instruction. If you do pull students out of class, describe how you will ensure that they are not missing direct instruction from the classroom teacher.
Some students are supported directly in the classroom, during small group work time. This is not during their core instruction time. Other groups are pulled out of class, but no direct instruction is happening in the classroom at that time. They are pulled out during a block of time called “Response to Intervention (RTI).” Students are working independently or in small groups during this block of time on skills that reinforce reading and math concepts.
Include the strategies you will use to provide extended learning time for your Title 1 students.
There are currently no before or after school programs for Title 1 students. The neediest Title 1 students (based on the most recent Rank Order Forms) are offered the opportunity to participate in the Kearsarge District’s Extended Year Program. This is a 4-5 week program that provides literacy and math instruction four mornings a week. In addition, at the end of the school year, a summer bag is given to each student with books and activities to avoid regression over the summer. There is also a subscription-only website with leveled reading that the students may access during the summer months.
Describe your plans for increasing parental involvement for this school year. Also, how are parents involved in the planning, implementation and evaluation of this grant?
We will partner with families to encourage activities that support learning potential and lifelong success. We hold an annual fall meeting, where the Title 1 program is explained, input for our Parent Compact is discussed, and suggestions for future events throughout the current year are noted. We also are available to attend parent/teacher conferences and invite all families to come observe their child during a Title 1 lesson. Other family events, such as a game night, an evening with an author, or sponsoring an educational speaker are held throughout the year. At the completion of each school year, an evaluation form is sent to each family through which they can offer their feedback on the program. This includes any and all comments and suggestions for changes in the Title 1 program to ensure continued growth for their child.
These are noted, compiled, and submitted with our Annual Report of Student Growth.
Describe any professional development activities funded by Title 1. Who will participate and how do the activities support the educationally disadvantaged population? Include your evaluation component. How do these professional development activities relate to your PD Master Plan and your district’s Technology Plan?
We offer professional development opportunities that are vital to the improvement of instructional skills needed by staff in order to help all students meet or exceed proficiency targets on academic assessments. Title 1 staff participate in the annual August Professional Development Institute, which includes three days of training offered to staff throughout the Kearsarge District. Past institutes have focused on learning the core reading and math programs, and how to provide appropriate interventions to support these programs. We also participate in the district professional development day in the fall, which covers topics such as assessment, and how to interpret the resulting data used to select students for Title 1 services. We are offered the opportunity to attend professional workshops throughout the school year through educational companies such as BER, SDE, and Wilson Reading. We also attend staff meetings when applicable professional development topics are discussed.
Describe your steps to ensure that instructional planning for anticipating students is incorporated into their existing school program. We need to know specifically how and when this coordination happens. If the coordination seems random or inconsistent, your application will not be approved until regular and timely coordination is designed. Describe your record keeping procedures to document this coordination.
Sutton School places a strong focus on communication and instructional alignment. Throughout the year, weekly RTI meetings are held with school staff to review interventions and plans for specific students. If a lack of sufficient progress is noted for a student, then he/she is elevated to an RTI-Academic meeting, where a larger group of staff, including the classroom teacher, the Title 1 Interventionists, principal, and the special ed staff are in attendance to review data, intervention received, and possible changes or further testing that may need to occur. In addition to these weekly meetings, Benchmark meetings are held in September, January, and June of the school year to review assessment data and to make plans for intervention groups and any changes that may be necessary based on the latest testing data. In between the Benchmark meetings, progress monitoring meetings are held 6-8 weeks after the Benchmark meeting to review progress. Record keeping will be accomplished through notes of the collaborative planning meetings, and recorded in Branching Minds. Title 1 interventionists meet regularly with classroom teachers and specialists to discuss and coordinate instructional plans.