At Meadow Village Elementary school, every student will be a part of a balanced literacy program, which includes phonics, reading instruction, read aloud, shared reading, guided reading, and independent reading. We are lucky to have three reading specialists at Meadow Village. Two reading specialists work with grades 3rd through 5th grade and, our early literacy specialist works with Kindergarten through 2nd grade. With this combination of teachers and reading specialist support, every student is able to receive high quality instruction at their individual academic level. The reading specialists at Meadow Village Elementary go into classrooms to support students and teachers, rather than pulling students out of their classroom environment. This allows for a smaller student to teacher ratio, and for specialists and teachers to collaborate in order to provide students with the best standards-aligned lessons that address the unique needs of each student. All students are able to receive support at their individual guided reading level. Meadow Village reading instruction resources include Words Their Way and Units of Study in Phonics for phonics instruction. Words Their Way lessons are inquiry-based and have engaging, interactive word sorts for students to manipulate in order to learn about word patterns. This resource also has a variety of games and cross-curricular lesson connections. Units of Study in Phonics develops early literacy skills. Both of these resources give students a foundation in literacy to develop the whole reader. Another resource at Meadow Village Elementary is our robust literacy closet, teeming with books for all reading levels, that include picture books, leveled readers and chapter books from a variety of subjects and content areas. Teachers can also find highly-engaging, interactive games and manipulatives to support their lessons and students from a variety of reading levels. In addition, teachers are able to check out the latest professional development that highlight topics that address each piece of student literacy. These books allow teachers easy access to the most recent best practices in literacy education. Classroom Libraries and Independent Reading
At Meadow Village Elementary, every classroom is equipped with a classroom library with more than 90 books for students to check out. These books are in addition to the school library and differ between grade levels. They are from a variety of genres including fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, fantasy, biographies, historical fiction and mystery. This allows for students to read books on various topics that interest them. Students have opportunities to read these books throughout the day, and a specific time is set aside during their literacy time to read independently. Students are encouraged to continue reading these books or other books of their choice at home. It is our goal that all students enjoy reading and become lifelong readers.
Purposeful Play Stations Pre-K and Kindergarten Purposeful play stations, or play areas provide practical ways for our students to think deeply in all aspects of the curriculum. Some of the materials to create purposeful play areas include furniture, such as a play kitchen or play market. Purposeful play allows students to build their oral language and engage in concrete experiences that deepens their understanding of all areas of academics. Students are able to choose which station to play at. During each unique station children talk, play and discover elements of our world. Some examples of purposeful play stations include a doctor's office, a grocery store, a vet office, a library and a drama center.