Language and Literature

Honors-Level Literacy For All

Our goal is to provide students with research-based, rigorous reading and writing instruction focused on enrichment and inquiry, regardless of the classroom they are assigned. In past practice, only a handful of teachers were responsible for literacy intervention and practices included some that were remedial and segregated, contributing to unsatisfactory outcomes for students. Although pull-out remediation may seem like an easier way to get the results we want, literacy outcomes are complex. A student’s literacy identity is connected to expectations that we have for them as a reader and writer, as well as their success in literacy and the ways they see themselves in the curriculum.

The 5 Pursuits of Culturally Relevant Literacy
Teachers approach the student experience and our classes through the 5 pursuits listed below. These pursuits are part of the St. Louis Park Public Schools strategic plan. Enrichment isn’t always about offering students with high skill levels more work, it’s also about helping students find joy, work on criticality, and deepen their discovery of all of the pursuits. While some students are strong in each pursuit, others accelerate in some pursuits more than others. Enrichment isn’t always about offering students with high skill levels, more skills, it’s also about helping students find joy, work on criticality, and deepen their discovery of all of the pursuits. Rigor comes from and through all of the 5 pursuits.

Identity - students discover who they are, who others say they are, and who they desire to be
Skill - students demonstrate proficiency in reading (decoding, vocabulary, phonics, etc.)
Intellectualism - citing textual evidence and writing and expression of ideas
Criticality - critical thinking, students understand power, humanity, inequities, oppression, anti-sexism and anti-racism
Joy - students express happiness and a love for learning

Elementary Literacy and Enrichment

Under the new literacy approach, elementary students receive 90 minutes a day of dedicated reading time and 30 minutes of writing. Students also receive gifted and talented programming four days a week through STEAM (Science, Technology, Education and Human Development, the Arts, and Math) programming. Prior to our enrichment programming changes, only a small portion of students received only 40 minutes of gifted programming per week. Enrichment teachers and literacy specialists provide support, guidance, and coaching to teachers to ensure every student accelerates, no matter where they are at.

Teachers and literacy specialists across elementary schools are now in the first year of piloting three new literacy curriculum to determine which will best align with the research-based practices above. The Literacy Design Team, made up of classroom teachers, will make recommendations this spring to the School Board about which curriculums to adopt for the 2023-2024 school year. The new elementary literacy curriculum will be reviewed again in five years as part of the district’s continual improvement Curriculum Review Process, the same as all areas.

Secondary Literacy and the Redesign of the Middle School Experience

At the secondary level, we’re embracing the International Baccalaureate (IB) framework to create a consistent literacy progression across secondary courses. Therefore, we have redesigned the middle school experience so that honors-level learning can move students seamlessly into high school prepared to take honors-level courses.

All students get research-based, rigorous reading and writing instruction focused on enrichment and inquiry, regardless of the classroom they are assigned. Expanding rigorous literacy for all students and eliminating regular Language and Literature classes allows us to dedicate more time to exploring further learning experiences. It is important to understand that we are not eliminating or decreasing any learning experiences, rather, creating opportunities for honors-level work in every class. The course changes will occur over the next three school years, beginning with 6th grade next school year, 7th grade in 2024-2025, and 8th grade in 2025-26.

Imagine a hedge maze. Students enter the class together, but how each student experiences their learning is completely different. Embedding differentiation practices through choice, enrichment, multiple perspectives, and a variety of instructional methods, teachers guide students to accelerate their individual learning.

All middle school students will continue to engage in enrichment opportunities as part of the IB Middle Years Programme. Language & Literature enrichment opportunities also exist in the electives of Creative Writing, Film Studies, Musical Theater, Fantasy Literature, Humanities, and Digital Storytelling. Additionally, we have a Spelling Bee, Newspaper Club, Maslon Uplift, and Debate, amongst other things.

Students are expected to study and show proficiency in analyzing texts, organizing ideas, producing text, and using language to express themselves. These are the four different IB Criteria for Language & Literature. Extended learning occurs when students learn and demonstrate understanding of the criteria at a sophisticated, perceptive, and extensive level.

High School English teachers are utilizing professional development to collaboratively create new units and create enriched learning opportunities in all classes. College in the Schools and a writing center will be added to the high school next year. The High School offers more than 40 Advanced Placement (AP), IB and Concurrent College courses, significantly more than most Minnesota school districts.

Early Indicators of Progress

While we are still in the beginning stages of strengthening our literacy efforts, early indicators show we are on the path towards growth and acceleration for students.

Data Highlights

The majority of SLP elementary schools increased 3rd and 5th grade MCA reading proficiency last year (2021-2022).
Two of the four elementary schools exceeded state MCA reading proficiency in 2022.
The majority of SLP elementary schools exceeded state MCA reading proficiency in at least one year between 2019-2022 (over three years).

Student Voices on Literacy

One of St. Louis Park Public Schools' literacy principles is making sure all students have access to high interest books that they are able to read. Special attention is given to culturally relevant practices and those that maximize gifts and talents of all of our students. The approach provides more student choice of materials and how students show their knowledge, a staple of enrichment programming.

So, what are some of our students’ all time favorite books?

Maeve, 2nd grader at Park Spanish Immersion, says her favorite book of all time is Goddess Girls by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams. It’s a series about Greek mythology and gods. What does Maeve like most about reading and writing? “I kinda like that you get to make up your own stories and kinda the stories bring you into your own world," she said. "Some books are really difficult and you don't get 'em all right, but sometimes it can kind of help you read better.”

Krychell Smith is an 8th grader at St. Louis Park Middle School. “When I was really small I felt like reading was a burden and that reading was taking time away from fun things, like playing with my friends. Now, reading and writing are more of a learning process for me and are interesting compared to what it was before. Reading is really fun for me and helps me learn different things about the world,” she said. Krychell’s all time favorite book is an LGBT realistic fiction book, They Both Die in the End by Adam Silvera.

Krychell’s middle school Language and Literature experience helped her realize her love for writing, which is why she enrolled in Creative Writing this year. “I feel like when you're reading or writing you can find yourself in the situation and really feel something that's different...it can change your mind, like if you are not in happy place, you can find yourself in such a happy situation that makes you genuinely happy.”

Susannah Israel is in 9th grade at St. Louis Park High School whose reading and writing experience at the high school has helped change her perspective on the world. “There are so many books I have read that have made me think differently, cultures I didn't know about, background knowledge I didn't have and it made me expand my thinking. I've become more open minded,” she shared. Susannah’s favorite book of all time is A series of Unfortunate Events by Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket. “I'm actually considering writing my final essay about how this series shaped my life,” she shared.

“I've been challenged to write in different ways and sometimes different writing methods,” Susannah expressed about their experience. “I have a set way that I like to write, but sometimes I'm told I need to write more poems or include more similes, metaphors, or personification. Even though I'm not used to writing that way, I'm being asked to broaden my horizons. Sometimes we write in a group and that can be challenging because I like my writing to be my own, so initially I am reluctant to consider other ideas, but upon further analysis I really appreciate different writing structures.”

FAQs

Submit a question

Did SLP eliminate advanced literacy classes?

Under the new literacy model, we provide rigorous literacy for all students. In reality, we’ve eliminated regular Language and Literature courses, which resulted in remediation and incremental growth. It is important to note that we are not eliminating or decreasing any learning experiences by offering expanding rigorous literacy for all students. In fact, doing so allows us to dedicate more time to exploring further learning experiences.

We are focused on student learning and achievement. By leveraging our IB Achievement Descriptors and Rubrics for Language & Literature, we have clearly articulated what it means for students to "sufficiently" meet a skill or understanding. This has been "regular" Language and Literature because it is the expectation that all students are achieving at grade level. Additionally, it is articulated how to "thoroughly" and "extensively" master a skill, which is achieving at an "advanced" level. This new structure would allow any student in any class section to achieve at the expected grade level or beyond for each skill.

How do students access enrichment, support, and intervention when needed?

Our instructors strive to be motivating and supportive to keep students engaged. Teachers receive professional development in different settings in order to build the capacity of all of our teachers in the science of reading and all aspects of culturally relevant literacy.

Our ongoing development of differentiation helps teachers determine when the instruction is not sufficient to meet the needs of individual students. With robust student libraries, students are able to select not only different levels of reading books but also a variety of genres to provide them with perspectives that they are seeking. Differentiation opportunities continue in the summer through our school offered programming.

Our intervention guidelines help teachers determine when core instruction is not sufficient to meet the needs of individual students. Classroom teachers, enrichment teachers, multilingual teachers, special education teachers, and literacy specialists support students not yet at grade level in a wide variety of ways, including small group interventions. Some interventions take place right in the classroom with their teacher or a literacy specialist, while others may be before or after school or part of a summer school program.

Does the International Baccalaureate programme support this change?

What research, strategies and practices are the literacy changes based on?

The research-based frameworks SLP literacy changes are based on include: International Baccalaureate (IB) Framework, LETRS Training, Meaningful Phonics and Word Study, Shifting the Balance, Minnesota Reading Association, NCTE, and Amplify Science of Reading Podcast.

The changes are also based on the research, teachings, and literature from the following educational leaders: Dr. Miah Daughtery, Dr. Cynthia Lewis, Dr. Jennipher Frazier, Author Rosa Higgs, Educational Leader Marva Collins, Educational Leader Kareem Weaver, Dr. David Kilpatrick, Dr. Gholdy Muhammad, and Dr. Yvette Jackson.

Since there are students currently in honors, how will they be integrated into the overall classroom experience and how will learning and development be measured?

Will Advanced Language and Literature be no longer offered at the middle school?

Why does this literacy plan claim that all teachers are receiving LETRS training when it is only a small fraction of educators who have received the training?

More than 40 elementary teachers, which is over 50 percent of our teachers K-5 are currently enrolled in LETRS training. It is our goal that all K-5 classroom teachers take LETRS training and have offered four paid release days for any teacher who is enrolled in the course. We also have LETRS trained Literacy Specialists providing professional development and coaching to all staff throughout the school year.

Will the high school be offering honors English classes next year and moving forward?

Why does the local literacy plan list and refer to balanced literacy?

The Local Literacy Plan has only been updated to include definitions of the Science of Reading and our work around the strategic priority of culturally relevant literacy. Balanced Literacy was a hallmark of St. Louis Park’s reading program for more than a decade. Most of the Literacy plan still honors the work that has been done in the past while we continue to develop our teachers in LETRS training, structured literacy skills, and other changes in our core curriculum and instruction. The Literacy Design Team and classroom teachers will help craft an updated plan for 2023-24.