Meehan brings the subheadings interspersed throughout Scope articles to her students’ attention and has them tie the subheadings to the introductory section of the article. She also has her students relate the main idea of each section to its subheading. The school implements common assessments that help identify students struggling with specific literacy skills, and the Storyworks and Scope search system makes it easy to find articles and supporting resources that are on topic and at the right level. McGilloway gave the example of arranging a group of third graders across multiple classrooms and finding appropriate articles to teach identifying the main idea and supporting details during dedicated RTI periods. She also used a Storyworks slideshow that taught the strategy of finding the main idea. In Grades 3–5, the teachers teach all subjects in the same classroom, so they use Storyworks for science, social studies, and ELA. In Grade 6, the school organizes teachers by subject, and the ELA teachers have shared Scope articles that have a science or social studies focus with the content-area teachers, who then use these with their students. Principal Smeltzer said writing was a systemic challenge for the school. She noted that writing kits built into Storyworks and Scope have enabled the students to shift from primarily free writing “just for fun” to writing based on articles they’ve read. The kits support teachers as they guide students step-by-step through the writing process for a specific genre. When asked about the various digital resources included with Storyworks and Scope , McGilloway replied, “I can’t think of anything that our teachers don’t utilize.” Angelone and Meehan said they use Storyworks and Scope across all genres and for all standards and skills they teach. OUTCOMES FROM IMPLEMENTING STORYWORKS AND SCOPE For Director Burke, the most meaningful trend data pointing to improved student ELA performance is based on state assessment scores comparing the Audubon Public School District to its District Factor Group of New Jersey districts with similar demographic characteristics. In 2017, 53% of Audubon students met or exceeded expectations for ELA, with the same percentage of students in the District Factor Group meeting or exceeding expectations. However, by 2023, 60% of Audubon students met or exceeded expectations for ELA, but only 47% of students in the District Factor Group met or exceeded expectations. Over the six years, Audubon evidenced a net change of 13% compared to the District Factor Group.
SCHOLASTIC STORYWORKS AND SCOPE SUCCESS STORY: AUDUBON, NEW JERSEY, SCHOOL DISTRICT 7
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