To kick off the targeted intervention program, about 80 scholars took home books at their reading level and worked on improving their fluency and comprehension skills. Students then meet with parent volunteers once a week to read through and answer questions about their book. Volunteers determine, based on the students’ answers, if they are ready to advance to the next reading level.
English Language Teacher Arleen Summers and Technology Teacher Patrick Collins head the program and said they can see improvement throughout the process.
Fourth-grade student Hazel Pryor Corbine reads with a parent volunteer.
“If you look at those beginning test scores, we are already seeing students move up to the next level when they pick out their next book,” Summers said. “They’re reading these books for a week and coming back to successfully show they are fluent in that higher level.”
About 10 parents in the Mill Creek community have volunteered their time to set up and run the program. To help put this reading improvement in motion, they color-coded all the books to match the correct reading levels and help maintain the library used for Book in a Bag.
The program is a living example of National Heritage Academies (NHA®) focus on parent partnership. This bond between parents and Mill Creek only strengthens the community, something Collins said is important for the second-year school.
Second-grader Ruby Olson reads with a parent volunteer.
“Having that sense of building each other up in the building and doing it right away also builds up our community,” Collins said. “Getting the parents in immediately knowing that they make a difference helps our sense of community and builds camaraderie between parents, teachers, and students.”
The program wouldn’t be possible without the parents who dedicate their time to helping scholars read. Summers said their work has been crucial in implementing Book in a Bag.
“Once the parent volunteers came in, the progress of making this program happen exploded,” Summers said, adding that they’ve also helped smooth out the process as they go.
Second-grade scholar Nova Rogers exchanges her book as a part of Mill Creek’s Book in a Bag program.
This one-on-one time with parents is not only helping improve reading comprehension scores, but it’s also unlocking a key to academic success: confidence.
“I think part of it is that immediate feedback,” Collins said. “Who doesn’t want to hear they’re doing well at something, especially from an adult? The kids like to hear that. They get a chance to practice and build up their confidence and reading abilities.”
Way to implement this great intervention program, Patrick, Arleen, and all of Mill Creek!
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About Mill Creek Academy
Mill Creek Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Waukesha, Wisconsin, serving students in all-day 4K through fifth grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies (NHA®) network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.
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