Dr. K. A. Clark School

   Early Literacy Initiative

   The Early Literacy program at Dr. Clark gives extra assistance to students in Grades K - 2 who may need a little boost in reading and spelling.
    The Kindergarten program begins in late January. Students leave the class for half an hour three times a week to work in small groups of three or four students with a teacher or teacher assistant. They learn letter names, letter sounds, and how to blend and segment sounds in words. This prepares them for reading in Grade One.
    The Grade One program begins in January. Students experiencing difficulties learning to read are identified and tested. Then they work in pairs with a teacher assistant and are expected to read the same book at home that evening to their parents. They stay in the program until school is over in June. If any students are still not at grade level they will continue the program when they enter Grade 2 in September.
    The Grade Two program begins in September and is very similar to the Grade One program. Students "graduate" from the program in December if they have reached grade level. Others stay in the program until they are at grade level. Ninety-seven percent of our Grade Twos reach grade level by the end of the year. We are very proud of the success of our Early Literacy program.