Kathleen Reilly

Mary Trompeter
20 Minutes 2 Intervene

1. Abstract -
Our initiative, 20 Minutes 2 Intervene addresses the need to support 1st through 5th
grade readers who are currently performing below grade level. Research shows that these
students are at a high risk of failing out of school, and with authentic data from a Baltimore
County public school showing 38% of students reading below their target level, this rate is
alarming. Our plan targets an entire school community, including administration, teachers,
students and parents. This year-long initiative uses the e-learning platform, Weebly as the school
home page, in conjunction with the collaborative and interactive sites, Whooos Reading and
Padlet, to support struggling readers and help them meet the success they are capable of
achieving. The goal of our initiative is to motivate and excite students to read while engaging
them in a classroom-wide (Whooos Reading), school-wide (Padlet), and community wide
(Weebly and Whooos Reading) intervention program.

2. Problem / Need

As is evidenced by authentic data, there is a school-wide need to support readers in

grades first through fifth who are reading below grade level. The data pulled from the

aforementioned Baltimore County Public School shows that 56.92% of the school population is

recognized as in danger, meaning these students are on track to fail out of school based on

their current math and reading scores from Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) and

Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) tests and their rate of

school attendance. To break down the data further:

- 38% of 5th graders are reading below grade level

- 55.8% of 4th graders are reading below grade level
- 42.3% of 3rd graders are reading below grade level
- 36% of 2nd graders are reading below grade level
- 27% of 1st graders are reading below grade level

We believe that there is a connection between students below grade level in reading and the in

danger track. By increasing the amount of time students read, while encouraging collaboration
within the classroom, school, and among families, be hope to see an increase in reading scores

and a decrease in the number of students tagged as in danger.

3. Objectives / Outcomes
Teachers will measure and monitor their students reading growth throughout the year.
Parents/Guardians will actively participate in their students reading growth.
Students will demonstrate progression in reading.
Students will collaborate with others within their classroom, school and community.
Students will track their own reading progress in order to take ownership of their
learning.

4. Standards

We believe that a deficit in reading foundational skills are the reason for the number of

students who are below grade level in reading. In order to intervene with these students we are

targeting Reading: Foundational Skills Common Core Standards (CCSS RF.3 and CCSS RF.4).

Through the use of the school-wide website made on Weebly, Whooos Reading, and Padlet,

students will use digital media to interact, collaborate, and publish with peers (ISTE 2.A) and

take responsibility of their own abilities as a reader. The goal of utilizing these collaborative

platforms is to have student reading levels progress and ultimately get students on grade level.

Teachers will collaborate with their students, students families, and other teachers within their

school. (ISTE-T 3.b) Teachers will successfully use technology to enhance the learning

environment while addressing the needs of students performing below grade level (ISTE-T 2.b

and iNACOL F).

PART II - Project Details

A. Identify the Platform and Set up a Framework:
Our initiative, 20 Minutes 2 Intervene is a data driven school wide intervention

program that targets the needs of elementary readers and helps them to set goals before their gap

in reading increases. We have recognized a school-wide need for interventions in reading after

looking at the significant gaps and number of students performing below grade level in reading.

Reading provides one of the most enriching and complex brain activities available in life (Why

Read 20 Minutes A Day). Our program asks students to read 20 minutes a day at home. Teachers

will provide opportunities during the day for students to read independently and record their

reading. Based on an infographic created by Perry and Lecompton School District, a student who

reads 20 minutes a day will read 3600 minutes in a school year and will have exposed

themselves to 1,800,000 words. The infographic challenges us to question which student will

have a better vocabulary and be more successful. The student who reads 20 minutes a night, as

opposed to 1 minute or 5 minutes would have a substantial advantage (DeLoatch). Because of

the importance of reading on students throughout their lives, our initiative is a year long program

that plans to use web based platforms to build a collaborative community of readers, track data,

and motivate students to read.

This initiative is implemented through the program, Weebly. We used Weebly to create a

school website that will be the headquarters for this initiative. Students, parents, teachers, and

community members can access information and resources regarding the initiative at this site.

Our Weebly site, 20minutes2intervene.weebly.com is designed to be user friendly, as it is

intended for audiences at different ability levels. It allows the visitor to our platform the ability to

explore all aspects of our initiative, and we are able to simply link the collaborative platforms

that we are using as a part of our initiative directly back to this site. Furthermore, we are able to

have a blog through Weebly, which will provide us with the feedback we will require from the
community. Each of these aspects will allow us to create a collaborative community working to

support our initiative. A welcome page, which gives a short synopsis of our plans and our

rationale for intervention, greets those looking to access the site and learn more about our

initiative. The welcome page also links to a YouTube video that shares why it is important to

read 20 minutes each night. Our website is broken into multiple tabs: Goals, Whooos Reading,

Book Recommendation, and Blog. It allows the visitor to our platform the ability to explore all

aspects of our initiative, and we are able to simply link the collaborative platforms that we are

using as a part of our initiative directly back to this site. Each of these aspects will allow us to

create a collaborative community working to support our initiative.

Using funds allotted for the school progress plan, each classroom teacher will have a

Whooos Reading account which will allow students, parents, and teachers to track the amount

of time students are spending reading. Students will recognize the importance of reading each

night and will set goals for themselves. The site gives families access and allows them to track

the progress of their student. Our Weebly provides a tab for Whooos Reading which provides

step by step instructions through a video, written directions, and visual representations for

logging books. Teachers can include comprehension questions for students to answer, which

allows for simple comprehension checks while keeping students engaged. Additionally, students

will have the chance to collaborate with other grade levels through a book recommendation site

using Padlet. found in the next tab, Book Recommendation. Students simply follow

directions on the page and click I recommend it! to gain access to the site. Padlet puts

ownership back into the hands of the students. Students are often highly motivated by their peers

and may be more likely to read a book that is recommended by their friends. We also look to

motivate readers through our Fundraising tab, using Whooos Reading where students can
earn money for our school by finding sponsors and finishing books. Lastly our Blog is

dedicated to collaboration between the school and community. This section will give feedback

from families and community members about our initiative. Through our blog, we will share the

successes and improvements that we see in the data.

B. Community, Collaboration and eLearning Technologies:

Our e-learning initiative is unique in that it allows for collaboration between students,

teachers, administration and families striving for the common goal of improving reading levels

among students. The platforms and activities chosen foster the collaboration that make our goals

and objectives attainable. Through Whooos Reading students are responsible for meeting their

own reading goals and encouraging their classmates to meet theirs. Furthermore, the fundraising

aspect of Whooos Reading encourages students across all grades to meet their reading minutes

to earn money for their school. Students motivation levels increase while they encourage each

other to work towards a tangible goal. Through the question and response feature of Whoos

Reading, students have the ability to collaborate with their classmates and teachers to discuss the

books they are reading. Using this discussion type forum, students can communicate with peers

in an e-learning environment. With the use of Padlet, students will engage each other by

recommending books to their classmates. This builds a sense of community as the students are

sharing their own ideas with each other. The home base of our initiative, our Weebly website,

is easily accessible to students, teachers, and families. The homepage includes a blogging feature

which allows parents and students to leave feedback. The opportunity for discussion is critical in

keeping parents involved. The how-tos included on the Weebly site will keep students

engaged and sustain collaboration by encouraging active participation. The three platforms we

use keep students, teachers, and families engaged in the initiative together.

C. Assessments:
 20 Minutes to Intervene includes several different assessment measures, both formal

and informal, to track progress and be sure that all participants are meeting the given objectives.

The Whooos Reading platform includes different built in assessments in which teachers are able

to track their students reading minutes as well as their responses to posted comprehension

questions. Monitoring of students responses enables teachers to track engagement levels. Under

the Data section of the Whooos Reading site, teachers are able to track the lexile scores of

individual students and the class as a whole. Teachers can use data to adjust instruction to be

sure each student is being challenged appropriately. As the initiative continues from year to

year, MAP and PARCC testing as well as reading inventories, will be given throughout the year

to all students. As this initiative is school-wide, assessment measures will also be implemented to

be sure that teachers are finding success using the programs. This will be accomplished through

on-going dialogue between teachers and administrators, as well as continuing professional

development. Parent participation, an important part of our initiative, will be monitored by

participation in both the feedback blog on the Weebly site and their commentary on the Whooos

Reading site. Also, students submission of data on the site correlates to how involved parents are

in their childs reading. These assessment measures ensure that all participants will meet the

objects that are in place.

D. Implementation Plans:
In order to roll out 20 Minutes 2 Intervene, different audiences that need to be aware of

this year long intervention program: teachers, students, and families.. To make everyone aware

of our initiative, administration will use the school directory to send out emails and phone calls

to registered families.These will direct families to our Weebly platform. A Reading Intervention

Team will be in place to monitor data and make themselves available to families who would

like information. During monthly regular school progress plan meetings, the Reading
Intervention Team will present the details of our initiative and share data and feedback.

Teachers will be aware of their expectations as facilitators of this program and of the assistance

they will receive from the Reading Intervention Team. Reading lessons will be provided for the

first week back to school. Lessons will focus on picking appropriate books, the importance of

reading, and how to work our collaborative platforms.

During Back to School Night, we will host information sessions for families to learn

about the initiative and have members of our Reading Intervention Team available in the

computer lab to demonstrate platforms. Students will learn about the initiative and how it works

in school during the first week through teacher lessons we provide. With each of these

implementation strategies, this initiative will foster community connections. We will provide

ample ways and opportunities for every audience, teachers/staff, families, and students, to

collaborate and communicate about this initiative needs so that our students progress in reading.

2/3. Please visit our online activity through our platform,

http://20minutes2intervene.weebly.com/ and visit the Book Recommendation tab. Directions

can be found on that page and you will have access to the online activity when you click I

recommend it! You also can find some samples there!

Appendix:
For your reference:
Whooos Reading can be accessed through: https://www.whooosreading.org/
A student sample login is: Username: katie626 Password: eagle2004
Padlet (Book Recommendation) can be accessed through:
https://padlet.com/kreilly2/20minutes2intervene

Standards (for students)

ISTE Standards-
2.a - Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of
digital environments and media.
Common Core Standards-
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.3 Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in
decoding words.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.4 Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
4.A: Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
4.B: Read grade level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on
successive readings.
4.C Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as
necessary.

Standards (for teachers)

ISTE-T Standards-
2.b - Develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue
their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals,
managing their own learning, and assessing their own goals.
3.b - Collaborate with students, peers, parents and community members using digital tools and
resources to support student success and innovation.
iNACOL Standards-
Standard F - The online teacher is cognizant of the diversity of student academic needs and
incorporates accommodations into the online environment.

References:

DeLoatch, P. (n.d.). The Long-Term Effects of Skipping Your Reading Homework.

(n.d.). Retrieved July 25, 2016, from http://www.edudemic.com/skipping-your-reading-
homework/
Why Read 20 Minutes a Day? (2008). Retrieved July 25, 2016, from
http://www.k12reader.com/why-read-20-minutes-a-day