Read to Succeed
Section A: Five Pillars of Reading Instruction
Describe how reading assessment and instruction for all students in the school includes oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension to aid in the comprehension of texts to meet grade‑level English/Language Arts standards. School Description of Instruction and Assessments Aligned to the Five Pillars of Reading Instruction
Response:
Flint Hill Elementary School has established its Assessment Plan to align with the Five Pillars of Reading Instruction. Grades K-1: Students take the STAR Early Literacy Assessment three times a year as a universal screener. Grades 1-5: Students take the STAR Reading Assessment three times a year as a universal screener. This data helps identify students who may need further diagnostic assessments for Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions.
Additional Foundational Skills Assessments Include: Grades K: Students complete the CORE Phonics and Word Reading Survey three times a year. Grades K-5: Students complete the LETRS Spelling Screener three times a year. Grades 1-5: Teachers will administer additional diagnostics based on universal screener and oral reading fluency.
For Comprehension and Oral Reading Fluency: Grades K-5: Comprehension assessments are created in professional learning teams based on state standards and driven by HMH Curriculum. Grades 2-5: Students complete the DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency three times a year. Grade 1: Students take the STAR CBM (Curriculum-Based Measurement) to monitor oral reading fluency three times a year.
Vocabulary: Vocabulary assessments are currently done formatively by teachers at each school. We have included the Vocabulary indicator as an essential standard for grades 3-5. Teachers will use the data from these assessments to guide instruction using the HMH Into Reading curriculum.
During Professional Learning Team (PLT) meetings, teachers will analyze this data to make instructional decisions for Tier 1, and possibly Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions.
Section B: Foundational Literacy Skills, Continued
Document how Word Recognition assessment and instruction for PreK-5th grade students are further aligned to the science of reading, structured literacy and foundational literacy skills. School Description of Alignment for PK-5th Grade Students.
Response:
Flint Hill Elementary School has approximately 90 to 120 minutes dedicated to English Language Arts (ELA), which includes reading, writing, and foundational skills. Through our state adopted curriculum, HMH Into Reading, we use the Reading, Vocabulary, and Writing components for grades K-5. For Foundational Literacy skills, we use Heggerty for phonological awareness and UFLI for additional foundational skills. The assessments from HMH, UFLI, and those listed in Section A align with the science of reading, structured literacy, and foundational literacy skills. They support the components of Scarborough’s Rope for Language Comprehension and Word Recognition.
Section C: Intervention
Document how the school uses universal screener data and diagnostic assessment data to determine targeted pathways of intervention (word recognition or language comprehension) for students in PreK-5th grade who have failed to demonstrate grade‑level reading proficiency School Description of Intervention for PK-5th Grade students not on grade level.
Response:
Flint Hill Elementary School follows a systematic approach to determine student interventions using Universal Screeners and additional diagnostics as needed. All students participate in STAR Early Literacy, STAR CBM, and/or STAR Reading assessments. Based on these results, we decide if further diagnostics are necessary to determine Tier 2 or Tier 3 interventions.
Some of the additional assessments we use to guide instructional decisions include Heggerty Bridge the Gap, DIBELS, Core Reading Phonics Assessments, Writing CBM, and STAR CBM. In certain grade levels, Foundational Skills Assessments are also administered to all students, providing another tool to inform intervention needs.
Our school’s MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports) team reviews this data to recommend appropriate Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions. To provide targeted support, we have 4 ELA Interventionists who are trained to deliver intervention to students who are not yet reading on grade level.
Section D: Supporting Literacy at Home
Describe the system in place to help parents in your school understand how they can support the student as a reader and writer at home. School Description of System to support literacy in the home.
Response:
At Flint Hill Elementary, we communicate literacy information to parents through parent-teacher conferences, weekly newsletters updating parents on literacy curriculum, and through the use of the parent support document for the standards-based report card. At parent-teacher conferences, teacher share questions and activities that parents can do at home to encourage literacy.
Flint Hill Elementary is a new school this year so we are working to establish further procedures to keep parents informed about literacy and to encourage literacy at home.
Section E: Progress Monitoring
Document how the school provides for progress monitoring of reading achievement and growth at the school level with decisions about intervention based on all available data to ensure grade-level proficiency in reading. School Description of MTSS Progress Monitoring for PK-5th Grade Students.
Response:
As part of our process for identifying students in the MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports) framework, we also implement consistent progress monitoring for students in Tiers 1, 2, and 3.
Tier 1 and Tier 2: Teachers will use a combination of tools such as STAR, HMH curriculum assessments, Oral Reading Fluency, and UFLI, to monitor progress in grade-appropriate reading skills, supporting overall proficiency.
Tier 3: Literacy interventionists have additional tools for progress monitoring, including DIBELS, Heggerty’s Bridge the Gap, CORE Phonics Literacy Library and STAR.
Throughout the year, teams will meet regularly during Professional Learning Team (PLT) and MTSS team meetings to analyze data and make instructional decisions for all students.
Section F : Teacher Training
Explain how the school will provide teacher training based in the science of reading, structured literacy, and foundational literacy skills to support reading achievement for all students. School Description of PLO Opportunities.
Response:
Flint Hill Elementary School is participating in LETRS training. This includes K-3 teachers, administrators, interventionists, literacy coach, lead teacher, and SPED teachers. Additionally, we have staff members taking LETRS voluntarily, including some 4th and 5th grade teachers and ESOL teachers.
For 4th and 5th grade teachers who are not enrolled in LETRS, we are offering further professional learning to support their students with advanced decoding (syllabication and morphology work) as well as training with Vocabulary instruction.
The literacy coach also provides school-based professional development as needed.
Section G: Analysis of Data
Strengths
Response:
We are a new school this year. Therefore, we are establishing routines and procedures that will lead to strengths in data analysis.
Teachers analyze data on a regular basis using universal screeners such as STAR and curriculum assessments from HMH Into Reading curriculum to monitor student progress.
Teachers use the South Carolina State ELA Standards as the basis for all instruction. These standards are used to establish learning targets and assessments for lessons.
Teachers for K-2 provide foundational skills instruction based on the science of reading through the use of daily UFLI and Heggerty curriculum lessons. Teachers in grades 3-5 use UFLI as a Tier 2 and Tier 3 support for students lacking foundational skills. Teachers analyze progress on these measures to inform instruction.
Section G: Analysis of Data
Possibilities of Growth
Response:
Growth areas are based on initial screeners for this year as we are a new school.
We have identified spelling as a growth area, particularly in grades 3-5. This is based on results from the LETRS spelling screener administered to all students at the beginning of the year. To address this issue, teachers in grade 3 are using the knowledge from LETRS training to support students. Teachers in grades 4- 5 who are not participants in LETRS are receiving support from the literacy coach to instruct students on phonics patterns as needed. Students will be reassessed with this spelling screener mid-year and at the end of the year.
Also, as a new school, we are working to establish research and evidence-based instruction at the Tier 1 level. This includes phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension instruction as well as writing. Teachers are reflecting on student learning in weekly Professional Learning Teams and determining next steps for strong instruction.
School-Level LETRS Implementation
How many eligible teachers in your school have completed Volume 1 ONLY of LETRS? 38
How many eligible teachers in your school have completed Volumes 1 and 2 of LETRS? 1
How many eligible teachers in your school are beginning Volume 1 of LETRS this year? 13
How many eligible teachers in your school are beginning Volume 2 of LETRS this year? 38
How many CERDEP PreK teachers in your school have completed EC LETRS? 0
How many CERDEP PreK teachers in your school are beginning EC LETRS this year? 0
Section H: 2024-25 Previous School SMART Goals and Progress Toward those Goals
Please provide your previous school goals from last school year and the progress your school has made towards these goals. Utilize quantitative and qualitative data to determine progress toward the goal (s). As a reminder, all schools serving third grade were required to use Goal #1.
Response:
No Goals from previous year: New school as of 2025-2026 school year.
Section I: 2025-26 School SMART Goals and Action Steps Based on Analysis of Data
All schools serving students in third grade MUST respond to the third grade reading proficiency goal. Note the change in language for the 3rd grade goal to align with the 2030 vision of 75% of students at or above grade level. Schools that do not serve third grade students may choose a different goal. Goals should be academically measurable. All goals should align with academic growth or achievement. Schools must provide a minimum of two goals. Schools are strongly encouraged to incorporate goals from the school renewal plan. Utilize a triangulation of appropriate and available data (i.e. SC READY, screeners, MTSS progress monitoring, benchmark assessments, and observational data) to set reasonable goal(s) for the current school year.
Response:
Current Goal #1: (3rd Grade Reading Proficiency Goal Required) Third Grade Goal: Increase the percentage of third graders scoring Meets and Exceeds in the spring of 2025 as determined by SC READY ELA from __% to __% in the spring of 2026.
Increase the percentage of third graders scoring Meets and Exceeds in the spring of 2025 as determined by SC READY ELA from 73.6% to 75% in the spring of 2026.
Actions Steps for Goal #1: Action steps include:
-Continued monitoring of student progress on STAR benchmark assessments for all students and STAR progress monitoring assessments as needed for Tier 2 and Tier 3.
-Use of the MTSS process to continue to identify students that would benefit from Tier 2 and Tier 3 instruction.
-LETRS training for classroom teachers to help improve instruction in all areas of literacy.
-Professional Learning Teams will meet regularly to discuss assessments and most effective instructional strategies. -Literacy Coach will attend PLT's and weekly planning sessions to offer support to teachers as they design instruction and make assessment decisions.
Current Goal #2: By the Spring 2026 benchmark, 76% of kindergarten and first-grade students will score at or above proficiency on the STAR Early Literacy assessment. This reflects an increase from 74.8% of students who scored at or above proficiency on the Fall 2025 benchmark.
Action Steps for Goal #2:Action steps include:
-Continued monitoring of student progress on STAR benchmark assessments for all students and STAR progress monitoring assessments as needed for Tier 2 and Tier 3.
-Use of UFLI for teaching foundational skills. Also to include weekly assessments to monitor progress in learning phonics and phonological awareness skills.
-Professional Learning Teams will meet regularly to discuss assessments and most effective instructional strategies.
-Literacy Coach will attend PLT's and weekly planning sessions to offer support to teachers as they design instruction and make assessment decisions.
-LETRS training for all K-1 teachers to increase teacher knowledge.