At Woodland Heights School, we are fortunate to receive a large amount of funding from the federal government to support our work meeting the learning needs of struggling students, many of whom suffer from low socioeconomic status.
Much of this support is dedicated to funding professional staff positions to support the development of fundamental literacy and mathematics skills in students who need extra support to catch up and be successful learning in the regular education environment. Some of the funding is dedicated to the purchase of materials to support this instruction (intervention program materials, general teaching materials and manipulatives, as well as student text material and 'trade books').
A significant facet of our work to which this funding must be dedicated is the professional development of our teachers and tutors. At WHS, we are very good at what we do. In fact, I'd say we are great -- but we can always do better! Hence, this year, some of our Title One Professional Development funding will be dedicated to further training that will develop 'Professional Learning Community' (PLC) leadership ability amongst our staff members, training in analyzing data from our AIMSweb and NWEA assessments to inform our instructional decision-making, training to further develop our 'Response to Intervention' and 'Differentiated instruction' techniques, further refinement of our mathematics instruction through continued training with mathematics professor Dr. Mahesh Sharma, taking a Laconia-based Plymouth State University writing instruction course, and conducting book study groups associated with our district-wide initiative to 'Teach Like a Champion'.
At WHS, we are a true community of learners, and for our educators, the learning never stops. Thanks to the support of our federal government, we have opportunities to learn and become even better educators, better meeting the learning needs of ALL learners who comprise our diverse student population. Title I funding helps us be all that we can be for all of our students -- students who will grow to inherit our nation. Title I grants have been a sound investment in our children, our nation, and its future. Call or stop by WHS to learn more about how our school improvement initiatives are supported through federal and state grant funding. Without their support, we would be totally on our own, and so would Laconia children.
