Category Archives: Literacy

Summer Reading Program an opportunity to hone literacy skills, spark imagination

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The Houston Independent School District is challenging students to use the power of reading combined with the power of their imagination to go on an unforgettable journey through the district’s Summer Reading Program.

HISD is teaming up with the Houston Public Library and myON, a digital library where students can access more than 5,000 free books, to launch the initiative, which challenges students to read a minimum of five books during the summer. The program also encourages parents and students to spend time reading aloud together — even if it’s just a few minutes each day.

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Bus drivers, attendants support HISD literacy efforts with Reading While Riding program

IMG_3459 (1)Each day after school, HISD bus attendant Betty Beal goes through a special crate full of books, carefully selecting a few to read to two of her student bus riders from Law Elementary School.

Beal is one of 150 support personnel currently assigned to special needs routes in the district and an active member of HISD’s Reading While Riding program, which aims to ensure student success by focusing on students’ literacy and vocabulary development. The program also complements the district’s Literacy By 3 reading initiative, which aims to have every child reading on grade level by the end of third grade.

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Author shares her book series, its canine inspiration with Askew and Bush ES students

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Students at Askew and Barbara Bush elementary schools on Thursday got a special visit from children’s book author Susan Edwards and her four-legged muse, Otto.

Edwards, who goes by the pseudonym Grace Birch, treated the students to readings from her book series “The Adventures of Otto Von Schnoodle,” including the latest installment, “Otto Goes to the Dentist.” Students also were delighted to see Otto the schnoodle, who is a schnauzer-poodle mix.

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HISD to announce winning school of NCAA Read to the Final Four literacy challenge

Carillo ES learn they are in the lead

Carrillo Elementary School students learn they are in the lead for the Read to the Final Four challenge in November 2015.

Nearly 10,000 HISD elementary school students will fill NRG Stadium (Reliant Parkway, 77054) on Friday, April 1 for the district’s announcement of the winner of the NCAA Team Works Read to the Final Four Literacy Program at Reese’s Final Four Friday event.

The program begins at 11 a.m., but prior to that, Waltrip HS’s band will play as students arrive, and Atherton ES’s drum line will perform before the announcement of the winning school at 11:40 a.m., which will receive a $5,000 cash prize, Final Four trophy, and campus celebration. The final four elementary schools in the competition are Browning, Carrillo, Dogan, and Janowski. Additionally, the top readers from each of the 68 schools will receive a bike from CYCLE. Attendees are welcome to stay for the remainder of the day and watch special practice games and tributes. The day’s activities are free and open to the public, including parking in the stadium’s Blue Lot beginning at 9 a.m. Anything brought into the stadium during all Final Four events must be in a clear bag, due to security. Some 125,000 clear bags are being given away at Houston hotels and the George R. Brown Convention Center, as well as on METRORail platforms. Find full details here.

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Ten HISD students to compete in Houston Public Media spelling bee April 2

Lovett ES fifth-grader Bryan Moore poses with his mother, Tonyamas Moore, who won the spelling bee at that campus back in 1986.

Lovett ES fifth-grader Bryan Moore poses with his mother, Tonyamas Moore, who won the spelling bee at that campus back in 1986.

Five boys and five girls from 10 different HISD schools will be testing the limits of their vocabulary on Saturday, April 2, when they take part in the finals of the Houston Public Media spelling bee. The top two winners of the Houston-area competition will be eligible to advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee near Washington, D.C., in May.

This year’s local contest is particularly meaningful for two HISD students: fifth-grader Bryan Moore (Lovett ES) and eighth-grader Christine Bowyer (Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan).

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Rocket’s support of #BestSchoolDay campaign to benefit HISD’s Literacy By 3 movement

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HISD’s efforts to have students reading at or above grade level by the third grade got a huge boost on March 10, when DonorsChoose.org launched a surprise “flash-funding” campaign to support teachers’ classroom projects.

Hundreds of HISD educators stand to benefit from the #BestSchoolDay campaign, as Houston Rocket Dwight Howard announced his intent to fund every Houston-area, Pre-K-through-grade-2 teacher’s existing DonorsChoose.org request for books or reading materials during an appearance he made on the Stephen Colbert Show Thursday night.

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HISD wins third national Magna Award for Literacy By 3 efforts

The Houston Independent School District this week received its third national Magna Award, an honor designed to recognize school districts and their leaders for taking bold, innovative steps to improve the lives of students and their communities.

The district received the first-place Magna Award for its Literacy By 3 program, which strives to have all students reading and writing fluently by the end of third grade. HISD is one of five first-place winners in the over 20,000 enrollment category. Continue reading →

Smithsonian science study promises long-lasting benefits for HISD students

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HISD just completed a five-year study with the Smithsonian Science Education Center (SSEC), and the lessons learned from it will be benefitting HISD students for years to come.

The study evaluated the effectiveness of the SSEC’s Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) model of science instruction in three states, using an Investing in Innovation (i3) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. In HISD, the study followed approximately 9,500 students at 26 schools whose academic performance was monitored from 2011 through 2016.

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Barbara and Neil Bush visit Walnut Bend ES to kick off ‘National Read Aloud Month’

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March is National Read Aloud Month, and Barbara Bush and her son Neil were at Walnut Bend Elementary School on March 2, 2016, to bring attention to the annual observance. The Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation has joined forces with HISD and 14 other Houston literacy organizations to increase awareness of the importance of reading to children so that they can learn, grow, and succeed.

“It’s so great to see people coming together around literacy,” said Neil Bush. “We shamelessly use my mother to draw attention to the importance of literacy.”

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Thompson ES students reach out to president…and he responds

Thompson ES students display some of the items they received from President Barack Obama.

Thompson ES students display some of the items they received from President Barack Obama.

When Brenda Mays’ class at HISD’s Thompson Elementary School sent individual holiday greeting cards to President Barack Obama last December, they didn’t really expect to hear back from him. But when the students began opening their mailboxes late last month, they were astonished to discover he hadn’t just responded to their letters; he had sent them each a care package, too.

Each package contained a variety of materials, such as photos of the president and his family (including dogs Bo and Sunny), personal letters addressed to the students by name, and fact sheets about Obama’s family, the White House, and the importance of eating healthy and exercising.

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