Literacy is one of the key pillars for student success, and the Rainy River District School Board (RRDSB) ensures that its literacy plan is regularly revised in order to give its students the best education it can.
The Board’s literacy plan is updated each year to work to ensure students across the district meet the standards set by the province. While not ever facet of the plan changes each year, RRDSB literacy coordinator Lynne Avis notes that the board works with a three-tiered system that informs instruction for RRDSB students and helps keep the board aligned with provincial goals.
“The RRDSB uses a multi-tiered system of support,” said Avis. “Tier One is the ‘everyday.’ It is the instruction that happens in every classroom each and every day. It’s the foundation of literacy teaching that’s meant to reach every child. Tier Two provides support for students who need just a little bit of extra help. Students are provided targeted evidence-based instruction, either individually or in a small group, that will address the specific skills needed to close learning gaps. Then we have Tier Three, which is ideally the top five per cent of the student population. Tier Three provides support for students who require more intensive reading support. This tier is supported by the Empower Reading program.”
According to the board, the Empower Reading Program is a set of multi-component intervention programs aimed at helping those students struggling with their literacy skills practical strategies for decoding (translating a word from print to speech) and spelling words, as well as understanding text, which all serves to allow those students to experience success in their reading and gain confidence in their skills. It also helps sutdents become independent readers by equipping them with multiple strategies for decoding and understanding text, all in the hopes of empowering them to become active readers who can independently read for meaning, information and pleasure.
In order to ensure teachers are also learning more to help implement strategies the board is implementing, professional development is also a key aspect of the literacy plan. Ahead of the 2025-2026 chool year, Avis said board staff and admin were offered special sessions hosted by a literacy advocate.
“Prior to the school year officially starting, we actually offered both admin and teachers opportunities to grow their learning by inviting them to attend separate sessions hosted by Kate Winn, who is a strong teacher and advocate for evidence-based literacy,” Avis said.
“She’s a structured literacy presenter and a content lead for ONlit, as well as the host of IDA Ontario’s reading road trip podcast. Kate has also been an active voice in the right to read initiative, sharing her expertise and passion for helping all children learn to read.”
Avis said one main area of focus for the board includes more robust progress monitoring for students, which allows teachers and support staff to zero in on problem areas for students more quickly in order to provide them the support they need.
“Checking in regularly on student growth, or progress monitoring, is what gives us that ongoing temperature check we need to help us to see what’s working where adjustments are needed, and most importantly, making sure every student is moving forward toward grade level expectations,” said Avis.
“Our [student learning data] trends aren’t quite so obvious yet, as we are just implementing the new curriculum and the new assessment tool. But we do know that learning to read by using the foundational skills is a strength of our students. They are using the foundational skills they’ve been taught to really advance in their reading skills. We’re seeing that fluency is definitely an area that we need to work on, especially with our older students. Strengthening our fluency is going to help our students with reading to learn, beyond just learning to read.”
Learning can’t and doesn’t happen only in the classroom. Avis emphasized the importance of oral language as a way for parents and caregivers to reinforce literacy at home, which in turn can help students strengthen their literacy skills and develop a love for the written language.
“Research does state the importance of conversations” Avis said.
“Oral language plays a huge role in the development of foundational literacy skills, as well as building our students’ vocabulary and background knowledge as they get into the older grades. Reading, either with your child, to your child, or even letting them see you reading – all are great ways to encourage a love of reading.”
