2024-25 Highland School Improvement Plan

Goal #1

Statement of Goal

Highland School will implement adopted ELA resources with integrity and fidelity in the 2024-2025 school year to enhance literacy outcomes across grade levels, in connection with the Illinois Comprehensive Literacy Plan. Those ELA resources include UFLI Foundational Skills in grades kindergarten through 2, Benchmark Advance in grades kindergarten through 5, and CommonLit in grades 6 through 8.

Rationale for Goal

In connection with District 58’s curriculum review process, the District ELA committee completed a review of instructional alignment to the Illinois state standards for ELA and the connection between our instructional practice to our ELA resources. The committee recommended new resources for K-2 foundational skills and K-8 ELA instruction. Through professional development and a consistent cycle of feedback, staff will build strong foundational skills and develop comprehensive literacy instruction across grade levels.

Implementation and Support of Goal

  • Attendance at all Professional Learning Monday Unit Previews (to include Classroom Teachers, Reading Specialists, Resource, ESL, and Administrators)
  • Regular review of classroom data and implementing adjustments to support that data (Forefront/CommonLit)
  • Family connections (included in classroom newsletters)
  • Professional development related to the Illinois Comprehensive Literacy Plan will be provided at faculty meetings as well as professional learning Mondays.
  • Teams will input student Benchmark assessment data at intervals consistent with the expected resource scope and sequence.
  • Forefront data will be reviewed at regular team meetings in order to inform adjustments to Tier 1 instruction.
  • Highland staff will utilize the building instructional coach to support reading resource implementation.

 

Goal #2

Statement of Goal

Highland School will continue to integrate the Zones of Regulation curriculum in connection with the Second Step program and the tenets of PBSS, Be Responsible, Be Respectful, Be Safe, during the 2024-25 school year, to promote social-emotional learning and positive behavior across the school. This will develop students' self-regulation, emotional awareness, and social skills, creating a supportive and safe learning environment.

Rationale for Goal

The Zones of Regulation curriculum is designed to help students develop emotional regulation skills by categorizing their feelings into four colored zones. Implementing this curriculum within a Positive Behavioral System of support framework supports the development of essential social-emotional skills, which are critical for academic and behavioral success. The connection of Zones of Regulation to PBSS offers a comprehensive approach to student support, addressing both behavioral and emotional needs.

Implementation and Support of Goal

  • Teachers will develop classroom expectations with their students utilizing Be Respectful, Be Responsible, and Be Safe. Classroom expectations will be printed using a common format and referenced.
  • Staff will follow the identified scope and sequence of the Zones of Regulation and Second Step programs.
  • Staff will utilize the Highland Student Behavior Form to help track behavior data.
  • Behavior expectations will be communicated with Highland families to allow families to support conversations around behavior at home.
  • The Building Leadership Team (BLT) and the Positive Behavior Support System Team (PBSST) will monitor student behavior data, as well as behavior management practices in order to recommend adjustments as needed.

Goal #3

Statement of Goal

Highland staff will enhance student achievement in mathematics by implementing tier 1 small-group instruction based on students’ identified areas of need. Staff will utilize a variety of sources of data to inform decisions related to instruction including but not limited to NWEA MAP, Forefront, and Aimsweb.

Rationale for Goal

Currently, student assessment data is gathered from a variety of sources including the Illinois Assessment of Readiness, NWEA MAP, Aimsweb, classroom assessments, as well as online platforms such as Dreambox and IXL. In addition, staff continuously gather qualitative data through observations and interactions while teaching. This assessment data provides valuable insight into student learning, achievement, and areas of need. In order to maximize student achievement, as well as maximum utilization of instructional time and resources, a more systematic and targeted approach to data analysis is needed.

Implementation and Support of Goal

  • Staff will enter student assessment data into the Forefront platform at regular intervals consistent with the expected pace of instruction.
  • Staff will participate in professional development focused on utilizing the Forefront platform with an emphasis on its capabilities related to data analysis.
  • Forefront data will be reviewed at regular intervals in order to identify adjustments needed to Tier 1 instruction based on student needs.
  • Teachers will continue to have students utilize the Dreambox platform to target student's needs. Teachers will review Dreambox data to help inform adjustments to Tier 1 instruction.
  • Student data will be reviewed regularly to determine the effectiveness of adjustments to classroom instruction.
  • Building administration will attend regular team meetings at least monthly to support conversations around data and support teams in making instructional decisions.