ARVIN, Calif. (KERO) — Grow Academy Arvin is jumping on a trend to improve literacy skills using Fanny the Frog.
- Video shows how Grow Academy Arvin is using what officials say are engaging teaching methods to promote early literacy.
- Grow says an increase in literacy rates among their first cohort of T-K students led them to open a second T-K classroom.
- With additional space, officials say teachers will have smaller class sizes to focus on improving students' literacy skills
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
To continue promoting early literacy, Grow Academy Arvin says this school year, they've added another T-K classroom. I visited their campus, to see what teaching methods have students jumping for literacy.
This is Fanny the Frog, a puppet included in the Frog Tree Curriculum used by Grow Academy Arvin.
According to T-K teacher Michelle Garza, Fanny is used to engage students in the lessons, so that they can become interested in becoming readers.
"We dive into phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, letters, and sound recognition," said T-K Teacher Michelle Vargas, "Right now we're just going over the lines—the curves of the letter's formation and recognizing that."
According to officials, last year was the first time Grow Academy Arvin offered T-K classes.
After comparing the literacy rates of last year's T-K students and those who entered directly to kindergarten, Director of Marketing and Communications at Grow Public Schools Katie Barton says 30 percent more of the students in the T-K program were reading at grade level.
Barton says these results, encouraged Grow Academy to double their efforts by adding a second T-K class.
In this manner, she says it enables them to reach their goal of having all of their students reading at grade level by the third grade.
According to Garza, the new curriculum also allows students to reach their academic and social-emotional goals.
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