Now that the school year is
officially underway and students have experienced the first full month of their
new classrooms, we’d like to introduce ourselves and share with you some
information about our role as the Reading Specialists within the Burrell
School. Unlike classroom teachers, reading specialists travel among the various
classrooms to provide reading support to students, resources to teachers, and a
multitude of services within the class as a literacy or reading coach,
consultant, and co-teacher of whole-class lessons. Our goal is to provide
expert, effective guided reading instruction within the classroom to children
experiencing reading difficulties. Aside from the scheduled reading assessments
administered throughout the school year, we provide additional interventions
and progress monitoring tools for identifying students’ needs and informing the
necessary instruction for both the classroom teacher and ourselves.
Communication with parents, another essential aspect of our role, is provided
by way of progress reports, students’ individual book bags, emails, and a
variety of organized family literacy nights in conjunction with the other
elementary reading specialists in the district. Our reading website at
www.readaroundfoxborough.weebly.com provides much information and reading
resources to support your child at home.
Rita M. Greeley (Kindergarten,
Grades 2 and 4) and Melissa Zechello (Grades 1 and 3)