Overton Schools Using State Grant To Support Young Readers

Overton County Schools have received a state grant to help close the gap in literacy learning loss.

An Early Literacy Network Grant giving $80,000 over two years. Instruction Supervisor Melissa Savage said the money will be used to continue vendor support for grades K-2.

“We’re seeing amazing things,” Savage said. “We’re seeing student are involved with the curriculum. They’re having in-depth conversations about the literature. We can experience just what it is like for them to build their vocabulary and the teachers are doing an amazing job.”

Savage said the school system consults with The New Teacher Project. Savage said the company supports the schools early reading program by conducting weekly one-on-one meetings with school staff. Then, the team schedules classroom walkthroughs analyzing students’ work.

“As a former classroom teacher, that can be kind of intimidating or unnerving to have a group come in your classroom,” Savage said. “I will say our students and our teachers are rock stars about it.”

Savage said the company also provides reading resources and connects Overton with other school systems. The grant is a part of the state’s Reading 360 program launched last year in which Overton Schools joined.

“This initiative was as a result of COVID,” Savage said. “It came from COVID funding that the state received. So they took the money and passed it out and made it available for any county. It’s been a great program and we are getting a lot of support.”