In just two blink-fast years, compromises had to be made for student safety which left many in grades K–5 with a disrupted educational experience. Only now are we seeing the full impact of that sudden shift on students' academic performance. What now?
We all know that students need help. Multiple studies were conducted in schools that surveyed teachers on returning student performance. Comparatively, students in the earliest grades suffered the most. The performance of first-grade students saw as much as a ten percent decrease in overall academic performance when put against the 2019-2020 school year.
But what often goes unspoken is that teachers need help, too. Because, of course, the entire education system needs help! During the time spent removed from classrooms, all aspects of learning faced difficulties that we are still recovering from.
With the call for academic help being more pressing than ever, it’s crucial to weigh all options in supporting students—and that includes supporting teachers. Learning Without Tears understands the need for accelerated learning and wants to provide educators with effective solutions that deliver results. You have options, and we're here to help!
Focus on Summer Reading
Summer is the perfect time to squeeze in extra learning time for students. Learning Without Tears offers a Summer Learning program that helps steer your students toward success. We offer free learning plans for our handwriting and early literacy programs that fit in 4- and 6-week sprints. Students get effective instruction that makes the most of their time and your time. You can also add Reading & Writing Packs to the mix, giving students some much-needed skill-building consistency.
Assess for Success
You'll get a sharper image of your students' handwriting abilities through regular assessments. The Screener of Handwriting Proficiency is one of our most popular online tools—and it's free. With Screener, you can regularly conduct summative and formative assessments to measure specific skill areas where students need print or cursive instruction and intervention throughout the year. There's also a workshop focusing on best practices for using the screener—the Handwriting Assessment Workshop—which helps you diagnose and respond to student challenges in handwriting. It's just one of many workshops designed to elevate instruction to ensure student success.
Accelerate Your Instructional Planning
Time is of the essence! Take advantage of learning plans specifically designed to take advantage of small windows to make great strides in student learning progress. Reading expert Heidi Anne Mesmer, Ph.D., facilitates our Accelerated Alphabet Learning workshop, where you'll get actionable strategies to effectively support emerging readers throughout the day—in school and at home.
