I’ve spent my entire career in schools that couldn’t afford to get reading wrong.
As a former classroom teacher and reading specialist and now as principal of Lyall J. Fink Elementary in Dauphin County, I’ve seen what happens when children don’t learn to read. I’ve also seen what becomes possible when a school commits to changing that.
At Fink, 80% of our students come from low-income households, nearly a third are English learners, and many experience high transience each year. These are children who need their school to get reading instruction right from the start…