Promising Practices: Strong Foundations

Strong Foundations

District 49

District 49 has made early literacy a priority and has used resources provided by the READ Act to improve reading at the early grades.

Storyline

Students throughout Colorado have struggled in the early grades with reading. Research has shown that trouble reading in the early grades can translate to difficulty in academics in later grades.

District 49 in El Paso County has purposefully focused on improving literacy. From resources offered through the READ Act, the district has received grant funding for reading interventions, per-pupil READ Act funding for money for tutoring and a summer reading program and the use of the Early Literacy Assessment Tool to track how students are performing.

Kristy Rigdon, D-49’s coordinator of literacy performance, explains how D-49 has prioritized early literacy and has used state resources to improve the district’s early literacy.