Madison Middle School
Madison County, Kentucky
A relay race is won or lost in the handoffs. The fastest runner in the world can’t make up for a dropped baton.
At Madison Middle School in Madison County, Kentucky, the team behind reading understands that. It begins with principal Amie Gallion, who sets the pace for the whole building. Cue instructional coach Sarah Robinson, who runs alongside teachers and offers support in the moment. Reading interventionist Kelly Goff takes the next leg with students who need more. And district literacy lead Cindi Hazelwood makes sure reading instruction is working as it should. Each person runs a different stretch, but they carry the same mission: student success.
But when state reading scores, especially for students with disabilities, put the school in targeted support, the baton got heavier. Enter Reading Plus. The team knew the benefits of the program and brought it in as an intentional intervention. In just one year, the school’s scores improved, moving them from yellow to green overall, with recognition as a blue banner school in reading – the highest distinction. The team credits Reading Plus as a key factor in crossing that finish line.
Starting Line: The Challenges
Madison Middle School, like so many other schools, has been grappling with the lingering effects of the pandemic and the toll it’s taken on student success. In addition, the Title 1 school has experienced a recent influx of ESL and special education students. “What were small gaps grew into larger ones,” said Gallion.
Despite the challenges, staff remained committed to providing the best possible education. They developed a system of routine and clear expectations regarding literacy, as well as celebrating student success in a meaningful way.
The Handoff: Routine and Expectations
The team decided to incorporate Reading Plus into the school’s Response to Intervention (RTI) time after much research and discussion regarding the best possible solution.
Using their RTI time, students are expected to complete 4 reading comprehension lessons at 80% mastery level or higher, as well as 4 vocabulary lessons each week. “School-wide expectations for ALL students was a key to our success,” said Gallion. “We let them know early what was expected and that we believed they could accomplish the goal.”
During that time, teachers employ several strategies to help struggling students. This includes pulling struggling students for 1-on-1 teacher time or in small groups and direct instruction without giving away the answer. In addition, other students act as peer tutors.
Teachers can use Reading Plus’s real-time data, even during class time, to understand challenges in the moment and address immediately. “If a student was not progressing on their individualized plan, we looked at their data immediately and addressed it then,” said Robinson. “Reading Plus takes away the guess work.”
Picking Up Speed with Celebrations
A key aspect of Madison Middle’s success with Reading Plus is celebrating the gains and wins of students and classrooms. Each week, they recognize and reward students for meeting individual goals. They also highlight classes who have progressed at least 80% towards their schoolwide goal completion, creating some friendly competition. One look around the hallways reveals celebratory bulletin boards and classroom doors emblazoned with the names of champions.
“It’s become a point of pride,” said Robinson. “The friendly competition has allowed for the teachers to engage with their students in this process and to encourage them to continue to give their best effort each and every day.”
Vocabulary Takes Off
According to the Madison team, the vocabulary aspect of Reading Plus is a key differentiator.
“We built reading the word families, definitions, and example sentences into our classroom routines and expectations. With regular practice, it became a habit for students and felt like second nature by the end of the school year,” said Goff.
Big Gains
As is the case with all programs, Reading Plus is effective because of the intentional manner in which Madison Middle uses it. “The program itself is designed to ensure student success, and we just continued to build off of that,” said Hazelwood. By adjusting instruction to meet student needs, as well as applying additional interventions, students experienced greater achievement. “Building their confidence led to success which led to more growth!”
Madison Middle is now recognized as a green high-performing school overall and blue in reading and math. With the help of Reading Plus, Madison Middle students and staff are running toward a stronger finish!
3 Key Takeaways About How Madison Middle Uses Reading Plus
1. Routine is the secret sauce. Madison built Reading Plus into RTI time with the same goals for everyone: 4 comprehension lessons (80%+ mastery) and 4 vocabulary lessons a week. High expectations, clearly communicated, school-wide.
2. Real-time data means no guesswork. Teachers see where students are stuck and step in right away, whether with small groups, 1-on-1 help, or peer tutors.
3. Vocabulary shines, and celebrations keep the momentum. Vocabulary growth hit a multi-year high, and weekly shout-outs, friendly class competition, and hallway displays made it a point of pride. The school moved from yellow to green in a
