• Category 2

    Selected in 2016

  • Grades: pre k - 6
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 5,112
    Student Enrollment: 385
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 2%
    White/Caucasian: 70%
    Hispanic: 19%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 2%
    Asian: 2%
    Native American: 1%
    Other: 4%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:21
    % Reduced Lunch: 64%
    % ELL Learners: 10%
    Founded: 1950
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Laura Bond
  • CONTACT:
    2014 North 250 West
    Sunset, UT 84015
    801-402-2550
    lbond@dsdmail.net
Sunset Elementary
Sunset, UT
Our teacher teams develop strong PLC groups who analyze and use data effectively.
Describe specific programs in place to ensure that families are involved in the success of your school and students.
We have implemented a bully training for all students and take part in the SafeUT CrisisLine. We recognize parents of students that have perfect attendance each month. We hold at least 3 Family Night activities including a Math night. We have an Official school Facebook page, and are sending home a newsletter. We also gives families opportunities for a supervised educational environment before school and after school. This year our After School Program has also been able to hire a CSW to work with families. They can receive a variety of social services for their whole family that they would not be able to otherwise access. Other ways we reach our stakeholders is by offering the Utah Food Bank monthly, sending weekend food packs with some students, keeping a large closet full of clothing, shoes, boots, and coats for students, offering free glasses, and holding book giveaways at least twice a year. Once a month our PTA sponsors an ALL PRO DADS BREAKFAST.
Describe the most successful activity your school has initiated to strengthen ties to your community.
Our Title One School gives families opportunities for a supervised educational environment before/ after school. This year our After School Program has also been able to hire a Certified Social Worker to work with families. They can receive a variety of social services for their whole family that they would not be able to otherwise access. Other ways we reach our stakeholders is by offering the Utah Food Bank monthly, sending weekend food packs with some students, keeping a large closet full of clothing, shoes, boots, and coats for students, offering free glasses, and holding book giveaways at least twice a year. We recognize parents of students that have perfect attendance each month. We have already had a family night where each grade level did a performance. We plan on holding a Math Night, and at least one more family night event. We have opened an Official School Facebook page, and are sending home a newsletter twice a month.
Describe your philosophy of school change or improvement.
The most important issue to promote school change is developing a strong, highly qualified staff of employees. Teachers are on the top of this list. Making sure the right teachers are hired and ineffective teachers replaced, is the first step. The teachers need to be trained in explicit teaching for the type of students that attend the school. This includes best practice strategies for instruction, identification of at-risk students and interventions used to fidelity. They also need to be given extra time/money to run PLC groups using solid data. All staff members of the school need to be passionate about the students. They need to see their needs and not be afraid to address them. They need to understand the dynamics of poverty and how it is affecting our students. All staff need to be trained to recognize some of the basic needs that are not being met and help us try to meet them in some way
What are your school’s top two goals for the next year?
Our top goal is to continue to show growth across reading, writing, math and science.
Our second most important goal is to make sure all new teachers are trained in quality teaching strategies to increase their capacity to reach Title I students. Equally important is to continue our efforts to assure all faculty implement best, research-based practices.
What is the single most important factor in the success of your school that others could replicate?
I feel that the approach of our Scatter Groups would be an easy thing to replicate provided you are willing to use your funding to hire tutors. These groups allow for differentiation for all grade level students a minimum of 3 times a week throughout the school year in Language Arts and/or Math. As the teachers advance in preparing for these groups, the role of consistent, formative assessments becomes the tool to select the groups of students. In order to do this effectively, the teams must develop strong PLC groups who analyze and use data effectively.
Describe the program or initiative that has had the greatest positive effect on student achievement, including closing achievement or opportunity gaps, if applicable.
One program that has had the greatest effect on student achievement is our “Scatter Groups.” We have hired 7 tutors to work in this program. Teachers also take a group. The teachers meet together every week to decide groups across the grade level, thus the classes are mixed. This involves using data to determine which students should be together based on ability and needed skill. Teachers plan each group’s lessons and determine which tutor/teacher works with each group. The groups run for 30 minutes, 3 days a week. Data is kept on the achievement developed in the group.
One initiative that we have implemented over the past several years, involves intensive SIOP training for our teachers. Teachers have been taught to improve instructional strategies, engagement, and rigor. Not only instructional lectures are given, but teacher demonstrations and observations are a part of this training.
Explain how Title I funds are used to support your improvement efforts.
All of our Title monies are spent on staffing. The funding has been used to hire staff for the Scatter Groups. We have also bought 1.5 classroom teachers and half the contract for my full time Language Arts Coordinator. Our Federal funds also pay for a half day Math Coach.
Identify the critical professional development activities you use to improve teaching and student learning.
The growth has occurred because of the continual professional development we implement to improve our teachers’ quality of teaching by focusing on practices that are research based and explicit. Over the past 5 years, we have had trainings in everything from engagement, time on task, rigor in teaching, and rigor in assessments. We have also had site based mentoring in Language Arts and math instruction from our onsite coaches. These have been most beneficial. Our Language Arts Coach has given full faculty trainings in such things a phonemic awareness, fluency instruction, comprehension, and writing. Our school piloted the new Advantage Math Curriculum. Our math coach was there to make sure teachers understood the concepts and used solid teaching practices as they implemented the new curriculum. Through the use of this program and solid mentoring, our math scores shot up in grades 3-6. Both coaches work with grade levels on an ongoing basis to review instructional methods for Core standards and essential skills. Then, the coaches model the teaching. This is followed with the teachers modeling for the coaches. Rich, reflective conversations with specific feedback occur as follow-up.
Describe how data is used to improve student achievement and inform decision making.
At the beginning of the school year, grade level teams meet with administration to review the State End of Year Assessments, DIBELS scores, and classroom assessments. This data is used to determine small group placement and immediate intervention needs. These Data Meetings continue every term. Additionally, all grade levels run PLC teams weekly and are required to follow the “Rick DuFour” model. This requires data from each goal to be kept and re-teaching done for students who did not meet the goal not meeting the goal.
Describe your school culture and explain changes you’ve taken to improve it.
Our school is in a low socio-economic, residential area with rental homes and some apartment complexes. Our challenges include student mobility and home cultures that devalue education. Most of our student population enters school with limited literacy or math background. Thus, our teachers must provide additional background knowledge and intensive skill instruction in an attempt to bring students up to grade level.
For the last several years, our faculty has been involved in intensive training using the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol ,(SIOP), designed to improve the quality of instruction and increase student learning, engagement, and rigor. All teachers are involved in PLC teams to strategize and collaborate instructional strategies using data. We have also added an element of small group instruction using an additional 7 assistants to the teacher teams. These small groups are flexible, leveled learning groups.
Stats
  • Category 2

    Selected in 2016

  • Grades: pre k - 6
    School Setting: suburban
    Town Population: 5,112
    Student Enrollment: 385
    Student Demographics:

    Black/African American: 2%
    White/Caucasian: 70%
    Hispanic: 19%
    Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 2%
    Asian: 2%
    Native American: 1%
    Other: 4%

    Teacher/Student Ratio: 1:21
    % Reduced Lunch: 64%
    % ELL Learners: 10%
    Founded: 1950
  • PRINCIPAL:
    Laura Bond
  • CONTACT:
    2014 North 250 West
    Sunset, UT 84015
    801-402-2550
    lbond@dsdmail.net