'Playworks' reinvents recess as a learning experience

As school poverty rates goes up, learning and test scores fall. At Gildo Ray elementary school in Washington state uses a teaching method called director or explicit instruction, in which children learn from a structured approach to teaching with teacher-guided practice. Gildo Ray’s test scores in math and reading are among the highest in the state.

Custer Elementary School in Washington State transformed from a chaotic, low-performing school into a twice-awarded "Best Public School" by implementing Integrated Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, a framework that addresses student needs across three tiers, from schoolwide culture-building to intensive individual interventions. As a result, student survey data showed that 95-97% of students felt safe, included, and cared for, leading to better academic outcomes.

Small rural schools in New Hampshire achieved some of the state's highest reading scores by leveraging their size to create multi-grade classrooms, provide individualized support to all students, and build long-term student-teacher relationships. In result, these lower-income districts have outperformed expectations by the widest margins in the state.

Teachers at John Street School in Franklin Square, New York, are using artificial intelligence-powered tools to craft lesson plans that are tailored to the needs of each student, which they might not have the time to do otherwise. They can quickly adjust a lesson for different reading levels or write worksheets in multiple languages, for example.

To help address falling enrollment and families’ lack of child care, Brooklyn Charter School extended the school day to twelve hours, providing before- and after-school activities and meals. So far, 80 students have signed up for the expanded hours and the school’s enrollment has rebounded from pandemic lows.

Schools in Mesa, Arizona, are using the team teaching model to boost teacher morale and fill gaps in staff. The model allows teachers to work together to teach a large group of students in one big classroom rotating between one-on-one instruction, small groups, and large-group lectures.

Schools in Denver's suburbs are reducing out-of-school suspensions by training teachers to use restorative justice practices and teach students social-emotional skills. Now, a new bill proposes limiting out-of-school suspensions for students statewide.

A North Carolina teacher has had marked success using mastery-based learning techniques, which emphasize skill acquisition over classroom time, in her classroom. She says of the self-directed approach to instruction: "“The mindset is ‘Give students their own data and let them choose what to work on themselves.’" With this setup, the teacher also has extra time to work in smaller groups with struggling students.

Three elementary schools in an after-school reading pilot program saw significant increases in the percentage of students reaching third-grade level literacy benchmarks. The Mississippi-based curriculum takes a data-driven approach to improving kids' reading skills, allowing teachers to craft individual interventions for specific students. The program, which is uniquely hands-on and boasts a small student-to-teacher ratio, also includes lessons that actively engage parents in the process in order to reinforce reading skills and practice activities at home.

Lake Canyon Elementary School in California takes a strength-based approach to instruction - teachers identify students' natural talents and create personalized lessons to encourage the development of these skills. "Focusing on the traits and skills kids don't have can lead them to become disengaged, while focusing on strengths produces greater levels of happiness and engagement at school and higher levels of academic achievement," one psychology professor explains. Teachers discipline by highlighting "a surplus of something good, not a deficiency." Can the expensive, time-intensive model succeed elsewhere?