Houston ISD launches programs to improve elementary student reading skills

A new program dubbed “Accelerated Science of Reading” will be offered for select HISD kindergarten and first grade students who read below the average in their grade level, according to the district’s website. This program will provide those students with lessons designed to “address specific skill gaps” and help them improve.

What’s new

Seven HISD campuses will pilot the new “Kinder Bridge” program, which adds an optional grade level in between kindergarten and first grade for students who read below the grade level average, according to the June 22 news release.

“Children develop at different rates and time matters a lot,” Hole said. “Kinder Bridge allows more time for development for the students who need it and increases the likelihood that students will reach grade level.”

The one-year Kinder Bridge program curriculum will focus on accelerated kindergarten lessons with elements of first grade-level information, according to the news release.

According to the news release, HISD campuses offering Kinder Bridge in August will be:

• Blackshear Elementary
• Elmore Elementary
• Hilliard Elementary
• Smith Elementary
• C. Martinez Elementary
• Bonham Elementary
• Shadydale Elementary

Potential future reading programs for HISD students include the “Literacy Promotion Standard” being added for second and third grade students in the summer of 2028, according to HISD’s website. This program would require approval from HISD’s board of managers.