Our kindergarten school teachers have been participating in professional developments to implement and improve literacy strategies in the classroom through their participation in the Emerging Bilingual Collaborative that involves professional learning focused on the SEAL Instructional Model. This initiative was made possible through a grant in collaboration with funders and the Merced County Office of Education.
On Monday we had a special visit from the funders to see what teachers have been trained on and how our students are benefiting. This visit was prompted due to the efforts observed by organizers as they interacted with all DUSD Kindergarten Teachers. They felt the commitment and wanted to see it in action.
The funders visited Harmony Elementary School and ABC30 joined us to highlight the opportunities given by the Emerging Bilingual Collaborative (EBC) funders.
This is a great reminder of the wonderful work ALL our kindergarten teachers are doing. We look forward to spotlighting our premier early literacy instructional model.
Clarifying Notes:
The story references a $1.5 Million donation. The grant award is actually for $400,000 spread across several districts. The funding covers the professional learning sessions and consultation support.
The story also stated that two-thirds of our students are enrolled in the dual language immersion program. It should have stated that most elementary grade levels provide two strands of DLI and one strand of SEI classes.