🌱Rooted in Literacy. Growing Through Change.
As we close out 2025, we’re taking a moment to reflect—not just on what changed around us, but on what grew because of us. Across classrooms, colleges, and communities, we’ve seen powerful examples of resilience, innovation, and transformation through literacy.
In this edition, we’re excited to share stories of impact—from breakthrough student outcomes to expanding professional learning communities; from new Writing Apprenticeship milestones to resources that are shaping the future of literacy instruction.
Stay with us through the end—you won’t want to miss the inspiring wins, practical tools, and opportunities waiting for you in the year ahead.
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📚Reading Apprenticeship Lifts Student Success in North Carolina
A new study from SRI International and WestEd shows that Reading Apprenticeship is helping high school students in rural North Carolina achieve stronger academic outcomes. After just one year of implementation, students in RA classrooms earned higher grades in ELA and science than peers in comparison schools.
- Ninth-grade students were nearly 3x more likely to earn an A in English
- Over 90% earned an A in science
These early results highlight how Reading Apprenticeship helps students build confidence, engage deeply with texts, and take ownership of their learning—especially in resource-limited schools led by committed educators.
✍🏽Writing Apprenticeship: Celebrating Educators Across the Country
Writing Apprenticeship continues to grow as a dynamic, collaborative framework that helps educators create culturally responsive and empowering writing experiences for learners across grade levels and contexts.
The approach emphasizes:
- Collaborative classroom environments
- Building on learner strengths
- Developing writing knowledge and practices
- Metacognitive conversations that build confidence and belonging
In 2025, Writing Apprenticeship supported educators from CA, MI, NC, NM, WA, and the Northern Mariana Islands—expanding our community of teachers committed to identity-affirming, purposeful writing instruction.
📝Learn more about Writing Apprenticeship!
🎓College Network Continues to Innovate to Support Student Success
This July, 40 college educators from across 11 states, 31 colleges, and 14 disciplines gathered for a four-day Reading Apprenticeship College Network Think Tank. Together, they explored what it means to sustain literacy-centered teaching and professional community in today’s challenging higher education landscape.
Participants:
- Reaffirmed the urgency of embedding literacy across disciplines
- Engaged in deep metacognitive conversations
- Explored the power of text sets and social annotation
- Designed next steps and collaborative workshops for 2026
This growing community continues to lead with inquiry, reflective practice, and student-centered innovation.
🧑🏽🏫Learn more about Reading Apprenticeship in College!
➿Resource Roundup
Literacy at WestEd Blog & Webinar Series on Disciplinary Literacy
This blog and webinar series explores the concept of disciplinary literacy—the distinct ways of reading, writing, and communicating across academic fields such as science, history, math, and literature. Featuring actionable insights from WestEd thought leaders, the series looks at how integrating disciplinary literacy practices into elementary and secondary classrooms can support student success in school, in careers, and throughout their lives. We provide a broad range of strategies for teachers, instructional coaches, and instructional leaders to support disciplinary literacy, including spotlights on building supportive school climates, ensuring success for multilingual learners and students with disabilities in content area learning, and strengthening literacy routines across the disciplines.
These Schools Are Beating the Odds in Teaching Kids to Read
The 74 has created interactive maps that let you see how effectively districts and schools are teaching third-grade reading relative to poverty rates. Compare literacy rates across your district, your state, and the nation.
Understanding and Supporting Your Child’s Literacy Development
This WestEd resource provides clear literacy milestones by grade level to help you understand and support your child’s journey to literacy. It also includes questions it may be helpful to ask your child’s teacher and other suggestions on how adults can support their child’s literacy growth at home.
👉🏼Check out this easy-to-use guide
Thank you for being part of our literacy community. Your commitment to learners, your curiosity, and your collaboration continue to shape a more just and literate future. We’re grateful for all you do—and we can’t wait to grow with you in 2026
Post Date
December 11, 2025