Creating a Powerful Literacy Program

Sarah Hudson
Mar 26
3 min read

Over Spring Break, I had lunch with a friend who works as a learning support teacher in a different school district. They shared concerns about the literacy program at their school, explaining that different teachers had vastly different approaches, which fell short in most literacy instruction. One teacher used an exploratory learning style, delaying formal reading and writing assessments until the third term. Another teacher had underwhelming, inadequate expectations—students in grade one were expected to write one sentence, in grade two, two sentences. Hearing this broke my heart. By the time students reached grade three, the teachers at that level were forced to work intensely to bring these students up to grade-level expectations in literacy. The tragedy was that a majority of these students were delayed by missing critical building blocks in their formative years.

I write about this because literacy doesn’t have to be a struggle—it can be engaging, enjoyable, and effective with a well-rounded program built on routine. Here’s what works for me.

My grade 1/2 literacy program is integrated across all subjects throughout the day, but the three core components are phonics instruction, small group reading, and daily writing. These foundational routines provide structure and predictability, helping students succeed. Classroom management also becomes easier because students understand expectations, reducing confusion and disruptive behaviors.

For phonics, I use UFLI, though programs like the Science of Reading and Heggerty are also excellent. After lunch, during silent reading time, I conduct small group reading sessions. Students are grouped based on their reading levels, allowing for targeted instruction. We use decodable books with a specific focus, and students take these books home for additional practice before returning them the next day.

My writing program begins with Super Sentence writing (see my blog on how to use Super Sentences), which encourages creativity, one-on-one conferencing, take-home writing samples, and weekly raw writing samples. By mid-year, we progress to paragraph writing (see my blog on Four Square Writing). By the end of term two, most of my grade one students are independently writing well-structured paragraphs.

To assess writing, I use the provincial writing performance standards rubric—an excellent tool for tracking progress over time. Introduced in the early 2000s, this rubric was designed for school-wide use, ensuring consistency in assessment from kindergarten through grade 10. A proper assessment involves a three-day process:

Day 1: Class-wide brainstorming followed by a pair-and-share activity.
Day 2: Students create a mind map or another graphic organizer to organize their ideas.
Day 3: The actual writing session, with a fixed 30-40 minute time limit and 10 minutes for editing. This is done independently, with no teacher assistance, to ensure accurate assessment results.

BC Performance Standards Grades 1, 3, and 6

Ideally, writing assessments are marked collaboratively with other grade-level teachers to maintain consistency. However, even if used individually, the performance standards provide valuable insight into student progress.

I’m not saying my approach is the only way, but this is what has worked best for me. Every school district has different methods for implementing and assessing literacy instruction. Ultimately, finding an approach that enriches and supports your students’ literacy development is what makes teaching so rewarding.

Below are links to the BC Performance Standards in Writing. Check out the Quick Scale for personal writing at the appropriate grade level to understand the key assessment criteria. Most personal writing rubrics are found on page 5 of the PDF.