Background

Glenwood Elementary School (Kentwood Public Schools) in Grand Rapids, Michigan serves a large percentage of students who are at risk of reading failure. During the 2010-11 through 2012-13 school years, Glenwood implemented Lindamood-Bell instruction in Tier III. Students received Seeing Stars and Visualizing and Verbalizing instruction to develop symbol imagery and concept imagery for reading and comprehension. Instruction was delivered by Glenwood teachers who received Lindamood-Bell professional development. In an independent analysis conducted by Public Sector Consultants, student gains were measured with the state achievement test and the results were compared to gains made by students from all other elementary schools in the state of Michigan. After controlling for socioeconomic status, 1,210 elementary schools were ranked according to achievement exceeding expectations.

In addition to Glenwood Elementary School, four other Kentwood schools implementing Lindamood-Bell also made the Academic State Champs list. See chart below:

Results

Five Kentwood elementary schools made the Academic State Champs list, with Glenwood ranking 3rd out of 1,210 schools. According to the article, “Five of the 10 Kentwood Public Schools’ elementaries are champs – the most of any district in the state – and the other five in the diverse, 8,800-student district are deemed exceeding expectations.”

The results of this study illustrate how Lindamood-Bell instruction in the Seeing Stars and Visualizing and Verbalizing programs can change a student’s ability to access curriculum. In Glenwood, developing the imagery-language connection for reading and comprehension made a difference for students in Tier III, as well as their entire school community.

Profile

School Years: 2010-11 through 2012-13
Number of Students: 1,210
Grade Level: Elementary
Lindamood-Bell Programs Implemented:
– Seeing Stars®
– Visualizing and Verbalizing®

Focus of Lindamood-Bell Services:
– Teacher Workshops
– Coaching via Telepresence Robot
– Instructional Leadership Support

Lindamood-Bell instruction can change learning for students, regardless of their previous struggle with language and literacy. Contact us to learn how your school can get started: 800-233-1819.