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Webinar: Across America's Classrooms: Literacy and Math Strategies to Engage, Adapt, and Accelerate
We asked four passionate leaders in K–12 education to join us for a conversation about how literacy and math instruction is affecting student achievement in the U.S.:
- Dr. Emily Hare, Director of PreK–12 Mathematics for Guilford County Schools
- Dr. Amanda Malone, K–12 Literacy Director for the Mississippi Department of Education
- Dr. Melissa Sadorf, Executive Director of the National Rural Education Association and professor at Northern Arizona University
- Dr. Rufus Hill, State Director of K–12 Mathematics Coaching for the Mississippi Department of Education
Our lively, insightful discussion explored effective strategies and areas that need more focus in schools and districts of all kinds—rural, suburban, and urban. Our experts also shared real-world success stories and what led to the gains that students have made.
Watch the video to get the details on these topics and much more, like the role of supplemental resources and innovation in the classroom.
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Hurst-Euless-Bedford (HEB) Independent School District
Bedford, TX
Professional Learning That Works: HEB ISD Sees 2X Growth in Discovery Education Usage
The instructional technology team at Hurst-Euless Bedford (HEB) Independent School District is on a mission to promote technology that enhances student success in and beyond the classroom. In a large district, this is no small task. But HEB’s team of six dedicated tech coaches gets creative in their professional learning approach and partners with Discovery Education for support.
PD in Your PJs: A Flexible, Engaging Solution to Professional Learning
HEB ISD has over 1600 teachers across 40 campuses, making time, distance, and physical space a challenge for the instructional technology team to do their job. The team took creative action and launched PD in Your PJs, a virtual professional learning series led by tech coaches Sarra Smith and Jeff Blankenship, designed to set educators up for success.
“We decided to bring the training to the teachers,” says Jeff. “In short bursts of learning, teachers get to hear us present and model technology tools, all from the comfort of home or wherever they might be.”
“The great thing about PD in Your PJs is that it becomes a catalyst for our one-on-one coaching,” explains Sarra. “At the end of the day, we just want teachers to feel confident using these tools so that they can engage their students.”
Bringing Discovery Education into the Equation
When the time came to train teachers on Discovery Education Experience, a PK-12 digital learning platform with high-quality content and engaging resources, tech coach Carly Farris went straight to their Discovery Education partner success manager, Tammy Norman, to host a PD in Your PJs session. Their goal was to introduce teachers to the wealth of tools in the platform beyond the videos that they love to use, and how it can enhance their daily instruction.
Tammy collaborated closely with Carly to determine the district’s needs and ensure the PD in Your PJs session was engaging and meaningful. “The role of a partner success manager at Discovery Education,” explains Tammy, “is all about being a thought partner with the district… walking through their challenges and successes and building effective implementations from that.”
The approachable, flexible format of the Discovery Education training made it easy for teachers to jump in and learn quickly how to use the high-quality instructional materials and time-saving tools like Studio and quizzes, leading to the highest participation of any PD in Your PJs session and more consistent use of Experience. “It truly is a team effort between HEB and Discovery Education coming together to have a really successful event,” says Tammy.
The Discovery Education Impact
Since the launch of PD in Your PJs, Discovery Education usage in the district has more than doubled, which the tech coaches attribute in part to the strong partnership with the Discovery Education team.
Teachers have discovered new ways to engage students with Experience using tools like Immersive Reader and ready-to-teach lessons. “Teachers get really excited when you show them what’s available in Experience and how to apply it in their classroom,” explains tech coach Jennifer Pettit. “They’re able to create unique learning experiences for their students.”
Success Through Collaboration
HEB ISD’s tech coaches and Discovery Education’s partner success team continue to collaborate regularly, building on their success with PD in Your PJs to deliver engaging, meaningful, and effective professional learning.
According to Jeff and the team, “we know that we’ve been successful when we see the actual application of technology within the classroom and it’s done with fidelity.” For Discovery Education, success means working in tandem with district leaders to support teachers, and in turn, promote student growth in and beyond the classroom.
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Polson School District #23
Polson, Montana
Polson School District, a small rural district in Montana, has a big goal: to find high-quality digital tools that support teachers and engage students. Thanks to a strategic statewide partnership with Discovery Education, that vision is becoming a reality.
Grassroots Enthusiasm Sparks a Strong Start
When Betsy Wade stepped into her role as Polson’s new curriculum director, she saw immediate potential in Discovery Education Experience, a digital learning platform with high-quality content, tools, and instructional strategies for K-12 classrooms. She recalls,“It seemed like a no-brainer—it’s state sponsored, rich in resources, and is unlike other tools we’ve tried.”
Working with Discovery Education’s Montana team, Polson offered optional training to introduce Experience to educators. Teachers immediately embraced it, and their grassroots enthusiasm led to district-wide targeted professional development.
Building on that momentum, the district adopted DreamBox Math, a personalized math program for K-8 students, to reinforce math standards and help fill knowledge gaps. Discovery Education’s Montana team once again supported the rollout with targeted, effective professional learning for Polson teachers.
The collaboration among district leaders, teachers, and Discovery Education has paid off. Teachers feel supported and confident with both tools and regularly share strategies and favorite resources. Kristin Wilson, principal at Linderman Elementary, states, “I see teachers collaborating with one another, sharing what they find in Discovery Education and doing so in their PLC meetings.”
Students Explore, Engage, and Grow
It’s not just teachers who are excited; students are more engaged than ever.
Discovery Education Experience
Polson students are diving into topics complementing curriculum because Experience offers such a wide variety of high-quality, vetted content. Even special education students are “able to navigate independently very well and are engaged and focused on the learning,” observes Kristin. Stephanie St. Clair, a 3rd-grade teacher at Linderman Elementary adds, “I love Experience because students can explore their interests on their own within the platform and are really engaged with what they find. There’s always a lesson or an interactive activity to reinforce the content. Plus, it’s easy to use and easy to assign!”
DreamBox Math
DreamBox Math’s personalized learning model is helping students build essential math skills. Teachers use the program weekly to support math learning and prepare students for standardized assessments like MAST and STAR Math. Students show excitement when they get to work in DreamBox during class, too. “It’s a win if students are engaged and don’t see the activity as a chore,” Stephanie explains. “DreamBox Math helps all my kids show growth, no matter how much—it’s worth celebrating!”
Looking Ahead
All in all, educators across the district, especially in elementary schools, have embraced both Discovery Education Experience and DreamBox Math. Betsy hopes to expand their usage even more at the middle and high schools, especially in support of state test preparation. She believes the key to ongoing success depends on listening closely to educators. “When our teachers feel supported and see their students succeed, that’s how I know we’re on the right track.”
Learn How Discovery Education Can Help You Achieve Your Goals
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Manchester School District
Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester School District is the largest district in New Hampshire and serves one of the most diverse communities in the state. As such, the district is on a mission to elevate learning across classrooms for all students. With a focus on addressing literacy gaps and creating cross-curricular learning opportunities, the district turned to Discovery Education Experience, an all-in-one digital learning platform with standards-aligned resources, real-world content, time-saving tools, and trusted instructional strategies. It’s been a game-changer for teachers, students, and administrators alike.
The Initial Challenge
Before adopting Discovery Education Experience, Manchester schools faced a common yet challenging issue—balancing literacy instruction with other essential subjects like science and social studies. Students were dedicating up to 2.5 hours daily to literacy, leaving little room for other critical subjects, and the instructional team desired better tools to integrate learning.
Lisa Delacey, Director of Academics and Instruction for Elementary at the district, saw an opportunity to address this challenge with Discovery Education Experience. She and her team needed an easy-to-use and effective platform that enriched learning across multiple subjects and addressed the diverse needs of the district’s learners, like a high population of English Language Learners (ELL). Experience checked every box.
A Versatile Tool Across Subjects
Currently, Experience is being used for science, math, English Language Arts, and social studies in elementary and middle schools throughout Manchester School District. Teachers across K-8 are finding innovative ways to incorporate the platform into their lesson plans, such as creating cross-curricular lesson activities that are engaging and fun. They particularly love Studio, the platform’s collaborative activity and presentation tool, because it allows them to easily build and share multimedia lessons seamlessly across entire grade levels, saving valuable time.
Specialized areas like reading intervention and Essentials classes (for students needing extra intervention) have found particular value in the platform as an easy way for students to learn new topics and build background knowledge in their group learning centers. “A great example of this,” explains Lisa, “is how Experience can help our immigrant students learn topics they may initially have no context or knowledge about, like the American Revolution.” Special education and ELL teachers also find the platform exciting because it presents an opportunity to differentiate learning and support their students’ learning needs. Overall, for students who might otherwise feel overwhelmed by traditional classroom lessons, Experience offers a user-friendly way to discover topics, build background knowledge, and bridge gaps in learning.
Setting Up Teachers for Success
Once the district introduced Discovery Education Experience, the leadership team made sure to set up their teachers for success, starting with a district-wide professional development day. Led by Lisa Delacey and advocates like middle school principal Kelly Espinola, scheduled trainings continued so that educators had hands-on experience navigating the platform and could experiment with its many resources and tools to find how it can best serve their needs and those of their students.
The district’s professional learning strategy has not only amplified teacher confidence and collaboration but also unlocked the full potential of Discovery Education Experience. They ensure teachers have access to:
- Personalized Training: Professional learning sessions tailored for each discipline, and for groups like K-5 reading specialists, STEM teachers, librarians, and special education instructors, ensure that every teacher can uncover how the platform uniquely supports their instructional needs.
- On-Demand Support: Discovery Education’s Partner Success Team works closely with the district to provide ongoing assistance, acting as an extension of the instructional team to empower teachers and build their confidence over time in using the platform.
Harnessing the Full Potential
After meaningful professional learning and successful experimentation with Experience, the platform has become an integral tool for educators. Lisa Delacey has also noticed that the platform is having a positive impact beyond their initial expectations. She loves how it provides students with a digital environment that is safe and accessible. Because all resources are vetted and contained within Experience, teachers are reassured that students can easily access and explore real-world content that is high-quality, engaging, and relevant.
Manchester is also leaning on Experience to support its district-led projects like flipped-classroom models. For example, teachers are exploring ways to use Experience for at-home assignments, preparing students for in-depth discussions and activities during in-person sessions.
Looking Ahead
Looking ahead, the district is committed to strengthening not only its usage of Experience, but also its partnership with Discovery Education. The Discovery Education team for New Hampshire continues to provide professional learning support, as the district explores new strategies to expand Experience across more schools and grade levels.
Experience has proven to be more than just a digital learning platform for Manchester School District—it’s a bridge to new opportunities for students and teachers alike. With Manchester’s commitment to high-quality content, adaptability to diverse learning needs, and focus on professional learning, Experience is helping Manchester move beyond traditional learning models into a world of discovery and possibility.
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Agora Cyber Charter School
Pennsylvania
At Agora Cyber Charter School, where students across Pennsylvania learn in a fully virtual environment, sparking curiosity and keeping learners engaged can be challenging, especially with evolving academic standards. But fifth-grade science teacher Krista Kowalok has found a powerful solution in Mystery Science, an engaging, hands-on program that brings science to life through real-world exploration and interactive problem-solving.
New Standards Bring New Challenges
When Pennsylvania introduced its new STEELS science standards, Agora Cyber needed a digital program that not only aligned with the new standards but also supported its virtual learning environment. Agora selected Mystery Science after careful evaluation—a choice that Krista Kowalok welcomed. With 13 years of teaching behind her and a passion for education, she knew Mystery Science would meet her needs, even with the challenge of implementing new standards.
“Not knowing all the new standards or how they should be taught can feel overwhelming,” Krista admits, “but Mystery Science simplifies everything. It makes it easy for teachers like me to use performance tasks and anchor phenomena that support the new PA science standards.”
How Mystery Science Sparks Daily Engagement
Mystery Science is now at the heart of Krista’s fifth-grade science curriculum. Through its integration with ClassLink, Agora’s learning management system, teachers can access and assign content effortlessly.
Krista begins each science lesson with a warm-up question to spark curiosity and discussion. She then uses Mystery Science’s step-by-step videos to expand vocabulary, reinforce concepts, and inspire thought-provoking, student-led conversations.
The program also incorporates Performance Tasks that use a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) framework to encourage critical thinking and strengthen writing skills. “When I use the graphic organizers in the Performance Tasks, my students write paragraphs with incredible depth,” Krista shares. “Their enthusiasm for science makes all the difference!”
Krista complements Mystery Science with virtual lab demonstrations using Explore Learning Gizmos. This combination of guided instruction and active exploration provides students with a balanced, engaging learning experience.
Shifting from Teacher-Driven to Student-Led Learning
After just a year with Mystery Science, Krista has seen a significant shift from teacher-driven to student-led learning. The program naturally fosters small-group discussions where students eagerly explore new concepts and debate real-world scenarios.
The Future of Virtual Learning is Bright
The success of Mystery Science in Krista’s fifth-grade class has inspired Agora to expand its use into grades k-4, creating a cohesive learning experience for all elementary students at the school. Krista is especially excited about the long-term impact on students’ critical thinking and communication skills. “Science is all about asking questions and searching for answers,” she says. “With Mystery Science, our students are mastering this process and gaining skills that will serve them for a lifetime.”
Krista Kowalok’s experience demonstrates how Mystery Science can significantly enhance virtual learning, all while supporting teachers with intuitive lessons and strong alignment to standards. By focusing on critical skills, collaboration, and high expectations, Agora Cyber Charter School is preparing its students to excel in an increasingly complex—and digital—world.
Krista Kowalok MA. Ed
Agora Cyber Charter School, PA
Krista Kowalok is a 5th grade math and science teacher at Agora Cyber Charter School, where she has taught for 13 years. Krista also has six years of teaching experience in a traditional classroom setting. She really enjoys using her science background and love of learning with her students in the hopes of inspiring them to become lifelong learners!
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]]>A Comprehensive Framework for Observing and Assessing Student Curiosity
Developed by Dr. Tim Hudson, Ph.D., this research-based rubric provides educators with a structured approach to evaluate and nurture curiosity across four key dimensions: questioning, skepticism, interest, and mindset. Perfect for student self-reflection, growth tracking, and curriculum planning.
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]]>At-a-Glance
Type:
Logic Model
Source:
LearnPlatform by Instructure
Grade Level:
6-8
Product:
Social Studies Techbook
Share This Report
Discovery Education engaged LearnPlatform by Instructure, a third-party edtech research company, to develop a logic model for Social Studies Techbook. LearnPlatform by Instructure designed the logic model to satisfy Level IV requirements (Demonstrates a Rationale) according to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
To continue building evidence of effectiveness and to examine the proposed relationships in the logic model, LearnPlatform also developed a research plan for a study to meet ESSA Level III. Specifically, this study will focus on middle school students’ use of Social Studies Techbook.
Because of the development of the logic model and the plan for an ESSA Level III study, Social Studies Techbook meets Tier IV evidence requirements in compliance with ESSA.
Source
LearnPlatform by Instructure, Senior Researcher Andrew Scanlan, M.A., Instructional Designer Justin Long, M.A., and Associate Director of Research Molly Henschel, Ph.D. “Mystery Science Logic Model.” Discovery Education, March 7, 2024.
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