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Focus On Schools

Ashley Cruz Combines Connection, Innovation As Washington Teacher

For Ashley Cruz, the hallways of Washington Middle School are more than just a place of work — they are home. Now in her sixth year with Jamestown Public Schools and her second at Washington, Cruz brings a unique perspective to her fifth-grade classroom: she once walked these same halls as a ...

Read 180 Helping Close Literacy Gap

For students at Washington Middle School, the path to literacy is becoming increasingly personalized. As Jamestown Public Schools enters its third year of a district-wide transition to a comprehensive literacy curriculum through Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Washington reading teachers John ...

Book Buddies Program Helps Bridge Gaps Between UPK, Fourth Graders

A unique friendship is blooming between Fletcher Elementary School’s oldest and youngest learners. Every week, for 30 minutes, the high-energy world of Julia Peterson’s fourth-grade classroom meets the curious world of Andrea Kelemen’s UPK students. Together, the classes have become ...

First-Year Teacher Aims To Create Welcoming Space

In the corner of Fletcher Elementary School’s “west wing,” Blade Ellis’s fourth-grade classroom is bustling with excitement. Within these four walls, learning isn’t a passive activity — it’s an event. It’s time for English Language Arts, and before the students read a story ...