About PSJA LIFE

The PSJA ISD’s strategic literacy plan, LIFE, Literacy Impact for Excellence, places literacy at the center to improve student academic performance. It guides ongoing decisions about instruction, programming, allocation of resources, and funding.

PSJA LIFE is a sustainable strategic literacy plan that puts in place systems and processes for supporting change and continuous student academic improvement with: 

• intense focus on instruction and delivery of it
• thoughtful literacy-focused ongoing professional development
• a district vision and communication effort to move the district into continuous improvement with clear and accountable staff roles 
• structures that identify instructional resources for literacy
• data-driven decision-making process that initiates and monitors on-track change efforts

Key Practices:

• Systemic use of data
• Standards-Based Curriculum
• Tiered System of Instruction and Intervention
• Family and Community Involvement

PSJA LIFE will create a districtwide literacy blueprint across all content areas for academic improvement.

Overview

Per House Bill 3 (HB 3), passed by the 86th Texas Legislature in June of 2019, all kindergarten through third grade teachers and principals must attend a "teacher literacy achievement academy" by the 2021 - 2022 school year. For simplification and to avoid confusion with other grant programs and past literacy achievement academies, the Texas Education Agency is referring to this latest requirement as the HB 3 Reading Academies. House Bill 3 was updated by the 87th Texas Legislature in June 2021, it now states that all kindergarten through third grade teachers and principals must attend a "teacher literacy achievement academy" by the end of the 2022 - 2023 school year. All K-3 teachers, including special education teachers, and principals are required to attend the HB 3 Reading Academies by 2023.  Districts (LEAs) continue to have authority to exempt art, health education, music, physical education, speech communication and theatre arts, or theatre teachers.

Reading Academy Content Overview (PDF)     |     Reading Academy Implementation Information (PDF) (Updated 3/08/2021)

TEA is dedicated to supporting collaborators and participants throughout the Reading Academy process. To do so effectively and efficiently on a statewide scale, the Reading Academies Support Portal was created. All inquiries regarding Reading Academies will be submitted through the portal moving forward.

Please use this link Support Portal Form Link to access the portal or jump to Frequently Asked Questions for Reading Academies.

Goal

By June 2023, all staff will implement and support effective literacy research-based strategies in reading and writing across all content areas based on PSJA Literacy Impact for Excellence (LIFE) blueprint.

Priorities

• Alignment of District, Campus Improvement Plans, PSJA LIFE & School Literacy Plan
• Implement a districtwide expectation for every teacher to create effective lesson plans
• Improve instructional delivery
• Support growth and development for students and staff
• Improve student academic achievement
• Exceed Four District Goals

Alignment