Kentwood — Third-graders in teacher Adam Munoz’s Glenwood Elementary School class considered the vocabulary words of the day: “desire” and “entry.”
Iris Proctor helped define “desire.”
“It’s stuff that you hope will happen because you don’t have it now,” she said.
“Wishing for certain things,” wrote Karson Lucas on a worksheet for his definition.
Other students pitched definitions for “entry,” as in a written record. “A short note in a journal,” offered one student.
The class then brainstormed synonyms and antonyms for the words, jotting examples down on mini whiteboards.
After more vocabulary practice, the class moved on to the elements of poetry including stanza, rhyming, alliteration, haiku, limerick and free verse.
‘We are really getting better at working the foundational skills and word study with students, so we can help them be able to decode text to understand.’
— Carrie Tellerico, KPS executive director of elementary education
Munoz is on a third-grade team of teachers, also including Mindy Geer and Amanda Tollas, whose students have achieved higher than expected third-grade English language arts M-STEP scores when compared with schools nationwide with similar demographics.
He described what’s working at Glenwood.
“It’s partner work; it’s vocabulary; it’s foundational skills; it’s phonics; it’s collaboration,” Munoz said. “I use a lot of (assessment) data to drive instruction. I try to make the learning meaningful to them. When we are talking about words like ‘desire’ and ‘entry,’ that’s tough vocabulary, so I try to get it on their level and make it as fun as possible for them.”
Literacy ‘Bright Spots’
In Kentwood Public Schools, Meadowlawn and Bowen elementary schools also received recognition as “Bright Spots” for out-performing schools with similar demographics in reading proficiency. The study was completed by The 74, a nonprofit news organization covering America’s education system. Schools were notified of the recognition during the summer.
Nationwide, 2,158 schools were recognized for having third-grade reading scores higher than expected when factoring in the school’s percentage of economically disadvantaged students. Poverty correlates with academic achievement for a variety of reasons including access to resources, housing, transportation and food needs. Socio-demographic factors are the “most powerful predictors of a school district’s academic success,” according to the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University.
Kent ISD schools also recognized in the study include Cummings Elementary in Grandville Public Schools; Brown and Marshall elementaries in Byron Center Public Schools; and Coit Creative Arts Academy in Grand Rapids Public Schools.
Glenwood, Bowen and Meadowlawn are located within just three miles of each other, and about three-quarters of their students come from economically disadvantaged households. Between 30% and 43% are English-language learners.
According to the study, 62% of Glenwood third-graders in 2023-24 were proficient or advanced on the state’s annually administered M-STEP assessment. At Meadowlawn, 48% hit those levels of proficiency, as did 54% at Bowen Elementary. According to The 74 study, the schools would be expected to score in the 20-35% proficiency range when compared to schools of similar demographics.
The three schools’ M-STEP scores in 2024-25 and 2025-26 continued to outperform similar schools, according to data from the state’s education data source, MI School Data. Statewide third-grade reading scores dipped to 38.2% proficient for 2025-26, down from 38.9% the previous year.
Engagement, Relevance, ‘stellar instruction’
Carrie Tellerico, KPS executive director of elementary education, said reading instruction district-wide is aligned across all 11 elementary schools.
“We’ve had very clear structures in place,” she said.
Students receive two to two-and-a-half hours per day of reading instruction in which teachers lead a focused lesson before students partner on a related activity. Students identified as needing extra help receive about 30 minutes of intervention.
The district is in its first year of implementation of the HMH Into Reading curriculum, which is rooted in the science of reading.
“What I feel like we are really getting better at is working the foundational skills and word study with students, so we can help them be able to decode text to understand,” Tellerico said. “With M-STEP, those are standards students should have mastered and understand completely and be able to apply those skills with anything that is put in front of them.”
At Meadowlawn Elementary, Principal Julie Schrot credited the success to third-grade teachers Lindsey Greenfield and Annie Hammill working together like a “well-oiled” machine.
“They are so well interconnected that their planning practice and their instructional practice mirror each other so beautifully,” Schrot said. “You could walk into either classroom and just see stellar instruction. They are very much on the exact same page. They also have terrific command on classroom management.”
Glenwood Principal Sarah Hamilla said her school’s teachers are always assessing students’ needs and taking appropriate next steps.
“They teach to the standards and don’t water anything down,” Hamilla said. “The engagement is strong; they make the learning relevant. I see a lot of partner work and group work, so the students are invested in the learning as well.”
Bowen Elementary Principal Mary Campione said third-grade teachers Joe Dykstra and Erin Lundsted have high expectations and work to build relationships and support students beyond academics.
“They care about their students as learners, but also take the time to get to know them as people. They recognize that students need to feel safe, connected, and supported before they can truly engage in their learning,” Campione said.
At Glenwood, as his students worked on poetry, Munoz said he’s excited to help all students excel in the most diverse district in the state through strong literacy instruction and in every other way.
“We have this melting pot of beauty, and it is up to us to help mold and set these kids up for success for the future,” he said.
Read more from Kentwood:
• Students sleuth their way through text to solve crime
• ‘A flashpoint for everything’: Teaching 9/11, 25 years later
