Windsor Park Elementary in Corpus Christi, Texas, is achieving high reading scores through its Millionaires Club, which recognizes students who have read at least 1 million words in a school year. The school, a magnet for gifted and talented children, has seen significant improvements in its reading proficiency rates, with nearly 50% of students being Hispanic, 29% white, and 15% Asian.

Millionaires Club Initiative

The Millionaires Club was created three years ago to motivate and recognize young avid readers in the school of roughly 600 students. The project tracks the number of words children read through an online program called Accelerated Reader, which records finished books and comprehension. Students who reach the 1 million word milestone have their photos displayed on a wall in the school, creating a sense of pride and motivation among their peers.

Windsor Park is also the district’s only International Baccalaureate elementary school, which allows teachers to write their own curriculum and offer rigorous instruction along with inquiry-based learning. The school’s approach to education has led to high reading proficiency rates, with 96% of third graders being proficient in reading in 2024, and 99% in the following year.

Teaching Methods

The school’s teaching methods include a learning model called ‘thinking classrooms,’ which involves students working in small groups, solving problems while standing up at whiteboards, and building on pieces of knowledge as they go. This approach has improved students’ writing skills, as they use the whiteboards to organize text and story structure.

Windsor Park’s instruction uses standards from the Texas Education Agency, but infuses them with student-led learning and group collaboration. The curriculum also allows children to make decisions and manage their own instruction, such as choosing the grading rubrics for an activity.

Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.