Laurel Park Elementary teacher Jillian Disidore received SIPPS as part of the Collaborative Classroom Teacher Scholarship Program. In this interview, she explains how SIPPS has helped her better serve her students as an ENL (English as a New Language) Teacher.
Tell us a little about yourself, your school and district, and the students that you serve.
My name is Jillian Disidore and I have been teaching for 16 years. Throughout my teaching career, I have had numerous positions, including speech therapist, elementary teacher, and reading specialist.
For the past seven years, I have been an ENL (English as a New Language) teacher at the Brentwood Union Free School District in Brentwood, NY.
Eighty-seven percent of the Brentwood School District students are Hispanic, 8 percent of students are Black, 3 percent of students are White, and 2 percent of students are Asian.
Approximately 40 percent of our students are English Language Learners. Currently at Laurel Park Elementary School, 383 of our students receive ENL or Bilingual services.
What is the most rewarding part of being an educator for you?
The most rewarding part of being an educator is giving my students the most important and powerful gift of all—the ability to read and write.
The most rewarding part of being an educator is giving my students the most important and powerful gift of all—the ability to read and write.
For a long time, the fact that I was not doing so bothered me tremendously. Year after year the students on my roster as an ENL teacher have consistently demonstrated a need for intense phonemic awareness, phonics, and sight words instruction.
For far too long, I ended up attempting to create resources that target this type of instruction, since I did not have access to a systematic and explicit phonics intervention.
This was a frustrating, time-consuming, and overwhelming task. I constantly questioned whether the lessons I was implementing were effective and beneficial for my students’ learning.
As they continued to struggle, I yearned to find the best-suited intervention for my English Language Learners.
As they continued to struggle, I yearned to find the best-suited intervention for my English Language Learners.
I then began my journey of trying to find a phonics intervention that was best suited for the students at the Brentwood School District. SIPPS emerged as that intervention.
As an ENL (English as a New Language) teacher, what do you appreciate about SIPPS?
There are many features I appreciate about SIPPS that make it a well-suited phonics intervention for the Brentwood School District.
First, the program incorporates many of the strategies correlated with the Science of Reading. SIPPS is an explicit, systematic program. Research indicates that English Language Learners clearly benefit from explicit, systematic, cumulative instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics. Furthermore, SIPPS encourages children to read words as opposed to using the three-cueing system.
Secondly, a strong phonics program is beneficial to support English Language Learners at all grades and levels. Therefore I really appreciate that SIPPS can be used in grades 1–12 as an intervention program.
Thirdly, the Dreams on Wheels reader [used in SIPPS Plus, which is for older readers] contains decodable stories that are of high interest to older students and do not appear “babyish.”
Lastly, since I started using SIPPS, I have seen my students’ confidence grow in reading and writing. I rarely hear the words, “I can’t read.”
Since I started using SIPPS, I have seen my students’ confidence grow in reading and writing. I rarely hear the words, “I can’t read.”
My students also look forward to writing instruction and now have a stronger understanding of the fundamentals of writing.
How long have you been implementing SIPPS? Tell us a little about your implementation.
Laurel Park Elementary School began implementing SIPPS at the commencement of the 2022–2023 school year.
The ENL teachers began an ENL Lab that focused on English Language Learners who were struggling in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics, and sight words.
Data from the iReady Diagnostics and Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark, as well as teacher recommendations, were used to identify possible candidates.
Groups were formed based on the SIPPS Placement Test. Students in grades 1–3 were then pulled out of their classrooms and received SIPPS as an intervention for 45 minutes daily.
Since implementing SIPPS, not only have my students become more confident as readers and writers, the iReady data shows tremendous growth in their knowledge in phonemic awareness, phonics, and high-frequency words.
Since implementing SIPPS, not only have my students become more confident as readers and writers, the iReady data shows tremendous growth in their knowledge in phonemic awareness, phonics, and high-frequency words.
The Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment also shows growth in students’ reading levels.
What have you noticed about your students’ learning and engagement?
Students’ reading behaviors have also changed drastically. When students are presented with an unknown word, they now rely on decoding strategies rather than the three-cueing system.
Students’ reading behaviors have also changed drastically. When students are presented with an unknown word, they now rely on decoding strategies rather than the three-cueing system.
How has SIPPS affected or changed your own teaching and learning?
SIPPS has affected my teaching and has taught me many effective strategies.
The program stresses the importance of continuous blending. Prior to implementing SIPPS, I modeled and reinforced tapping words out as opposed to continuous blending.
As a result of this change, students can decode and encode words more effectively.
What advice or insights would you share with an educator who is new to SIPPS?
I would advise educators who are new to SIPPS to read the teacher’s manual thoroughly, especially the information provided at each entry point and in the appendixes.
There is valuable knowledge within these parts of the manual and, while it might seem overwhelming at first, it truly is helpful for implementing SIPPS with fidelity!
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Related:
Learn more about SIPPS.
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