Maintaining SSP Implementation in a School Using PLD

Staying connected with PLD is essential for classrooms implementing our programs. Our e-newsletters provide valuable updates and tips to support ongoing success. To ensure your staff stays informed, register them using this link.

School leaders can also email the PLD office with the names, emails, and roles of the staff members, and we will take care of the registration process for you.

Start the term strong by watching and sharing these brief refresher clips with your team. Each video delivers essential and practical tips for effectively implementing the PLD teaching sequence in your classroom term by term. These succinct videos also show how to use the screening and tracking data to group students by ability, allowing for more targeted instruction across different year levels. 

The “PLD Essentials: Termly Overview” videos are a great way to refresh knowledge and motivate your teaching and support staff to make the most of PLD’s Scope and Sequence.

Implementing a Whole School Literacy Plan (WSLP) has consistently been shown to enhance student outcomes. This plan unifies the efforts of the staff under a single, cohesive vision, ensuring consistent instruction as students advance through different classes and grade levels. When every teacher in the school follows the same literacy strategy, it leads to improved academic performance across the entire school.
The Whole School Literacy Strategy (WSLS) booklet is designed to be a valuable resource for staff meetings, offering overviews for each year level and reinforcing the implementation of PLD. Each page provides suggested timelines and implementation guidance, along with references to the essential programs, clearly set out with handy visual prompts and tips. Schools can download the WSLP booklet or request hard copies to share with their school community.

Further information on high-performing schools and the implementation of a whole-school literacy plan can be found here.

PLD emphasises the importance of using tracking sheets with fidelity to ensure the most successful implementation of Structured Synthetic Phonics (SSP). 

We have created a series of helpful tutorials to support teachers implementing PLD in the classroom. Using the PLD Tracking Sheets with fidelity will deliver better outcomes and by understanding the complete process, you will save time when preparing for classes, administering screens, and entering results into the spreadsheets.

Tip: Elect a Staff Member to Facilitate & Monitor Tracking Sheets

1. Monitor Completion: Ensure that teachers have completed their End-of-Term Placement Screens and have entered the scores into their tracking sheets. 

2. Review Teaching Plans: Check that teachers have established three targeted teaching groups into their tracking sheets for the term ahead.

3. Facilitate Feedback: Touch base with teaching staff and offer advice or feedback on their data tracking and planning. Refer staff to the helpful Video Tutorials above.

4. Seek a Coaching Session with a PLD School Support Coordinator: Should schools require additional support and feedback with tracking sheets, they have the option of booking a complimentary consultation with a PLD School Support Coordinator once a term.

5. Budget for Additional Support: Schools are busy places and PLD is very happy to support schools with the organisation of the tracking data and implementation plans for the term ahead. Refer to the ‘Coaching Sessions’ section below to organise a booking for a PLD School Support Coordinator to organise your tracking sheet data and termly plans for you or your school. Please note, this service is charged at an hourly rate.

To maximise literacy outcomes, PLD recommends scheduling annual coaching sessions. Schools can take advantage of the complimentary 15 or 30-minute sessions via phone, email, or Teams/Zoom at any time during the year.

These sessions allow for a tailored approach, addressing the specific needs of each school (or classroom) to ensure the implementation of the PLD program with fidelity. Bookings can be easily made using the provided QR code.

Please note, that for additional coaching support beyond the complimentary service, schools will be charged a fee.

To ensure the successful, long-term implementation of PLD, ongoing, school-specific training sessions are essential. Initial training alone is not enough; without regular follow-ups, the effectiveness of SSP will likely diminish over time, especially with changes in staff.

These refresher sessions are tailored to meet the unique needs of each school and can be scheduled as full-day, half-day, or one-to-two-hour staff meetings, either in-person or via Teams/Zoom. Before scheduling these refresher training sessions, the leadership team should identify areas that require additional support and training. Common focus areas include revisiting the structure of the literacy block, refining the presentation of phonic dictation, and providing assistance with tracking sheets.