Reading Their Way to Success: How Operation Shoestring Students Achieved 98% Reading Accuracy
Reading is the foundation for every other kind of learning and when children receive the right support, great things can happen. Through our partnership with the Mississippi Reading Clinic (MRC), 3rd-5th grade students in our 2024-2025 program year made remarkable progress this year, improving their reading accuracy from 66% to 98% in just seven months.
In September 2024, Operation Shoestring welcomed an MRC reading interventionist into our afterschool program. Together, we identified 21 students who were reading below grade level, some starting as early as kindergarten or first-grade levels. Rather than being defined by those starting points, each child was met with a plan tailored to their unique needs, strengths and pace. Students participated in small group reading sessions four days a week, focusing on foundational skills like phonics, sight words and fluency. An incentive system encouraged attendance and effort while building confidence and giving students something to celebrate.
By April 2025, the results were irrefutable:
- Reading accuracy soared from 66% to 98%, meeting standards for grade-level proficiency.
- Reading fluency nearly doubled, with students increasing from 60 to 106 words correct per minute, a gain equivalent to more than two academic years of growth.
- Mastery of foundational skills skyrocketed with nearly every student mastering sight words, consonant blends and vowel sounds.
- By the end of the program, 81% of students were reading with grade-level accuracy and 65% reached their goal for reading.
MRC also extended their work with participating students through our summer camp, ensuring that their progress continues to build. Our work together is a testament to what is possible when organizations come together with a shared mission. We look forward to what we accomplish together in the 2025-2026 school year!