Senior reporter — Chalkbeat Colorado.
Colorado’s rules on reading curriculum apply to Aurora, but that was news to district officials
One-third of Aurora’s district-run elementary and K-8 schools, enrolling more than 5,000 students, use unacceptable reading curriculum and are out of compliance with the law.
Jeffco to adopt new reading curriculum, push more uniform approach
The switch will consume as much as 2% of Jeffco Schools' $806 million budget. And it's not the only large metro district out of compliance with state curriculum quality laws.
Colorado joins multistate effort to improve how teacher prep programs cover reading
The project is the latest in a series of steps by state education officials meant to get more Colorado children reading at grade level after years of stagnant scores
Yes, in-person learning is still possible with “red” COVID numbers. Here’s how it looks in one Colorado district
One bright spot this year? Discipline referrals are down 90% because kids who are in the classroom really want to be there, one principal says.
After flood of concerns, Colorado Board of Education poised to relax deadline for teacher training on reading
The situation encompasses the larger debate about whether state leaders and educators are doing enough to help the more-than-50% of Colorado students who struggle to read well
Colorado child care centers see rise in coronavirus outbreaks as disease spreads across Denver area
Unlike schools, many child care centers have been open during most or all of the pandemic
Many Jeffco schools use discredited curriculum to teach students how to read
The list of reading curriculums illustrates not only the stark differences between Jeffco schools, but also the large number of district schools that are out of compliance with a 2019 state law
“We were overlooked”: Colorado’s child care providers face a rough road to coronavirus recovery
About 10% of Colorado child care centers and child care homes were still closed at the end of July because of the pandemic, according to a survey by the nonprofit Early Milestones Colorado
Here’s how Colorado schools are tackling outdoor learning during the pandemic
Educators say that even if outdoor learning doesn’t last — either because of bad weather or COVID-19 outbreaks that send students home — it can give teachers a chance to build face-to-face relationships with students early on.
Are you a Colorado child care provider who’s open for business? The state has money for you.
The goal is “to create somewhat of a support system around these small businesses as much as we can.”
Up next in Colorado’s bid to help struggling readers: New training for thousands of teachers
The new teacher training requirement is among a raft of recent state changes meant to ensure teachers know and use approaches to reading instruction backed by science
Colorado’s public preschool program was poised for growth. Will coronavirus derail everything?
In Colorado, where lawmakers are preparing for a budget hit of as much as $3 billion, the potential impact on recent early childhood gains is unclear.
Colorado is about to get $41 million for early childhood. Here’s where the money could go.
One thing everyone agrees on is that $41 million, no matter how it’s divvied up, won’t get the job done
She closed her Colorado child care center because of coronavirus. Now, she’s wondering if she’ll ever reopen.
Bill Jaeger, vice president of early childhood and policy initiatives at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, said he’s concerned the industry — where providers already operate on the thinnest of margins — could collapse
Colorado expands emergency child care coverage to include grocery, construction workers
The announcement came after two groups representing grocery and food processing workers urged Gov. Jared Polis and other state officials to give such workers the same kinds of protections available to frontline health workers
Colorado medical workers are getting free childcare. Should grocery store and food processing employees get the same benefit?
Minnesota and Vermont have already made free child care available to grocery store workers
Some Colorado child care centers followed districts in closing. Now the state wants them to stay open.
Several Denver providers said they had thought carefully about whether or not to close, consulting health care professionals, their partners in local school districts, and infectious disease protocols.
Colorado teachers plan to rally at the Capitol again this year — and at least one district will cancel classes
The 84,000-student Jeffco district made the announcement Wednesday, saying the number of expected teacher absences had exceeded the number that could be covered by substitutes
Colorado State Board calls for tougher rules teacher training rules on reading instruction
The new rules will govern the rollout of legislation that updates a major 2012 law — the READ Act — requiring districts to help struggling readers in the early grades
Colorado wants to ensure teachers know how to teach reading. But some say proposed rules lack teeth and transparency.
Critics say that kind of case-by-case internal review leaves the public in the dark about what gets the state’s stamp of approval and what doesn’t