“Every student should have access to the library and the opportunity to go there,” says says Michael Dodes, a school librarian who now works as a library operations and instructional coordinator in the DOE’s Office of Library Services. “It’s all about creating a space where students can read, explore information and work with each other.”

PS 446 in Brownsville, Brooklyn, has found that "looping," a model that keeps a teacher with the same group of students for more than one grade, allows educators to become grounding, guiding forces in their students’ lives.

Researchers estimate that dyslexia affects between 5 and 12 percent of the U.S. population — and as many as 80 percent of students who struggle with reading.

Teachers know that their students are more than just a set of grades. But the DOE’s standard single-page report card doesn’t give them the opportunity to demonstrate it. That’s why some elementary schools have turned to alternative progress reports.