The Earl Elementary School is located in rural Berks County on Route 73 approximately five miles west of Boyertown. The original building opened in the fall of 1954 with ten classrooms. In 1968 five classrooms were added with a spacious Library, Reading room, Faculty room and a small television studio. Two more classrooms were added in 1988. The renovation in 1992 included an Art room, a computer lab, an enlarged TV studio, an instrumental room, a special education room and a storage room. A new resource room and remediation room were created for the 2004-05 school year. Many new additions have been added during 2009 for the upcoming school year. The Leveled Library has been updated and expanded. Thanks to the fundraising efforts of the Earl PTO new leveled books were added to each grade level increasing the circulation of the leveled library and our students have also benefited from the purchase of technology items to enhance instructional practices. New Smart Boards were installed in the first and third grade rooms this year with the hope of outfitting the kindergarten and second grade classrooms with Smart Boards in the near future. The computer lab will be retooled with new computers this summer for the upcoming school year. Additional wireless laptop carts have been added for classroom use.

For the 2009-10 school year the exciting literacy program “Literacy First” will continue in first grade. The Literacy First program is designed to help our students with developmental language arts skills. The program will deliver direct, individual and small group instruction by three first grade teachers who will team teach in our two first grade classrooms. The team will have a strong literacy focus utilizing guided reading and flexible grouping. Literacy First is a way to provide direct instruction and adjust instruction to accommodate the diverse learning needs of our students. This co-teaching approach will also be extended to grades two through six. Our learning support teachers will teach collaboratively with the classroom teachers to further support our students in a more inclusive environment. Staff members meet in small teams to review student data and implement interventions for the benefit of children who are experiencing academic and/or behavioral difficulties in school.

Earl Elementary will take a proactive approach to positive behavior and school climate with its pro-social behavior education system called the PRIDE program. P.R.I.D.E. stands for “Personal Responsibility In Daily Effort.” The Earl staff developed this initiative, which is proactive rather than reactive, by incorporating many strategies to teach our students positive pro-social skills. The program will utilize class meetings, common language such as “Stop and Think,” school-wide themes (kindness, compassion, empathy, tolerance, acceptance, respect, integrity, and fairness), and conflict resolution. Students will receive daily positive reinforcement for practicing these pro-social character traits. The PRIDE program is integrated with our district No Place for Hate and anti-bullying initiatives. The Earl Student Council will function as an excellent opportunity for student leadership and self-government. Students look forward to quarterly Pat-on-the-Back assemblies when their positive behaviors are recognized and rewarded.

The anticipated enrollment for the 2009-10 school year is 300 students in grades kindergarten through six. Class size will range from 20 to 27 students with each grade level having two sections. We are pleased to welcome our new kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Kathleen Stettner. Mrs. Brenda Marion will be teaching second grade this year.

Our staff continues to be committed to the district mission statement “to enable all students to succeed in a changing world.” Teachers instruct students on a daily basis using the Boyertown Area School District approved curriculum, which is in line with the adopted state standards. We also offer special projects and events at each grade level such as: Art Show and Book Fair, PTO Family Nights, Craft Day, Santa’s Shop, Environmental Education Camp Experience, Outdoor Environmental Classroom and Nature Trail, Hobby Show, Reading Challenge, Parents as Reading Partners, Book Buddies, Book Exchange, Concert Choir, Vocal Ensemble, Bell Choir, Author Visits, Special Assemblies and concerts, etc.

Some highlights and bits of interest about Earl include: