Meeting the Needs of Every Student in Pennsylvania Classrooms

Over 30 K-2 classrooms in Pennsylvania’s Deer Lakes School District are using eSpark to boost engagement and growth in math and ELA.

We sat down with Jamie Beers to learn how she uses eSpark to differentiate instruction in her second grade classroom.

Key terms:

Quest – A set of curated activities that support students in gaining proficiency in a new skill or standard.

High-Five – A way of celebrating achievement and growth after students complete a quest and master a new skill in eSpark.

How does eSpark help you meet the needs of all of your students?

“eSpark has allowed me to address the diverse learning needs in my classroom by selecting where students begin their quest. I have students that have an IEP and are performing on a level that meets their needs, and I have students that need some enrichment. eSpark allows me to have them on a quest that meets their challenges.”

How does eSpark help you meet the needs of all of your students?

“They like the challenges that are presented to them, and they like learning something that I haven’t taught yet. It gives them a little boost to see that they’re learning something that’s different from what we’re doing in the classroom. They definitely like the videos at the end and seeing their success when they get the high five.”

Has eSpark saved you time as a teacher?

“eSpark has saved me a lot of time as a teacher because I can go into my dashboard and see where my students’ strengths and weaknesses are. For example, if I see my students are really strong in one point, I can see that I don’t need to teach that skill again because my students are doing really well at that level.”

How have you seen your students grow while using eSpark?

“I have seen my students grow a lot. For example, I have a second grade student who is currently working on fourth grade math. He’s feeling really good about himself and making a lot of gains, so I would definitely view that as a positive. One of my students has an IEP. I bumped him down to kindergarten-level content and I think he’s currently back up at second grade-level content. That’s definitely a positive for him and he’s feeling really good about that.”

Ready to see what eSpark could look like in your district?