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DRAFT: Washington County Writing Program

 

Washington County Schools Writing Program (Draft) 

In accordance with House Bill 257 (2026) and KRS 158.6453(19), this district-wide writing program establishes the foundational requirements for writing instruction across all grade levels and disciplines. To comply with state law while honoring local school context, this framework sets the non-negotiable district expectations while explicitly granting School-Based Decision Making (SBDM) councils the agency to design and implement their own school-level writing policies that align with this framework.

I. District-Wide Guidelines

To meet Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and legislative requirements, all schools within the district must ensure their writing programs incorporate the following elements:

  • Writing Across the Curriculum: Writing instruction must not be treated as an isolated practice. All schools must include disciplinary-specific writing across content areas (including Science, Social Studies, Mathematics, and the Arts).
  • Three Modes of Writing: Instruction must provide students opportunities to compose in three modes: Argument/Opinion (to evaluate evidence and arrive at a judgment or change a point of view), Informative/Explanatory (to examine and convey complex ideas), and Narrative (to convey real or imaginary experiences).
  • Three Types of Writing: Students must regularly engage in:
  1. Writing to Learn: Informal, single-draft writing used to process new information, deepen understanding, and reflect on learning (e.g., learning logs, exit slips, sketch journals).
  2. Writing to Demonstrate Learning: Writing to show mastery of content, such as extended-response prompts, lab reports, or analyses.
  3. Writing for Publication: Writing taken through the complete writing process (planning, drafting, revising, editing, publishing) intended for authentic audiences and purposes.
  • Language and Technology Integration: The program must incorporate a variety of language resources (multimodal texts, print, and non-print materials) and technological tools to allow students to collaborate, evaluate, and publish their work.
  • Foundational Skills: The program must ensure students acquire foundational handwriting skills in print (Kindergarten and Grade 1) and cursive (Grades 2 and 3).

II. School-Level Freedoms

While the Superintendent retains the authority to select the overarching curriculum and High-Quality Instructional Resources (HQIRs), SBDM councils maintain the autonomy and responsibility to adopt the specific writing policy for their school. Schools are empowered to customize the program in the following ways:

  • Annual Needs Assessment: Each SBDM council must conduct a needs assessment annually by November 1st. Schools have the agency to use this data to identify their most critical areas for writing improvement and embed specific goals into their Literacy Action Plan.
  • Scheduling and Instructional Time: Schools have the flexibility to intentionally schedule dedicated time across the instructional day for writing that best fits their master schedule, provided that reading and writing are treated as reciprocal skills and integrated into all disciplines.
  • Authentic Audiences and Forms: Teachers and school leadership teams have the autonomy to determine the authentic audiences and real-world forms their students will write for.

III. Grade-Band Implementation Guidelines

Elementary School (K-5)

  • Focus: Building foundational skills, shifting from basic opinion writing to early argument formation, and integrating writing into core reading routines.
  • Grade Level Expectations:
  • Use the district HQIR as intended to teach writing skills.
  • Use writing to learn multiple times a week across disciplines.
  • Use Writing to Demonstrate Learning frequently across Kindergarten through 5th grades.
  • Annually complete two publishable writing assignments using the complete writing process. At least one of these must be Informative/Explanatory.

Middle School (6-8)

  • Focus: Transitioning heavily into text-based argument writing and informative/explanatory writing. Narrative writing begins to be embedded into other forms of writing rather than standing alone.
  • Grade Level Expectations:
  • Use the district HQIR as intended to teach writing skills in ELA class.
  • Use writing to learn multiple times a week in each core discipline.
  • Use writing to demonstrate learning in each unit of instruction.
  • Annually complete three publishable writing assignments using the complete writing process. At least one of these must be Informative/Explanatory and one must be  Argument/Opinion. At least one of these should be outside of the ELA class.

High School (9-12)

  • Focus: Complex communication skills, advanced research projects (inquiry, gathering information, organization, publication), and evaluating credibility of sources using accurate citations (MLA/APA).
  • Grade Level Expectations:
  • Use the district HQIR as intended to teach writing skills in ELA class.
  • Use writing to learn multiple times a week in each core discipline.
  • Use Writing to Demonstrate Learning in each unit of instruction in all core disciplines.
  • Annually complete three publishable writing assignments using the complete writing process. At least one of these must be Informative/Explanatory and one must be  Argument/Opinion One assignment should use multiple sources that are cited formally. At least one of these should be outside of the ELA class.

IV. District Monitoring & School Accountability Strategy

Because HB 257 (2026) removed the state on-demand writing assessment and editing/mechanics test from the Kentucky Summative Assessment (KSA), assessing writing proficiency and program compliance is now a locally driven process. The district will ensure school-level accountability through the following monitoring mechanisms:

  • Annual Needs Assessment & CSIP Integration: Each school’s SBDM council is required to conduct a needs assessment annually by November 1st. The district will review each school's Comprehensive Support and Improvement Plan (CSIP) to verify that school leaders are analyzing their writing data and explicitly identifying their most critical areas for writing improvement.
  • District Implementation Walkthroughs: The Washington County Schools Academic Division will conduct both announced and unannounced walkthroughs across all schools. These walkthroughs will collect concrete data on whether schools are implementing their designated HQIRs (e.g., Magnetic Reading, Wit & Widsom, Study Sync, UFLI) with integrity and ensuring that writing instruction is actively occurring across the disciplines.
  • School Literacy Action Plan Submissions: School Literacy Committees are required to meet at least three times a year to review school-wide literacy and writing data. To ensure accountability, schools must submit their updated School Literacy Frameworks and School Literacy Action Plans to the Chief Academic Officer. The District Literacy Guiding Coalition will review these submissions to ensure each school is setting specific, attainable, and results-oriented goals for their writing programs and taking appropriate action based on student subgroup data.