Nearly one in three Canyons District third-graders needs a reading intervention plan, the school board learned Oct. 20.

Instructional Supports Director Dr. Amber Roderick-Landward told the board that 572 third-graders, or 29%, scored below the Acadience reading benchmark and were placed on Individualized Reading Plans (IRPs). Among fifth-graders, 763 students, or 34.3%, needed that support, according to board meeting records.

Parents received the IRPs during recent parent-teacher conferences. Digital copies also went out through ParentSquare.

The data lands as the district works to comply with SB241, a 2026 state law requiring retention of third-graders who are not reading at grade level by the end of third grade.

What the district is doing

Dr. Roderick-Landward said Canyons has built a set of resources for teachers and families: how-to videos, a meeting guide for teachers, an Acadience guide for families and at-home activities. Specialists revised intervention protocols, developed training for paraprofessionals to help with literacy tutoring and planned monthly professional learning for principals.

The district also is cataloging and evaluating its literacy assets and resources. Dr. Roderick-Landward said most of the district's implementation steps go beyond what SB241 requires.

Superintendent Dr. McKay Robinson thanked the early-literacy team for its compliance work at the Oct. 20 meeting.

Statewide reading gap

The Canyons numbers reflect a broader challenge. Statewide, only 50.3% of third-graders met grade-level literacy expectations in 2025, according to the Salt Lake Chamber. Among first-graders, the figure was 48.2%. More than 183,000 students are enrolled in K-3 across 41 school districts and charter systems.

A new statewide program called Literacy Match, announced by the Salt Lake Chamber Foundation's Utah Community Builders program, aims to connect businesses and donors with specific K-3 literacy needs that elementary schools submitted over the summer, as reported by KSL. Donors choose the type of support they want to provide, and Utah Community Builders matches them with a school need. Options range from $100 for a classroom phonics book set to $250,000 or more for regional or district-level literacy initiatives.

The program supports Utah Rising, the Chamber's business-led economic plan, which set a goal of 100% third-grade reading proficiency by 2030.

"Literacy Match gives employers of every size a direct way to support Utah's children and future," Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber, said in KSL's coverage.

Whether any Canyons District schools have submitted needs to the Literacy Match system is not clear from available records. Businesses interested in participating can visit slchamber.com/literacy-match.

A charity golf event called The Readers Cup raised $1 million on Oct. 20 to support Literacy Match and the Tony Finau Foundation Literacy Center, according to the Salt Lake Chamber. The split between the two programs was not disclosed.

The Canyons Education Foundation also recently announced a partnership to bring Dolly Parton's Imagination Library to children from birth to age five. Participating families receive an age-appropriate book in the mail each month.