Davis Elementary

Vernal, Utah

2026 Read Live School of the Year

Submitted by Cris Labrum, Principal

Davis Elementary receives a $2000 Read Naturally Gift Certificate.

Congratulations to our 2026 Read Live School of the Year, Davis Elementary!

Educators at Davis Elementary School had struggled for years to achieve significant results from their reading intervention efforts. A turning point came two years ago, when a teacher requested to use Read Naturally. Success spread so rapidly throughout the school that this year, Davis expanded use of the program beyond intervention, making it available to all students in grades 1–5.

Students and teachers alike are feeling more confident and successful. First-grade teacher Ashley Gardiner shares that Read Live helped students overcome the challenge of moving from basic word decoding to fluent reading of sentences, paragraphs, and stories. Fourth-grade teacher Tristan Kinsey reports that using Read Live in her classroom has led to noticeable increases in both reading accuracy and retell scores on state Acadience testing.

Davis Elementary School is a model of excellence in literacy instruction and a very deserving winner of the Read Live School of the Year scholarship.

Check out their full nomination below including their video submission and their story.

 

 

Davis Elementary is located just east of Vernal, Utah. We are a K-5 Title 1 rural school serving a student enrollment of just over 400 students. Our school culture is anchored by a powerful vision: 'I am a Davis Dragon. I will act in such a way that I will be proud of myself, and others will be proud of me too. I came to school to learn, and I will learn.'

For the past five years, our primary academic goal has been to increase reading comprehension, fluency, and accuracy school-wide. Initially, we implemented an intensive intervention program across all grade levels. However, despite an incredible investment of time from our teachers and instructional aides, the program yielded very little success.

A turning point occurred two years ago when a teacher requested to use Read Naturally—a program we had used in a traditional paper-and-pencil format years prior—with a small group. The progress was immediate and remarkable. Within weeks, colleagues began noticing the significant growth in her students and sought to replicate that success. Our instructional coach, with the help of Read Live representatives, transitioned us to the digital Read Live platform, starting with a 60-day trial that received overwhelming praise from staff.

This year, we expanded Read Live to all students in 1st through 5th grade. While designed for intervention, our teachers also utilize it for extensions to keep advanced readers challenged. Today, 75% of our students are using the program with genuine excitement and newfound confidence.

When looking at growth, we have been reviewing the Read Live word per min (WPM) cold call average increase. Our 1st grade classes began using Read Live in January of this year and students improved their on average increase by 17 WPM in roughly 10 weeks. A 4th grade class who has been using Read Live all year, has seen students as much growth as 40 WPM. We are excited to learn more about the student data provided by Read Live to more fully review student progress.

Looking ahead, we are focusing on advanced data analysis and individual goal tracking, while encouraging parents to use the 'One Minute' Read Live method this summer to prevent any seasonal slide. Thank you, Read Naturally, for challenging our students and helping our Davis Dragons become their very best.