How the Fond du Lac School District and the Center for Advanced Academics are creating meaningful, rigorous learning opportunities for advanced readers and writers.
Meeting the Needs of Advanced Learners
What do we do when a student's learning needs extend beyond what the standard curriculum can provide?
In the Fond du Lac School District, W.I.N. (What I Need) time is a daily practice across elementary and middle schools. Ideally, this dedicated instructional block provides data-driven, personalized instruction, remediation, reinforcement, or enrichment based on students' individual learning needs.
Grade-level teams use assessment data to group students strategically. One teacher might focus on oral reading fluency, another on comprehension, and another on an advanced novel study. However, for highly advanced learners, traditional differentiation and classroom accommodations do not always provide sufficient challenge. When students consistently demonstrate literacy skills well beyond grade-level expectations, they need opportunities to engage with more advanced content, complex texts, and sophisticated writing.
Without the staffing necessary to provide specialized daily instruction for these students, advanced learners can be overlooked under the assumption that they will succeed on their own. Recognizing this gap, the district sought a sustainable model for providing rigorous, replacement-level English language arts (ELA) instruction without requiring students to leave their school communities.
A Partnership Begins With One Student
The district's partnership with the
Center for Advanced Academics (CAA) began in November 2017 with one student. Middle school staff recognized that differentiating the district-approved ELA curriculum was not adequately meeting her needs. Although she had previously accelerated in mathematics, her family preferred an alternative to subject or whole-grade acceleration for literacy.
The district's curriculum director and gifted and talented (GT) coach explored several options, considering internal staffing capacity, purchased curricula, and alternative programming. Their search led them to CAA's online program,
The Academy.
The fit was immediate. The student engaged in rigorous ELA coursework while remaining in her middle school building. Through virtual collaboration, she connected with high-ability peers across Wisconsin who challenged her thinking and shared her enthusiasm for learning.
The following year, another high-achieving student began feigning illness to avoid her regular ELA class, describing a lack of challenge and repetitive writing assignments. After enrolling in CAA's
Character Driven: A Psychological Case Study, her attendance improved and her enthusiasm for learning returned. Her family noticed a clear shift in her academic engagement. She was especially energized by her instructor's detailed, timely feedback and the depth of the coursework.
These early experiences demonstrated that appropriately challenging instruction could do more than advance academic skills. It could restore engagement, strengthen motivation, and help students reconnect with learning.
Recognizing these outcomes, district leadership approved an expanded implementation. By the 2025–26 school year, Fond du Lac students had completed more than 100 CAA courses, with students actively requesting advanced ELA opportunities in place of standard coursework.
What Does The Academy Offer?
The Academy provides nine-week online courses that replace the traditional ELA instructional block for participating students in grades 5–8. Rather than simply adding more work, these courses offer a different level of academic challenge.
Curriculum depth: Students investigate meaningful, real-world questions through complex fiction and nonfiction texts. They develop persuasive, informative, and creative writing while engaging with ideas that demand analysis, interpretation, and independent thought.
Intellectual peer connections: Through an online learning platform, students collaborate with high-ability peers from across Wisconsin. They participate in academic discussions, exchange feedback, and encounter perspectives that extend beyond their local classrooms.
A strong student–program fit: The Academy is best suited to students who are self-motivated, organized, and capable of managing their time independently. Long-term writing projects and online coursework require students to advocate for themselves, seek assistance when needed, and balance multiple responsibilities.
These expectations are important. The program is not simply an opportunity for students to work ahead; it requires them to take ownership of challenging, sustained academic work.
Building a Districtwide Support System
Integrating CAA courses into the school day across multiple buildings has required ongoing communication, collaboration, and a shift in perspective.
In the early stages, some staff members were unfamiliar with the program and questioned why participating students were missing their regular ELA instruction. Others believed the advanced courses should be completed in addition to the general curriculum rather than in place of it.
Over time, the district has developed a more coordinated support system.
Media specialists and support staff help supervise students, curate relevant reference materials, and provide ongoing resources across school buildings. They also collaborate with CAA staff to anticipate students’ needs and support learning related to online safety and effective use of digital resources.
ELA teachers have developed a greater understanding of how alternative instruction can meet advanced learners’ needs. Students returning from Academy courses often demonstrate stronger critical reading skills and greater discipline in their writing. Teachers have also recognized that when advanced learners receive appropriate challenges elsewhere, classroom discussions can create more opportunities for other students to lead, contribute, and develop their own voices.
W.I.N. supervisors see students making purposeful use of their instructional time. Participants approach the block with focus and urgency, working to maximize every available minute. In a very real sense, they are using W.I.N. time to get what they need.
These collaborations have been essential to making the program sustainable. A successful partnership requires not only strong curriculum but also school-based systems that allow students to access that curriculum during the regular school day.
Beyond Academic Content: Building Independence
The benefits of participation extend beyond advanced reading and writing. Students also develop skills that support success in increasingly complex academic environments.
- Time management: Students learn to plan and complete multistep projects over several weeks while balancing daily school responsibilities.
- Communication and collaboration: Online discussions and peer reviews help students practice giving constructive feedback, communicating respectfully, and engaging in sophisticated intellectual conversations.
- Academic ownership: Students gain confidence as they navigate challenging coursework, make decisions about their learning, and learn to seek help when necessary.
These experiences reinforce an important principle: advanced learners need opportunities not only to deepen their knowledge but also to develop the independence and self-advocacy skills that rigorous learning demands.
A Scalable Model for Meeting Advanced Learners' Needs
The Fond du Lac School District's partnership with the Center for Advanced Academics began with one student whose literacy needs were not being met by the standard curriculum. It has grown into a program in which students across the district can access challenging coursework while remaining connected to their school communities.
The journey has required thoughtful planning, staff collaboration, and a willingness to reconsider how advanced learners can be served within the existing school day. It has also demonstrated the value of a partnership that expands instructional options without requiring a district to build every specialized course or instructional resource internally.
For districts seeking more effective ways to serve advanced readers and writers, this experience offers an important takeaway: equitable instruction does not always mean providing every student with the same curriculum. It means ensuring that every student has access to learning that meets their needs.
When schools recognize that advanced learners need more than the expectation to succeed independently, partnerships can help transform that recognition into meaningful educational opportunities.
- Terese Weiler, WATG Co-President
