Canton Schools Get Large Grant For New Literacy Curriculum

CANTON, MA — Canton Public Schools will use a new state grant to bring updated literacy materials into elementary school classrooms.

The school district received a $190,000 PRISM II Literacy Grant from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to review and purchase a new literacy curriculum for kindergarten through Grade 3. The district plans to pilot several programs in the spring and select a curriculum by June 2027.

PRISM II, or the Partnership for Reading Success–Massachusetts, supports evidence-based, inclusive and culturally and linguistically sustaining early literacy instruction across the state.

Deborah Rooney, Canton’s director of curriculum, instruction and assessment, applied for the grant after the district began reviewing its English Language Arts curriculum earlier this year.

“We knew that we would be doing the ELA program review this year, and that new literacy legislation would likely be coming from the State House,” Rooney said. “We are looking closely at options for curriculum for all grades K-12. This grant opportunity will help us to do a thorough review process and purchase high quality instructional materials for grades K-3.”

Part of the grant will fund stipends for educators to evaluate available curricula outside school hours. District officials may also visit nearby school systems that are testing programs Canton is considering.

Rooney’s team will meet monthly with state education officials during the review and selection process.

“Investing in curriculum is so important,” Rooney said. “I’m grateful to work in a district that finds a way to get what students need, and the timing was perfect with this grant.”

The funding is part of the second round of PRISM grants awarded through Gov. Maura Healey’s Literacy Launch initiative, a multiyear effort focused on improving reading instruction for children from age 3 through Grade 3.

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