District & School Frequently Asked Questions for Planning for Once

The Once team is ready to help you think through the timeline, personnel, space, and scheduling questions that your schools must answer to implement the Once program.

Students

Key Questions	Once Recommendations	Notes
How many students in each school?	Minimum ratio of 1 instructor to 10 students (15 minutes of 1:1 instruction per student)
What grade(s)?	Pre-K / K: Tier I or Tier 2 intervention; Grade 1 intervention.
How will students be selected? If by diagnostic, when is the diagnostic administered?	This is determined by each district and/or school.

Instructors

Key Questions	Once Recommendations	Notes
What are the current roles of staff identified as Once instructors?	Any role other than lead classroom teacher is recommended to serve as a Once instructor.
How many hours a day will be dedicated to Once?	At least 3 hours each day is dedicated to Once so Instructors can see at least 10 students (with time for transitions between them).
What will instructors do during the other hours?	This is dependent on school needs and determined by school leaders.
What responsibilities did Instructors have previously that they will no longer be able to perform during the school day?	It is critical that we are explicit about these trade-offs.
Will someone else be covering that responsibility now for Instructors?	School leaders need to be intentionally plan for how responsibilities of staff serving as instructors are shifted during the school day.
Will instructors get pulled for other roles (ie. substitute teaching)?	Instructors should be protected from substitute teaching.
Who manages instructors day to day? Who will be the Once point person at the school?	It is recommended that someone other than the principal serves as the point person.
Does an instructor need to have experience teaching reading?	Instructors do not need experience teaching reading.

Schedule

Key Questions	Once Recommendations	Notes
Does the schedule allow students to receive 5 days of instruction/week?	School leaders work with the program team to build a schedule that will enable instructors and students to meet 5 days/week.
Should students be pulled for Once at the same time every day? If so, will the student miss the same subject every day?	This is a school-based decision and based on the daily classroom schedule.

Location

Key Questions	Once Recommendations	Notes
Where should instruction take place?	Somewhere quiet, could be back of classroom, hallway, or separate room.

Assessment / Research

Key Questions	Once Recommendations	Notes
What benchmark assessment does the district/school use (BOY, MOY, EOY)?	This is determined by each district and/or school.