The impact of the pandemic on student learning was significant and widened pre-existing achievement gaps for historically disadvantaged students. To provide insight on the most effective strategies that teachers and leaders can adopt, educators in three partner districts that have invested in improving classroom instruction as their primary lever to accelerate student learning, were interviewed. Those investments made a significant impact in the achievement of their students during the pandemic. The three partner districts were: (1) Somerset Independent School District, located southwest of San Antonio; (2) Cross County School District, located in Cherry Valley, Arkansas; and (3) East Feliciana Public Schools, located in rural Louisiana, north of Baton Rouge. It was found that the following three core strategies, that are presented in this report, are driving their success: (1) Strengthen professional learning and instructional leadership teams by engaging teacher leaders; (2) Prioritize the use of high-quality instructional materials and a plan for training teachers to use those materials effectively; and (3) Focus interventions on students most in need and minimize the amount of time students are out of the classroom.