Author Archives: Aaron Grossman

About Aaron Grossman

I am a 5th grade teacher at Roy Gomm Elementary in Reno, Nevada. I started working with elementary students as part of the Montana Reads program and AmeriCorps. In 2001, after graduating from the University of Montana and moving to Reno, Nevada, I student taught at Rita Cannan Elementary before receiving a 6th grade position at Veterans Elementary. I moved out of the classroom to be a Literacy Coordinator, then an Instructional Coach, and finally a School Improvement Program Coordinator. In 2011, I began working on the Nevada Academic Content Standards in the district’s Curriculum & Instruction Department. I returned to the classroom for the 2015-2016 school year to teach 4th grade at Huffaker Elementary. Before returning to the classroom, I helped develop the Core Task Project that has been featured by National Public Radio, the Gates Foundation, American Radio Works, Eduwonk, the Fordham Institute, Vox, and the Center for American Progress. In 2014, I received the Leader to Learn From Award for my teacher-centered initiative and work to bring college, career, and civics ready outcomes into Northern Nevada classrooms (here). In 2015, I was appointed by Governor Sandoval serve on the Statewide RPDP Council. The same year, Nevada’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction Steve Canavero placed me on the state’s State Improvement Team. This year I will be part of the National Council on Teacher Quality’s Teacher Advisory Group. I am Google Certified Educator and a Nevada Teacher Ambassador. I believe strongly that teaching content is teaching reading and I make sure my students have ample opportunities to work with social studies, history, science and art outcomes. I do what I can to blend the learning for my students and this blog is part of that effort. You can contact me at coretaskproject@gmail.com

Presentation Materials for UNR’s EL 703

I was invited to review the instructional shifts with graduate students in the Educational Leadership program at the University of Nevada, Reno. You can review what was shared by clicking on the linked documents below. A part of the evening … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

More Free and Vetted Materials Added to 63000Resources.com

I continue to maintain and post to the website http://www.63000resources.com. Recently, a number of teacher created Core Knowledge materials were shared with me and I posted these. Likewise, everything I am creating for my own classroom (here) are being uploaded. … Continue reading

Posted in Classroom Management, Core Task Project, Instructional Shifts | Leave a comment

Three Must Watch Ed Videos

One of the biggest challenges being back in the classroom is not getting a full picture or the context for the instructional changes I am asked to make. Often, by the time the message has made it all the way … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

The Best CCSS Resource You Might Not Be Using–The OUT

If you look through the data for this blog as well as my companion site, 63000resources.com, a not so surprising trend emerges. Overwhelmingly, classroom materials are the most downloaded and clicked on links when compared to professional development resources, presentation … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Principal Leadership Team Session 2

Educators gathered for the second session of the Principal Leadership Team inservice course. The focus was on the ELA Instructional Shifts and working to build capacity and a vision around these outcomes. The class is a unique opportunity for Washoe … Continue reading

Posted in Professional Development | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Slavin and “Evidence” Based Reform in Education

My first full time position as a homeroom teacher was at Veterans Elementary in Reno, Nevada. Veterans was a Success For All school and I was introduced to a reading program, with distinct reading components, as well as elements of … Continue reading

Posted in Professional Development | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Free Resources I’m Using to Help with SBAC and CCSS

Trying to have students secure all of the skills and content they will need to be successful with the Common Core, the Nevada Academic Content Standards, and Smarter Balanced can feel daunting. (Rather, IT IS daunting.) Consequently, I am trying … Continue reading

Posted in Common Core State Standards, SBAC | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

8 Resources for Classroom Management

Below is a small glimpse of my classroom and some of the supports I’ll be using to increase engagement, group students, and keep expectations explicit. Many of the following likely can be purchased—and look prettier—online; but if you are partial … Continue reading

Posted in Classroom Management | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

63000Resources.com Continues to be Updated

I have received a number of emails asking if the website www.63000resources will be maintained with my return to the classroom. The answer is yes. Over the last four weeks, I have added a number of Core Knowledge supplements, new K-3 Document … Continue reading

Posted in Instructional Shifts | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Nevada PTA: Summer Leadership Training PowerPoint

Nevada PTA: Summer Leadership Training Linked below is the PowerPoint that Dr. Amy Weber-Salgo and I shared with the Nevada PTA at their Summer Leadership Training. I introduced the Common Core ELA Instructional Shifts and some of the evidence that … Continue reading

Posted in Core Task Project | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment