Category Archives: Common Core State Standards

Accessing the CTP on Twitter

The CTP does not get many emails. In fact, there have never been any emails… until now! A visitor to the blog asked if the CTP has a Twitter account. The answer, Yes. You can access the Tweets by clicking … Continue reading

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Exemplar Tab Added

In an effort to make it easier for visitors to find the close reading exemplars we’ve been using, you can now find them in the page’s frame. Simply click on exemplar (here) or in the frame above to see what … Continue reading

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Charlotte Danielson and the CCSS

In an interview with EdWeek, Charlotte Danielson shares her thoughts on the Common Core State Standards. She emphasize that teachers will need time to collaborate and the flexibility to experiment. Danielson notes, “I think the common core rests on a … Continue reading

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Close Reading Exemplar Shared by Aspen Institute

The Aspen Institute posted a close reading exemplar of Russell Freedman’s The Voice that Challenged a Nation here. The format is quite similar to what Student Achievement Partners has shared as well as the exemplars we’ve posted on this site.

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Close Reading Exemplar “Whatif”

Linked here is a draft of a close reading exemplar of Shel Silverstein’s poem “Whatif.” This is likely a 3rd grade exemplar although we are hoping that readers of this blog will pilot the exemplar and let us know where … Continue reading

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Video Tutorial: Accessing the SBAC Training Test

Last week I posted a link to the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium’s training test (here). If you are having any trouble accessing the test, you can watch this 90-second tutorial, uploaded by Jeff Gerlach, demonstrating how to get started

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First Person Account of Close Reading

In a piece for Teachers.net, English teacher Sarah Powley describes her experience with close reading. She matches here experience from when she started as a novice educator to a veteran in noting the limitations of the materials she was using … Continue reading

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What are Districts doing to Implement the CCSS?

In August, WestEd cosponsored a conference on the Common Core State Standards.  You can access video of presentations by Linda Darling-Hammond, David Liben, Bill Honig, and Kenji Kakuta here. A report, following the conference, was just released that describes what … Continue reading

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Draft of the Close Reading Exemplar “Farewell Speech” Now Available

Third and fourth grade teachers in the Core Task implementation Project (CTiP) worked on a grade 4 close reading exemplar matched to Lou Gehrig’s “Farwell Speech.” Cathy Schmidt (Scoop.it! page here) edited the piece and you can find a draft … Continue reading

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Session 5 of Leading the Core

Administrators gathered for the 5th session of Leading the Core. The night focused on assessment and participants reviewed the timelines for PARCC and SBAC, watched video of Michael Cohen and Joe Willhoft, worked through SBAC assessment items and performance tasks, … Continue reading

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