SBAC eNewsletter

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

If you are trying to stay current with Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, you may want to take advantage of their eNewsletter. You can subscribe here and keep track of SBAC’s progress on the CCSS and the next-generation assessments.

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Social Emotional Learning and CTP Final Session

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

The last session of Social Emotional Learning and Core Task Project concluded with participants outlining specific SEL skills that fit well with the close reading strategy. Educators will be sharing an addendum to the close reading exemplars that includes before, during and after SEL strategies which will posted on the blog and shared via email.

The PowerPoint shared during the session is here and includes links to video and print content that describes the value of SEL in greater detail.

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ELL Quarterly Meeting February 12, 2013

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

At the secondary ELL Quarterly Meeting, EL instructors reviewed the close reading strategy and a close reading exemplar. You can find the PowerPoint here and the lesson here.

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Jessie Beck’s PFA Learns about CCSS

Posted on February 12, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

Included in the Jessie Beck Elementary Parent Faculty Association meeting was information about the Common Core State Standards. Parents and teachers moved through the what and why of CCSS followed by some research governing the inclusion of specific outcomes in the standards. You can find the PowerPoint here and the handout here.

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Finishing the Labor of Understanding before Talking Back

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

In a piece for Educational Leadership, professor of English Mark Bauerlein describes the importance of text complexity and the dispositions students will need if they are going to be successful with this outcome.  These include

  1. A Willingness to Probe
  2. The Capacity for Uninterrupted Thinking
  3. A Receptivity to Deep Thinking

Bauerlein moves the reader through the research governing the inclusion of text complexity in the Common Core before writing

Complex texts can be lengthy and opaque, the product of careful thought and studied composition. To address them, readers may need to sit down with them for several hours of concentration. Readers need to be patient enough to ponder a single sentence for a few minutes, because many complex texts aren’t just purveyors of information, but expressions of value and perspective.

and

…the comprehension of complex texts depends on a receptive posture in readers. They have to finish the labor of understanding before they talk back…

You can read Bauerlein’s entire article here.

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NEA CCSS Toolkit

Posted on February 10, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

In the most recent issue of WEA Today, Middle School Director Linda Hunt describes how “NEA President Dennis Van Roekel appointed 56 members to a nationwide effort to prepare educators for implementation of  the Common Core State Standards called the NEA Common Core Working Group.” The working group prepared a CCSS Toolkit with resources and links to better prepare teachers in important areas including assessment, curriculum and instruction, professional development, English learners and students with disabilities. You can access the entire guide here and Hunt’s article here.

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Core Shift Blast 10: TDQs

Posted on February 9, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

Text-dependent questions are the focus of Core Shift Blast 10. Explicit connections are made with this instructional shift and the Basal Alignment Project and the coming assessments. Linnea Wolters and Stephanie Barragan share their experiences using the Guide to Writing Text-Dependent Questions and the positive impact it has had on instruction.

You can find previous blasts here.

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Session 4 of Leading the Core

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

District administrators gathered for the fourth session of Leading the Core. The focus of this session was on teacher observations, close reading look fors, text-dependent questions and tools to build site capacity. All of the resources are posted in the Leading the Core Edmodo folder. Directions for accessing this folder can be found here. If you already have an Edmodo account, simply use code 6r9ebw.

PowerPoint shared during the training session.

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Why Knowledge Matters

Posted on February 7, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

In a piece for the Washington Post, cognitive scientist Dan Willingham explains why knowledge matters. He writes, “a knowledge-based curriculum… is most likely to meliorate achievement gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students.” You can read the entire article here.

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Lemmon Valley Trains on the CCSS

Posted on February 6, 2013 by Aaron Grossman

Lemmon Valley reviewed the district’s Three Year K-6 ELA plan for accessing the Core and building district capacity. Participants engaged in a close reading of the Shel Silverstein poem, “Whatifs” followed by using a text complexity rubric and a guide to writing text dependent questions. You can access all of the presentation materials below.

Lemmon Valley PowerPoint

Text Complexity Qualitative Measure Rubric

Guide to Writing Text-Dependent Questions

Link to WhatIis (questions are in the PowerPoint)

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