FRANK LEDESMA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
"Learn Like a Champion" Nov. 9-20, 2020
Thank you to our Amazing Custodians for helping with the Pumpkin set up! Ramiro, Oscar & Christian
Harvest Halloween Spirit!
LCAP GOAL 2 PROFICIENCY FOR ALL - Accelerate Learning, Don't Slow Down
Students need to read more now than ever. Below I edited an October 13, 2020, article by Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey. Reading during distance learning is the topic.
Accelerate, Don’t Remediate
Teachers are heroes. Who could have imagined a year ago that educators would be called upon to rapidly pivot from schooling as we have known it to remote learning? In a matter of days, districts around California were figuring out how to get devices, food, and materials into the hands of students.
Now is the time to do what all effective educators do. We reflect on what we have learned, identify barriers, and figure out how to get around them. The “quaran-teaching” experiences of spring 2020 are giving way to more thoughtful and cohesive approaches to distance learning that restore the rigor that was temporarily sacrificed in the face of a crisis.
When it comes to literacy, it is wise to use assessment tools that yield specific information about the reader or writer, and don’t depend solely on a single measure that yields a single score such as a number or letter. Phonics surveys, vocabulary measures, and analytic writing samples, for example, reveal where instruction is needed. Then teach specifically toward those gaps using evidence-based approaches.
One of the positives that has revealed itself in live teaching during distance learning is that small needs-based group guided instruction is far more valuable than lectures. Save these for recorded asynchronous viewings that students can consult again and again. If and when you do have opportunities for face-to-face instruction, maintain a blended learning approach such that students regularly access direct instruction online. Use that precious time to do the coaching and facilitating that accompanies guided learning. This is your “primetime” for teaching.
Spotlight Reading Volume
Another very real concern is that students’ reading volume has declined in the past few months. Students strengthen their reading ability by having eyes on print. Allington’s (2002) work with exemplary elementary teachers found that their students significantly more time reading. Notice that we did not say reading instruction.
In contrast, typical classes had only 20 minutes across the entire school day actually reading. Students need about 90 cumulative minutes across the school day engaged in reading. Without the structure of schooling, it is likely that many children have not maintained a high volume of reading.
Going forward, a robust distance-learning plan should include reading every day. These can be readings that students need to complete in advance of live virtual instruction, as well as passages they read during instruction. Our work on reading volume has shown us that an ABCD model works well (Fisher & Frey, 2018):
· Access: Increase access through digital readings;
· Book talks: Use book talks to profile several books each day to your students;
· Choice: Provide choice through thematic text sets so that students can select readings;
· Discussion: Create discussion opportunities such as book clubs and literature circles.
Knowledge is critical for reading comprehension, writing, and academic achievement. Students who read more know more about the physical, biological, and social world. These four practices belong in the distance learning plans of every literacy teacher. Without attention to reading volume, we put an increasing number of students at risk of not profiting from their education.
LCAP GOAL 2 and 4 - Congratulation to our Frank Ledesma TOP AR Readers!
LCAP GOAL 3 - Student Safety, Emotional Health, and Anti-Bullying Awareness
Spirit Week Daily Activities Online - Safety Mask, Sunglasses and Crazy Hair Day!
Important Events This Week:
November 2-6 Student Council Spirit Week:
November 9- 3rd Non Meeting Day &
*2nd Trimester Begins.
November 10 - Virtual Staff Meeting @ 3:25pm.
*Virtual School Site Council & ELAC Meeting @ 5:00 pm.
November 11 - Veteran's Day! No School.
November 12 - Virtual Board Meeting @ 7:00 pm
November 13 - Aeries Closes for Report Cards
UPCOMIMG EVENTS:
November 16 - Virtual Curriculum Council Meeting 3:30-4:30pm
November 17 - LCAP Meeting at the C&I Building 3:30 - 5:00 pm & Late Night for Teacher Parent Conference!
November 18 - Board Advisory Committee on School Construction 5:00 - 7:30 pm C&I Bldg.
November 19 -
November 20 - Curriculum DLT 8:30 am - 12:00 pm
Parent Teacher Conference
Thank you
Monday, Nov 16, 2020, 12:45 PM
Virtual
Thanksgiving Break - November 23-27, 2020!
Frank Ledesma Elementary School
Soledad, Ca. 93960
(831) 678-6320
(831) 678-8029 Fax
Principal,
Richard Radtke