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Curriculum Matters
December 2015 - Volume 1, Issue 1
A message from the Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
As 2015 comes to a close, we thought it fitting to share a newsletter with you highlighting the many interesting things happening in our district.
We are in year one of implementing our Comprehensive Plan. The plan has two major goals around which our work is based. While the newsletter is not all inclusive, I hope it will serve to make you aware of the many ongoing projects in curriculum, instruction and assessment. We plan to publish a quarterly newsletter to keep you informed.
Looking forward to the many exciting endeavors that await us in the New Year!
My best wishes to you for a happy holiday season and a restful winter break!
Maryellen Brousseau
Google Boot Camp Training
The boot camps are being run by Rich Kiker from Kiker Learning, which is now 1 of 5 Google Education Partners for Professional Development in the world!
During this one-day hands on learning experience, participants will learn Google Drive and Classroom.
Participants: 40 MS/HS
April 26 and June 21 Two Days with Certification
During this two-day hands on learning experience, participants will learn the essentials of Google Apps for Education with a focus on the skills and techniques needed to complete the online exams to achieve “Google Educator” status. Participants will be able to take the exam and have it paid for by the district. Those who complete the exam will have first consideration for the next round of piloting 1:1.
Participants: 40 HS /MS
Link about the certification: https://edutrainingcenter.withgoogle.com/certification_level1
ROLE Reversal
With the intent of full 6-12 implementation of 1:1 computing in the 2017-18 school year, 19 teachers at Souderton Area High School are piloting 1:1. The book ROLE REVERSAL: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom, by Mark Barnes, was purchased for all faculty members at Souderton Area High School, thanks to a grant from the Indian Valley Education Foundation.
The staff development in moving to 1:1 computing for students has not been focused on technology, but rather on how instruction needs to change to be more student-centered and inquiry-based to promote increased student engagement and learning. ROLE (Results Only Learning Environment) Reversal provides a very concrete structure with great examples of how teachers’ instruction can change to be more student-centered and inquiry-based. The book also clearly indicates with examples how technology in the hands of students makes such a structure even more engaging for students.
Through the work and reflection of the 19 piloteers, and from the feedback of all faculty members, Souderton Area High School has narrowed its focus on staff development to the three areas bulleted below.
- Inquiry-based ROLE Reversal-type teaching is a great natural means of differentiating instruction.
- Inquiry-based, ROLE Reversal-type teaching is intended as a TRIGGER for intrinsic motivation for ALL students, not as an added layer for teachers. Inquiry-based instruction can also LIBERATE already motivated students.
- Technology can help decrease the time needed to give quality feedback.
"Teaching and Learning Today" K-12 Task Force
This task force is composed of teachers, administrators, technical staff, business partners, and parent representatives. Its purpose is to define the specific goals and strategies that will guide us for the next five years and help accomplish the mission of our Comprehensive Plan. Although there will be a strong technology component to the conversation this task force will really focus on what our classrooms should look like in the next five years. The following belief statements will guide this conversation.
We believe:
- We believe in a learner-centered classroom, where teachers serve as instructional facilitators and pose questions that provoke discovery, investigation, and innovation.
- We believe expanding our instructional repertoire supports student achievement.
- We believe in reaching beyond the space and scope of the classroom to construct dynamic learning experiences.
- We believe collaborative inquiry-based learning transforms school culture, learning experiences and individual student engagement to mirror an ever-changing, interdependent world.
"Technology In The Classroom"
AP Excellence
Souderton Area School District is on the AP Honor Roll Achievement! The AP Honor Roll consists of the 425 school districts in the U.S. and Canada that simultaneously achieved increases in access to Advanced Placement® courses for a broader number of students and also maintained or improved the rate at which their AP students earned scores of 3 or higher on an AP Exam. Reaching these goals indicates that our district is successfully identifying motivated, academically prepared students who are ready for the opportunity of AP.
CDTs Classroom Diagnostic Tools
Indian Valley Education Foundation
Use this link, http://www.indianvalleyef.org/index.html, to learn more about the IVEF.
Mini-grants will once again be offered through the Indian Valley Education Foundation. Now is the time to begin thinking of innovative grant proposals to submit to IVEF in the spring.
Emergent Literacy Series
Everyday Math 4 - EM4
Gifted support teachers have updated the math enrichment binders to align with EM4. District office will make copies and distribute them to building program leaders in the next few weeks.
Extended Day Kindergarten
Growth Mindset
Kindergarten Phonics
Kindergarten teachers at every building are piloting the Pinnell and Fountas Phonics Program. Teachers have generously shared their feedback and will participate in an evaluation of the program to be conducted in late spring. At that time consideration will be given to continuing the Pinnell and Fountas Phonics Program in grades 1 and 2.
Middle Level Instructional Leadership Team
Parent University
PA Assessments
- Winter: January 6 - 20
- Spring: May 16 - 27
PSSA Testing Window:
- English Language Arts April 11-15, 2016 [Grades 3-8]
- Mathematics April 18-22, 2016 [Grades 3-8]
- Science April 25-29, 2016 [Grades 4 and 8]
- Make-up May 2-6, 2016
Perception Surveys
Progress Reports
Project MAX
Both of our middle schools are participating in professional development and developing modified units of study through Project MAX. The purpose of Project MAX is to increase the capacity of Pennsylvania schools to provide all students, including those with complex instructional needs, with maximum access to general education curriculum and PA Core Standards.
Project MAX Mission Statement:
SASD believes in the presumed competency of all students, including children with complex instructional needs, to learn given the appropriate balance of support and challenge. We are preparing our students to communicate, think critically, collaborate, and be flexible for the global world beyond school. We demonstrate these beliefs by insuring:
- Access to the same high quality education as a student’s age appropriate peers replete with grade level content and academic standards.
- Maximized opportunities for all students including those with complex educational needs with access to appropriate grade level standards and eligible content
- Ongoing professional development for staff to develop the requisite skills.
- Collaboration between regular education, special education and related service staff members.
- Deployment of appropriate assistive technology.
Reading Curriculum Correlation Chart K-5
SLOs
Special Education Audit
We are in the midst of a PDE Special Education audit. The first portion of the compliance monitoring, the Facilitated Self-Assessment (FSA), was completed 12/10/2015. The FSA included an Educational Benefits Review (EBR) for 10 students selected by the state. On or around 1/4/16, the district will receive a list of 60 students whose files may be reviewed by the auditors. Special education staff will then prepare those files for review. The auditors will be in in the district 1/11-1/14 to review files 10 files from the list of 60 and to interview district office staff, school staff, parents, and/or students. The special education department wishes to thank our district stakeholders for their help and support through this process.
WIDA ACCESS 2.0
Administration will begin January 26 and conclude on or before March 4.
Purpose and Use of ACCESS for ELLs 2.0
- Helps students and families understand students’ current level of English language proficiency along the developmental continuum.
- Serves as one of multiple measures used to determine whether students are prepared to exit English language support programs.
- Generates information that assists in determining whether ELLs have attained the language proficiency needed to participate meaningfully in content area classrooms without program support.
- Provides teachers with information they can subsequently use to enhance instruction and learning in programs for their English language learners.
- Provides districts with information that will help them evaluate the effectiveness of their ESL/bilingual programs.
Links for You
In the afternoon: Elementary - EdMenu @OR; Middle School - Department Meetings;
High School - Department Meetings; Pupil Services - Department Meetings.
Katie Kennedy-Reilly
Email: kkennedyreilly@soudertonsd.org
Phone: 215-723-6061 10296
Catherine Heller
Email: cheller@soudertonsd.org
Phone: 215-723-6061 10290
SASD Staff Developers
Carolyn Rosenberger
Email: crosenberger@soudertonsd.org
Phone: 215-723-6061 10252
Twitter: @coachcr12
Susan Van Saun
Email: svansaun@soudertonsd.org
Phone: 215-723-0808