Curriculum Update
Mansfield Township School District
Mansfield's PARCC'ed In a Great Spot!
The much anticipated PARCC scores arrived last week. I’m happy to say Mansfield is on the right track! Scores in every grade level were above state standards in both ELA and math. This would not have happened without all of your hard work!
Last spring, ALL staff—from the teachers in grades K-6, to the support staff, to the technology team, to the custodial staff, to the office staff—all played an important role in ensuring our school community, the facilities, the equipment and the students were ready to meet this test head on. Mansfield came together for this challenge and we nailed it!
Looking back on last year, we had curriculum writers spending hours rewriting curriculum to increase rigor. They developed close-reading protocols to introduce students to new strategies for acquiring vocabulary and led students to the "gist" of the story. Mansfield teachers volunteered to participate in the Common Core Night to educate the school community about how our curriculum aligns with the CCSS, and that PARCC is used to assess the CCSS. And we can't forget the scheduling changes, the training, the scheduling changes, the emails...did I mention the scheduling changes?
Glenn, Tiffany and I will be presenting the PARCC information at the Board of Education meeting on December 14th. If you would like to join us when we share this wonderful information with our Board of Education and our community, we would love to see you there!
I believe these great results confirm two things. One, the staff in Mansfield truly is a dedicated, collaborative team that follows our vision toward a common goal. Two, we have once again proven that we are making decisions every day that are best for the students. I am proud to be a part of this team. Thanks to all of you!
Fluent Readers Abound at JHES
Virtual Field Trips!
Small Group Reading PD at MTES
Now Where Are We Going?
This month, we welcome back Rene Schillinger to work with Mansfield teachers in grades K-6. Rene will work to develop students' writing by effectively conferring. Rene will use student work to model the four-step process for writing conferences, and provide us all with new insights and strategies to improve student writing.
We will continue to develop our science curriculum! During the third week of the month, our science committee will spend time at Rider University attending the next lesson-development workshop. I will be attending a workshop with the state dedicated to the NGSS. I will also take part in a monthly regional curriculum meeting to continue our work. I will keep everyone notified of the changes and information I receive.
On December 1st, Mansfield Township hosted the first-ever Parent Advisory Curriculum Committee meeting. Almost 30 people from the Mansfield community, including parents and teachers, came together to improve communication and work collaboratively to improve our district. We discussed the strengths in our district and explored questions associated with topics such as curriculum, testing, discipline and meeting the needs of all learners. It was a wonderful evening and we are looking forward to the next meeting in February, when we can roll up our sleeves and dig a little deeper into these topics.
Although December is a short month, it's certainly NOT boring! Everyone has been very busy with classroom observations and reflections, preparing for parent/teacher conferences and collecting data and grades for report cards. We realize there is a lot going on and the students' excitement leading up to winter break is "in the air." Only a few more weeks and then we will be off to enjoy the holiday break with our families!
Thanks again for all of your dedication, hard work and support!