What's new for 2014-15 School Year?
Content Areas
Steiner Ranch Elementary
Rigor-Questioning-Core Instruction
Content Areas
Technology
Are you looking for resources that support your technology integration initiatives?
- The district opened up Google+.
- The interface of Google Drive will be changing in the coming months.
- Google launched their new tool, Google Classroom, last week. Classroom was designed to help teachers create and collect assignments paperless and create Drive folders for each assignment and for each student to help keep everyone organized.
The purpose of the Leander ISD student site is to provide all students a central location to extend, share, and collaborate in their learning by accessing digital tools and resources that support the core curriculum. Design the logo contest!
Let’s learn about the new Technology Application TEKS and how they are designed to be seamlessly integrated into the Math, Science, Language Arts, and Social Studies content areas. With a focus on quality thinking, students apply their learning to real-world settings, using meaningful tools, in order to develop a capacity of understanding.
The SAMR Model provides a method of gauging how technology impacts students learning. It shows a progression of how technology can be used to substitute a traditional pen-and-paper activity or completely transform a learning experience.
Strategies and Rules for managing technology in your classroom. LISD suggest you give your students a "tech check". We all need a minute here or there to take care of messages so do your students.
BYOT Contracts for students and parents to sign.
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/leanderisd.org/educafe/techtoolbox
Twitter: @LISDTechie
Math
Make Sense of Math
Students build conceptual understanding through the intentional use of models to move through the mathematical cognitive processes of concrete, pictorial and abstract development.
Do the Math
Students develop proficiency with mathematical skills and tools that contribute to reasoning and understanding mathematical concepts.
Use the Math
Students apply mathematical understandings to solve authentic, multifaceted problems at varying levels of complexity. As students learn to persevere and become flexible problem solvers, they engage in math conversations that help solidify and justify their thinking.
Bridges in Mathematics,second edition, is a comprehensive K-5 mathematics curriculum that equips teachers to implement the TEKS for Mathematics in a manner that is rigorous, coherent, engaging and accessible to all learners. The curriculum focuses on developing students’ deep understandings of mathematical concepts, proficiency with key skills, and ability to solve complex and novel problems. Bridges blends direct instruction, structured investigation and open exploration. The program taps into the intelligence strengths of all students by presenting material that is as linguistically, visually, and kinesthetically rich as it is mathematically powerful.
Number Corner is a skill-building program that revolves around the classroom calendar, providing daily practice as well as continual encounters with broader mathematical concepts in 15-20 minutes of engaging instruction.
Revised to address the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, Number Corner second edition is an essential component of Bridges in Mathematics, but can be used to complement any K-5 curriculum. Number Corner is easily upgraded to the full Bridges curriculum.
Structure and Organization Slide Show
Google Docs
TEKS side by side Grade Level, Instructional resources, math manipulatives, parent communication, PACE
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/leanderisd.org/lisd-elementary-math/home
Twitter: @lisdelemmath
Literacy
Literacy Teacher Leaders
What to Share With Your Campus
Message: the first stop to go for planning is the unit of study!
Resources available (There are so many…)
Journeys adoption has so many great things. Please do not send them back to warehouse or to AP. Each teacher receives over $2500 worth of materials. As a district, these were worth over one million dollars… There are hidden gems:
CLLG (Comprehensive Language and Literacy Guide)
Student Readers
Leveled Books
Consider sharing how to get to Think Central and push readers out to students. Your IC and Campus Technologist can help you. If you can’t access with login, create an Eduphoria Help Desk Ticket. (Log in: teacher first name and last name, password is campus number and the word teacher, all lowercase and no spaces)
Lucy Calkins (new grade level resources coming to library, one per team)
Writing Work will continue (we are not done)
Questioning--increasing the rigor through the use of questions located in the Learning Checks under Evidence in the EUS
Learning checks/blueprints are both located in EUS now
New Twitter Hashtags for Units of Study
Tweet what’s happening out there!
Student site… coming soon! It is in the works.
New phonics guidelines for K-2 - document has been improved to include more specificity, links to CD Resources (same sequence, etc.)
DRA Kinder expectation changing to a level 4 by EOY
A, 2, 3, 4 respectively by nine weeks
enhancements to units of study to support this change
Twitter: @diannasimons
Science
Username: Password:
Check your email! They sent it to you!
What is TigTag?
Google Docs Info Sheet
Curriculum Work and Pilots
Kinder
- Pushing out new kit: Move It! (replaced sifting through science)
- Piloting Plants (replaces Buzzing with Bugs) and Animals (replaces Animals 2x2)
- Incorporating new TigTag adoption into documents
- adding teacher suggestions/hints into lessons
- embedding vocabulary into lessons
- adding probes: assessment for learning from Page Keeley
1st Grade:
- We are working on writing an integrated science and social studies unit that combines Earth/Space and Geography. This kit will replace Pebbles, Sand and Silt. We are adding in probes for assessment for learning and resources from Tigtag. This kit will be piloted this year.
- 2 new kits are pushing out this fall-Organisms and Environments 1 and 2. These will replace New Plants and Butterflies.
2nd grade:
- We are working on piloting the Matter unit of Building Bridges. It incorporates Engineering, Math, and physical properties of solids and liquids. Some teacher leaders and their teams piloted last year, but will pilot again this year.
- We are piloting changes and added butterflies to our Habitat unit so students can have an experience with a life cycle.
- We are continuing to add probes and TigTag resources to all u (Need to add the strategies to use as well)
3 Third grade:
- Rewrote lessons 6 and 7 for Our Place In Space. Lessons include TigTag videos and a science probe inspired by the Page Keely workshop. (New lessons are being piloted by teacher leaders, but we hope the new lesson materials will be available for all teachers across the district by the end of the year).
- We are working on creating rubrics for performance tasks. Rubrics will include specific details to help teachers score performance tasks. Possibly gather student samples to have available for teachers. (Include possible answers)
- We will be working on learning check (probes) this year
4 Fourth Grade
- We are working on effective lessons for 4OE Ecosystem Unit.
- We revised lessons 4 (life cycle of a seed *gel) 8, 11, 14 (food webs/change)17, and 20 to include tigtag videos
- and embedded formative assessments into these lessons. It is
- important to use strategies for learning probes as starters, exit
- tickets, etc.
5th Grade - Changes to 5FME Kit:
- Piloting 2 new sound energy lessons as well as a new magnetism lesson
- Incorporating TigTag resources in the Sound Lessons.
- Incorporating Engineering is Elementary in Magnetism (this is now a 2 day assignment).
Rigor:
Increased rigor in Environments and Energy Explorations modules as well as the Benchmarks
Twitter: @LISDElemScience
Social Studies
2014 Elementary Social Studies Adoptions
Google Docs K-12 Social Studies Material AdoptionKindergarten
Deleted EUS 5: Technology; integrated into EUS 1
Added resources to all EUS units
Renamed most EU's
All EUS have everything embedded into them- one stop shop for teachers
Geography unit can be taught with Living on Earth science kit or used as review for 4th nine weeks. Can check off report card skills for Geography when teaching Living on Earth.
Ask campus if they have Harcourt Time for Kids Readers (with 2003 adoption K-4 materials). These are great resources.
Updated report card skills
1st Grade
Updated report card skills
reordered and combined report card titles and skills
Created a second Year at a Glance for the science integrated unit
Collaborated with Science to make a integrated unit on geography and earth science TEKS
Reviewed integrated math unit on economics and added math lessons
added performance tasks to Good Citizenship and Symbols Around Us for the report card skills- this is where we added good questions for higher level thinking
began citing pictures that are used in units
added performance task lesson to Leaders Through Time
added the leadership TEKS to Time and Change and renamed EUS Leaders Through Time- now 4 ½ week unit
2nd Grade
Created lessons for 1st 9 weeks unit on citizenship and patriotic symbols
Created a storyline for the first unit with “clickable” resources/lessons
Reviewed report card skills for integrated unit
reviewed integrated math unit on economics and added math lessons for Personal financial literacy
created lessons/storyline for Economy and Govt Unit (2nd 9 weeks)--not completed yet
3rd Grade
Updated the Social Studies skills-based report card objectives
Combined ESU 8 and 9 together- eliminating ESU 9
Ensured new math TEKS for Personal Financial Literacy were added to the Social Studies EU10 (Personal Finance) Not being taught through math
Combined the “4 units of studies as per the Elementary Curriculum Map” into 3 blocks in order to leave one block for the integrated Science Unit
Created Performance tasks and learning checks for the 1st bundle on communities and government to match skills- based report card objectives to be mastered
Removed the DBQ’s from district Elementary Curriculum Map and moved them into the appropriate Social Studies EU
4th Grade
Kahoots Learning Checks
***All Kahoots are added through Educafe- EUS 4th Grade under
the corresponding learning checks.***
Maps
Texas Regions
Native Americans
European Explorers
Cabeza de Vaca
Background Essay
Document A
Document B
Document C (HSI)
Document D
Final Discussion
Conflict in Colonization
Texas Revolution
Republic to Statehood
Civil War, Reconstruction, and Government
Historical Scene Investigations
Instructions
Alamo
Cabeza De Vaca DBQ (document C)
Caddo Native Americans
Conquistadors
Sam Houston
Battle of San Jacinto
Spindletop
Texas Declaration of Independence
Texas in the Civil War
Extra Resources
Alamo Diary Project Rubric to use and copy for future Social Studies projects. (Texas Revolution EUS)
Texas Oil and Social Change Learning Check for accelerated students. (Texas Customs/Texas Geography EUS)
Texas Oil and Social Change DBQ Hook interactive PowerPoint with video. (Texas Customs/Texas Geography EUS)
Texas History - Read Aloud Book List (4th Grade SS Year at a Glance)
Texas Wonderings that Matter to ME! Research based homework or in class assignment based on a “WHY” question. (4th Grade Year at a Glance)
5th Grade
Organized EUS and lesson plans to be more user friendly
Incorporated new lessons into each unit of study (including webquests: Harriet Tubman)
Added several interactive web links for virtual learning (ie. Reading Like a Historian, Maps 101 Field Trips)
Added Learning Checks and Extension activities to EUS
Created Tic-Tac-Toe board to be used for each unit of study
- Created Kahoots for Jamestown, Valley Forge, Harriet Tubman, Gettysburg, & Reconstruction (Thanks G4!)
Twitter: @LISD_SocStu
Teacher Leader Curriculum Site
● Collaborate with district support staff and campus instructional staff to develop and revise curriculum, assessment, and supporting documents
● Collaborate with other campus Teacher Leaders and Campus Leadership Team
● Promote effective instructional practice including technology integration
● Mentor other teachers
● Communicate district information in team and/or faculty meetings
● Collect campus feedback
● Participate in training and curriculum work during the summer