Sipley School Parent Newsletter
Week of September 5, 2016
Nightly reading is asked of all our students at Sipley School. Let's be clear then, that reading isn't just eyes on print. According to Lucy Calkins, "Reading is making meaning, and reading is letting what you read change your life, change your work, and change your thinking." As students read each night, ask them a few questions. If students are vague or lack description in what they read, they are likely not comprehending what they read, thus they are not truly reading. It is important to monitor this as it may be an indication that their book is not right for them or the book they are reading may not be interesting to them.
Benchmarking Assessments
Along with establishing a caring school community, John L. Sipley School also strives to develop a strong data-driven culture. Our teachers and staff uses data from assessments to inform instruction and monitor student progress. Because data is so critical, our district has selected STAR and AIMSwebPlus assessments that are reliable and easy to administer. Overall, our assessments do not consume a lot of time, while providing us with important information, adding to our daily observations of learning, formative assessments, and unit assessments.
Sipley School assesses students five times a year. We assess students in September, November, January, March, and May. September, January, and May are referred to benchmarking periods because we can assess a child's growth in comparison to the growth of other students in their grade who have taken the same test. This helps us compare where a child is performing in relation to their grade level peers, on a national scale.
Fall benchmarking is the first time that we gather assessment data of our students within a school year. We monitor their reading and math through STAR Reading (grades 2 - 6 and grade 1 students who are "probable readers"), STAR Early Literacy (grades K -1), and STAR Math (grades 2 - 6). Click here for a Parent's Guide to STAR Assessments.
AIMSwebPlus is a new product that we have, replacing AIMSweb. It provides for better reporting and a wider range of assessments that can help educators in providing areas of instruction that best meet the needs of their students. Click here for some additional information about AIMSwebPlus.
We will assess the students Oral Reading Fluency or the number of words students can read in a minute, while reading a passage at their grade level (grades 1 - 6).
In addition, our kindergartners will be assessed in Letter Name Fluency (can they name letters shown to them randomly) and their ability to determine Initial Sounds (the ability to accurately hear the initial sound in a spoken word, such as, "What sound does ball start with?") or identify a picture of a word that starts with a given letter ("Find the picture that starts with the letter C"). Our kindergartners will also be assessed in a couple areas of mathematics. We will assess their ability to name numbers or Number Name Fluency (can they accurately identify their numbers 1 - 20 when shown to them in random order) and we will assess Quantity Total Fluency (ie, when given a picture of 5 dots, can they identify this as 5?).
Our first graders will be assessed in the area of Letter Sound Fluency (can they accurately identify the sound a letter makes). They will also be assessed in two areas of mathematics, including one-digit by one-digit addition and subtraction (i.e. 6+2= and 10-2=) and their ability to compare numbers (11 is larger than 3).
AIMSwebPlus assessments will take place on Friday, September 9 and Monday, September 12, 2016.
STAR Reading and STAR Early Literacy are scheduled for Tuesday, September 13.
STAR Math is scheduled for Wednesday, September 14.
Parents will get the results of these assessments as soon as they become available.
Bonfield Express Foundation Donation
Tom Hierck, author of The Seven Keys to a Positive Learning Environment, has worked closely with our staff. He states, "In recent years there has been an intense focus on the achievement of students and the annual progress of schools. While academic gains are obviously important, they cannot be viewed in isolation; we must also create the conditions for learning to occur. Schools that focus on the social, emotional, and behavioral needs of students will significantly improve student learning. The implication is simple and profound—to improve student outcomes, we must commit to establishing strong and positive relationships between adults and students in our schools." The first of the seven keys, is common expectation, which we have in place and shared with students. Second is targeted instruction, which we accomplished during our "Skill Blitz" and which we reinforce with students throughout the year. Third is positive reinforcement. For the purpose of this topic, I will stop here with respect to the other very important keys.
The Bonfield Express Foundation has given Sipley School $1,000, which will be used for recognizing students who have demonstrated a love of learning, extra effort, and/or good citizenship. A team of staff members are working together to determine the best use of this generous donation, to recognize, reward, and reinforce positive behaviors. Once we determine the best use of this donation, we will share it with parents. We are thankful for this donation!
Emergency Drills
Building Assistant to the Principal
Here is a Glance at the Week Ahead
Monday, September 5 - No School - Labor Day.
Tuesday, September 6 - We will have a fire drill followed by an evacuation drill to Edgewood School (mandatory drill).
Wednesday, September 7 - I will be out of the building, attending an annually required administrator academy.
Dr. Donald R. Mrozik, Jr.
Email: mrozikd@woodridge68.org
Website: http://www.edlinesites.net/pages/Sipley_Elementary_School
Phone: 630-984390
Twitter: @SipleySchool