In Touch, In Tune
ELA/Reading Reminders, Opportunities, and Inspiration
Thanks for Tuning In!
December 2015
Nearly 800 million people worldwide cannot read or write, and of those, 126 million are children. The International Literacy Association believes we can reduce that 800 million to zero, but they need your help to do it.
Meet four people from different walks of life who had the determination to overcome illiteracy. Their stories remind us that though the challenges of illiteracy are many, so too are the solutions.
- Lorenzo Vitti, a 12-year-old boy from Florida with dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia uses technology to read and serves as an advocate for other students struggling with literacy.
- Belen Lozano, a woman from Texas who wasn't allowed to go to school as a child, is gaining literacy skills as a grandmother.
- Nchimunya, a young girl in Zambia, went from being terrified to read in class to starting her own book club.
- Jesse Cradduck, a man from Oklahoma who learned to read in his 30s, went on to earn a doctorate and write a book.
Read these remarkable stories on the International Literacy Association webpage. Then, share their stories with your students and on your social networks using #800Mil2Nil, and inspire others with the courage of these remarkable individuals.
In the Spotlight
Poetry Out Loud Contest
Poetry Out Loud uses a pyramid structure that starts at the classroom level. Winners advance to a school-wide competition, then to a regional and/or state competition, and ultimately to the National Finals.
While teachers, students, and poetry lovers everywhere can use the Poetry Out Loud website and its free materials to organize their own contests, the official contest is limited to the programs run by each state's arts agency.
A few schools in Frederick County, including Walkersville and Linganore High School, participated in the official 2015 Poetry Out Loud contest, and they each have schoolwide winners who will advance to a regional competition.
If you are interested in participating in the official program, please contact the Maryland State Arts Council.
UMS Teachers Spotlighted in New Book
"How can a secondary teacher reconcile the heavy demands of the content curriculum with best practices while enhancing students’ literacy skills? Core Instructional Routines helps teachers build background knowledge and literacy using “SWRL” (Speak, Write, Read, and Listen) routines that make learning more relevant and interactive. Authors Andrea Honigsfeld and Judy Dodge share ample opportunities for creative collaboration, critical analysis, meaning-making, and student engagement." (Heinemann)
Buy your copy of Core Instructional Routines, rekindle student engagement in your classroom, and celebrate the contributions and accomplishments of Long, Kaveney, Waybright, and Corio!
Google Expeditions Pioneer Program @ WKMS & OMS
Expeditions teams will visit selected schools around the world, including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, Singapore and Denmark. Teams of teachers at WKMS (including Amanda Kremnitzer, Karen Weir, Annie Boteler) and OMS (including Janine Smith) have applied and been selected to bring Expeditions to their schools. They will receive a complete Expeditions kit with everything the teachers need to take their students on journeys anywhere.
Learn more about the Expeditions Pioneer Program and how you can get involved by visiting the Expeditions website.
Secondary ELA on Twitter #FCPSELA
Featured Instructional Activity
Think Tank
When you need to reengage students and encourage deeper processing during a lesson, try a Think Tank. Often, as we get deeper into a lesson, our students' energy plummets (Sousa 2011a), and we may see the need to get students out of their seats or move them into small groups to reengage.
Depending on the size of your class, you might divide it into small groups of four to five students and send them to different areas of the room. At each location, group members brainstorm and record what they know about the same topic (or answer the same question) on chart paper or a dry erase board.
This collaborative processing routine gets students out of their seats and engages them in very content-focused tasks as they speak, write, and illustrate together. Students make meaning from your lesson as they speak together. Serving as a great prewriting activity, the Think Tank gives students confidence for their upcoming task. Think Tanks show students what they know and what they don't know. Three advantages of using the Think Tank are:
- It is easy to implement.
- It takes only five minutes.
- It serves as excellent daily formative assessment.
From Core Instructional Routines: Go-To Structures for the 6-12 Classroom by Andrea Honigsfeld and Jody Dodge (page 47)
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (But Mostly Good!)
PARCC Resources and Updates
PARCC has launched a new website, Understand the Score. It's purpose is to assist parents in understanding the PARCC home reports. This could be a valuable resource for teachers to share at a parent meeting. It may also help teachers answer parent questions and address concerns.
New Resources from PARCC
MSDE Resources
MSDE hosted a PARCC for Teachers webinar series. For links to all PARCC resources including the recording of the first Webinar on the PARCC home score reports, please visit the Maryland Public Schools website.
Testing Windows
- Narrative Writing Task: 10/12/15-10/23/15
- Literary Analysis Task: 1/4/16-1/15/16
- Research Simulation Task: 4/3/16-4/15/16
High School Fall Semester ELA CRES
- Narrative Writing Task: 9/28/15-10/2/15
- Literary Analysis Task: 11/2/15-11/6/15
- Research Simulation Task: 11/16/15-12/4/15
Scantron Performance Series (optional*)
- Fall Norming Administration: 8/24/15-11/20/15
- Winter Norming Administration: 1/4/16-2/22/16
- Spring Norming Administration: 4/5/16-6/15/16
*Scantron PS Winter Administration is required for 8th grade articulation; other administrations may be given as determined by school and/or central office staff for identified populations.
Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) & Scholastic Phonics Inventory (SPI)**
- Window 1: 8/24/15-9/9/15 (SRI & SPI)
- Window 2: 11/4/15-11/18/15 (SRI only)
- Window 3: 1/25/16-2/5/16 (SRI & SPI)
- Window 4: 5/2/16-5/13/16 (SRI & SPI)
**Window 2: All students with the SRI assigned to them in SAM, with the exception of students in System 44, will take the SRI in Window 2. Students in System 44 do not take the SRI in Window 2.
2015-2016 ELA/Reading Leadership Meetings
- September 2, 2015 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- November 18, 2015 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- January 5, 2016 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- March 2, 2016 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
High School Department Chairs & Literacy Specialists
- September 15, 2015 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- November 10, 2015 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- January 19, 2016 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
- March 8, 2016 from 8:15-3:00 @ SDC
Middle School Reading Intervention Representatives
- October 5, 2015 from 12:15-3:15 @SDC
- December 16, 2015 from 12:15-3:15 @SDC
- February 18, 2016 from 4:00-7:00 @ SDC
- April 4, 2016 from 12:15-3:15 @ SDC
- May 18, 2016 from 4:00-7:00 @ SDC
High School Reading Intervention Representatives
- October 5, 2015 from 7:15-10:15 @ SDC
- December 16, 2015 from 7:15-10:15 @ SDC
- February 16, 2016 from 3:30-6:30 @ SDC
- April 4, 2016 from 7:15-10:15 @ SDC
- May 17, 2016 from 3:30-6:30 @ SDC
News from Intervention
Reading Intervention Updates - Spotlight on Feedback
"According to Hattie and Timperley (2007), feedback is one of the most powerful influences on learning and achievement, but this impact can be either positive or negative... The feedback that students receive from their teachers is also vital. It enables students to progress towards challenging learning intentions and goals."
(http://visible-learning.org/glossary/)
How well do our students understand the feedback provided based on their progress in the Read 180 and System 44 software? See the following post for 5 steps to maximizing the use of the ePortfolio for providing feedback.
(You may need to log in to the Read 180 Community for access.)
Planning Guides for Read 180
Instructional Technology Tips
Crafty Rights
Kidblog Pro
Leadership and Professional Learning Opportunities
Virtual EdCamp Maryland
WHEN: Saturday, January 9 @ 9:00-11:30 a.m.
WHERE: Online
Virtual EdCamp MD will allow teachers to collaborate with other educators throughout the nation without leaving the comfort of their own home. Professional Learning in your pajamas!
Visit the Virtual EdCamp Maryland website for more information and then register here.
EdCamp Maryland
WHEN: Monday, February 15
WHERE: Multiple Locations (including Frederick)
On February 15, 2016, the second ever EdCamp Maryland will be held in four regional locations across the state - one of which is Frederick! Every educator in Maryland is invited to attend for free.
Registration will open in December. Visit the website for more information.
Online Collaborative Series for 2016
Join the MSDE Office of Professional Learning and educators from across the state for a collaborative webinar series beginning in 2016.
Topics focus on Innovative Instructional Strategies:
- Reflective Teaching (1/6)
- Differentiating on the Fly (1/13)
- Embracing 21st Century Creativity (1/20)
- Question Formulation Technique (1/27)
- Learning Progressions (2/3)
Register for a webinar by clicking here.