Instructional Impact
March 21, 2019
Purpose
Helpful Links
Trimester 2 Assessment Calendar
SAEBERS administration window is March 25, 2019 to April 12, 2019. Please do not administer before this window.
Report Card Dates/Deadlines
MSTEP (Grades 3-5)
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) through ClassDojo
Click here to access a series of short videos that you can watch and discuss with your students.
Cultures of Thinking (CoT)
Cultures of Thinking comes to us from Project Zero at Harvard University.
What is Project Zero? What is their mission?
It's important to note that Cultures of Thinking isn't "one more thing." Instead, it provides us with a way of being and a framework in which to reflect on our teaching and learning in order to promote deep thinking and understanding for ourselves and our students. This "way of being" strongly supports IB. The goal of this learning is to continue to grow into a district that promotes and values thinking and understanding (which supports our Learner Profile) not only for our students but for ourselves!
Main website from Ron Ritchhart (senior researcher and author)
The Thinking Routines are one way (strategy) to help learners share their thinking and even more, lift the level of their thinking. The Thinking Routines fall under "Routines and Structures" in the 8 Cultural Forces.
Essentially, we want our students to show their understanding in a variety of ways based on the context. The Understanding Map demonstrates this.
This video from Ron Richhart is a nice overview. It's 53 minutes long so if you plan to watch it and interact with it, please set some time aside. Might be powerful to watch and reflect in a small group.
Here's an example of a Thinking Routine from Clarkston. "Zoom in" is a great tool for a provocation (as one example).
A Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum?
A GVC represents the core non-negotiables of student learning. It's what districts, schools and teachers commit to providing every student.
A “guaranteed” curriculum is often defined as a mechanism through which all students have an equal opportunity to learn rigorous content. This requires a school-wide (or district-wide) agreement and common understanding of the essential content that all students need to know, understand, and be able to do. The word “all” needs emphasis; a guaranteed curriculum promotes equity, giving all children equal opportunity to learn essential content, and to provide this opportunity, curricular materials and instructional approaches must be grounded in research, implemented with fidelity, and must include vertical as well as horizontal alignment.
For a curriculum to be “viable,” there must be adequate time for teachers to teach the content and for students to learn the content. A viable curriculum eliminates the supplementary or “nice to know” content.
Our curriculum choices are grounded in research and well-aligned to our standards. As we continue to improve tier 1 instruction, we will begin to layout our "core non-negotiables" for Oxford. In order for our work to be powerful, we ALL must be on the same page and offer our kids our core non-negotiables.
Source: McCREL International
Workshop Instruction
Everyone is at varying levels of implementation and that's okay. We are all in this together and we want to move forward together on behalf of our students. My biggest "ask" is that everyone self-reflects on their practice and is willing to open up and utilize a growth mindset as we work together to offer our students our best!
Here are some excellent resources to watch and/or read for professional learning that can either re-calibrate, confirm, or stretch your thinking.
2nd Grade Reading Mini-Lesson (11:35)
While watching, listen and look for the language she uses, the parts of a mini-lesson including the connection, teaching point, teaching, active engagement and link, and her pacing of the lesson. Look at the walls in the room. What learning story are they narrating?
*One word of caution. I don't like that she gives them an "assignment" in her send-off. Not all kids will be able to apply the mini-lesson of the day at that moment or during their reading immediately after.
CRA- Concrete Representational Abstract Approach to Learning Mathematics
Building our math minds so we can build the math minds for our students!
This video is good, quick professional learning! It's 13:18 minutes long so plan on watching it when you have time! I highly recommend having a notebook handy when you do! :)
The Great Homework Debate!
Here are a few articles/resources to consider:
The Great Homework Debate (NeaToday)
Should Kids Have Homework? (Chicago Tribune)
A Case For and Against Homework (ASCD)
- Is it necessary?
- When is it necessary?
- What's necessary?
- Is homework the only way we can teach responsibility or develop study routines?
What does this quote make you think?
"If they can do the worksheet, they don't need it. If they can't, it won't help them." -Marilyn Adams
Twitter Contest Number 2!
When: March 21-March 29, 2019
What: Tweet out about learning from
- The reading or writing Units of Study or
- Math Expressions and include a brief explanation of learning or
- Science and social studies learning
- Small group work or focused intervention
Tag me @AnitaQonja and use #TeamO
Just one Tweet (of course, more would be great) is all it takes! If you're not on Twitter, you can start a new account. *This is an optional opportunity!
Drawing for a favorite picture book and some fun Post-Its and markers for your classroom!
Michigan's Literacy Essentials
Our districts curriculum and instructional practice, including workshop instruction, helps to support these Literacy Essentials!
This site offers EXCELLENT professional learning opportunities through videos and modules!
Anita R. Qonja
Email: anita.qonja@oxfordschools.org
Website: oxfordschools.org
Location: 10 North Washington Street, Oxford, MI, USA
Phone: 248.969.5096
Twitter: @AnitaQonja