Monday: Meeting day!
I worked with the elementary RtI specialists to decide how to deal with easycbm. We figured out cut scores for green/yellow/red zones for each test. We set up a timeline for completion of universal screening. We set up rough agendas for the EBIS meetings.
I went back to Pondo for a quick 504 meeting, and then to the C.O. for a meeting with the secondary RtI team. We reconfirmed our commitment to strengthening the core and ensuring that no student fell through the cracks.
Tuesday morning we had our first behavior/attendance EBIS meeting. Mitch's data showed a group of 8 eighth graders, all but one of whom were boys, who have already risen to the top of the detentions/warnings list. We brainstormed some early fixes for these students to help get them back on track.
In the afternoon I went through the STAR data to present at our afternoon academic EBIS meeting. Unfortunately, not all needed parties attended. We decided to revise the academic meeting plan to include intervention teachers on a rotating basis during PLC time: one Wednesday for 7/8 English, one Wednesday for 7/8 math, and one Wednesday for 6th grade. Daymond approved this plan later in the week and we will begin it in October.
Testing: Wednesday I refined the easycbm and STAR non-testers list, so those would be available for teachers by the end of the day so we could do our make-ups on Thursday. I planned for each teacher to send any of their non-finishers down each class. Dena S. was integral to this process running smoothly on Thursday - she was in charge of the lab in the morning and helped me all afternoon. This system allowed about 100 testers to finish; I called down the rest on Friday afternoon to finish. I also made posters for our basic log-ins so we can use the whiteboard for other information.
I revised the method for signing up for the computer labs. Instead of paper copies of the schedule, I revived my Google Calendar. Teachers can view it online, and email me to sign up. There is still some refining needed since the 6th grade is not on our bell schedule.
I hooked up Jennifer's doc cam. She was very grateful. I bugged Daymond again about getting her a second log-in so she could actually use her Promethean.
I did a lot of troubleshooting for gradebooks this week - the 6th grade teachers are definitely going to need more training.
Our math PLC went quite well. We revised our reportable standards (which I subsequently typed up and shared) and we had a fantastic conversation about instructional strategies for teaching subtraction of integers. I hope to be able to facilitate more conversations like this - I believe it will improve all of our instructional practices. I also shared our pacing document and reportable standards with the sixth grade teachers, along with a draft of what theirs would be if it followed our formats.
MIM was finally updated, and I downloaded OAKS data and shared that with the English and Math PLCs; I also sent login information to Calandra and Adam, and begged Daymond for Dena S. and Cheryl to get access.
It was a busy week, and I am glad that testing is mostly over! Next round will go much more smoothly.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Week 2 - 9/9 - 9/13
I revised and refined the 6th-grade testing schedule. The pretests are taking longer than I expected, and the sixth grade schedules are surprisingly inflexible. I added English back in to the testing rotation, as they could not take the easycbm tests last week. I facilitated many of the test sessions for the sixth grade.
I labeled the computer labs.
I helped S.C. with his SMGB.
I updated the TAG list and sent copies to the staff. I filed the TAG files that came in over the summer. I then updated the list when we found a student who was not listed on SM.
I added C.K. to the list for Renaissance access, and altered the access for D.H. so he wouldn't see things he didn't need. I updated the Renaissance list as kids came and went.
For the math PLC:
I typed lists of required vocabulary words for 8th grade math. I added the 6th math pacing guide to our Google doc, and will share that so the 6th grade teachers can revise it. I facilitated a meeting about how we were going to grade the multi-answer multiple-choice questions on the pretest. I will be keeping track of that data for our PLC goals. I shared the curriculum map with K.R.
For the English PLC:
I found C.F. a doc cam. I collated and shared preliminary STAR data.
For the 6th PLC:
I shared preliminary STAR data, organized by house.
I attended an after-school district-wide RtI meeting, in which we confirmed some decisions about testing. Pondo will be recording interventions on Schoolmaster instead of easycbm.
I also found a doc cam for Calandra to use. I am the technology fairy!!!
I labeled the computer labs.
I helped S.C. with his SMGB.
I updated the TAG list and sent copies to the staff. I filed the TAG files that came in over the summer. I then updated the list when we found a student who was not listed on SM.
I added C.K. to the list for Renaissance access, and altered the access for D.H. so he wouldn't see things he didn't need. I updated the Renaissance list as kids came and went.
For the math PLC:
I typed lists of required vocabulary words for 8th grade math. I added the 6th math pacing guide to our Google doc, and will share that so the 6th grade teachers can revise it. I facilitated a meeting about how we were going to grade the multi-answer multiple-choice questions on the pretest. I will be keeping track of that data for our PLC goals. I shared the curriculum map with K.R.
For the English PLC:
I found C.F. a doc cam. I collated and shared preliminary STAR data.
For the 6th PLC:
I shared preliminary STAR data, organized by house.
I attended an after-school district-wide RtI meeting, in which we confirmed some decisions about testing. Pondo will be recording interventions on Schoolmaster instead of easycbm.
I also found a doc cam for Calandra to use. I am the technology fairy!!!
Week 1 - 9/3 - 9/6
I met with Daymond to confirm which universal screeners we would be using - easycbm.com CCSS Reading, easycbm.com CCSS Math, and STAR. I asked for the Mathematical Practices posters to be printed in color and laminated. We also discussed the state of the computer labs - we currently only have one "functioning" lab (25 computers) and the iPad cart. The iPads were not charged over the summer, did not have the STAR app loaded, and will not work in some of the sixth grade rooms; also, easycbm.com was not updated. These facts caused considerable stress and consternation when we attempted to begin testing this week. Also, the sixth grade teachers seem to be unfamiliar with how students log on to a computer, so I facilitated the beginning of each sixth-grade computer session.
I scheduled computer lab/iPad time for the English department, the math department, and the sixth grade teachers.
For the English PLC: I made copies of the non-fiction fluency stories (grade-level) and gave them to Calandra and Aaron. I found dictionaries for Calandra, and put in an AR test order.
Most of my time was spent creating, organizing, and refining the AR database. As of the end of the week, all classes were created; all students had a standard log in (their student id and initials); and I reconciled class lists. I will be reconciling those class lists for weeks to come as students come and go.
For the math PLC: I organized and made copies of all of the math department pretests so they would be ready to use. I created an answer sheet for the 8th grade. I updated our pacing guide for 7th and 8th math to reflect our new curriculum.
I also shared the proficiency guidelines that I created with a member of the Roosevelt staff.
I scheduled computer lab/iPad time for the English department, the math department, and the sixth grade teachers.
For the English PLC: I made copies of the non-fiction fluency stories (grade-level) and gave them to Calandra and Aaron. I found dictionaries for Calandra, and put in an AR test order.
Most of my time was spent creating, organizing, and refining the AR database. As of the end of the week, all classes were created; all students had a standard log in (their student id and initials); and I reconciled class lists. I will be reconciling those class lists for weeks to come as students come and go.
For the math PLC: I organized and made copies of all of the math department pretests so they would be ready to use. I created an answer sheet for the 8th grade. I updated our pacing guide for 7th and 8th math to reflect our new curriculum.
I also shared the proficiency guidelines that I created with a member of the Roosevelt staff.
Monday, September 9, 2013
8/27/13 - 8/29/13 Pre-school year
Inservice Week
On Wednesday, I attended both the English PLC CCSS training and the math PLC CCSS training. On Thursday, I met with the English group for about 30 minutes and spent time helping our new staff members and others.
For English, the work I did over the summer on revising our curriculum map and philosophy, based on conversations we had at the end-of-year CCSS training, provided a good basis for the work we did on Wednesday. I had put together a rough map of each quarter, with a Big Question, an anchor text, some supporting texts, and most importantly the focus standards we would be teaching each quarter. I also identified some likely common assessments (both existing and obvious) and checked Renaissance Place for available tests. Using this information as a basis, the English department was able to identify the reportable standards for each grade for quarter one and determine their weight in the overall grade. These weights were finalized on Thursday morning.
For math, we worked on figuring out how to use our new texts. We obtained a screener to determine readiness for our accelerated math sequence. Over the weekend, I realized a great way to use the existing assessments as a pre/post test (the answer: use the multiple-choice tiered test over the entire book, as it is shorter and has cleaner numbers and we rarely use that particular form in a regular class).
On Thursday, I set up a demonstration for all staff members on how to use the Schoolmaster Gradebook program that focused on setting up the gradebook for proficiency grading. We met in my room at 10:00 and I projected my gradebook and showed how to set up the basics. One of the new teachers later said that my presentation was very clear and useful. I answered individual questions and did some trouble-shooting during the rest of the day.
I remembered that we needed to get permission for students to use Google docs. I went to Kevin to get the forms, copied them, and worked with the secretaries to get them sent out to homerooms on the first day.
I created a generalized rubric on a 0-4 proficiency grading scale, similar to GPA. I distributed this to
the staff.
I created a bulletin board in the staff room that outlines the topics each subject and grade will be teaching during the first quarter.
On Wednesday, I attended both the English PLC CCSS training and the math PLC CCSS training. On Thursday, I met with the English group for about 30 minutes and spent time helping our new staff members and others.
For English, the work I did over the summer on revising our curriculum map and philosophy, based on conversations we had at the end-of-year CCSS training, provided a good basis for the work we did on Wednesday. I had put together a rough map of each quarter, with a Big Question, an anchor text, some supporting texts, and most importantly the focus standards we would be teaching each quarter. I also identified some likely common assessments (both existing and obvious) and checked Renaissance Place for available tests. Using this information as a basis, the English department was able to identify the reportable standards for each grade for quarter one and determine their weight in the overall grade. These weights were finalized on Thursday morning.
For math, we worked on figuring out how to use our new texts. We obtained a screener to determine readiness for our accelerated math sequence. Over the weekend, I realized a great way to use the existing assessments as a pre/post test (the answer: use the multiple-choice tiered test over the entire book, as it is shorter and has cleaner numbers and we rarely use that particular form in a regular class).
On Thursday, I set up a demonstration for all staff members on how to use the Schoolmaster Gradebook program that focused on setting up the gradebook for proficiency grading. We met in my room at 10:00 and I projected my gradebook and showed how to set up the basics. One of the new teachers later said that my presentation was very clear and useful. I answered individual questions and did some trouble-shooting during the rest of the day.
I remembered that we needed to get permission for students to use Google docs. I went to Kevin to get the forms, copied them, and worked with the secretaries to get them sent out to homerooms on the first day.
I created a generalized rubric on a 0-4 proficiency grading scale, similar to GPA. I distributed this to
the staff.
I created a bulletin board in the staff room that outlines the topics each subject and grade will be teaching during the first quarter.
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