Re-charging Our SuperPowers and Being Difference Makers

Topics of Discussion

• Techno Expo Expectations- Submisssions are requested. Does not have to be a final product for submission. If there is a product that is in the works, submit a written discription and a skeleton idea of what the final product will be. It can also be a demonstration/presentation not reliant on technology.
• Clubs- question about size of clubs. At this time clubs will remain larger in amount of students. Ideas regarding allowing more student led and pairing up older students with younger students. Slide show will be sent out around 2:30-3:00 Monday. Students will need to have made their selection by Friday morning. Students who did not get their first three choices and students who came to Sendera after clubs had started will get first choice over other students. Please let Wilson know if you have a new student or a student mentions that they were one of the few that did not get one of their first three choices the first time. Clubs will begin on January 29th.

Balanced Math with Meredith Cunningham

 

Continue to the link regarding the slide show presented by Meredith Cunningham on January 8th, 2018.

Presentation on Balanced Math by Meredith Cunningham

Balanced math is a focus on Math Literacy (the action of students to read, write, speak and listen about Math). There is specific focus/intention in students explaining their thinking outloud in both Math Workshop and Problem Solving Block. Both Math Workshop and PSB must hinge or balance around TEKS (what and why), Lesson Planning, Purposeful Talk and Components of Workshop. All come back to purposeful planning. What does planning look like on your grade level? Is one person the keeper of the knowledge and plans are handed out, or is their discussion about the problem solving/workng the problems out? 

Math Workshop is intended to build student capacity to be successful problem solvers when they enter Problem Solving Block. In Math Workshop minilessons should be designed so that your top 25% can immediately go into the task of the Origo lesson and work with success immediately while Guided Math groups and fluency stations are provided for others. Students who need the most support are met with immediately after the minilesson, followed by the next group of need, and so on. Only the top 25% should immediately go into the the Origo workbook, while the other students will need to meet with the teacher in a guided math group to continue instruction before working independently on the Origo workbook task. Groups should be fluid. Use of pretests help to determine groups. There are many resources available to help structure Guided Math Rotations in Moodle including Fluency Folders. It was also recommended that teachers utilize the old Investigation games as a resource for Math/Fluency Games. Another resource that was shared was the hand out for Guided Math Rotations.

Problem Solving Block is the other piece of Balanced Math and the focus of our Southwest Learning Team's learning walks. The purpose of the learning walks was not meant to be a "gotcha" but to obsercve what we are doing well and ways we can enhance and move our students' thinking forward in regards to math. When Young and McCowan spent the day with the Southwest Learning Team it brought about questions about what we do at SRE. We are seeing that we don't look the same horizontally or vertically. We are clear that Problem Solving Block is supposed to be at least 20 minutes every day and preferably 30 minutes. It can be useed to spiral in skills on low performing standards and you can utilize those problems provided in Moodle or utilize your own. There was discussion about modeling. Teacher models seems to be a best practice in getting better student product. Structure was also discussed. While structure does not have to look the same across grade levels it does have merit. If modeling and/or organization/structure are something you have not yet brought into Problem Solving Block it is never too late to begin! 

Problem Solving Block is designed so that there can be differentiation within the process based on who needs what. It was also mentioned that sometimes a problem may be a bit easier to help build confidence and provide balance with productive struggle.

Problem Solving Block Non- Negotiables for NISD:

• Happening daily (with exception for pre-test days)
• PAL time
• Solo time
• Productive Struggle
• Writing with explanation (K-2) and justification (3-5)
• Purposeful Student Presenters

It was also mentioned that it is better to have quality problem solving over quantity. It was suggested that students might solve on day one and write the explanation/justification on day two. 

Over the course of the next few weeks Problem Solving Journals will be looked at to determine what direction we are going as a campus. Today we had a short bit of time to discuss what it would look like as we vertically align our expecations for Problem Solving Journals and the work students produce. The discussion was in depth and as a campus we plan to return to this discussioin in future vertical Math PLC conversations.

Other Resources discussed that can be used were Education Galaxy (not endorsed by NISD) for K-2 and 3-5 after students complete expected components of the the grade level in Imagine Math. When in Math Instruction (Problem Solving Block and/or Math Workshop) student activities need to center around Math.

Mission and Vision

This continues to be an area of personal struggle for Mr. Booles. When looking at other Mission and Vision statements from other schools, academies and businesses it seems to fall short and he wants more for SRE.  He wants us to collectively put it together and it to mean something. It may very well take the whole year and that is ok. It has to be something that we all can buy into and that we can deliver. Reading from an email from Swearingen he shared her statement "I want them (students) to remember their years at SRE." Our mission and vision have to be something that is special... it is difficult for us to stay in the memory of our students when high school is right there, but we want that kind of campus. Additionally, Dr. Warren is redoing the mission/vision for the district so we want to wait to see what those expectations may result.

Problem of Practice

Some discussion went into our problem of practice. There was discussion about an emphasis on more time observing each others classrooms. Scheduling time for teachers to visit other teachers in a variety of ways (using extended PLC time, guidance time and/or planning time). Purposeful staff development was also discussed with learning happening amongst one another capitalizing on the expertise within our campus. We got rid of the Google Classroom discussion threads. Clarified that student data folders with student learning goals can be on paper or digital.

The biggest discussion came from our Instructional Focus statement where the question was raised regarding "all students will make at minimum one year's growth in reading and meet or exceed end-of-year grade level expecations in all content areas. Suggestions were made to bring in individual student goals (not necessarily academic in nature) and tie to the social/emotional needs of students. Some debate was made regarding the Instructional Focus statement being a high expectation and the reality of certain situations. The illustration of how all NFL football teams start the season with the intent and goal to win the Super Bowl, but only one team reaches that goal. While the debate was passionate, it was beneficial and gave everyone a lot to consider.

Final Notes

Mr. Booles shared the following video "This is how 936 Marbles Can Change Someone's Life."

Kinder through 5th grade we have 216 marbles. When they reach second grade we have 144 marbles. 5th grade 36 marbles... 18 marbles because we are halfway through the year. How are we going to make a difference with the time we have left? "The difference between a success story and a statistic is you..."

What's Your Superpower? -Day 2

The second day in many things had been accomplished the day before and today was no different. The morning discussion started in where a question had been raised the day before...

Question: We noticed that there is a new format for the "Who Am I?" on the shared drive. Is there going to be a new expectation this year?

The answer... Yes!

The 4 square was shared out. A sample and template can be found on the the shared drive in the "SRE and More Folder" in the sub-folder "Who Am I?"

Teachers are encouraged to make a copy and then personalize.

In Quadrant 1 (top left) the teacher is encouraged to identify this where the mission and vision will be and then add an image to indicate this is under construction.

In Quadrant 2 (top right) the teacher is encouraged to add information about themselves, the college(s) they attending and degree(s) earned, and/or hobbies or interest. This will serve dual purposes. By including the college(s) attended and degree with a small college image/pennant it will align with the Generation Texas week expectation for teachers to display the college they attended.

In Quadrant 3 (bottom left) teachers are asked to put two to three goals they are working in regards to professional growth and/or student growth. It is strongly encouraged to align this to T-TESS goals.

In Quadrant 4 (bottom right) teachers are to create a Google Form for feedback from walkthroughs done by peers, administration and district personnel. This Form designed by the teacher is intended to provide them feedback based on the two to three goals they have posted in Quadrant 3 of the "Who am I?"- Four Square.

A specific name for this "Who Am I?"-4 Square has yet to be determined. Teachers are encouraged to work on Quadrants 2 and 3. Rene Egle will be available for support to help with the Google Form for Feedback Thursday, August 24th in the afternoon. Email her to set up an appointment at regle@nisdtx.org.


Dr. Warren's Imperatives/Goals were shared out. His direct instructional questions are more purposeful and drive home the expectation for collective efficacy. Emphasis was placed on knowing our kids well, especially those that fall into our PBMAS data.

You can review those imperatives and questions HERE.

Instructional Focus/Problem of Practice (POP) was discussed. The collective whole was asked their thoughts, including did it need revamping.

4th Grade liked it and how it moved us toward more rigorous and relevant instruction and student work. They also noted that we need to add more about positive relationships and culture.

GLAMP referred back to the "Who Am I?- 4 Square and the use of the  QR Codes tied to the feedback walkthrough forms and how that adds in the accountability and allows us as a campus to do more to move toward true transparency. They noted ways it could improve was with more friendly wording that cut to the chase.

Kindergarten and first grade followed GLAMP's remark about more friendly wording pointing back to last year when they re-wrote the POP for their students using student-friendly language. It was noted that first grade made it part of their morning routine/meeting and students would state the POP both with words and hand motions. Often the students led the stating of the POP.

At that point the conversation led into how did our POP tie into our Mission and Vision. No one commented. Then John asked if anyone knew what our Mission and Vision is. No one really knew.

John then asked the staff to read the following article by George Couros: "Accountability and Action Toward a Shared Vision" from his blog The Principal of  Change.

After discussion about the article at tables ideas were shared out.

-Redo the Longhorn Pledge? (relate it back to the mission and vison)
-Mission and Vision posted in all classrooms
-Posted on the website
-Mission and Vision have a 'sing/song' dance like action tied to the mission and vision when students recite it that encourage positive behaviors and/or signals as reminder for behaviors (like what first grade did with the POP last year)
-Not on announcements everyday... loses meaning?
-Bring to community/students
-Put on Campus Improvement Plan and involve all stakeholders

It was then suggested that we hash out as a campus, then bring to stakeholders includes students then adopt that vision and mission.

Last year the OHI showed we were strong in relationships and trust and lowest in being data driven. This indicated that we were lacking a common goal.. a shared vision.

The definition of mission- is how we do things...
The definition of vision- is where we want to be

BOTH must be aligned.

It is believed that parents will be most likely to respond to emotional/relational piece with the POP and Mission and Vision.

At that point a T-Chart collecting the characteristics/qualities of a Vision and Mission was created with the staff:

From the above T-Chart of characteristics/qualities a criteria was created for what determines a well written Mission and Vision Statement. A list of 8 Criteria was created:

1. Character and Individual Development
2. Measurable/Accountability (data driven)
3. Accountability with all stakeholders
4. Learner Centered
5. Positive/Affirming Relationships
6. Simple/Kid Friendly
7. Actionable (Intentional/Purposeful)
8. Worth Fighting For

At this point it was determined that we needed to step away and revisit at a later time.

T-TESS update was next.

Click HERE for the full presentation/update.

Points of emphasis:

• goals need to be tied to the criteria that will be used to determine and evaluate vision and mission
• collect evidence throughout the year (can use feedback from self-creatheduleed feedback walkthrough form on "Who Am I?"- 4 Square); teachers may want to set themselves up a calendar reminder every couple of weeks to ensure evidence does continually get added
• communicate goals created/kept to John and Wilson; New teachers must schedule a goal-setting conference

The remainder of the day was talking about paper clip items. 

There is a link HERE to the Google Slide Show that discussed the various matters. The items that additional information was discussed included:

Library-

Google Folders

Brain Pop Survey to determine if we should continue its subscription for the campus

September 5th Library classes will begin

Guidance-

Lessons/Schedule

Send Trice your top three days and times

Starting second week of school Trice will visit K-1. Third week of school she will meet with 2nd and 3rd. 4th Week of school she will meet with 4th and 5th.

Trice is plannig to bring back bucket fillers. She will be reading the book that goes along with this. She asked that teachers NOT read this book to the class as she will be reading it to them when she visits classes over the next few weeks.

We will start honoring studenst for character traits at assemblies the second or third assembly.

To keep from too much of the same kids getting the same awards there is a historical log of awards. This can be found in the campus shared drive... go to the Common folder> BOY> Character... there you will be able to see who has received an award over the last three years.

NISD Elementary Grading policy has changed in regards to number of summatives required in Math on the marking periods with 5 weeks. Additionally only four formatives are required in K-3rd with a suggested summative in 4th and 5th grade for social studies. An email with the policy highlighting the changes will be sent to teachers as well as uploaded to the SRE Virtual Collaborative Classroom to easily access and refer to as needed.

There was some confusion about what will be shared via the SRE Virtual PLC Team Drives that will be shared soon. Lesson plans will NOT be expected to be uploaded, however, having team plans where support services like special education, library and gifted and talented can see them allows for everyone to be aware, supportive and add to our collective efficacy. Teams WILL BE expected to update assessment calendars outlining a marking period at a time in their team folders located in the SRE Virtual PLC Team Drives and include the dates they plan together as a team. More clarification will be provided on Wednesday, August 23rd.

It was a great two days and it seems that our Superpowers are only growing in strength because of us working together and coming to a consensus. Enjoy your time working in your rooms today until convocation. Be sure to check with John or Wilson if you don't know where you need to be on Tuesday for District Professional Development/Curriculum Updates. We will see everyone on Wednesday at 8:00am for ongoing conversations and staff development in the Library. 

Thank you to eveyone for actively participating and sharing honestly, openly and with positivity your thoughts, concerns, hopes and ideas!

Moving Forward on a Line of Progression

There has been a lot of discussion and "look fors" that have been shared over the course of the last twelve weeks. At times it seems as though there is only more to do and no progress forward. Unfortunately, that is the myth learners believe if moments are not taken to reflect on the goals set or note the steps made toward progress.

When looking at the campus problem of practice, what gains have we made? Looking at the progress of our campus as a whole we are already making steps forward. We have many things we have put in place and our doing with fidelity (noted by the green arrow). There are things that we are moving towards and are making steps toward doing as part of our common practice (noted by the yellow arrow). Then there are things we have set as goals, plan to achieve, yet have not put into place (noted in red).

Some may look at this and see all the red. That would be an unfair assessment of our growth. What would be a fair assessment is to look at the green AND the yellow. When this Problem of Practice was set in motion, it was done with the knowledge that what we set before us, was a goal that would not be met overnight or even in a year's time. If it was, the expectation was set too low. The teacher leaders that help craft this knew what the teachers and students of our campus could do. Would it be easy? No. Would it take time? Yes. Would it make us uncomfotable? More than likely. Would it be worth it? Most definitely.

This progress has been one step at a time. For some, slower than they would like. For others not slow enough. One would argue, though, that regardless of how one feels about the pace of our progression, upon reflection, progress has been made. 

It is with this idea of reflection and really looking at where one is, that we ask you to evaluate your team and yourself in regards to your lesson planning. What is the progress of your team and yourself in this area? How have you grown? What have you already changed to deepen the process of planning and lesson preparation?

A line of progression helps us determine where we are individually and as a team. It isn't about making it to the finish line, but that you are moving forward... one step at a time. Looking at the "Lesson Plan Look Fors Guide" and reflecting both on your growth and your team's growth... where do you and your team fall on the "Lesson Planning Line of Progression?"

Here is an example of how a teacher might have reflected on where he/she was both individually and as a team in the area of lesson planning with a "Line of Progression" at the beginning of the year:

Here is what a line of progression might look like for this same teacher 12 weeks into the school year:

Using a red pen to determine- not yet doing, a yellow pen- in process or starting to do, and a green pen- doing with fidelity; the teacher was able to assess where he/she was, the progress being made and next steps both individually and for the team.

A line of progression doesn't have to be on a fancy template or for anyone else to see. It is for you to assess where you are and see where you have grown. It is designed to celebrate the progress and determine your next steps. If you are one that would like to use a "Line of Progression" guide as provided in the examples here are a couple of docs you can utilize as resources:

BOY Line of Progression (Where I was when the school year began)

Line of Progression Ongoing (Where I am at any given date)

To help you determine where you fall in the "Lesson Planning Line of Progression" a few questions are provided to guide you.

As a team: 

• Are you unpacking the TEK(s) tied to each lesson and identifying the verb and the mastery that should be demonstrated when this standard is taught? 
• Are you collaborating and aligning the student friendly learning target?
• Are you together generating 2-3 Higher Level Questions and/or determining ways to get students to ask higher level questions?
• Are you determining places throughout the lesson that lend themselves to opportunity for student to student communication?
• Are you discussing where learning misconceptions may occur?
• Are you determining way to create literacy rich opportunities via journals, digital projects, speaking opportunities, etc? (are tasks just part of literacy or are they stretching and growing your students and ARE literacy RICH)
• Are you talking together what the key learning you want students to have at the closing?
• Are you considering where in the lesson are opportunities for "Quad D" moments? 

Individually:

• Before planning with the team have you familiarized yourself with the scope and content that you will be discussing during planning?
• Have you familiarized yourself with the TEK(s) to the point you have a general understanding of how it would be unpacked?
• Do you come to planning with ideas and an open mind to other ideas for how lessons can be delivered?
• After planning and before instruction do you read over the lesson and look for opportunities to craft "moments" of purposeful talk? 
• After planning and before instruction do you read over the lesson and look for opportunities to do in the moment formative assessments throughout the lesson?
• After the lesson, do you reflect on the lesson and what went well, what you would revise? Where did your student's misconceptions occur?

There are so many celebrations for where we are as a campus. Every PLC agenda notes, every individual conversation, every walkthrough shows this. One of the key elements of this growth is the authentic way in which you interact with one another, your students and your instructional leaders. You are transparent in your practice and eager to continually fine tune your instruction. We are as lead learners moving forward on a line of progression.

Please feel free to leave comments and/or share your thoughts on the Campus' line of progression, your teams or your own individual growth.

Creating Space for Making Thinking Visible

Whether your content is ELA or Math. Capturing thinking in student journals is not only effective but provides a way to archive individual student progress. 

Journaling is the space where we can fill in the gaps from a scope and sequence or a scripted lesson plan. It is where the thinking becomes real and personal for each learner. 
In Math we use the tool of journaling through our Problem Solving Block. Vertical conversations have brought consensus that we all want students to be able to show a complete solution and show that they understand the problem. From there we continue to strive for thorough explanations through words and models K-2 and explanations with justifications 3-5. We know that this is where the meat of what students learn is applied with rigor and depth.
Problem Solving Block questions are designed to spiral in previous learning, see where students are with upcoming new concepts, provide emphasis to current content and/or create opportunities to reteach where concepts may need more instruction or clarification with ways it can be presented. With the autonomy of this time and the journals, comes in the importance of planning and collaboration. Planning moves from the what to the why and how. Planning begins to evolve from not just what lesson we are teaching, but drives deeper into what do we want the learner to know (learning target), what questions are we asking and hoping to hear students asking, and what activities/tasks will best elicit the data that tells us that our students KNOW IT!

Another idea to consider is how can we move beyond just the look fors... as teachers model in their Problem Solving Journals, how can we enhance the literacy rich focus of our Problem of Practice. The following article from blog The Cornerstone for Teachers "Everything You Need to Know About Math Journals" by Angela Watson affirms so much of what we are already doing. The portion that talks about 'Why math journaling?' is powerful where it states: 

"-Kids have the opportunity to reflect on their strategies and assess their own learning

-Students practice putting their knowledge into words both verbally and in writing

-Instructional focus is shifted from computation to problem solving and real-life application

-The teacher gains insight into children’s abilities, opinions, understandings, and misconceptions

-It creates a documented portfolio-like record of student growth and progress"

Furthermore, the portion "What do students write about?" suggests a move beyond what are presently being done where the focus is mostly on strategies and processes. How powerful might it be to take a moment every few weeks and address not just the processes, but the attitudes and learning. Reflection, as we know, can be the most powerful of all teachers.

In the coming weeks there is a focus on the following look fors in math problem solving block time: 

¨ Daily Problem Solving in journal with explanations (K-2) and justifications (3-5)

¨ Student discourse and use of talk moves by teachers/students with high level questioning

¨ Alignment of quality instruction from class to class within the same grade level

¨All components of the Stepping Stones Journal complete (Step Up and Step Ahead for deeper thinking)

Beyond this, what can we do with our journals, in ALL content areas to make student journals a piece of the learning that students own and value. A space for making thinking visible? Please share your comments below.

-Kirsten and John

Our Journey With Planning

The journey with lesson planning and transparency in our practice, for us, started in late July with our Leadership Academy Team's determination to make this a focus on our campus Problem of Practice. We have had our leadership team, vertical PLCs, and grade level PLCs review, discuss and provide feedback. Now we move forward in action.

We have in place a lesson planning guide to direct our discussions in planning and drive our plans for instruction deeper in collaboration and independently. To see what we are doing, and encourage as well as sharpen our practice, we have designed a focused walkthrough form for peer to peer walkthroughs.

There are a few questions that continue to circle and the hope is that this blog post answers those questions.

• Is the Lesson Planning Guide going to be a "gotcha?"
• Not at all, this is designed to be used as an accountability piece among your team as you plan and as a way for us as a campus to be able to move forward and grow together. It is a way to identify components of lesson planning that are effective and encourage those practices to be the expectation as we continually improve together.
• What evidence are we looking for?
• We are looking for lessons that are warm to you. When you deliver a lesson it is already been discussed deeply with your team, reflected on by you and shows evidence of that. Evidence of that could be shown in the format like what was presented to the leadership team with the Origo lesson (pictured here).

Or it can be notes added to a lesson via post its and/or the actual artifacts and teacher model journals (also pictured below). 

• How will accountability remain if the expectation for turning lesson plans is no longer in place?
• The question that we asked ourselves was what was the purpose of "turning in lesson plans" and who was it for? The overwhelming answer... it was for administration. We want your planning to be about the intentional planning and delivery of instruction for the LEARNERS in your classroom. How will we know planning is being done? It goes right back to good teaching... it must be planned. We will be looking for alignment with learning targets, CBAs will help us see alignment and hold accountable your instruction. Additionally, we want to see your plans in your hands in use as we walk in and observe you instructing your learners. They should not look pristine and untouched but have evidence of your thoughts, reflections and the components from the the lesson planning guide.
• This is also where the walkthroughs indirectly hold each other accountable. The walkthroughs are designed for us to learn from each other and the root of our instruction comes from our planning.
• What is the expectation/philosophy for Learning Targets?
• Our lesson guide speaks to this. We also believe that as teams/content areas plan together their Learning Targets should be created together and be aligned to the standards. (Learning Targets should look the same in each grade level, each content area.)
• We do want to revisit and tighten up our understanding of Learning Targets at a later date. For now, our approach is to have alignment both to the standard and with your team/content partner(s) and is it "kid-friendly" in that the students understand and own it.
• What is the expectation for "turning in" lesson plans with T-TESS?
• Of course with T-TESS the plans should be brought to the pre-conference with a copy for your evaluator. Providing a copy ahead of time is helpful but not required. Using the T-TESS Pre-Conference form is also a guide... teachers can use the form or just a lesson plan that you are able to show how the lesson plan addresses the components of the pre-conference form.

We look forward to the growth, discussions and continued progress we make as a campus and as individuals in this journey. What are your thoughts on this? Please comment below.

-John and Kirsten

Teacher Model Journals, Feedback and Frequency of Entries...

Teacher Model Journals are a part of our district and campus focus in all areas. The power of models has already proven to be profoundly powerful. One part of the intentional practice of using Teacher Model Journals in our instruction is "think aloud" as we share our "model."
Children mimic,internalize and make their own the learning practiced in front of them. It is the way they learn... in everything they do. Even today, as I walked through Tom Thumb, I saw a mother with a baby in a carrier inside a cart and her young preschooler with her own "just my size" cart. They were standing together at the deli counter waiting on their deli meat to be sliced. The baby was crying with little sign of quieting down. Mom, rolling the grocery cart, with baby inside, back and forth. And the little girl? Doing the same exact thing with her pre-school sized grocery cart. She was following her model with expectancy and precision. The "think aloud" is one way our model becomes powerful.

In the online article "Think Aloud Strategy" from TeacherVision the importance of journaling along with using the "Think Aloud" in all content areas was shared:

"How Can You Stretch Students' Thinking?

Reflective journals and learning logs are a natural extension of thinking out loud. By jotting down what you say, you can model the journaling process as you model thinking out loud. As students start to keep journals or learning logs, review them on an ongoing basis to monitor the students' metacognition and use of essential strategies.

When Can You Use It?

Reading/English

The process of thinking out loud can be used in K-12 classes during all phases of the reading process. Before reading you may think out loud to demonstrate accessing prior knowledge or to make predictions about the text. During reading, model reading comprehension using fix-up strategies or examining text structure to maintain meaning. After reading, model using the text to support an opinion, or analyze the text from the author's point of view.

Writing

Thinking out loud can be used to model all phases of the writing process. In pre-writing, model the strategies writers use to get the process started; during the drafting process, model creating "sloppy copies"; during revision, model how to ask questions and think about readers' needs; and during the editing process, model how to use conventions to help readers understand the message. As students engage in reciprocal think-alouds, they dialogue about their texts. This dialoguing helps students to internalize their sense of audience and fine-tune their craftsmanship as writers.

Math

When teaching a new math process or strategy, think aloud to model its use. Ask students to work with a partner to practice thinking aloud to describe how they use the new process or strategy. Listen to students as they think aloud to assess their understanding.

Social Studies

In classroom discussions of difficult social studies topics, such as capital punishment or affirmative action, ask that students not only give their opinions but explain their reasoning by thinking out loud. Model thinking out loud yourself as you read a difficult text or express your own opinion on a complex issue.

Science

Think-alouds can be used to model the inquiry process in science. During instruction, have students continue the inquiry process using reciprocal think-alouds and then reflect upon the process in their journals or learning logs."

With the power of Teacher Model Journals comes the importance of feedback. Frequent, specific feedback is essential. However, feedback is only as powerful as the opportunity to respond/reflect to the feedback. A second grade team at a campus in NISD has done away with morning work and has purposefully structured the first 20 minutes of every day for students to respond to feedback in any content area. These teachers have constructed feedback so that students reflect, revise and improve their journal works. Again, the teachers review and give more feedback, and the cycle continues. The learning goes deeper. The learning becomes not about the destination of "complete" but continuous improvement and growth.

With modeling and feedback there is power, but how do the students consistently move forward?

That is where the frequency comes into play. An analogy was shared with our Southwest Learning Team that helped us all understand why frequency of entries in journals was an essential look for in our journal walks. The analogy was about training for a marathon. When one trains for a marathon, one doesn't go run a couple of weeks before the marathon a few miles every day. It is a lengthy, purposefully planned training process. Training runs consist of multiple weekly runs with planned longer runs to build stamina and endurance. In much the same way students need to respond frequently in their journals. In readers workshop it is an expectation K-5 that students are responding to their reading every day, having 3-4 completed responses per week to build that stamina and endurance, while maintaining quality in their responses.

As we move forward as a campus in our POP with literacy rich student work, journals are a perfect place to start. How are you and your team utilizing frequent entries, Teacher Model Journal, and the cycle of Feedback to encourage growth and depth of learning with students? Where is time provided for students to self-assess and respond to feedback? Does their work mirror the work of the Teacher Model Journal with expectancy and precision?  How do students know when their entries are showing deeper thinking? How often are they building those muscles of metacognition through responding to their learning through their journals (in any content area)?

Share your thoughts and ideas in the comments.

In Student-friendly Terms...

Before the kids walked through our doors to begin the 2016-17 school year, we, as a campus, had a vision for what this year would look like for all learners. Our Problem of Practice, while heavy with content and intent, needed to be in kid-friendly language if it would be meaningful for students. As teams we wrote kid-friendly POPs that could become part of the everyday foundational focus for learning.

As we reflect, consider:

• How are we bringing those kid-friendly POPs into our everyday learning focus? 
• Is it read, reviewed and reflected upon with the students? 
• Is the kid-friendly POP accessible for reference by students at any time? 
• Do the students see themselves as part of the vision to move forward as learners?

Here are the student-friendly POPs that were written before the start of the school year:

“Longhorns encourage one another to give our best effort and hold each other accountable by communicating our learning.”

 -created by GLAMP plus Intervention Specialist Team

 As Longhorns, we will be responsible for challenging and helping each other to grow in our learning.

2^nd  and 3^rd grade

  

Mrs. Webster and Mrs. Aslin will work together, and with your classroom teachers, to create lessons and activities that will challenge you and encourage you to grow in your learning.  You will work with your friends and challenge each other to create your own thoughtful work in Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, and Science.

Teachers check in with each other to help each other reach goals. Students work together and challenge each other in a positive way.

Teachers will provide opportunities to read, write, and communicate in all classes. Students will actively participate to develop quality work in all classes.

Teachers and students will be partners in learning.

4^th and 5^th grade

Longhorn Learning Goal…Kinder and 1st

We will…

1      Work together as a team

2       Help others

         Work hard to do our best

4.     Make connections and share ideas

   Share in the comments how you and/or your team are being intentional in fostering student ownership of our campus Problem of Practice (kid friendly version)?
 
    Sendera Elementary 2016-17 Problem of Practice

    "Longhorn Master Builder News September 19, 2016"