Believe it or not I started writing this blog last month…. We are really moving along….this past month and a half we have been so very busy. Larry Brown from the CT Science and Math Academy met with the elementary team leaders in science. We reviewed the grade level expectations for grades 3 and 4 and the resources available to meet this expectations. We really delineated how to use the Foss water kit for grades 3 and 4. Larry is coming back on December 8th to help us fine tune our formative assessments. In January, we will have our first vertical team meeting in the area of science. The science department chairs and science team leaders are on the team and they will be looking for a classroom teacher to join them.
Professional development prek-12 has focused on the needs of teachers and how to support them in meeting the learning needs of the students. Across the district we have become more focused on how we can better improve our practice. The PD plan is in draft form and is waiting for the link to teacher evaluation. The State Department of Education is forming a teacher evaluation committee that will focus on a structure and the elements needed for teacher evaluation. Dr. Tony Rigazio- Digilio and I will be on this state committee. The goal will be to have a document to the districts by June 2009. Our goal will be to use this document to build our own teacher evaluation plan that we can link to professional development. In fact we want the teacher evaluation process to be a professional development opportunity for all involved.
Curriculum development is in process for Language Arts, Math and Social Studies. All three committees have met, brainstormed, broken up into three teams (elementary, middle and high school). Our first task is to have committee members work with their colleagues to map out what we are already doing to meet the state standards. Thank you goes to all the chairpeople and members ...this is a daunting task.
The RTI or SRBI (scientific research based intervention) committee is working hard to develop our own manual for the process. Ten teachers representing regular ed, and special ed from grades K-5 are on this committee. We have divided into three working groups. One group will focus on the basic process, group two is working on interventions and progress monitoring and group three is working on standardizing the forms we can use across the district. Our goal is to make the process simple, clear and supportive of the needs of our students.
Two District wide math nights have been held for K-4 parents to help them learn more about our Investigations math program. Dr. Diamantis, professor of mathematics from SCSU and Adrienne David, Andrea Snedegar and Mary Kallmeyer facilitated these very successful evenings. Our next district wide math night will be held on January 27, 2009.
Our administrators are reading the Global Achievement Gap by Tony Wagner. If you really want a great understanding of what 21st century skills are and why we need to develop these skills for our students read this book.
Other great books are : Made to Stick by Heath; Powerful Learning – What we know about teaching for understanding by L. Darling Hammond; Brain Rules by Medina.
I just want to share that we have so many very talented educators in Branford....Congratulations goes to Brook D'Alessio for earning National Board Certification and Beth Taylor who was a semifinalist for the State Teacher of the Year. If you know of anyone else we can honor ...please share.
