Whatever It Takes!

Welcome to Berkeley County, WV – Home of North Middle School Approximately, 5 hours to Charleston, WV and 1.5 hours to Washington D.C. and Baltimore, MD

N orth Middle School  Located in Berkeley County within city limits of Martinsburg  542 students  67 % Low SES  25% Minority  17% Special Education  9 principals in 15 years

WESTEST DATA

GOALS  To increase the number of students at mastery in the All Group on WESTEST2 in Reading Language Arts by 5% for Increase from 36% to 41%  To increase the number of students at mastery in the All Group on WESTEST2 in Math by 5% for Increase from 29% to 34%

3 Focus Areas Develop and sustain Professional Learning Communities Improve the climate and culture Increase high expectations for achievement

Focus 1 -Professional Learning Communities at North Data Analysis SMART Goals Focus Team NormsTeam Purpose Collaboration Time Grade Level TeamsContent Teams

 Students should know WV Content Standards and Objectives  Students should complete assessments based on the WV CSO’s aligned to Berkeley County Schools’ Curriculum Maps  Students should be engaged in higher order thinking skills based upon Instructional Practices Inventory

Instructional Practices Inventory

 Common Assessments  WV Writes  Acuity  STAR Reading and Math

Common Assessments  NMS content departments have worked collaboratively to create and use common formative assessments to drive instruction all year.  In language arts, both regular classroom teachers and inclusion teachers have worked together to streamline the vocabulary instruction, writing assessment, and informal and formal skill testing provided in class.  New lesson ideas, instructional strategies, and even bell ringers have been shared through a common files drive on the school network to increase the number of resources each teacher has in his/her plan book.

WV Writes  Writing assessment practice prompts were chosen by consensus during RLA collaboration, and the same instructional resources were used to guide classroom lessons for each type of writing prompt.  The use of colored paper for prewriting/mapping, a shared strategy for helping students organize their writing, and a printed “Grammar Guide” were all used this year to help students focus on quality writing.  The results of each practice test were analyzed to see which writing dimensions needed more focus before the next prompt was assigned. WV Writes was used each grading period leading up to the writing assessment, which really helped students build confidence with the online testing process while improving their ability to create quality essays.

Acuity  Administered Acuity in 3 benchmark assessments  Aligned with the Berkeley County Curriculum Maps  Data analysis of results to determine interventions  Enrichment  Re-teach

Acuity Benchmark 1, 2, and 3

STAR Universal Screener

 Pyramid of Interventions  Specific Interventions  NASEP (North After School Enrichment Program)

Pyramid of Interventions

Specific Interventions  Fast Math  Read 180  Homework Lunch  Counselor’s groups/study skills Student Support Services  Interventions Corrective Reading Remediation during Callback with LD teachers Remediation during Callback with Interventionist  Extended Day - NASEP

North After School Enrichment Program (NASEP)  Targeted partial mastery students in reading and math  Incorporate Study Island to reinforce basic concepts for reading and math  1:7 teacher student ratio

 Offer enrichment Foreign Language Algebra Geometry Honors Sections Math and Science Achievement Academy Spanish I Students making piñatas

PLC Survey Results Very TrueTrueSome-what True Not True We have an agreed upon set of norms in our PLC team 79%21%0% We follow our meeting norms consistently at PLC meetings 36%64% 0% We have clear tasks to perform at our PLC meetings 50% 0% Our tasks relate directly to student learning goals 50% 0% A large majority of our PLC time (80% or more) is spent on tasks related to student learning goals 21%72%7%0% I feel a strong sense of attachment to my team 64%29%7%0% I have improved as a teacher as a result of the conversations and work we have done in our PLC 50%43%7%0% I have made changes to my teaching practices as a result of the work that we have done as a PLC 36%57%7%0%

Focus 2 –Improving the Climate and Culture at North  Recognizing Staff and Students  Improving Entrance and Office Area  Embedding Mission Statement  Improving Weak Areas of the School Climate Survey

Staff and Student Recognition

Welcoming Entrance

Embedded Mission

Whatever it takes means different things to different people, but at the root of the statement is the students. We, the teachers, will set high expectations for ourselves, students, and parents. We will go outside our comfort zones for the success of our students. Each individual teacher will determine what they need to do to step up to the challenge. By putting together all of our talents, time, and resources to achieve something greater, we will be able to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of our students. What does “Whatever It Takes” mean?

Engaging Parents in the Learning Process  Parent Nights  Active PTA  Band Boosters  Edline and NTouch for parent notification Grades School related events

Culture Survey Data Pre and Post School Year

Weakest Areas Targeted for Improvement SeptemberApril Teachers do not take/have time to observe other teachers teaching Teachers do not feel students engage as learning partners Parents and teachers do notshare the same expectations for student performance

Focus #3 - High Expectations for Student Achievement  Counseling Work Plan  Attendance  Achievement  Celebrations

Counseling work plan  Guidance Counselor  Provide monthly lessons that encompass social skills and reinforce good study habits  Anti-bullying task force  Friends of Rachel  All Girls Group  Student Support Services  Investigate truancy issues  Work directly with parents  Provide extra support for at-risk students

Attendance

Acuity RLA Benchmark 3

Acuity Math Benchmark 3

Celebrations  6 th Grade Academy  Professional Learning Communities  Response to Intervention  Website for School Counselors  9-Week Awards Assemblies  Bright Spots-Faculty Awards  Student and Staff Member of the Week

Celebrations from Staff  We have an excellent dedicated Leadership Team.  Teachers are talking about and working on improving student achievement and instructional strategies more than ever before.  My students are excited about learning math. They will be super excited that they out-scored the county!  We have a clean, organized front office.  Communication has stepped up several notches. It rocks to be in the know.  There is a more positive climate in the school with a greater sense of unity among the staff.  The level of happiness has increased since the beginning of the school year

 We have a dedicated and caring staff.  We have a focus and an agenda to get there.  We share great ideas, best practices, support, laughs, and responsibility for the success of our students.  We have committed staff members that love students and our school.  Data is reviewed, used, and made relevant this year and scores have gone up because of this.  Jalapenos were added to the salad bar!

Next steps  Sustain the PLCs  Sustain Climate and Culture Improvements  Continue to focus on High Expectations  Differentiated Instruction  Teacher Academy  Focus on our Core Beliefs

QUESTIONS?