District Fall Vertical Team Meeting ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS August 13, 2012

Good News for Alabama

Some Good News to Share… Moving Up….Alabama is now 25th in education system. Alabama ranks 4th in nation in improving graduate rate. Alabama has highest recorded graduation rate ever. Alabama is 1st in nation in gain in 4th reading “Every child a graduate, every graduate prepared.” Dr. Bice / Vision 2010

ECBOE Advanced Placement Gains AP Students AP Trained Teachers Qualifying Scores

BIG Changes in Testing Plan, Explore, ACT End-of-Course Testing – ACT QualityCore ARMT+

GradeAssessment(s) 12WorkKeys 11ACT w/Writing 10PLAN 9Transition 8EXPLORE 7ARMT+ 6ARMT+ 5ARMT+ 4ARMT+ 3ARMT+ 2Developmentally Appropriate Assessments(s) 1Developmentally Appropriate Assessments(s) KKindergarten Screener(s) for all entering Kindergarten students End-of-Course English 9, 10, 11, 12 Alg. I, Geometry, Alg. II w/Trig, Pre-Cal Biology, Chemistry, Physics U. S. History ARMT+ (Reading/ELA, Math, Science and Writing/Social Studies Based) aligned to College and Career Readiness Benchmarks Formative, Benchmark and/or Interim Assessment Repository with Resources Grades 3-12 A pool of aligned items to each standard at each grade level within each assessment content area will be available for teacher, school or system use for formative, benchmark and/or interim assessments to be used to inform instructional practice. Included will also be links to instructional resources aligned to the standards for use by teachers, schools or school systems. Formative, Benchmark and/or Interim Assessment Repository with Resources Grades 3-12 A pool of aligned items to each standard at each grade level within each assessment content area will be available for teacher, school or system use for formative, benchmark and/or interim assessments to be used to inform instructional practice. Included will also be links to instructional resources aligned to the standards for use by teachers, schools or school systems. Project-Based Assessments Grades 6-12 These assessments are designed to foster research inquiry skills, persistence, independence and intercommunications in ways that are not accomplished with more traditional summative and end-of-course assessments. Project-based assessments are scored based on templates or rubrics that produce rich, multileveled evaluations of student work. Project-Based Assessments Grades 6-12 These assessments are designed to foster research inquiry skills, persistence, independence and intercommunications in ways that are not accomplished with more traditional summative and end-of-course assessments. Project-based assessments are scored based on templates or rubrics that produce rich, multileveled evaluations of student work. Career Interest/Career Aptitude Assessments Grades 6-12 These assessments are designed to inform student, parent, teacher, counselor and principal decisions about appropriate coursework and co- curricular opportunities for students culminating in a comprehensive and annually updated four-year high school plan of study. Career Interest/Career Aptitude Assessments Grades 6-12 These assessments are designed to inform student, parent, teacher, counselor and principal decisions about appropriate coursework and co- curricular opportunities for students culminating in a comprehensive and annually updated four-year high school plan of study. All assessments will be offered in online or paper-and-pencil format with a standards-based reporting format that will be immediate. All assessments will be formatted for “through course” or single-setting use. Alabama College- and Career-Ready Assessment System

School YearGrades K-2Grades 3-7 Grades 8-12 End-of-Course Assessments College- and Career- Ready Assessments Formative/Interim/ Benchmark Assessments (LEA Determined) ARMT + (Grades 3-8) English 9 English 10 Algebra I Geometry Biology (AHSGE Grades 11-12) EXPLORE (Grade 8) PLAN (Grade 10) Formative/Interim/ Benchmark Assessments (LEA Determined) New Above assessments plus English 11 Algebra II Chemistry (AHSGE Grade 12) EXPLORE (Grade 8) PLAN (Grade 10) ACT w/Writing (Grade 11) Formative/Interim/ Benchmark Assessments (LEA Determined) New Above assessments plus English 12 Pre-Calculus Physics U. S. History (AHSGE for exited students) EXPLORE (Grade 8) PLAN (Grade 10) ACT w/Writing (Grade 11) WorkKeys (Grade 12) Formative/Interim/ Benchmark Assessments (LEA Determined) NewAbove assessments EXPLORE (Grade 8) PLAN (Grade 10) ACT w/Writing (Grade 11) WorkKeys (Grade 12) Alabama College- and Career-Ready Assessment System Timeline for Implementation NOTE:State-provided formative/interim/benchmark assessments aligned to college- and career- ready standards will be available August 2012 for Grades K-12.

Other Testing Info A few weeks ago, we were told (unofficially) that this is the last year for ARMT+. – No word yet on what will take its place. End-of-Course Test: ACT QualityCore – Standards and Suggested Syllabi have been posted on Curriculum Website. (Departments/Curriculum) – ECBOE will begin correlating them with the new courses of study asap.

Continuous Improvement District-Wide Goals (CIP)

District-Wide Reading Goals Goal 1 - Improve Reading and Writing Proficiency – Strategic teaching – Intensive reading/ writing strategies – Reading and writing across the Curriculum – Read and write multiple genres – Address student needs – Increase honors/AP enrollment and success (middle and high school)

What is strategic teaching? Core teachers will open each lesson with a student friendly objective. All teachers will begin each class by establishing a purpose for the lesson (make the lesson relatable to the student, build background knowledge, generate questions to investigate, or discuss essential vocabulary) At the end of the lesson, teachers will reflect on the content of the lesson in a manner that formatively assesses comprehension of all students (questions, group share-out, retell, summarize, journal writing, etc.) All teachers will engage their students in higher-level questioning in an effort to strengthen understanding of the content.

What is strategic teaching? (cont.) During the lesson, all teachers will use various strategies to explore or explain the lesson (technology, integrate new information, explore predictions, student response groups, teacher-student conferencing, writing labs, portfolio assessments, after-school tutoring, graphic organizers, etc...) Teachers will correlate their lesson plans with the ALCOS, AHSGE, and ARMT+. Teachers (grades 7-12) will submit a syllabus (or course outline) for the entire course before school begins. ALCOS, AHSGE, and ARMT correlations will be noted. These syllabi will be posted on each teacher’s website and be placed in the school evidence box for future reference. School administrators will ensure reflective planning is taking place by walkthroughs and submission (or viewing) of lesson plans.

Display 7-12 Student Work in Classroom and/or Website Have student work displayed in halls and classroom - that's much better (and authentic) than a crowded CIP evidence box.

New Courses of Study/ Common Core/CCRS

A Little Clarification about Common Core Acronyms To be clear, they are one of the same. CC: Common Core CCSS: Common Core State Standards CCRS: College and Career Readiness Standards ALCOS: Alabama Course of Study – The 2010 ALCOS standards equal the CCSS plus a few added standards.

New Courses of Study – All addressing Common Core Standards Math begins this year – full implementation English – begin implementing this year, full implementation next year ( ) – Literacy standards for Science, History, and technical studies also begin. Science coming soon…

Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects 6-12 The literacy standards in the appendices of the 2010 ELA and Math courses of study (and that will be in the new science COS) are not just for ELA teachers. Nor are they just for math instruction. They are for social studies, science, math, and other technical teachers and students in courses such as those offered in career tech.

ELA CCRS ECBOE ELA COS/CCRS Website: – Teachers’ Corner Tab / Language Arts Video: er_embedded&v=JDzTOyxRGLI er_embedded&v=JDzTOyxRGLI PASS OUT GOLD CCRS SHEET English

ELA COS/CCRS Lessons These links are also on our ELA website. Lesson plans for every COS standard! – – Click grade level Want to search AL ELA COS lessons by grade, strand, or anchor standard? Click and then the Alabama Insight graphic. Etowah County user name: guest28. Password: guest. English

ELA COS/CCRS Checklists K-12 will be added soon English

NovDecJanFebMarApMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanFebMarApMayJunJulAugJanFeb ELA Develop Phase I Phase I ELA Deliver Phase I ELA Develop Phase II ELA Deliver Phase II ELA Develop Phase III and Deliver PD on Additional Topics—Building Capacity, Content Analysis, Local Curriculum Guides, etc MarapMayJunJulAugSepOcNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOct ELA Develop Phase II Implementation of 2010 ELA Standards ELA Development Phase III and Deliver PD on Additional Topics-Building Capacity Content Analysis, Local Curriculum Guides, etc. 21 Timeline for Preparation for the ELA Course of Study ALSDE English

Anchor Standards Were Developed For… Reading Writing Speaking and Listening Language English

Content Standard Identifiers Content Standard Identifiers - indicate the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) strand, grade, and standard number Reading Standards for Literature Key Ideas and Details 1.With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text. [RL.K.1] a. Make predictions to determine main idea and anticipate an ending. 2.With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details. [RL.K.2] 3.With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story. [RL.K.3] ALSDE English

Content Standard Identifiers Abbreviations Reading LiteratureRL Reading Informational TextRI Reading FoundationsRF WritingW Speaking and ListeningSL LanguageL ALSDE English

Alignment Between 2007 COS Standards and the CCSS A comparison of the 2007 Alabama COS standards and the CCS standards shows some movement of content from one grade level to another. ALSDE English

Movement to a Later Grade Moved from Grade 6 to Grade 9: Use a semicolon (and perhaps a conjunctive adverb) to link two or more closely related independent clauses. ALSDE English

Vertical Alignment Sometimes called a learning trajectory Refers to how core knowledge and skills are developed over time through grade-level standards that are related but with gradually increasing complexity – Complexity of the performance task – Complexity of the text PASS OUT Vertical Alignment Packets ALSDE English

Reading Standards for Informational Text Grade 6 students:Grade 7 students:Grade 8 students: Key Ideas and Details Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. ALSDE English

Reading Standards for Informational Text Grade 6 students:Grade 7 students:Grade 8 students: Key Ideas and Details Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. ALSDE English

Reading Standards for Informational Text Grade 6 students:Grade 7 students:Grade 8 students: Key Ideas and Details Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. ALSDE English

Reading Standards for Language Conventions of Standard English Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. Grade 6Grade 7Grade 8 a. Use punctuation (commas, parentheses, dashes) to set off nonrestrictive/ parenthetical elements. a. Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., It was a fascinating, enjoyable movie but not He wore an old green shirt). a. Use punctuation (comma, ellipsis, dash) to indicate a pause or break. Grade 9Grade 11 a. Use a semicolon (and perhaps a conjunctive adverb) to link two or more closely related independent clauses. a. Observe hyphenation conventions. ALSDE English

Range of Text Types for 6-12 Literature StoriesDramaPoetry Adventure stories, historical fiction, mysteries, myths, science fiction, realistic fiction, allegories, parodies, satire, graphic novels One-act and multi- act plays both in written form and on film Narrative poems, lyrical poems, free verse poems, sonnets, odes, ballads, epics ALSDE English

Range of Text Types for 6-12 Informational Text Literary Nonfiction Exposition, argument, and functional text in the form of personal essays, speeches, opinion pieces, essays about art or literature, biographies, memoirs, journalism, and historical, scientific, technical, or economic accounts ALSDE English

CCRS Language Arts Tools and Resources: English

What are Vertical Teams?

Today’s Lead Vertical Team Teachers English Language Arts- Marcia Farabee (HBHS) and Nan Campbell (Gaston) Math – Tammy Williams (SSHS) and Jennifer (Johnson) History – Jill Boatwright (HBHS) and Genia Fry (SSHS) Science – Leslie Freeman (SSHS) and Mark Snead (WEHS)

Vertical Teams… are middle schools and high school teachers in the same academic area. They may include administrators, department chairs, and/or curriculum specialists. design curricular change, decide on instructional strategies, and create support structures that make high achievement by all students a reality. Empower teachers. Totally teacher driven.

Vertical Team Goals Focus on learning and results Increase achievement for all students Improve communication between grade levels and schools Foster inclusion

Typical VT Activities Discuss state standards, benchmarks, and curricular frameworks Share teacher expectations at each grade level Share best practices Identify student misconceptions Plan for all learners – the struggles, the successful, and all those in-between

Break into 7-12 Vertical Teams Choose a discussion leader per team. RMS & SSHS GMS & GHS HBMS & HBMS WEHS Sardis Gaston & Highland

Warm Up Imagine that it is the last day of your class. What are your greatest academic concerns about the students you are sending on?

Vertical Team Discussions VT Questions/Discussions – Share favorite lesson – Biggest challenges – Academic/curricular concerns for previous year's students (to share with teachers/schools receiving those students) – Concerns with the upcoming change from the Grad Exam to end of the course exam? – SCIENCE: Do you know what the science track is for students from 9th to 12th grade? – Other?