PLC’s: Bumpy Roads & Smooth Highways on the Way to our Destination!

Road Map  Opening Activities  Our Journey: Bumpy to Smooth Roads  Processing Your Learning  Q & A  Closing

Getting to Know our Audience! “Popcorn”

Inclusion Strategy: Clearing (Adaptive Schools)  Begin meeting by having members clear thoughts on their minds  Nothing is irrelevant  Allow members to speak only once  Use round-robin approach  Silence is OK

Beginnings: Bumpy Road  About 5 years ago  Superintendent Driven – Top Down  No buy-in  No training  Agendas & facilitation: administrative  Ineffective collaboration  Lack of purpose  Once a month formal meetings

The Fork in the Road! Two teams attend sessions with the DuFours & begin talking!

Taking a Turn in the Right Direction: Opening Day Staff Meeting

Mapping the Journey: Developing Common Knowledge through the Du Four DVD series

Making the Commitment Our Banner

The Road Repaved….

Superintendent Driven to... Principal Enthusiasm and Buy-In

No Buy-In to… PLC Facilitators: Teacher Leadership

No Training to… DVD’s for all staff, professional books available, & continued staff workshops/conference with the DuFours

Agendas & facilitation administrative to… PLC facilitators & focus on the four questions

The Four Questions:  What do we want students to know?  How will we know if they know it?  What will we do if they don’t know it?  What will we do if they already know it?

Ineffective Collaboration to… Adaptive Schools (adult version of our Responsive Classrooms)

Lack of Purpose to… Focus on the four questions

Once a Month Formal Meetings to… Weekly meetings as desired by teams

The Four Questions:  What do we want students to know? - Essential Learnings  How will we know if they know it? – Common Formative Assessments  What will we do if they don’t know it? – WIN Block & RTI  What will we do if they already know it? - WIN Block

What do we want students to know? Essential Learnings

How will we know if they know it? Common Formative Assessments

Common Formative Assessment

What will we do if they don’t know it? What will we do if they already know it? RTI &WIN Block

RTI

Processing all this Information: Walk About Review

Sending Postcards about:  Common Knowledge (Vision & Training)  Relationships amongst teammates  WIN Blocks – meeting student needs academically & socially  They are “all – all of our kids!”

Still Navigating the Map:  Documenting Student Progress  Common Time  The Impact of Staff Cuts  Dealing with APPR Interference!  Districtwide Implementation

Q&A

Closing Thank you & good luck!