1. Visual Vertical Alignments and Skill Integration
There are a number of items to consider when planning, but planning occurs for all. There is planning at the district level, program level, campus level, and teacher level. Consideration may include budget, integration, instruction, effective use of data, and more. This presentation highlighted tools that enhance and help the planning process, regardless of the user's role. The Visual Vertical Alignment tools and the Skill Integration tools allow for deep conversation, and tactile planning connecting the dots ahead of time so that we are able to do so more efficiently and effectively in real time with our students.
Visual Vertical Alignments are a new twist on traditional vertical alignment documents because the format, coloring, and visual nature allows for multiple planning pieces to merge at one time in one location in order to see the big picture while simultaneously considering and implementing the details of the student expectations and the needs that appear as a result.
The Skill Integration documents offer a horizontal look at key transferable skills organized into categories built on the foundation of the necessary cognitive processes. A daily schedule must be in place in order to function, but a student's learning day should not be seen or perceived as segmented if we are to encourage the required level of rigorous learning and application that our students need to be successful both on and beyond STAAR. The Skill Integration tool highlights student expectations directly relating to these key skills so that programs and classroom instructional decisions can be linked via these skills. These vital skills can then serve as a connection mechanism between new an novel contexts while simultaneously offering students opportunity for building and practicing the skills.

3. Instructional Choices
Using Data
Budget
Decisions
Instructional
Choices
Think about some areas that we consider during plan and that we plan for. Areas such as using our budgets wisely and being well-informed when making those choices…studying our data and trends to help our purchasing decisions, to help support our staff, to help our students… and instructional choices based on a common understanding of our goals, our current reality, our use of time, our ability to help students make connections across new and novel situations, and more.

4. Document Camera
Math
Part of Reporting Category 1
Number Operations and Quantitative Reasoning

5. Math
Reporting Category 4
Measurement

6. Science Reporting Category 1
Matter and Energy

7. Science
Reporting Category 3
Earth and Space

8. Why are these different than standard VA documents?

9. So what about the skills needed?

10. Scheduled vs actual learning

11. Learning & Applying
Planning & Development, Problem-Solving & Decision-Making
Tools & Technology
Data Collection and Information Management
Analysis, Inference, Justification, and Conclusions
Communication
Making Connections

16. Visual Vertical Alignments and Skill Integration Tools
Lori Reemts