1. How Young Children Learn
Classroom Observation Record (COR)
September 12, 2011

2. Early Learning Strategy/Project
Division Structures for Data Collection
Child Observation Record (COR) – PreK
Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale – ECERS (PreK & K)
Reading Assessment District (RAD) - Grades 1 -3
Early Learning Strategy came into being because – EDI data indicates no movement or growth, Community meetings that Don held it was a concern, the importance of the early years are well documented. Studies indicate that if a child is achieving at 60 % by the end of grade three they will most likely exit grade 12 at 60%.
The Early Years project is for you…they will be called Critical Components of Early Literacy… invited to explore powerful learning strategies for students, instructional strategies.
This project presents an opportunity to re-examine what we have been doing and shift our focus towards what is best practice, and best for students. Invite you to let some things go…

3. Assessment Definition
What is assessment?
Why do we assess?
With a partner at the table discuss the questions above? What do we think this is…

4. Assessment An assessment clarifies the learning destinations.
It clarifies how evidence of learning will be collected – through products, observations and conversations.
An assessment is realized over the course of an entire unit and, ultimately, over the course of a year.
It aims to provide multiple opportunities for students to demonstrate their learning.
It clarifies how students will be assessed formatively and summatively, how they will be offered feedback and how their progress will be reported.
The RAD/COR today is a way to assess your students to help plan your instruction. It is curriculum aligned, and helps children build comprehension strategies. It is a formative type of assessment that we will use summatively.

5. North East School Division Perspective
The purpose of collecting data from the division perspective is to provide a “snapshot” of how children are doing in order to focus on what we do as a system to improve learner outcomes.
The data is used for the following:
Plan for professional development
Guides division learning communities
Purchase resources
Allows a common framework as a starting point for discussions
Shares responsibility for learning outcomes
Accountability is here…. Helps to give a picture of the early years…….

6. School Perspective PLC/LC planning – common assessment
Inform school goals and learning improvement plans
Helps inform development of individual and classroom programming needs for students (i.e. team meetings/ DI & Diversity)
Formalized transition from grade to grade
School profile

7. Classroom Teacher Perspective
To address students individual needs
Focus instruction
Provides a structured and specific information about each student
Monitor growth
Parent teacher interviews
Provides an enriched understanding and process for:
Miscue analysis
Strategy approach
Higher levels of thinking

8. Purpose for coming together
To explore and reflect on being an Early Learning Teacher
To examine Early Literacy
To introduce additional support materials for unit and year planning
To provide time to plan and design an emergent curriculum and assessments
To reflect on and respond to data

9. Our day
Child Observation Record Why COR? Online COR How do I effectively gather, record, and input documentation?

10. Child Observation Record
Why COR?

11. So, Why COR? Discuss your neighbor why we are doing COR?
Be prepared to reply one reason to the group.

12. Why COR?
So we can …
Authentically assess that children can demonstrate the capacity to learn new skills within a period of time.
Actively observe the work children do and how they do it.
Inform educational decisions that affect the child.
Observe to help build relationship by revealing the uniqueness of every child.

13. COR Digging deeper into the COR
Teachers take out Rubric, and fill in a “mock” sheet. Linda guides them into inputing it on to the database. Reanne & Linda will then review slides 10-15
Raylene will unwrap the COR and review slides on COR
Then, Linda will review online COR, and Reanne will review Bhopal Chemical Spill and Running Record

14. Child Observation Record (COR)
The Child Observation Record is an authentic assessment tool designed to measure individual and group progress in early childhood programs. It assesses children in their natural learning environment through observation in six categories.
Based on widely accepted view of child development and learning
21/2 to 6 years old
In conjunction with High/Scope educational approach
Cover key dimensions of child development in six categories (elements)
32 COR items that provide a developmental sequence for that item that are broken into 5 levels of behaviour.
Basis of COR is the observation of children’s actions which match with “outcomes” is what they know and do..
Looks beyond cognitive skills to all aspects of young children’s development.
Broad instrument that looks at all the key areas of growth

15. Preschool COR Categories
Initiative
Social Relations
Creative Representation
Movement & Music
Language & Literacy
Mathematics & Science
Categories and items are wide or general. Although they do not match on a 1 – 1 correspondence you can find the majority of the outcomes listed in the items.

17. Sticky Note Brainstorm
1. Review and write down your observations, comments, or questions.
2. Discuss
Examine the “Big Sheet” with items…

18. Sample Anecdotes
An anecdote is a brief, objective statement about a child in his or her natural environment. Here are two examples:
Mallory used the dry erase markers. She said, “Look , I made a blue horse.”
Leo ran with his arms out in front of him, pretending to be an elephant.

19. Anecdotal Note Sort
Look at the observations and place them under the appropriate item. (A. Making choices and plan; B. Solving problems with materials, etc).
After 5 minutes of discussion, check the observation Items book to read more about the expectations for the category.

20. Blocks in the Mirror Video
Five year old Ria is building with blocks on a mirror. Her teacher, Mary Beth, asks her a question to further her thinking.
Now that we have built some understanding around the observation items, we are going to look at a couple of videos, take down ancedotal records

21. Breaking to Build – Boys and Blocks
Dusk and his friends are interested in building a track for their racecars. As a provocation some of the chairs are lined up in the classroom. The children see this line of chairs as a good location for their track.

22. What do we do with the data?
Ask yourself these three questions:
What did we see children doing today?
What do their actions tell us about them?
How can we provide materials and interact with children to support their play and learning tomorrow?

23. What’s Next?
Knowing the observation items, what implications may this have for your programs?

24. OnlineCOR makes your job easier and saves you time by…
Helping you plan activities
COR Scores are aligned with appropriate activities designed to support and scaffold children at their current level of development.

25. How OnlineCOR Works… Sign on to access OnlineCOR.net
Teachers use their secure username and password to access their class information online.

26. Simple 3-Step Process ─ Step One
Observe/Record ─ Teachers make several observations per week, per child, writing anecdotal notes on what they see.

27. Step Two
Score ─
Teachers enter their notes into OnlineCOR and determine the score based on the category and observation items.

28. Mark
Ru593
Online10

29. Anecdote List
Score 2
Unscored 4 3

30. Step Three
Report ─ Reports are printed to inform administrators and parents. These reports are also used in lesson planning to support and extend children’s learning.

31. Jane
David, Sam, Melissa, Sheila, Eric
Katie

32. OnlineCOR provides user-friendly technology that connects…
Assessment → Planning → Reporting

33. OnlineCOR makes your job easier and saves you time by…
Managing anecdotes
You will be able to enter, score and track your anecdotes online.

36. Mark

37. OnlineCOR makes your job easier and saves you time by…
Reporting on individual children
Using information from the COR, Family Reports and Growth Profiles are automatically created for each child.

38. Why are we collecting this data?
To ensure teachers are evolving in the role of an “Early Learning” teacher, where they allow play to be children’s work and that they begin to follow the principles of early learning in their daily practices.

39. What will the data tell us?
It will tell us what children are doing.
It will tell us more about them.
It will guide us in the types of materials, interactions, and experiences we need to provide to assist in their development.

40. How will this data impact Prekindergarten teachers?
NO discussion

41. Early Learning Teachers will need to allow their students to play
Early Learning Teachers will need to allow their students to play. Early Learning Teachers will need to become observers, listeners, and documenters. Early Learning Teachers will need to become reflective and prepare environments, materials, conversations, invitations, so children can further develop their learning.
Let go.
Change role…student centred

42. How do I effectively gather, record, and input documentation?
Online COR
How do I effectively gather, record, and input documentation?

43. ONLINE COR Ethics of Video recording
Electronically uploading documentation

44. OnlineCOR provides…
Technology which enables you to link children’s art, writing, photos, videos, and more, directly to your anecdotes.

45. OnlineCOR technology supports…
Teachers
Children
Administrators
Parents

46. http://www. onlinecor. net/ or https://app. redesetgrow
or neCOR/Main.jsp?288168=

47. Managing Documentation
With your colleagues, share your management techniques.
Managing data can be overwhelming, let’s discuss and share some techniques that your friends are using.
Use abbreviations
Write on sticky notes
Save children’s dated art work
Take pictures of what the child has built
Cross-reference anecdotes
Sort notes during non-busy times
Focus on a COR category
Do group observations focusing on several children

48. Writing Anecdotal Notes
Date your entries
When? Where? With Whom?
Include specific details

49. Example Note:
20/09/10 During work time [when], Hannah [who] plays with the magnet board in the toy area [where]. First she lines up all the squares in order, from largest to smallest. She then lines up all the circles, directly under the squares, in the same manner [what she did].

50. Writing Anecdotal Notes
Date your entries
When? Where? With Whom?
Include specific details
Stick to the facts.
Keep the entries short.
Be realistic.

51. Aligning Documentation with…
COR

52. When do we collect data?
COR data will be divided into TWO reporting periods.
We will collect COR data on January 20, and June 15, 2012.
Linda Hipkins manages the data and maintains the site.
Reanne compiles the data, analyzes the reports, and develops strategic plans based on the findings.

53. Child Observation Record
Strengths
Challenges
Houses documentation in an organized and meaningful manner.
Allows documentation to be un-scored if it does not fit the items.
Parents have access to the documentation of their child.
Displays data in numerous formats and with a variety of subpopulations.
“Time” to transfer data online.
Managing documentation (who, what, when…)
Loading photos and video.
A few developmental indicators in some categories are questionable. (i.e. Moving in various ways).
Making the documentation meaningful.

54. Inservice for 2011-12 October, 2011
How do we invite children to learn? How do we invite children into conversations? How do we make children’s thinking visible? How do recognize higher levels of thinking? What are children doing when they demonstrate higher levels of thinking? How does documentation (assessment) influence the environment, conversations, and play/activities in your classroom?
February, 2012
What impact has COR data influenced you as an educator and facilitator of learning? Does your reflection of data influence changes and improvements to your program and development of children? What stories(examples) can you share?

55. Question & Answer
Prekindergarten Basics Audio Powerpoint
Budget ?