Feedback Was Lacking

Team,

I hope all enjoyed the weekend and are preparing for this week of learning.  I gave out copies of the Diagnostic Review results last week (additional copies available in the office) and I trust that you reviewed the document to examine the three improvement priorities and documented evidential observations we received to serve as high leverage objectives to accelerate our growth as a school.  Summarizing the findings, our priorities include (paraphrased):

• Improved two-way communication with all stakeholders to support academic and behavioral success for students
• Improved systemic clarity for delivery of core instruction based on Kentucky Academic Standards, bell-to-bell instruction, clear systems for analysis of student work and assessment data, and systemic next steps all to include high yield strategies for instruction and next steps for intervention
• Improved systems for school-wide behavior to minimize disruptions to the learning environment to maximize time for differentiated instruction to support student achievement

These improvement priorities impact the work of each staff member in our school, each student in our school, each family that our school partners with and supports and our community who supports us and we give back to.  These are contractual obligations that we accepted when we signed our employment contracts.

From a leadership standpoint, a blaring shortcoming was the implementation of consistent feedback and use of walkthrough and evaluation data trends to support staff improvement needs and professional development.  While I thought this was moving in the correct direction, I accept that this has to be an area of more intense focus.  This is being corrected immediately.  I want to apologize to those who have not received the attention to instructional and behavioral growth needed to maximize instructional time and increase student proficiency.  In the day-to-day details of managing the building, I have neglected to consistently follow up and ensure that everyone is getting the individualized feedback to succeed and the model to give this same attention to students.

I'm owning it and moving forward with great purpose in this work.  I expect us all to approach this with the same growth mindset and provide feedback to all stakeholders as well as support our two-way communication.

This week we have extended plan times for collaborative teams and I am committed to providing this time at least each six weeks.  I recognize this is a step and I hope we find ways to make more time available for this important work.  If you have ideas to implement this even more frequently than the six week interval, I am open to suggestions (but do be mindful of the barrier with sub coverage).

Faculty meeting is for committee work this week.  

Be purposeful and collaborative,

Dr. White

Progress Monitoring and Next Steps

Team,

Thank you all for your work with summative assessments last week.  When you meet as a PLC this week, you will discuss the progress your students have made and plans for next steps.  Attached to the email with this blog update is the Lesson Analysis Form that is used to analyze summative assessments.  You should have one sheet completed for reading and one completed for math.  This helps to analyze student work and make plans for next steps in instruction.

In team leader meeting, we discussed how we respond when students have not learned the information. The following were the notes we discussed in our deep dive into PLC question #3:

Question #3: How do we respond when they haven't learned it?

• Identify the two most common misconceptions in each class and across the grade level. Students must show their work at all times.
• What mistakes are students making -- is it understanding, process, calculation, text evidence...?
• What feedback do students need to understand their misconception?
• What learning has to take place (what do they need to know) for students to successfully answer questions on the re-test?
• When will the re-teach and practice happen? Can the practice be differentiated homework?
• What strategies will you use to re-teach differently?
• Plan the day for the re-test
• Review results and repeat this process

One of our biggest conundrums is often based around moving on when we don't have everyone at the same achievement level.  Please understand that some students will move forward and some will have to be re-taught and re-assessed until they have understanding.  This dilemma is exactly why the Learning Continuum will support our work along with Tiered Response Lessons. 

• The Learning Continuum tells us where our students are "ready to learn" according to specific standards.  You have set this lesson plan up to support three groups of students.  As students gain proficiency, the only planning that you are switching is your high group.  
• Your lowest group progresses to the mid-level group and your mid-level group progresses to the activities for the high group.
• Providing students feedback will tell them exactly where they are and what they need to move forward
• Goal setting is crucial -- share the goal and have them participate in this process -- this could also be homework to have parents assist with the learning goal.
• Have students track their progress -- why do you have to do all the work -- this also provides ownership (part of our ROARS expectations)
• Remember, the learning continuum supports gap closure -- so please USE IT!

Our goal as a school for the Winter MAP Assessment was to increase the number of students meeting the grade level benchmark by 10%, moving from 24% in reading and math to 34%.  We did not meet our goal.  We actually decreased by 6% in reading and 4% in math.  

We did see our growth in both subjects grow with 49% of students showing growth in reading and 57% of students showing growth in math, increasing from 34% growth on the Fall assessment.

The more specific we get, the better our results.  Last, in team leader meeting we also discussed daily formative assessment and had a breakthrough -- there was a misconception with daily targets and daily formative assessment.  Think of the daily target as the success criteria for the standard -- which small part are you teaching today?

• Each day you have a learning target.  This target should be explicit for the DAY.  At the end of the lesson, what should students be able to do/understand and how will they demonstrate or prove it to you?
• For example:  Target - We are learning to add fractions with like denominators.  The lesson you teach is on adding fractions with like denominators.  
• At the end of the lesson, give students one problem where they have to add fractions with like denominators (collect the student responses).
• Did they work the problem and get the correct answer?  Remember they have to show their work so that you can understand why they got it correct or what their misconception is.
• Sort the responses -- who got it, who didn't, who is waaaaay off?  This will inform your instruction for the next day when you work on fractions.

Updates

• Mr. Oliver is no longer with the Simmons program so he has left King
• Natalie is official as our Academic Instructional Coach
• Report cards go home Tuesday
• We have a parent engagement event Thursday -- Zoo Night -- we will have chili for families (5PM-7PM)
• Faculty Meeting Tuesday is dedicated to providing time to upload backpack artifacts
• SBDM meeting Thursday @ 4:15PM

Report Cards and Using MAP Data to Guide Instruction

Team,

Thank you for inputting student grades in Infinite Campus for report cards.  I re-opened the window and it will close Monday morning at 8:00AM.  All grades were due Friday, so there should be no issue with having everything complete.  Please be sure you print out copies of report cards by Tuesday evening so that we are prepared and all have plenty of time to ready report cards and envelopes.  As always the expectation is that you have completed grades and provided comments to guide parents in supporting their students.

Please know our cycle 2 celebration for honor roll and perfect attendance will be February 4th in the evening.  Teachers will provide a list of students who have earned honor roll so that we know how many certificates we need.  Please submit your list to Mrs. Perkins by Friday, January 24th.

In faculty meeting Tuesday, it is a final opportunity to collaborate and get assistance with your Tiered Response Lessons.  Each teacher is responsible for completed a plan for one upcoming reading and math standard.  Ms. Allen put together resources to assist with creating plans -- this was shared via email and included on the email with this blog post.  At the end of faculty meeting, you will turn in your tiered response lessons as your exit slip.

Friday, we will participate with embedded PD with Athena Hill, our MAP consultant.  Our sessions will focus on growth and the use of the ASG Quadrant Report.  Please come prepared with your laptop.

I appreciate your focus on student learning and growth as we work to close gaps and push students to proficiency.  Our PBIS work for this week centers around gathering feedback on the behavior matrix and solidifying our literature and school-wide expectations.

FYI:  We currently have two positions posted on the JCPS Employment Page:  Resource Teacher (PBIS Coach) and Instructional Assistant.  If you know anyone that may be interested, please encourage them to apply.

Please remember to post learning targets - link daily formative assessment to learning targets -- have your lesson plans out on your desk for viewing during walkthroughs and observations.

Have a great week!

Happy New Year

Welcome back and for a our new people, welcome to King!  This week, I want to just thank everyone for your work and your continued commitment to our students and one another.  We have a few new people that will join us soon, please take time to introduce yourself and welcome them to our school.

• Tiffany Embry will begin in the K/1 split class (104), her first day is January 7th.
• Susan Vialpando will be our new Reading Recovery teacher and her start date has not been determined yet -- she has to be released from her current district.
• Sara McCutcheon is our Education Recovery Specialists from the Kentucky Department of Education.  She will be in our building daily to support our school turn around work.  Her first day was Dec. 20th.
• Deborah Mapp-Embry will work with us as coordinator for our Family Literacy Program funded through the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL).  Dr. Mapp has been in the building over the past weeks, but she will will become a more permanent presence.

Grades Are Due

Please remember that grades are due in Infinite Campus by Friday, January 10th @ 4PM.  I will run a report the next day for missing grades.  Please be sure you are diligent in checking the accuracy and inclusion of all grades for every student as this is part of your professional responsibilities in Domain 4 of the evaluation framework.  Please be sure to print your report cards by end of the day January 14th, they go home with students January 21st.

Professional Learning Communities

We do have PLC tomorrow, the focus is on results from learning checks the last week of break.  Be sure to complete all sections of the PLC protocol as appropriate.  Minutes are due to Lisa by 9AM Wednesday morning, complete with work samples (high, med, low).

We will not have faculty meeting January 7th, but team leaders do have a meeting after school January 8th.

Have a great week!  Please take time to intentionally RE-TEACH expectations for learning and behavior.

Happy Holidays -- 5 Instructional Days to Break!

Team King,

Thank you all for your work and perseverance in this first half of the school year.  We have come a long way and have met our challenges head on and through our dedication, we are making progress.  There are three things we must accomplish this week and we need everyone all in to make it happen.

1.  Complete MAP assessments -- Ms. Camp and Ms. Allen have been working to complete MAP testing with all students who need make ups.  Please remember... (1)  that you can have them take the assessment in your classroom ( you all know how to pull up the testing session) and/or (2) please be sure to communicate to Ms. Camp the students you need help testing.  We expect to have 100% of our students complete the assessment and we are looking to meet our goal of 10% increase in the percentage of students meeting the grade level benchmarks in reading and math.  After all your students have completed the assessment, please review results with your class using the PowerPoint that was attached to last week's Weekly Blog Email.

2. Students will complete Learning Checks this week (Friday deadline).  Start today by letting students know this and set the goal of having it done with high quality so that we can celebrate at the end of the week.  Please make copies for students who receive accommodations and provide that to ECE and ESL teachers TODAY.  Per feedback in team leader meeting last week, this is the best way to ensure all students have their needed accommodations and accommodators have adequate time to administer assessments.  Please communicate with ECE and ESL staff with whom you share students.  Friday is also the end of the grading period, be mindful of this.

3.  Time to reflect and celebrate -- Reflecting on the winter MAP assessment, we will begin discussing strategies for analyzing data at the class level for next steps and focusing on how we use MAP to guide future instruction.  Ms. Allen will visit teams today during the first 10 minutes of planning to provide some information/resources to guide your thinking with this process.  Celebrations -- we have the following things happening this week, stay tuned for logistics:

• Secret Santa starts today -- morning items Ho Ho Ho...only four more days to go! (after today)  Donut Holes & Coffee
• PBIS rewards -- Thursday -- Hot chocolate and cookie decorating -- 200 dojo dollars, staff hot chocolate bar
• Arts Integration presentation (Ms. Martin, Mr. Williams, Ms. Stivers, Ms. Johnson)
• Thursday -- Yearlings Club -- evening holiday party -- 50 students receiving bicycles (students are not aware of this)
• Friday -- class parties -- Texas Roadhouse (students are not aware of this) -- and staff party @ 4:30 or as soon as you get to Bambi 2701 Bardstown Road 40205 -- significant others welcome -- no kids

Next 10 Days

Team,

Thank you to all who represented their teams and role groups at our PBIS meeting Friday.  Together, we can revise our school-wide expectations for teaching, learning, and behavior to improve consistency and decrease problematic and unproductive behaviors.  We will have some new faces in the building over the next couple of weeks to support our efforts:  Kim Linkhart (supporting Ms. Coke's class), Josh Konczal and Adam (doing walk-throughs, helping to lead PBIS reboot), and Rebecca Despain (MTSS academic support - has been supporting fourth grade)-- visited PLCs last week.

Please know that we are all about supporting professional growth with all staff members and the people you see about the building and in your classrooms are in our building on purpose to help us accelerate our growth.  Our goal is to increase student achievement and accelerate all growth at King.  Be open to support, feedback, and growth.

Faculty Meeting -- Tuesday, we will discuss and review on-demand writing across grade levels (link to writing goal for CSIP).  The second grade team will present a strategy at the start of faculty meeting as well.

MAP Assessment -- As we work to complete MAP assessments, we have created a short PowerPoint for all homeroom teachers to share results at the class level.  After all students have been tested in your homeroom, use the PowerPoint to share results with students.  It is imperative to share results and have students reflect on their own growth with their individual goal sheets.  If you would like assistance when you review these results, please let us know, we are all happy to help.

Team Leader Meeting -- We will have team leader meeting this Wednesday at 4:00.  This is how we develop the PLC process -- all team leaders are expected to attend.  We will discuss PLC questions and backpack of success skills.

Staff Reminders:

• Be sure to update learning targets daily and provide success criteria
• Feedback is the name of the game -- how do students in your classroom know if they are meeting the learning targets and understanding the concept/process/ content being taught?
• PLC minutes due Wednesday morning by 9AM to Lisa Perkins
• Friday is Breakfast with Santa in the cafeteria (pictures)

The Next 15 Days

Team,

I hope all had an opportunity to relax and recharge with family and friends as well as take some time for yourself.  As we return from break, be diligent with setting expectations for learning and behavior with students for the classroom and all common areas.  Remember, setting expectations is a daily, hourly, and every transition activity.  This is true of all students; do not expect older students to "know better."  Students do well when they have specific expectations and understand the boundaries in which they must operate.  Students also excel when they know what they are expected to learn.  Stay diligent with posting daily learning targets and success criteria to scaffold student learning.

MAP Assessment --- Our school-wide goal is to increase the number of students meeting the grade level benchmark on the MAP assessment by 10%, moving from 24% to 34% in both reading and math.  This happens through our purposeful planning and supporting students with engaging instruction that is challenging but attainable.   We will begin our MAP assessments Tuesday, December 4th -- please see the schedule on the Living Calendar and be sure that all Chromebooks are charged and ready to go for Tuesday.  Please take a few minutes to review class and individual MAP goals with students prior to the assessment.

Spelling Bee --  Ms. Allen (Jammeh on email) sent out information for classroom spelling bees.  Each homeroom teacher in grades four and five should host a classroom spelling bee and send the name of your class winners to Ms. Allen by Friday, December 6th.  The school-wide spelling bee will be held December 10th and from there our school representative will be chosen.  Last year, Jersey Hill was our representative.

Faculty Meeting -- This week, we will discuss classroom libraries and have some time to work on the set up in your classroom.  All libraries should be organized by genre and Ms. Flener will provide some strategies for having students assist with the sorting of materials and using the classroom library to support instruction.  We will also briefly discuss challenges to getting student artifacts in the digital backpack so we can improve our implementation. Backpack Artifacts -- We currently have 371 students and 196 students have at least one artifact in their digital backpack. 

Restorative Practices --   On December 11th, we will have Cheng Fisher from Behavior Support to visit our school and do 10 minute classroom observations to gauge our Restorative Practices implementation thus far.  They have provided a copy of the walkthrough and look fors so there are no surprises.  This is an implementation check and the email I received will be forwarded to you for your review.

Have a great week!