GFE’s Instructional Handbook
BEE THE CHANGE
Instruction Overview Instructional Philosophy We believe all students can be successful in our school. We have to be the difference in our students’ learning journey. The use of research, reviewing of data, and the use of strong (best) educational practices will guide or work and shape our teaching craft. We believe in a tight-fit/loose-fit model for instruction. This means that we will have non-negotiable instructional practices, but also encourage risk-taking, teacher creativity, and teacher style to be present in our classrooms. Student growth is expected to be seen for ALL students.
Great Falls Elementary 2021-2022 Goals ● ● ●
Maximize Student Learning in Literacy and Math Provide High Quality Instruction Promote a Happy Culture for ALL
Important Definitions ●
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Assessments - the process of gathering and discussing information from multiple and diverse sources in order to develop a deep understanding of what students know, understand, and can do with their knowledge as a result of their educational experiences Conferring - meeting with a student or a small group of students to give effective feedback Data - any information about a student Engagement - the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education Differentiation - responding to student needs Learning Target - goal for the lesson Rigor - instruction, schoolwork, learning experiences, and educational expectations that are academically, intellectually, and personally challenging Small Group Instruction - provides students with a reduced student-teacher ratio – allowing them to receive customized instruction based on their individual instructional needs Subject Discourse – the language teachers and students use to communicate with each other in the classroom.
(Bloom’s Taxonomy 1956, 2000)
Bloom’s Level
Key Verbs
Creating
Design, invent, imagine, improve, modify
Evaluating
Defend, criticize, choose, determine, justify, perceive, prioritize, interpret
Analyzing
Analyze, compare, examine, contrast, relate
Applying
Apply, build, construct, model, analyze
Understanding
Restate, explain, identify, describe, summarize
Remembering
Define, recall, memorize, repeat, show, list, state
Most Complex
Simplest
(Bloom’s Depth of Knowledge 1997, 2002)
Effective Feedback Effective feedback is expected and required. Research strongly supports that effective feedback can lead to better relationships, increased motivation, and increased student learning. When students receive informational, specific feedback about their work they are more engaged and better understand where to take their learning next. The craft of giving feedback is very important for a classroom teacher. These brief conversations provide the teacher with guidance for the next steps in the learning process and also helps to differentiate instruction for each student . Feedback is most commonly given to students during the conferring process. ● One on one with a student or small groups of students ● Aligned to the Learning Targets for the lesson, The Learning Target is aligned to content standards ● Feedback should be Targeted, Specific, Timely (TST) ● Teacher to Student, Student to Student, and/or Student to Self ● Steps of Conferring o Listen (let the student talk) o Affirm (a skill you notice (current skill or a past skill taught)) o Teach (a skill you see is lacking (tied to learning target or past learning)) o Show Excitement for their next learning step (give them a reason to continue (motivate))
Application and Examples ● A classroom teacher will typically be able to confer with 3 to 7 students during any given lesson. There is NOT sufficient time to provide quality, meaningful feedback to all students individually during every lesson. ● Develop a bank of phrases you like to use when conferring with students ● Listen ○ Tell me what you are working on…Read your story to me…This is very interesting. ● Affirm ○ I like the way you…I noticed you…You (state what you see) ● Teach ○ One thing good readers do when they come to a word they don’t know is…At the beginning of the lesson we talked about…Did you think about trying…What interesting words did you use in your writing? ● Show Excitement ○ I can’t wait to see where you are tomorrow…I’m going to check back with you in a few minutes...Will you please share this with the class? ● Teach your students the words and phrases you want them to use when giving feedback to each other ○ I appreciate what Tammy said, but I believe…I agree with Tammy, but I wonder…I like the way Tammy….May I ask Tammy a question to clarify?
Recording Student Learning Evidence
Teacher Anecdotal Records Examples ●
All class list on one page – See Example o Notes are written in each box while conferring with a student o Helps to keep track of who you have or have not conferred with
Levi
Macy
Isaiah
Gary
Arabella
Blythe
Chloe
Grace
Gavin
Austin
Kassidy
Bryson
Robert
Focus for Next Lesson:
Jonathan
● Separate Student Folder/Sheet for each student – See Example o Notes are written for each conferring session and dated o Over time, you will see growth through your notes or areas to teach
Student Name:
Date:
Date:
What am I learning about this student?
What am I learning about this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
Date:
Date:
What am I learning about this student?
What am I learning about this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
Date:
Date:
What am I learning about this student?
What am I learning about this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
What do I need to teach this student?
Tammy Taylor
Lesson Look-fors ● Learning Target (I Can Statements) o Posted and clearly stated at the beginning of the lesson o Referred to continually throughout the lesson – so students are aware of what they should be learning o Restated and reflected on at the end of the lesson.
● Questioning o Teacher to Student, Student to Student, Student to Self, and/or Student to Teacher questioning occurs o Most questions are beyond the basic recall level
● Provide Feedback o Teacher to Student, Student to Student, and/or Student Self-Reflection occurs o Conferring with a student or small groups of students takes place during every lesson
● Formative Assessment o Assessment is a part of every lesson. § Examples: Teacher Observations, Teacher Anecdotal Notes, Exit Slips, Paper Assessments, Surveys, Virtual Assessments, CFAs, and/or benchmark assessments o Student Evidence drives the teachers next steps for learning
K-5 Balanced Literacy Framework Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop Model of Instruction Resource: CCSD ELA Framework
K-5 Mathematics Framework Guided Math Model Resource: CCSD Math Framework
Daily Instructional Practices at GFE ●Rigor ●Engagement ●Differentiation ●Explicit Direct Instruction ●Small-Group Instruction: Reading and Math ●Anchor Charts to Support and Enhance Learning ●Ongoing Assessments ●Subject Discourse ●I Can Statements ●Mini-Lessons
Rigor What does it look like?
What does it sound like?
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Higher-level questioning from teacher
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Higher-level responses from students
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Teachers and students using a domain-specific language
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Teachers and students using academic language
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Students providing evidence from the text to support their opinions, conclusions, and inferences
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Students engaging in ideas and problems that are meaningful Students stretching their thinking ALL students learning at high levels
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Students analyzing text
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Teachers acting as a facilitator of learning
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Students solving multi-step problems
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Students evaluating & synthesizing multiple sources
Students thinking critically, problem-solving, analyzing
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Students and teacher using divergent media forms
Students taking and defending positions
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Students engaged in the learning process
Students demonstrating learning in multiple ways
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Student-Student interaction
Teachers asking extending questions to get students to think deeply
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Student-Teacher Interaction
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Students working in small groups
Teachers responding positively to students
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Teacher providing wait time
Engagement: Three Types Behavioral, Emotional, & Cognitive What does it look like? ✔ Teacher act as a facilitator ✔ ALL students participate in the learning process
What does it sound like? ✔ Student and teacher higher-order learning discourse ✔ Teacher calls on all students
✔ Both teacher and student engage and participate with the content
✔ Students demonstrate their learning through various modes
✔ Student shows enjoyment and doesn’t look anxious
✔ Student asks clarifying questions in order to understand and master content
✔ Student works beyond the assignment ✔ Student is using deep-learning strategies such as relating new information to existing information and actively monitoring comprehension ✔ Transitions with minimum downtime ✔ Students struggling & persevering
✔ Students express interest and excitement ✔ Students have intense on-topic discussions with peers ✔ Conversations that guide students towards mastery and beyond ✔ Students connect new information to previous knowledge
Differentiation What does it look like? ✔ Group students based on knowledge of skill or concept ✔ Tiered lessons ✔ Hands-on activities & projects ✔ Flexible grouping ✔ Leveraging student strengths ✔ Student Choice ✔ Instructional content, process, & products are regularly changing and flexible ✔ Formative assessments guide daily instruction ✔ Student & teacher collaboration ✔ Teachers KNOW their students as learners
What does it sound like? ✔ Teacher and student discourse ✔ Teacher conferring with individual students and small groups ✔ Students demonstrating mastery of information in various formats ✔ Students reading and writing authentic text ✔ Students solving problems in multiple ways ✔ Students working in targeted groups
Direct Instruction
Reading Small-Group Instruction Resource: CCSD ELA Framework
Purpose
Guided reading is an opportunity for students to work in small groups based on strategies and/or instructional levels to practice reading and interacting with texts and peers. They are supported by the teacher as they apply prior strategies and learn new strategies.
Why is this structure important?
Guided reading is the “you do” part of the gradual release of responsibility as it allows students to get the practice needed before being expected to successfully read independently. Students engage in thinking about, within, and beyond the text.
Grouping
Students are grouped based on the analysis of F&P, MAP data, and/or teacher observations.
What steps should I follow to implement this structure in my classroom? Step 1
Assess students to find instructional levels using Fountas and Pinnell and MAP tests.
Step 2
Analyze running records and use the NWEA Learning Continuum to identify the specific needs of students.
Step 3
Group students based on analysis of F&P and/or MAP to focus on instructional level needs or strategies.
Step 4
Select books based on students’ instructional needs. Familiarize yourself with the book as you plan the lesson.
Step 5
When conducting guided reading groups, be sure to use the suggested Fountas and Pinnell outline for Guided Reading (listed below and in the F&P Literacy Continuum). Keep anecdotal notes of student behavior.
Step 6
Plan for independent work for other students based on their instructional needs (independent reading, stations/centers, etc.).
Math Small-Group Instruction Resource: CCSD Math Framework
Anchor Charts:
Support and Enhance learning Purpose: a tool used to support instruction and to move the student towards achieving success with lessons taught in class Anchor Charts should:
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be current be neat and simple be co-created with students or by if possible be neatly posted be used in all content areas use color and illustrations be age-appropriate be free of errors contain only relevant information
More information about anchor charts can be found: https://www.engageny.org/sites/default/files/resource/attachments/anchor_charts.pdf http://gabrielafa14.weebly.com/uploads/4/1/0/4/41049991/anchor+charts.pdf
Ongoing Assessments
✓ Math CFAs are completed after each math standard has been taught for at least 4 days. ✓ Daily anecdotal notes of students in small groups (Math and Reading) ✓ Notes from student conferences (Math, reading, writing) ✓ Student self-assessments or exit tickets ✓ Workstation artifacts ✓ Quarterly Benchmarks ✓ DOK Questioning ✓ Running Records ✓ Teacher-made assessments ✓ Writing Samples
Subject Discourse The term classroom discourse refers to the language that teachers and students use to communicate with each other in the classroom. Talking, or conversation is the medium
through which most teaching takes place, so the study of classroom discourse is the study of the process of face-to-face classroom teaching.
Let students talk about their learning. Make talking and discussion a regular part of your instruction by utilizing “turn & talks” or “pair shares”. Encourage students to write about their learning. Give them time to process their thoughts and articulate their thinking and reflect on their strategy. Model and require both academic and domain-specific language.
I Can Statements
The “I can” statement refers to what students should be able to do at the end of instruction. The “I can” statement should: ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔
be written in kid-friendly language be age-appropriate be posted for students to reference throughout the lesson be current help students focus their thinking be formally and/or informally assessed throughout the lesson be based on grade-level standards be communicated to students bridge the gap between instructional planning and classroom experience
Mini-Lessons: Reading and Writing
The Architecture of the Mini-Lesson Connection Connection:
o The teacher places the lesson into the context of what has been learned. This might mean reminding students of previous learning, or explaining a certain problem readers or writers experience. o The connection helps the student understand both what they are going to learn about, and why it is important. o At the end of the connection, the teacher explicitly states what the teaching point for that day will be. o The connection is usually about 1-2 minutes, and is usually just the teacher talking.
Teach:
o The teacher teaches the students what they will be learning. This is most often done through demonstrations in which the teacher acts like a reader or writer in front of the students. o For a clear and explicit demonstration, the teacher should prelude it by telling the class what it is they should notice in the demonstration, and recap what they should have noticed after the demonstration is over. o Instead of demonstrating, the teacher can also choose to show a good example of what is being taught and explain to the students how this can be done. o This part of the mini-lesson is predominantly the teacher talking for about 3-6 minutes, depending on what is being taught.
o The teacher asks the students to replicate what was taught in the teaching part of Active Involvement: the mini-lesson. Students try out the very same skill that was taught in the demonstration.
o The active involvement can be done individually, or with a partner. o It can be done orally or in writing. o It is not done on students’ actual ongoing work, as not all students are necessarily doing the same work at the same time during the workshop. o Having a common example for this part of the mini-lesson also makes assessing their ability much easier. o While the students are practicing the skill, the teacher circulates to listen or read over their shoulders to assess how they are doing. o After the activity, the teacher recaps by sharing good examples of student work. o This part typically lasts between 1 and 3 minutes.
Link:
o The teacher reminds students of what was just taught and explains to them how it
will apply to their ongoing work as readers and writers. o In most cases, the link should not sound like an assignment, but be more of a “forever invitation.” o The link is usually the teacher talking for about a minute.
Mini-Lessons Math Resource: CCSD Math Framework
ELA Nonnegotiable(s)
✔Responding to text: Journals ✔Interactive Read Alouds ✔Shared Reading (daily) ✔Guided Reading (4-5 days) ✔Independent Reading (daily) ✔Word Study (3-5 days) ✔Provide books for students to read at home daily ✔Reading and Writing Conferences ✔A Daily expectation for reading logs ✔Lucy Calkins Writing
Math Nonnegotiable(s)
✔Every component every day! ✔Math Discourse ✔Rigor ✔Engagement ✔Differentiation ✔Manipulatives ✔Anchor Charts ✔Ongoing Assessments ✔I Can Statements Posted
Resource: CCSD Math Framework