meeting #8 2/27/13

Meeting #8

Note: Next Meeting is not till April 10th.

Feedback for Leah (link)


1. SB 191 Powerpoint (link)

Any questions that I can relay to the powers that be?

2. Common Core Discussion based on English 6-12 Standards (Based on the packet I gave you Monday).

General: 

We just got clarification on state vs. Common Core.

In general we feel as though are complying

Colorado state standards articulate standards vertically between 9th and 10th, and Common Core doesn't. How to vertically articulate when 9th and 10th standards are identical?

Issues, Page 40 (Integration of Knowledge and Ideas)

• Use of rhetoric with informational texts (p. 40, #6)
• seminal U.S. Documents (p. 40, #9) Will other departments be covering these ideas?

Issues, page 45:

Developing Counter-claims may need some work. (p. 45, 1 b)

Are we writing informative, explanatory essays enough? (p. 45, section 2)

Based on the new writing standards, we maybe

3. Check out our ELO's one more time. I think we need one more assessment. Synthesis anyone?


ELO #1 Students will write thesis statements that are clear, specific, debatable and provable. Through this process students

ELO #2: Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

New ELO #3: Students will display the ability to read and interpret literature by evaluating literary elements such as motif, theme, symbol and figurative language. 

New ELO #4: Students will display the ability to synthesize two sources in a formal literary essay.

Meeting #7 1/30/13

1/30/13

Common Core Standards? Do we need to discuss?

Feedback form for Leah

Invention Form (done last time)

First Things First:

Invention:

Invention (Reading, Writing, and Communicating)


Appling new ways to solve problems is an ideal in reading and writing instruction. Invention is one of the key components of creating an exemplary writing piece or synthesizing information from multiple sources. Invention takes students to a higher level of metacognition while exploring literature and writing about their experiences.

• How does the skill of Invention connect to something you already do in your classroom?

• How might you integrate this skill more explicitly in your lessons?

• What will you do to help students become better with this skill?

Common Assessment #3: Story of an Hour. Ideas on how to score these? This assessment is a bit unwieldy and I am torn as to how to proceed today.

Follow-up: 46% proficient.
Revise and reassess based on a few questions that we like: symbol, setting, irony? Something about conflict that's a little more straightforward...

Scoring Sheet for "Story of an Hour" Assessment

Meeting #6 12/5/12

12/5/12 Meeting #6

Please get your public speaking data in as soon as you can. Thanks.

1. Check-In
2. 21st Century Offering: Invention

"Applying new ways to solve problems is an ideal in reading and writing instruction. Invention is one of the key components of creating an exemplary writing piece or synthesizing information from multiple sources. Invention takes students to a higher level of metacognition while exploring literature and writing about their experiences."

Form to fill out for Leah:

Info about these definitions


3. Selfish discussion for Spare about the presentations on A Long Way Gone--loosely connected to our ELO on speaking...



4. Let's figure out a 3rd ELO to work on. Keep the momentum going.

Possible way to frame conversation: What are we already planning on doing during semester 2 that would fit with #3 or #4?

Here are our "revised" ELO's

“Adjusted” ELOs

ELO #1 Students will write thesis statements that are clear, specific, debatable and provable. Through this process students

ELO #2: Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

New ELO #3: Students will display the ability to read and interpret literature by evaluating literary elements such as motif, theme, symbol and figurative language. 

Macbeth or any shakespeare (figurative language and motif) Annette, Tom

New ELO #4: Students will display the ability to synthesize two sources in a formal literary essay.

Synthesis with F 451 and film
(Steve, Kristin, Rob) Truman Show, Pleasantville

Next meeting is January 30th. Let's make sure we have our third set of data by then.

Feedback form: 

Meeting 11/14/12

11/14/12 Meeting (#5)

21st Century Goals Sheet (from Leah)

Topic: Self-Direction ("Definition" below)

Self Direction (Reading, Writing, and Communicating)

Students who read, write, and communicate independently portray self-direction by using metacognition skills. These important skills are a learner’s automatic awareness of knowledge and ability to understand, control, and manipulate cognitive processes. These skills are important not only in school but throughout life, enabling the student to learn and set goals independently.



Discussion of Speaking ELO

Spare talks about Kite Runner Speeches.
Kristin discusses book talks.
Check-in with everyone else. Where are you, what help do you need, etc.



Finally, which ELO do we want to tackle next....

ELO #1: Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

ELO #2: Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

New ELO #3: Students will display the ability to read and interpret literature by evaluating literary elements such as motif, theme, symbol and figurative language.

New ELO #4: Students will display the ability to synthesize two sources in a formal literary essay.

Feedback Form for Meeting #5

meeting 4: 10/24/12

10/24/12

Feedback Form #4https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LiDMMhjSRN1cFmhKgpUw13k--5mO4o08X9qYPBE_ezc/edit

From Leah: 

1. At PLC meetings #2 and #3, you discussed and answered questions about the 21 st

Century Skills of Critical Thinking and Reasoning and Information Literacy that

are embedded in your standards. Today, take a short time at the beginning of your

meeting to explore the 21st Century Skill of Collaboration.

"21st Century" Definition of Collaboration (Reading, Writing and Communicating)

Reading, writing, and communicating must encompass collaboration skills. Students should be able to collaborate with each other in multiple settings: peer groups, one-on-one, in front of an audience, in large and small group settings, and with people of other ethnicities. Students should be able to participate in a peer review, foster a safe environment for discourse, mediate
opposing perspectives, contribute ideas, speak with a purpose, understand and apply knowledge of culture, and seek others’ ideas.


Collaboration Discussion: Link to Document

2. Plan a common assessment on Public speaking ELO:

The ELO reads like this: 

Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

4 traits?

Link to our public speaking folder:

meeting 3: 10/3/12

Agenda

PLC Meeting #3

October 3, 2012 in C-17

Feedback Form

(From Leah) 1. At PLC meeting #2, you discussed and answered questions about the 21 st Century

Skill of Critical Thinking and Reasoning that is embedded in your standards. Today,

take a short time at the beginning of your meeting to explore the 21 st Century Skill

of Information Literacy.

Information Literacy (Reading, Writing and Communicating)

The student who is information-literate accesses information efficiently and effectively by reading and understanding essential content of a range of informational texts and documents in all academic areas. This involves evaluating information critically and competently; accessing appropriate tools to synthesize information; recognizing relevant primary and secondary information; and distinguishing among fact, point of view, and opinion.

•   Discuss and answer the three questions that follow. Include at least one example of what you are already doing or plan to do to help students master this skill. Please record your answers on Feedback Form #2 or on the attached document and send your answers to me.

1. How does the skill of Information Literacy connect to something you already do in your classroom?

2. How might you integrate this skill more explicitly in your lessons?

3. What will you do to help students become better with this skill?

Thesis common assessment: 

• 30 minutes of data entry
• Data driven dialogue with examples and data:

1. Observations

2. Inferences, implications.

3. Action

Common Assessment #2? Set a date or window for administering the assessment? Plan to have the data collected by your next meeting on October 24th?

7. Complete the yellow sections of the PLC Feedback Form #3 and the PLC Progress Report #3. Keep these for your records and please send a copy of each to Leah Latta by Friday, October 5th.

Meeting 9/12/12

Agenda

PLC Meeting #2

September 12, 2012

1. Set goals for the meeting using this agenda as a guide.

Feedback Form (link)

1. A short time at the beginning of this PLC meeting and each of the remaining four PLC meetings this semester will be devoted to exploring the 21st Century Skills embedded in your standards. The 21st Century Skill to explore today is Critical Thinking and Reasoning. Review the definition of this skill for your content (see attached document) and discuss the following three questions:

Critical Thinking and Reasoning (Reading, Writing and Communicating)

Critical thinking and reasoning are vital to advance in the technologically sophisticated world we live in. In order for students to be successful and powerful readers, writers, and communicators, they must incorporate critical thinking and reasoning skills. Students need to be able to successfully argue a point, justify reasoning, evaluate for a purpose, infer to predict and draw
conclusions, problem-solve, and understand and use logic to inform critical thinking.

• How does the skill of critical thinking connect to something you already do in your classroom?

• How might you integrate this skill more explicitly in your lessons?

• What will you do to help students become better with this skill?

Common Assessment #1

Essential Learnings from last meeting (we should build an assessment from one of these.)

1. Students will write thesis statements that are clear, specific, debatable and provable. Through this process students
2. Students will display the ability to read and interpret literature critically by evaluating such literary elements as plot, characterization, motif, and conflict.
3. Students will develop the ability to think abstractly about such literary elements as theme, symbol, and figurative language.
4. Students will develop the ability to speak formally to their peers by presenting information concisely and logically, supporting presentations with evidence, and integrating technology effectively, and interacting with an audience actively.

Which one do we want to use? Is the thesis a slam dunk, or are there other options?

Which Rubric?

If time: Coolest English Teacher Ever (link)

Note: Next Meeting is 10/3. We need to have data for a common assessment