Curriculum Corner - February 20, 2018

Quote of the Week: "Perhaps you will forget tomorrow the kind words you say today, but the recipient may cherish them over a lifetime.” - Dale Carnegie — Dale Carnegie Corner February 20, 2018 Teaching Tolerance is a project of the Southern Poverty Law Center started in 1991 to help with instructional materials for teachers as they navigate difficult topics. In their February newsletter, they shared the following: Research conducted by the Southern Poverty Law Center in 2017 shows that our schools are failing to teach the hard history of African enslavement. We surveyed U.S. high school seniors and social studies teachers, analyzed a selection of state content standards, and reviewed 10 popular U.S. history textbooks. The research indicates that: High school seniors struggle on even the most basic questions about American enslavement of Africans. Teachers are serious about teaching slavery, but there's a lack of deep coverage of the subject in the classroom. Popular textbooks fail to provide comprehensive coverage of slavery and enslaved peoples. To chart a path forward and develop a set of best practices, we assembled a distinguished advisory board of scholars and partnered with institutions and teachers. That collaboration resulted in A Framework for Teaching American Slavery, a comprehensive outline containing concepts that every graduating high school senior should know about the topic. The College, Career and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards re-envisions the purpose and instructional practices of social studies education in the states. Through a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Council for the Social Studies, in partnership with the National Center for Literacy Education (NCLE), developed these free professional learning tools, and resources to help school teachers from across the nation use the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards.At the core of this work is an inquiry approach to instruction. C3 In partnership with the Southern Poverty Law Center, designed these inquiry lessons at elementary, middle school and high school levels in an attempt to engage our students in a broader understanding slavery's impact on our state and country. To learn more about C3, visit their website. Teaching Tolerance: A Framework for Teaching American Slavery College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies Standards Contributed by Alicia Kubacki African American History Month - Teaching Tolerance Great Lakes Bay Instructional Services Newsletter Text Text Curriculum Text Progress Monitoring: What is it and What tools are being used? Girls Who Code Opportunity What is it? According to the Center on Response to Intervention, “Progress monitoring is used to assess students’ academic performance, to quantify a student rate of improvement or responsiveness to instruction, and to evaluate the effectiveness of instruction.” Once students are identified as needing extra help and the right interventions are determined, the progress of students must be monitored. This monitoring helps educators decide if the intervention is working or if other measures need to take place to assist the students. Students can even become an integral part of progress monitoring. When students are given opportunities to monitor their own progress, they have more ownership of their learning. By targeting specific learning needs of students with the right interventions, progress monitoring becomes a more useful tool. Specific interventions aligned with student needs should be in place rather than broad interventions. The following article from the RTI Action Network further explains progress monitoring and its relationship to instruction and intervention: Linking Progress Monitoring Results to Interventions What Tools are Being Used? I have recently been asked to find what educators are utilizing for progress monitoring for tiered interventions. One tool that can help identify progress monitoring tools is: NCII Academic Progress Monitoring Tools Chart. The following Google Form was created to collect data on what buildings are using for progress monitoring. Please consider contributing to the data collection! Completing this form will allow educators in our area to support one another on their use of progress monitoring. Google Form Other source used: Buffum, Austin G., et al.Simplifying Response to Intervention: Four Essential Guiding Principles. Solution Tree Press, 2012. Contributed by Lindy Beckman  Girls Who Code is a free program for 6th - 12th grade girls to use computer science to impact their community. The club will meet at SVSU on Wednesday evenings from6 - 7 pm, February 21 - May 2. To register, please visit http://www.svsu.edu/girlswhocode/ Acceptance to the program is a first come, first served basis. Please feel free to spread the word to other girls who may be interested in participating in this program. Questions regarding this club should be directed to Dr. Poonam Dharam, Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Information Systems. Dr. Dharam can be reached at pdharam@svsu.edu or (989)-964-4191.  Other spring and summer STEM program information for SVSU is available on our website www.svsu.edu/stem Please let me know if you have any questions regarding STEM programs at SVSU. Text Text MCCS Conference  2018 Beaver Island Institute  Text To Register *August 1st - 2nd Text To Register *March 2nd - 3rd MSTA Conference  Text To Register *March 17th - 19th Text Text MRA Summer Lit Conference  To Register Information CMU Summer Learning  Text To Register *Deadline March 30th MRA Spring Conference Text Looking for Professional Development? Look no further! Bay-Arenac ISD PD Offerings Clare-Gladwin PD Offerings Gratiot-Isabella PD Offerings Saginaw ISD PD Offerings MiELA Network Institutes  To Register *July 23rd - 27th To Register *June 27th - 28th Writer's Workshop - SBWTP  Text To Register *March 7th - 9th Professional Learning Opportunities Text MACUL Conference  MSU Extension Courses  Text Text Text To Register *Ongoing To Register *March 23rd - 24th Certification Memos Text Recently, a number of memos regarding educator certification has been released from the Michigan Department of Education. Two of the most recent included the mandated ND endorsement for libraries and the school counselor mandates. We ask that you continue to move forward as you always have as we seek clarification for you. State aid deductions for 2017-2018 will not occur and we are hoping to have continued flexibility in these two areas. Librarian Memo Library Media Placements School Counselor Memo School Counseling Assignments MDE Clarification Memo Important Dates The following are dates to know directly from the Spotlight February 19, 2018: SAT, PSAT 10, PSAT 8/9 College Board accommodation request window. February 19, 2018: SAT, PSAT 10, PSAT 8/9 State allowed accommodation request window Now–February 26, 2018: M-STEP, MI-Access, and Early Literacy & Mathematics – place students in online test sessions through the Secure Site Now–March 8, 2018: M-STEP, MI-Access, and Early Literacy & Mathematics Alternate INSIGHT Availability Request window for schools that hold regular instructional hours after 4:00 PM and plan to schedule test sessions that extend beyond 4:00 PM– submit request here (https://baameap.wufoo.com/forms/2018-alternate-insightavailability-request/ March 20, 2018, 3:30–4:30 AM: ACT WorkKeys Q&A Session - pre-registration is required: https://act.ilinc.com/register/bwtkkjx Now–May 22, 2018: M-STEP and MI-Access Off-Site Test Administration Request window for individual students, such as homebound or expelled with service students – submit request here (https://baameap.wufoo.com/forms/offsite-testadministration-request-spring-2018/) Now–March 23, 2018: WIDA AMS Test Setup Available Now–March 23, 2018: WIDA ACCESS for ELLs and WIDA Alternate ACCESS for ELLs testing window Assessment Text Text Text Text MEMSPA Evaluation Support with Molly Funk We are happy to bring Molly Funk back to the Great Lakes Bay Region Below is a flier providing detailed information. Know that Molly Funk will be providing support to the region on educator evaluations that is non-rubric specific. The support will be 5 days of training throughout the year for administration, 5 days for teachers, and onsite support in your district. PSAT 8/9 - Digging In - March 14, 2018  Location - Bay-Arenac ISD  Time: 8:30am- 3:00pm   Adaptive Schools® Foundation Seminar - June 19-22, 2018  Presented by Steve Seward, Associate Director  NOTE: This is a is four-day training. Participants should be attendance all four days.  Location - Bay-Arenac ISD  Time: 8:30am- 3:00pm   MASSP & Instructional Rounds with Steve Seward Steve Seward will provide an overview of the instructional round process and how it can be utilized for educator evaluation.Locations include Gratiot-Isabella and Bay-Arenac ISD. There is no charge. Teacher Admin Text MASSP & Student Growth with Colin Ripmaster Colin Ripmaster will provide workshops on Student Learning Objectives and a Data Analysis Protocol. Locations include Gratiot-Isabella and Bay-Arenac ISD. There is no charge. Regional Professional Learning: Educator Evaluation Enrolling 3 year olds today and don't forget to share!!! ENROLL TODAY!! Points of Pride: Au Gres-Sims School District Much to Celebrate in the  Au Gres-Sims School District The Au Gres-Sims School District has had a great deal of good news in recent weeks as a result of their innovative programs and collaborative partnerships. The district has been the recipient of three significant grants since December! The first of these grants is the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network (WIN) Community Action Mini-Grant. The Au Gres-Sims School District received a $1,000 Community Action Mini-Grant from the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network (WIN). The grant, awarded in December as part of WIN’s 2017 grant program, was collaboratively authored in partnership between Au Gres-Sims School District, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Heart of the Lakes. The second grant is the Captain Planet Foundation Environmental Education Grant. The Captain Planet Foundation, an organization dedicated to funding educational programs that give students hands-on, project-driven learning experiences with real environmental outcomes, is proud to announce that Au Gres-Sims School District was recently awarded an Environmental Education Grant in the amount of $2,500. Au Gres-Sims will use these funds towards facilitating dynamic fieldwork within the Schoolyard Habitats pillar of their unique Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Curriculum Overlay. These studies provide students immersive lessons with threatened plant greenhouse propagation and invasive species on Big Charity Island in the Saginaw Bay. Finally, the Au Gres-Sims School District has received a $5,000 Lowe’s Toolbox for Education Grant for an advanced School Yard Habitat STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Math) Greenhouse Program. The grant application was based on the goal of increasing environmental stewardship while supporting dynamic and multi-faceted STEM studies at Au Gres-Sims. In partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, a 60’x40’ cold-storage greenhouse has been transferred to the Au Gres-Sims campus. To find out more about these exciting grant projects, be sure to take a look at the links to the right which contain the complete press releases. Also be sure to check out the district's innovative weekly podcast, "Huron Forward" which features Au Gres City Manager John Stanley and Au Gres-Sims School District Superintendent Jeffrey Collier. Text Text Text Text Text $1,000 WIN Community Action Mini-Grant $2,500 Environmental Education Grant from Captain Planet Foundation $5000 Lowe's Toolbox for Education Grant Huron Forward   Podcast Au Gres-Sims School District App Twitter Handles to Follow Trish Rubin - @trishrubin Brand & marketing consultant, former classroom teacher, co-author of BrandED with global tech educator, Eric Sheninger John Mertz Director of Instructional Services Editor Text Text Text Text Subscribe Text Text Text Text Text Text Text Text Text Text Kathy Peasley Associate Superintendent of Instruction Contributor Subscribe to Curriculum Corner Rebekah Hornak Director of Instructional Services Creative Director Text Deb Snyder Assistant Superintendent for General Education Contributor Registration Reminder - GLB Tech Camp 2018 Text Text Saturday, April 21, 2018  8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Location: Bay-Arenac ISD  Career Center. Cost: $30 in Consortium, $40 Guests from Outside the Great Lakes Bay Region. About: GLB Tech Camp 2018 features local, state, and national speakers in a unique one-day tech integration conference with over 26 sessions to select from including Kevin Honeycutt, Brad Waid, and John Sowash. Conference Registration Breakout Sessions Great breakout sessions on a variety of topics from Apps to Coding and much more! At-A-Glance Registration Booklet Agenda Text Text Text Kevin Honeycutt Don't miss out on a chance to see our amazing keynote speaker Kevin Honeycutt. Kevin's Website Sample Keynote   @kevinhoneycutt Text Text Text #GLBtech2018