Boulevard Staff Update
Week of Aug 31-Sept.4
Principal's Corner
1 Person 1% Better Everyday
I’m seeing great things happening in classrooms during my walkthroughs! Thank you for the intentional work you are putting into building strong learning environments.
As we head into this week, continue to practice and build routines, especially the practices that lift student engagement. I’ve seen several classrooms using Turn and Talk, which gives every student an opportunity to work through their thinking verbally with a peer. Take this practice one step further: Before beginning the whole-group discussion, poll the room to see where students stand and listen to a few students explain their thinking. This gives you a quick pulse on student understanding and helps make the discussion more purposeful. In addition, it provides immediate feedback of where the students are, and allow you to mangage the conversation.
I have included important information from the Curriculum Connection Newsletter just in case you missed it. Keep building those routines, keep getting students talking, and keep making every day 1% better!
Have a great week!
Joi
TBT's
Please bring your first summative assessment so we have a clear picture of where students are going and the level of mastery expected.
Also, bring a formative assessment with no more than 1–3 problems for the team to review. If available, we will use our anchor charts to revisit the key information about the standard and the task.
From there, our focus will be:
“What does a student need to know and be able to do to master this standard/skill?”
Think Know & Show:
- Know: What knowledge, vocabulary, concepts, or strategies must students understand?
- Show: What must students be able to demonstrate or produce to show mastery?
The goal is to leave TBT with a clear understanding of what mastery looks like and what students need next.
OTES
Please complete your Professional Growth Plan (PGP) by September 7th. PGP individual meetings will begin September 8th, so please have your plan completed prior to your scheduled meeting. Please see Karen for scheduling.
The PGP is intended to span one academic year and may support the goals of your Individual Professional Development Plan (IPDP). Your goal should align with the district and/or building (One Plan) improvement plan and reflect an area of professional growth that will positively impact student learning.
Into Math Updates
ANNUAL SET UP
As a reminder, you will need to set up each of your math classes from the Home page in the HMH Ed platform.
You may be prompted to set up your account when you first log in. If so, follow this step-by-step guide. Be sure to choose your Into Math textbook and Waggle Math.
AT-A-GLANCES & PACING UPDATES
The Into Math At-a-Glances and Into Math Pacing sheet have been updated for grade K-Geometry. As you plan, be sure to check the yellow box at the top of each module for important suggestions and recommendations.
The At-a-Glance documents provide a quick overview of the key topics, standards, sequencing, and resources for each grade level and can be a helpful reference as you plan instruction.
The at-a-glances, listed below, can also be found on the top bar of the Math column on the district at-a-glance documents.
For additional support, check out the Into & Zearn FAQ doc or reach out to Joyce Bukovac for any questions.
ZEARN
EXPECTATIONS This year, we are shifting our focus from the number of minutes students spend on Zearn to the number of on-grade-level lessons students complete. Our goal is to ensure students are consistently engaging with grade-level content and making meaningful progress. (see chart pictured below)
STUDENT NOTEBOOK Since we no longer have Zearn workbooks, students should have access to their printed student notes or a designated Zearn notebook. A condensed version of the student notes is linked in the blue Zearn bar within each module on the At-a-glance doc.
NEW IN ZEARN
LiveView Reports The new LiveView classroom report shows students’ activity on Zearn as they are learning, so teachers can monitor progress through grade-level content, encourage focus and persistence, and step in when students need more support.
Spanish Translations for Digital Lessons Zearn now offers Spanish translations for K–5 digital lessons. Teachers can enable students access to Guided Practice and Tower of Power activities in Spanish. Use this guide to learn how to turn on Spanish content for your students!
GETTING STARTED WITH ZEARN
As you begin using Zearn digital lessons, we recommend modeling the first lesson and complete it alongside your students to establish clear expectations and routines. Students should have their printed student notes or designated Zearn notebook ready for each lesson.
Check out the resources below to help you get startedInto & Zearn FAQ doc
Zearn: Getting Started Checklist
Zearn Support slides
Zearn and Waggle Reports one-pager
Zearn Completed Lessons Tracker - students get a stamp, sticker or initials after each lesson
Zearn Weekly Tracker Sheet - students color a sun or flower or snowflake for each lesson they complete that week (Let me know if there is another shape you would like me to make!)
Please reach out to Joyce Bukovac with any questions or if you’d like support getting started with Zearn.
Wonders Resources
ResourcesforEnglish/LanguageArts
Our district’s curricular resources are located here.
The table below links documents to support your planning and continued implementation of the ELA curriculum:
Wonders
Removing Last Year's Class in Wonders
If the default every time you log in is Unit 6 week 6, or if your class from last year is still showing up as the default class in Wonders, then you can delete that class using the following steps. This will make this year's class the default class and reset your teaching planner.
1. In the Wonders portal select last year's class from the class dropdown menu on the overview page
2. Go to 'Manage & Assign' then 'Class Details'
3. Check the students listed in the class to make sure it is last year's class
4. Once you've made sure it was last year's class 'Remove' the class
To use your class from this year you will need to set up your teaching planner with a start teaching date and non-teaching days. It should prompt you to set this up in the portal.
Updating 95% Core Program
Core Phonics Program, Grades 1-5
If you are teaching the Core Phonics Program with students in grades 1-5, we wanted to remind you of the change 95% Group has made to access their program.
Everyone will access the Core Phonics curricula through the One95 icon on Clever.
When you log into Clever, select the icon that reads 95.
The first time you log in, you will see a bar that says "There are no products assigned to you/ View your products." Please click on that bar and scroll through the materials until you see the Core Phonics Program for your grade level. There may be more than one icon for this as some grades are divided into multiple volumes.
Once you see the icon below, select the heart for each volume at your grade level, and the resource will then display at the top of your screen under Today.
The video icon will be used to access the slide decks.
The notebook icon with the person inside will be used to access the teacher's manual.
The double pages icon will be used to locate additional resources, including family letters.
Please let Amanda Sell know if you need support.
Science Weekly
Pacing Guides ← Please use this pacing guide for your instruction. It is also located in the At-a-Glance document under “science” entitled “Sci Curriculum One-Pager”
Standards Transition
This year, the Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District is beginning the transition to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
Elementary-Level Instruction
Classroom teachers and Discovery Lab teachers (formerly STEM) will work together to plan weekly, engaging science lessons.
Classroom teachers should have received:
Explore Science Studies Weekly magazines along with manuals
Science kits for hands-on experiments
Sharing Science Kits
Science kits will need to be shared between classroom teachers and Discovery Lab teachers.
Instructional Goal for This Year
Classroom teachers: Teach the content from the Explore Science Studies Weekly materials.
Discovery Lab teachers: Conduct hands-on experiments and/or recommended extension activities connected to the week’s lesson.
Overall goal: Create a collaborative approach that connects classroom science content with hands-on learning experiences.
To access Explore Science Studies Weekly, follow these steps:
Log in to Clever
Click on Studies Weekly icon
Go to classrooms
Click Create a Classroom
Then follow the steps to add Explore Science Studies Weekly. Only 5th grade teachers should add Science Studies Weekly Ohio.
Social Studies
Pacing:
Social studies pacing for fourth and fifth grades have been updated to closely follow the Studies Weekly pacing. Report cards will be updated to reflect any changes.
Labor Day:
Labor Day, observed this year on September 7, pays tribute to American workers' achievements. It began as a labor movement for safe and fair working conditions, and became a federal holiday in 1894.