Clinton Township Newsletter

1 2 N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 5 www.ClintonTwpNewsletter.com I N O U R S C H O O L S : C L I N T O N T O W N S H I P S C H O O L N E W S www.ctsd.k12.nj.us A L e t t e r f r o m Dr. Drucilla Clark, Superintendent of Schools Dear Members of the Clinton Township Community: One of the continuing areas of focus in our schools is enhancing the ability of our students to write with high levels of skill. We want them to not only do well in testing situations, but to communicate effectively in their future careers and throughout their lives. I thought it was important to share a small piece of one data collection subject area so you could view how schools are changing practices. As the school year begins, we look to inform our writing instruction using baseline data from our students. We want to know where they are now, so we can utilize instruction to move them forward. The Curriculum Office schedules and creates two district wide writing prompts each year for students in Kindergarten through Eighth grade. The first is in the fall, and is completed by the end of September. The second occurs closer to the end of the school year with an optimum window set in May. The goal in selecting and delivering the writing prompts is multi- purposed. We look to create an exercise that is on grade level, utilizing holistic scoring. "With holistic grading, which is suitable for small classes, you read quickly through all the responses or papers, rank each above or below the ones you have already read, from best to worst, and then group them for assigning grades. Finally, you write up descriptions of the quality of each group and then give them to students when you return their work. To personalize the feedback, you can add comments to each student's sheet or highlight the most applicable parts of the appropriate description." (Linda B. Nilson, Teaching at Its Best: A Research-Based Resource for College Instructors, 3rd ed. Jossey-Bass, 2010). We want the prompt to mirror the type of instruction used in best practices, as well as our own classroom instruction, and we want it to be engaging. The teachers utilize rubrics with the students and to help them score the writing. "Teachers can develop rubrics by basing them on the content they've taught and practiced; assess papers based on established criteria agreed upon by students and teachers; and give a single holistic score that indicates the quality level of the writing, ranging from deficient to competent to outstanding." (Vicki Urquhart and Monette McIver, Teaching Writing in the Content Areas. ASCD, 2005). I know many of you have never heard of rubrics in school, but they are now commonplace in a variety of subject areas. What is a Rubric? A rubric is simply a sheet of paper that lets students know the following things about an assignment: The overall expectations for the assignment. The criteria, arranged in levels of quality from excellent to poor, that a student must meet. The points or grades a student can earn are based on the levels. (Kelly Roell, 2015). This year we used information from the Reading and Writing Project of Columbia University Teachers College. The writing prompts included reading short stories or articles, watching engaging video clips, pre-writing exercises and discussion based directions. This prepares our students for real world experiences and the ability to utilize all types of information to communicate. This is the world of the future and our current practices. To take advantage of our existing technology, the writing prompts were delivered through Google Classroom, a classroom management tool that allows students and teachers to interact with assignments, post questions and reinforce technology skills, such as the use of Chromebooks. The writing prompts included student responses in the genres of opinion writing, informational writing, research-based argument essays and persuasive essays. Scoring is done by a team, consisting of grade level teachers and members of the Curriculum Office. A cross section of the writing is double scored by multiple educators to ensure accuracy and consistency. We have already seen that this use of student data improves scores and positively impacts student progress. It is not just about gathering data; it is about using it effectively to make a difference to our children's future. Good teaching has always been and will always be an art. Effective instruction to improve student learning is also a science. Education has changed in many ways over the past few years. One of the most important is in how we have learned to use the right kinds of data to make improvements in how our children learn. Writing data and the analysis of specific skills can help us target instruction and further personalize it for each and every child in the classroom. With appreciation for a great community, Dr. Drucilla Clark Su R Scho Child Assault Prevention Program: Our district has once again received a grant from the New Jersey Child Assault Prevention Program to present workshops for our parents, children and teachers in kindergarten at Spruce Run School. The CAP Project is a comprehensive primary prevention program. CAP utilizes a three-pronged approach to community prevention education: training of staff, parents and children. CAP strategies include self assertion, peer support, effective communication and reporting skills. CAP programs are presented with a view of assault as a violation of the basic human rights to be 'Safe, Strong and Free'. During the week of December 7, kindergarten students at Spruce Run School will be participating in the Child Assault Prevention (CAP) Project. We hope that kindergarten parents will join us in learning about and supporting this fine prevention program on December 2 at 6:00 PM in the SRS Library. More information will follow for Kindergarten families. 60 Years of Learning at SRS (1955-2015): This October we continued our celebration of 60 years of learning at SRS! Our students participated in a Sock Hop as part of our monthly all-school meeting. We had a special spirit day and dressed like it is 1955! We also had a visit from some classic cars from the 1950s! What a fun way to learn! Patrick McGaheran School Lenape Native Americans: Third graders at Patrick McGaheran School will be participating in a field trip to Waterloo Village in mid-November. Presentations on the Lenape Native Americans will be made by educators from Winakung Village at Waterloo Village. The presentations will include many hands- on experiences to help students make connections with their knowledge about Lenape. Students will use recreated Lenape tools, such as a mortar and pestle to model grinding corn, and a drill and pump to model starting fires, and more. These activities are designed to promote an understanding of how the Lenape used the world around them to survive, as well as to help students understand the ways in which we are similar to the Lenape. Study Buddy Program Returns to PMG! The Study Buddies program is entering its 6th year at PMG! Study Buddies is a literacy mentoring program designed to build a trusting relationship between an adult and student that uses books to promote reading engagement and motivation. School community members have graciously volunteered one hour of their time each week to join us in our school and read with their student "buddies". Students in the program are excited to see and read with their mentor each week! Word of the Month Friendship Awards: For the third year, students at Patrick McGaheran School are being recognized for being positive members of the school community. Each month, a Word of the Month is featured. Classroom and school activities are planned to help students develop a greater understanding of the word. Staff members nominate students who demonstrate the traits associated with the monthly word through interactions with other students and adults. Students selected for this recognition are celebrated by having their name announced during morning announcements. They also receive a certificate. Words of the Month for this school year are: September: Friendship, October: Respect, November: Harmony, December: Generosity, January: Courage, February: Kindness, March: Confidence, April: Responsibility, May: Empathy and June: Honesty. October's word, "Respect" was weaved into instruction throughout the month of October as PMG celebrated the annual "Week of Respect" along with all NJ schools.

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