7 Effective Teacher Basics PPOCAPE!

My research reveals that the most effective teacher practices are PPOCAPE

Positive. Stay on the plus side of the personality meter. Work through situations that are tough with an upbeat affect. 

Prepared. Do your own homework. Plan thoroughly and get materials lined up to teach. 

Organized. Your room, your desk, your computer, your students' schedules all count. 

Clear. Precise language comes from clear ideas or objectives. 

Active. Work with children and be in proximity. 

Patient.  Wait for it. Have faith that if your lessons are sound and specific, your students will eventually reach understanding. 

Excellent. Plan and expect excellence! Ask for effort to reach high goals. 

Resources 

The Ultimate Organized Classroom - from Teacher Vision

100 Classroom Organizing Tips - from Scholastic

Classroom Management - TCH Channel

DOE Topics of Interest

SY2019-2020 Literacy Cadre Topics
	Expressing Understanding of Text through Writing The Cadre Member uses the LEA provided curriculum to drive instruction that increases student ability to build knowledge and express understanding of text through writing to meet Delaware Student Standards.  Throughout a unit of instruction, student should build knowledge and understanding necessary to address a writing task, and develop skills necessary to clearly and coherently express understanding through writing.	ANALYZE current instruction related to a Tier 1 instructional unit DEVELOP an action plan to continue to develop student writing skills or building background knowledge based on these samples and identified patterns IMPLEMENT the plan you developed EVALUATE the newly collected set of student work
	Reading Complex Grade-Level Texts The Cadre Member uses multiple careful readings of a text from the LEA provided curriculum to make complex grade-level texts accessible to all learners without changing the text.  Teachers need to understand what makes a text complex and how it builds a student’s knowledge throughout the unit of study. In order to determine what each student needs to access the text, the teacher must align scaffolds and supports to ensure that each student has the ability to amake meaning of the text.  By strategically guiding a student’s journey through the text, the teacher ensures each student builds the knowledge necessary for the end-of-unit task.	ANALYZE a text that requires multiple reads from a lesson in a Tier 1 instructional unit DEVELOP a plan to facilitate careful reading of the text IMPLEMENT the plan you developed, collecting work samples from 3 students representative of the class EVALUATE the effectiveness of your reading instruction
	Expressing Understanding ot Text Through Speaking and Listening The Cadre Member uses the LEA provided curriculum to drive instruction that increases student ability to build knowledge and express understanding of text though speaking and listening.  Achieving this requires that teachers shift their instruction so student are doing more of the cognitive lift. Students should engage in meaningful academic discourse in which they express the meaning of the text, defend their ideas with evidence from the text, use content-specific vocabulary, and build upon the responses of their peers to further their own and others understanding of the text.	ANALYZE how current instruction reflects the shifts in ELA instruction and addresses how the DSS support students in expressing understanding DEVELOP a purposeful plan to implement a Tier 1 instructional lesson IMPLEMENT the lesson EVALUATE the implementation with reflections
	Adult Group Learning Facilitation Facilitating adult group learning requires a strong grasp of content, purposeful planning, and methods to assess the impact of that learning.  Cadre members will incorporate effective learning models, structures, and processes into their plan and delivery of an adult learning session. When adult learners are engaged in experiential learning that links directly to their professional learning needs, instructional practices improve and have a direct impact on student achievement.	ANALYZE an upcoming adult group learning session DEVELOP an annotated Facilitation Guide that will guide the successful facilitation of the session IMPLEMENT your adult group learning session EVALUATE the success  with reflections
	Coaching Individuals and Teams Coaching individuals and teams serve different purposes and will impact adult learners in various ways. Cadre Members will incorporate knowledge about adult learning, communication and conversations, managing group dynamics, functional interactions and relationship building to implement effective strategies based on coaching needs. When coaches use differentiated techniques to design and implement coaching sessions,they have the potential to transform individuals, teams and schools  to directly impact student achievement.	ANALYZE examples of different coaching models and approaches  DEVELOP a coaching work plan   IMPLEMENT work plan during  coaching sessions EVALUATE progress towards work plan goals

Delaware's Literacy Plan K-3 Updated

This just in from Robin Lawrence, Delaware DOE Spokesperson! 

First, the state’s Literacy Plan for grades K-3 was released publicly at the end of last month.  The website has been updated to include the plan as well as provide a collection of resources aligned to the four strategic intents:  align core instruction to the standards, implement curriculum using high quality instructional materials, enhance early literacy instruction, and support educators though institutes of higher education.  Please take the opportunity to explore these resources as they will be informing our work in the upcoming years.

Family Resources for the Literacy Plan

10 Big Ideas in Education for 2019

ED Weekly reports on the trends in education.

"Some of the ideas here are speculative. Some are warning shots, others more optimistic. But all 10 of them here have one thing in common: They share a sense of urgency."

What's really stunning about this article is how tangible the ideas are and how they really can be worked on to make significant progress. 

My two favorite:

No. 1: Kids are right. School is boring.

Out-of-school learning is often more meaningful than anything that happens in a classroom, writes Kevin Bushweller, the Executive Editor of EdWeek Market Brief. His essay tackling the relevance gap is accompanied by a Q&A with advice on nurturing, rather than stifling students’ natural curiosity. Read more.

No. 2: Teachers have trust issues. And it’s no wonder why.

Many teachers may have lost faith in the system, says Andrew Ujifusa, but they haven’t lost hope. The Assistant Editor unpacks this year’s outbreak of teacher activism. And read an account from a disaffected educator on how he built a coalition of his own. Read more."

Gratitude July 2019

Gratitude
July 15, 2019

Gratitude for
Sweet summer
Saltwater swim
Steak on the grill
Corn on the cob
The richness of it all
With hope for those who struggle
With prayers for healing and heath
Love
Diane

Spark Creativity

Help for English teachers looking for some creative ideas.

Spark Creativity 

Free Posters for Social Issues

Do you recall seeing the stunning posters that have been used by grass roots organizations to get their word out?  The most memorable one that emerged is a woman's face that has the caption "WE THE PEOPLE."  and speaks toward equality.  Teachers may find this website useful for classroom lessons.  It includes free downloads of one page posters.

Amplifier.org

EdReports Uncovers Some Useful Truth: All Curriculum is not Aligned

In the ELA world it's imperative to have curriculum that is aligned to the Common Core Standards.  After much research however, EdReports concluded that most materials that are being used in ELA and Math classrooms are not aligned. 

From their website:

To date, EdReports has published more than 500 reports of English language arts (ELA), math, and science materials available for free on EdReports.org. These reports indicate if materials meet, partially meet, or do not meet expectations for standards alignment. 

In 2018, we conducted research to better understand the materials landscape and to evaluate the value and impact of our work. We drew upon data from EdReports reviews, information about publisher and copyright dates, and data from the American Teacher Panel (ATP) nationally representative survey on ELA and math curriculum use during the 2017– 2018 school year to better understand the following questions: 
• What percentage of comprehensive, year-long materials that are published and marketed as being standards-aligned meets EdReports’ criteria for alignment? 
• What proportion of the K–12 ELA and mathematics materials used regularly in classrooms meets expectations for alignment? 
• Is there a relationship between the length of time that an EdReports review has been available for a product and the percent of market share for that product? 

This report finds that only a small fraction of students are experiencing aligned curriculum even weekly, despite there being many options available to districts as they adopt. This finding corroborates other recent research by TNTP and EdTrust that both looked closely at the quality of classroom assignments and found that most were off grade level or not aligned to standards. We must do more to ensure that districts are not only choosing great programs, but that teachers have the professional learning and systems support they need to implement those programs well.

Improvement to materials will matter little if students do not get the opportunity to experience them. We also see a critical need for more information about curriculum adoption and procurement. 

The implications are clear. We must work to determine if students are receiving good aligned instruction and that the teachers are comfortable and confident in delivering the content.