Oh yes they can!

I was fortunate to visit a kindergarten in one of our schools this week, to see them learning about unpacking a standard from teacher-language to student-language, the steps (stairs) to reaching a goal, and tracking progress (individually and as a class).

The teacher guided the students through the language of the standard 

about knowing their sight words, clarifying what is meant 

by "phonics," "analysis," "decoding," and "high frequency words."

The student language is clear and broken down into 

exactly what they need to know and be able to do.

This is a "Stars and Stairs" chart.  The stairs shows the steps to meeting a standard, 

from the most basic target on the bottom to the most complex at the top.  

When a target has been met it's labeled with a star.

 The students received a sheet of construction paper and step slips 

and were challenged with creating their staircase.

This can stay at school or go home, to help students clearly see each target 

to meet toward the standard, and to keep track of how they are doing.

 This is a visual tracking model for the students.  Each gumball represents a student. 

 They track their mastery of letters, sounds, and high frequency (sight) words.

Hello October!

Fall appears to finally be here!  We've had a great first month of school, and are gearing up for our first Teacher Workshop Day this Friday.

Maine Educational Assessment scores from testing in the spring of 2017 have been downloaded from the state portal and delivered electronically to schools.  Those should be heading out to families within the week.