What is most central and important for your classroom to accomplish?
As an administrator myself, I know that time is valuable. The PD days prior to welcoming students back in to the building are never enough time when you consider getting classrooms ready, teaching about new district mandates, and the culture building that goes on. My school is a title I school that has made big gains in proficiency and student growth. I want to share with you the e-mails and summer requests that ensure teachers come back prepared with the best practices and preparations to push students to make more than a year and a half growth. Feel free to forward the whole e-mail or copy-paste below the line to your whole staff.
Teachers, Students, and Parents need to know where they are going.
A teacher that knows where they want their students to be at the end of the year will take their class further. Follow the steps below to create a classroom goal that will push your students to mastery.
Figure out what mastery of the most important standards look like
It is tremendously helpful to identify what is most central and important for your grade level and course as you begin to set a big goal. There are a lot of learning goals for your grade level or course, so it’s critical that you know which of them deserve particular focus.
As you read through your Common Core or your State Standards ask yourself the following questions:
Endurance?
Will this learning goal provide students with knowledge and skills that will be of value beyond a single test date?
For example: Writing proficiency will endure throughout a school career and professional life.
Leverage?
Will this learning goal provide knowledge and skills that will be of value in multiple fields of study?
For example: The ability to create graphs and charts as well as draw accurate conclusions from them will help students in math, science, social studies, and language arts.
Readiness?
Will this learning goal provide students with essential knowledge and skills that are necessary for success in the next grade or level of instruction? (Don’t overthink it)
For example: A third grader must be proficient in 3rd grade level reading comprehension to enter the fourth grade and pursue 4th grade-level studies with success.
District/State Priority?
Sometimes the answer just lands in your lap. Your state or district may just declare, here is the priority standard; and that trumps your list. Continue reading “Setting Classroom Goals”
