Learning Objectives and Essential Questions

With our school's transition to the Common Core Standards, we have decided to start posting Essential Questions and Learning Objectives for Reading and Math. Learning Objectives are very important because the provide the students with what they need to learn or the "right stuff." Essential questions are great because they are phrased as higher order questions to really get the students thinking about what they will be learning. When higher order questions are used, students are more likely to understand and retain information.

There is a slew of posters out there made for you already on teacherspayteachers. The ones our school chose have both the essential questions and learning objectives for Reading and Math. See Below:


Kindergarten


First Grade


Second Grade


Third Grade


Fourth Grade


Fifth Grade
The next part most people are wondering is, "How do I post these in my room?" My opinion is, you do what works best for you. For the more visual learners though, I have posted some examples below.













I am very excited for this transition because my students will always know what they are supposed to be learning and where to find it. Having every teacher do this as well ensures that we are all covering our standards, even if we are teaching them in different ways.

Happy Reading!

The Levels are Changing! The Levels are Changing!

Now that I've gained your attention, the news is that Fountas & Pinnell are changing their Guided Reading levels to align with new trends in literacy achievement based on the following:

• Technology use among preschoolers and school-aged children have increased. Kids are using devices such as smart phones, tables, and computers.
• There is been a substantial increase in preschool enrollment since the 80’s; a 52% increase in 2009.
• An increase of full day kindergarten programs have increased our student’s literacy achievement, thereby increasing their exposure to literacy rich opportunities.

Their current Text Level Gradient is as follows:

Their NEW Text Level Gradient shows new grade level
expectations in regards to entry and exit levels:

So what exactly did they change and why? Well, you have two options:

Read the entire article: click here.

Read my fast facts: click here.

We as educators want to create proficient readers. ~Readers may take different paths to proficiency, but we ultimately want the same outcome. (Marie Clay 1991) The revision of the new F&P Text Level Gradients can help serve as a guide as we lead our students along the path to proficiency.

Happy Reading!

Lesson Plans Made Easy

I feel like every year I look for an easier way to create my lesson plans and I believe I may have found it. Planbook.com is an online program for creating lesson plans.

It boasts that you can do the following:

• Develop custom schedules for each class.
• View and print lesson plans by day, week, or class.
• Create class templates for any day of the week.
• Adjust your lesson schedule with a single click.
• Share your plans with other teachers.
• Easily re-use lessons from one year to the next.

Why do I like it?

• I can easily access it from anywhere; work or home.
• I can color code my classes or subjects.
• If I don't get to an activity, I can use the bump feature to push it to the next day.
• I can print my plans to a PDF format to e-mail them to my principal.
• It has a section to easily add standards, even common core.
• I can create templates, even use a district one if necessary.
• It helps me keep my schedule!

Why is it so easy to use?

• Its similar to any other program our district uses whether that be Microsoft or E-Chalk.
• It allows you to transition from old versions of your lesson plans by allowing you to upload your lesson plans to the program.
• It also has an entire section devoted to videos showing you how to work different features of the program, like this one:

Click here for a list of the tutorials available.
My only disclaimer about the program is that is costs $12.00 to sign up to use planbook. But that will give you a subscription for an entire year! I'm not sure about you, but I am willing to pay that that amount if it will help me create lesson plans faster and focus on my students more.

Happy Planning!

Let's Prepare Our Students For Success

And how do we do that? By switching to Common Core Standards! Common Core Standards are designed to be relevant to the real world. They provide a clear understanding of what needs to be taught for both teachers and parents. By switching to these standards, we will be preparing our students to be both successful in college and their careers.

Want more information? Watch the video below:



Want more resources? Check out Hojo's Teaching Adventures. This blogger has outlined Common Core resources by grade level. They are nicely put together in a Google Docs format for easy accessibility.

Want easy access? Check out MasteryConnect. They have an assortment of information regarding Common Core and they can even provide you with an app like the one I have on the right side of my page.

We live in the 21st Century. Let's prepare our students
to live in it successfully with Common Core.