What Parents Need to Know about the Common Core Standards March 2014 Ellen Stoltz, Ph.D., Chief Academic Officer Bethany Silver, Ph.D., Director of Assessment Stacey McCann, Director of School Improvement and Intervention

Vision The Bloomfield Public Schools will be a high-performing district with a positive climate of inclusion, an expectation of competitive academic achievement and a culture of meaningful parent and community engagement. 2

Today we will address the following: 1.What Are the Common Core Standards? 2. What do I need to know as a parent? 3. Will my child’s classroom look different? 4. Will my child’s report card change? 5. What are Bloomfield teachers doing to prepare my child to master the standards? 3

Let’s Start with the Three-Minute Video +minute+video+explaining+common+core&qp vt=three+minute+video+explaining+common+ core&FORM=VDRE#view=detail&mid=2B6EDB 99E2104D321A872B6EDB99E2104D321A87 +minute+video+explaining+common+core&qp vt=three+minute+video+explaining+common+ core&FORM=VDRE#view=detail&mid=2B6EDB 99E2104D321A872B6EDB99E2104D321A87 4

Summarizing the Video Lets Turn and Talk first… 5

Summarizing the Video Identifies standards for Literacy and Math for ALL K-12 teachers and students Raises expectations for ALL students Aligns standards nationally Ensures the same standards no matter where you live 6

Consistent, rigorous standards in literacy and mathematics Knowledge and skills needed for college and career success Developed voluntarily and cooperatively by states with input from teachers and college faculty Source:

1. What are the Common Core Standards ? Detailed expectations of grade-specific skills in Literacy and Math Provide access to similar level of rigor nationally Prepare all students for college and career Prepare all student to compete internationally Used to deliver standards-based instruction 8

What is a Literacy Common Core Standard ? Language Arts Grade 5… Analyze how visual and multimedia elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text, i.e. graphic novel, multimedia presentation of fiction, folklore, myth, poem 9

What is a Math Common Core Standard? Math Grade 5… Recognize that in a multi-digit number, a digit in one place represents 10 times as much as it represents in the place to its right and 1/10 of what it represents in the place to its left 10

2. What Do I need to Know as a Parent? MATH Focus strongly on algebraic reasoning beginning in Kindergarten Coherence to think across grades and link to major topics Rigor by requiring deep understanding and application of math concepts LITERACY Increase content-rich nonfiction Use specific evidence when Reading, writing, and speaking in fiction and nonfiction Regular practice with complex text and its academic language

Top Four Things to Know… 1.Increasing rigor through instruction based on Standards 2.Increasing Non-fiction/Informational Text 3.Assessing progress against the nation, state, district, grade, class and individual student 4.Reporting grades through standards-based report card 12

3. Will My Child’s Classroom Look Different? More non-fiction More rigorous questions More opinion writing More informational writing More focus on college and career 13

4. Will My Child’s Report Card Look Different? YES, it will be based in standards. Example: Student can analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text. 14

5. What are Bloomfield Teachers Doing to Prepare my Child to Master the Standards? Designing new curriculum and selecting new books to meet the standards Teaching students how to look in the text to find specific answers to specific questions Asking challenging questions for every student Combining Reading and Writing in non-fiction and fiction Adding algebraic reasoning in Kindergarten 15