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#1 Positive step…. When schools set goals last Spring, they did not know we would be in a Spring to Spring scenario. – Fall to Spring data that had a finite range of instructional weeks – Spring to Spring means the clock started ticking the moment students ended their assessment Adjust your goals realistically for your students Start SY15, for each student, as soon as they end their Spring assessment. – Can we give them a badge or a sticker? – Turn first tested into a positive – “I have already started the next school year!”

Then…3 Strategic Categories of “Quick-Wins” Given that we have been differentiating based on the Winter results…. 1.Ensure all students have the opportunity to “warm-up” 2.Make every possible attempt for test environment and schedule to be student centered. 3.Identify who are the students that are “on the bubble”, those that we have evidence that they are making progress and just need a little more before they test. – Provide focused intervention with manageable solutions since there is such a short amount of time.

All students need warming up! Discuss how important that students do their very best on this assessment: – Helps us plan instruction after the test because SY15 starts immediately students end their test session – Connected to summer school and selective enrollment opportunities – Provides perspective on how successful we were as a classroom and a school

What’s On The Test ? Reading Grades 2-8 based on Common Core State Standards (CCSS) – Literature  Literature: Key Ideas and Details  Literature: Craft and Structure – Informational Text  Informational Text: Key Ideas and Details  Informational Text: Craft and Structure – Foundational Skills and Vocabulary  Print Concepts, Phonics, and Word Recognition  Context Clues and Reference  Word Relationships and Nuance

What’s On The Test ? Math Concepts Grades 2-5 based on CCSS – Operations and Algebraic Thinking  Represent and Solve Problems  Analyze Patterns and Relationships – Number and Operations  Understand Place Value, Counting, and Cardinality  Number and Operations in Base Ten  Number and Operations-Fractions – Measurement and Data  Geometric Measurement and Problem Solving  Represent and Interpret Data – Geometry  Reason with Shapes, Attributes, & Coordinate Plane

What’s On The Test ? Math Concepts Grades 6-8 Based on CCSS – Operations and Algebraic Thinking  Expressions and Equations  Use Functions to Model Relationships – The Real and Complex Number Systems  Ratios and Proportional Relationships  Perform Operations  Extend and Use Properties – Geometry  Geometric Measurement and Relationships  Congruence, Similarity, Right Triangles, & Trig – Statistics and Probability  Interpreting Categorical and Quantitative Data  Using Sampling and Probability to Make Decisions

Revisit sample Reading questions

Revisit sample Math 2-5 questions

Revisit sample Math 6+ questions

11 NWEA CCSS aligned questions provide more details about the students’ “depth of knowledge”

12 Items that begin to ask the student to make logical inferences show the upward trend of RIT. This is an example of just one item presented in a common stimulus format.

13 Items at the higher RITs will ask students to compare texts or synthesize information across texts. Inferences and conclusions may depend on the comparative relationships.

Can the students warm-up? _start_educators_map.html _start_educators_map.html Practice with online calculators: – – – tudentlinks/map/calculators.htm tudentlinks/map/calculators.htm –

Strategy #2: Ensure the test environment is student focused, especially for students that need extra support and supervision ….within resource limitations Schedule separately from whole classrooms – or at least organize seating to ensure they can be monitored (assigned seating) Have focused discussions with these students (and parents) prior to the test on doing their best, signals if struggling, strategies and practice online assessments Set a time limit (20-30 minutes) for students who just can’t stay focused for 60 minutes, then suspend until they can get through the assessment

Strategy #3: Who are the students on the bubble? Review the Winter test results and identify students that need a boost: – Student that were in the 40 th -49 th percentile ranking because shouldn’t we have gotten them to grade level with support? – We have evidence that they will meet or exceed their growth projection-if we could give them a little boost Give them a unique “hat” so that every adult in the building knows these are the students that will help us bridge the gap.

Review grade or class reports and highlight students that need extra support Yellow highlighted students are those that are close to the 50 th %tile (40th – 52 nd ?) Pink highlighted students are those that you have evidence that they could reach their growth projection although their winter results weren’t quite where they needed to be (need to be more than 50% towards the growth projection)

Strategic quick wins for students with the “I am getting close hats” 1.Vocabulary! – DesCartes, words within the RIT band (Reading or Math)  and the curriculum ladders (simpler way to vocabulary essentials)  Practice strips of vocabulary words that will be embedded in the questions that they will see within their assessment  Define or better yet… – Independently or work with your study buddies (based on RIT scores) and create questions that these words will appear from text within our lessons – Bell ringers every day with a couple of the vocabulary words (best if differentiated) each day

Strategic quick wins for students with the “I am getting close hats” 2.More Bell Ringers! – Every day (or every AM and PM start with a Bell Ringer)  sample mini assessments  Bell Ringers (can we work together and get this done for all of our schools?)  Resource teacher “own” concepts with help from

Celebrate the start of SY15! For each student, class and school, the next school year starts as soon as students end the assessment The clock for Spring to Spring growth projections begins the minute the student ends their spring assessment. Turn a sad face because I have to assess first into a celebration that SY15 has already started! Interventions and supports for students for through the end of the school year should be revised or continued based on their results. Student grouping and differentiation strategies should be revised based on the spring results. Individual discussions with students on their results and what areas (reference DesCartes statements) would they want to work on for the rest of this school year. Document discussions, strategies and progress for students for sharing with next year’s teacher.

Commit to continuing differentiated teaching and learning At one school, at an upcoming staff meeting, each teacher will find a teacher in the next grade level and will shake their hand and promise to provide support and interventions through the end of this school year to ensure students will be better prepared for their next grade.

Thank you for your attention and hard work.