Wednesday, October 22 nd, 2008 Education Centre

Focused Instruction - Teaching with energy and urgency. It is about attention to how time is being used, clarity of the purpose of the instruction, quick feedback to students about how they are doing, and close monitoring of the activities that are going on in the classroom.

Academic Press – In schools with Academic Press, administrators and teachers set high, but achievable school goals and classroom academic standards. They also believe in the capacity of their students to achieve and encourage their students to respect and pursue academic success.

1. How is new knowledge created? and Why is SMART GOAL #1 our goal? 2. Looking at Level 4 responses to making connections questions.

3. Anchor Charts – using the “What is an anchor chart?” poster. Making Student Thinking Visible In Debbie Miller’s new book Teaching with Intention, she provides a good overview of why the above statement is important. Page 61: In our anchor classroom, evidence of student thinking was everywhere; anchor charts, student responses, and quotes adorned the walls and boards making thinking public and permanent. The questions, quotes, ideas, and big understandings displayed throughout the room reflected the real voices of real kids. Why is making thinking visible and accessible in our classrooms an effective strategy for student learning? It lets students know that their thinking matters and it provides a visual reference of their thinking to support further learning. So what makes an anchor chart distinctive from other visuals found on bulletin boards and walls? Look first at the definition of anchor: any device that keeps an object in place. How this relates to anchor charts: they are devices that anchor student thinking. Then look at the features of a ‘true’ anchor chart: an anchor chart is co-constructed with students (should feature student thinking) – it has meaning for the students because they participated in the construction the anchor chart matches the learners’ developmental level the anchor chart supports on-going learning (recent, relevant, referred to) Lastly, when looking at an anchor chart ask these questions: Was it developed with students? Was it posted for student access and use? Is it a record of student thinking?

4. What kind of questions elicit higher level thinking (both in oral and written response)?

5. Learning Analysis of Students' Performance on 2008 EQAO Over the last few years, scorers have noted increasing student use of formulas to improve the quality of answers to open-response reading questions. Most of these formulas help the students to construct answers that use words from the question, respond to the questions, provide proof from the text and make a personal connection in conclusion. Scorers have noted that many students have learned these formulas but apply them mechanically (i.e., with little relationship to the text or the question asked). These mechanical answers usually earn a Code 10 or 20 rather than a 30 or 40.

Lastly: Where do we go from here? (sharing and synthesizing )

Heather and Cassandra Windsor’s groups – Board Committee Room Karen Maynes and Cassandra Bellwood’s groups – Board Room Jane and Nancy’s groups – Board Room Karen Dinsmore and Lynda’s groups - Board Room

What key learnings from our breakout session do we feel are important to share with the other LP Learning Team groups? reporter to share key learning/understandings