1. An Introduction to the Common Core State Standards
What they mean for you and your children
This PowerPoint is an edited version
of a presentation originally delivered at
Parent Night – March 12, 2013
EngageNY.org

2. What are the Common Core Standards? Click this short video

3. Objectives
Help you understand what college readiness is and why it matters.
Introduce you to the new standards.
Help you understand what to look for and how to help your children at home.

4. So? What does it mean?
EngageNY.org

5. What is college readiness?
College readiness means that HS graduates have the skills they need to do well in college
“College” doesn’t just mean a 4-year degree. It can mean any program that leads to a degree or certificate
Being “ready” means that student graduate from high school with mastery of key skills in English and Mathematics
Career readiness means that HS graduates are qualified for and able to do well in long-term careers
“Career” doesn’t just mean a job. It means a profession that lets graduates succeed at a job they enjoy and earn a competitive wage

6. College and Career Readiness
The new standards will get more students ready for success in college and the workforce.
…but aren’t we doing
that already?
College readiness means that graduates have the skills they need to do well in college
College” doesn’t just mean a four-year degree. It can mean any program that leads to a degree or certificate.
Being “ready” means that students graduate from high schools with key skills in English and mathematics.
Career readiness means that high school graduates are qualified for and able to do well in long-term careers.
“Career” doesn’t just mean a job. It means a profession that lets graduates succeed at a job they enjoy and earn a competitive wage.
EngageNY.org

7. For every 100 ninth graders…
Well, in Canandaigua, about 90% of CA grads enter 2 or 4-year colleges. But nationally,
For every 100 ninth graders…
65 graduate from high school
37 enter college
24 are still enrolled in sophomore year
12 graduate with a degree in six years

8. … and only 6 get a good job after graduation
EngageNY.org

9. How do Common Core Standards help? They are:
A single set of clear standards for English language arts and mathematics
A tool to help students and parents set clear and realistic goals for success
A first step in providing young people with the high-quality education that will prepare them for success in college and careers
EngageNY.org

10. States that adopted the Common Core

11. What’s different in the new standards?
English Language Arts/Literacy:
Focus on non-fiction, careful reading
Discuss reading and write using evidence
Increase academic vocabulary
EngageNY.org

12. A Closer Look: ELA/Literacy “Shifts”
Read as much non-fiction as fiction
Learn about the world by reading
Read more challenging material closely
Discuss reading using evidence
Write non-fiction using evidence
Increase academic vocabulary
EngageNY.org

13. Examples of Progressions in Reading
Integration of Knowledge & Ideas (Informational Text)
Grade 1
Grade 3
Grade 6
High School
RI.1.7 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas 
RI.3.7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g. maps, photographs) and the words in the text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g. where, when, why, how key events occurred).
RI.6.7 Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g. visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.
RI Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g. a person’s life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.

14. ELA Test Question – Pre Common Core
In both the Demosthenes biography and the Icarus and Daedalus myth the main characters are given advice from other people. Do you respond to advice from other people more like Demosthenes or more like Icarus? Write an essay in which you explain who you are more like when it comes to taking advice and why. Use details from both articles to support your answer.  
In your response, be sure to do the following:
tell whether you are more like Demosthenes or Icarus
explain why you are respond to advice similar to Demosthenes or Icarus
use details from both passages in your response
EngageNY.org

15. ELA Test Question – Post Common Core
In both the Demosthenes biography and the Icarus and Daedalus myth the main characters exhibit determination in pursuit of their goals. Did determination help both main characters reach their goals, or did it lead them to tragedy? Write an argument for whether you believe determination helped or hurt the two main characters.  In your response, be sure to do the following:
describe how determination affected the outcome in Demosthenes
describe how determination affected the outcome in Icarus and Daedalus
explain the similarities or differences that exist in the ways determination played into the outcome of both texts
use details from both passages in your response
EngageNY.org

16. What’s different in the new Math Standards?
Mathematics
Learn more about fewer concepts
Focus on skill building, speed and accuracy
Use of real world examples to better understand concepts
EngageNY.org

17. A Closer Look: Mathematics Shifts
Focus: learn more about less
Build skills across grades
Develop speed and accuracy
Really know it; Really do it
Use it in the real world
Think fast AND solve problems
EngageNY.org

18. Example: Progressions in Fractions
Grade 1
Grade 3
Grade 6
High School
Geometry - 1.G.3 Partition circles and rectangles into two and four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, fourths, and quarters, and use the
phrases half of, fourth of, and quarter of. Describe the whole as two of, or four of the shares. Understand for these examples that decomposing into more equal shares creates smaller shares.
Numbers & Operations-Fractions - 3.NF.1 Understand a fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b.
The Number System - 6.NS.1 Interpret and compute quotients of fractions, and solve word problems involving division of fractions by fractions, e.g., by using visual fraction models and equations to represent the problem. For example, create a story context for (2/3) ÷ (3/4) and use a visual fraction model to show the quotient; use the relationship between multiplication and division to explain that (2/3) ÷ (3/4) = 8/9 because 3/4 of 8/9 is 2/3. (In general, (a/b) ÷ (c/d) = ad/bc.) How much chocolate will each person get if 3 people share 1/2 lb of chocolate equally? How many 3/4-cup servings are in 2/3 of a cup of yogurt? How wide is a rectangular strip of land with length 3/4 mi and area 1/2 square mi?.
Expressions and Equations - A.SSE.3 Choose and produce an equivalent form of an expression to reveal and explain properties of the quantity represented by the expression._
a. Factor a quadratic expression to reveal the zeros of the function it defines.
b. Complete the square in a quadratic expression to reveal the maximum or minimum value of the function it defines.
c. Use the properties of exponents to transform expressions for exponential functions. For example the expression 1.15t can be rewritten as (1.151/12)12t ≈ t to reveal the approximate equivalent monthly interest rate if the annual rate is 15%.
F.IF.6. Calculate and interpret the average rate of change of a function (presented symbolically or as a table) over a specified interval. Estimate the rate of change from a graph

19. Math Test Question: Pre-Common Core
7th Grade Skill
Determine the surface area of prisms and cylinders, using a calculator and a variety of methods.
In order to solve this problem, students need to:
Calculate the surface area with the given dimensions. Then, calculate the surface area given a different dimension. Then, find the difference (to the nearest hundredth) between the two measurements.
In order to solve this problem, students need to:
Calculate the surface area with the given dimensions. Then, calculate the surface area given a different dimension. Then, find the difference (to the nearest hundredth) between the two measurements.

20. Math Test Question: Post Common Core
6th Grade Standard
Find the area of right triangles, other triangles, special quadrilaterals, and polygons by composing into rectangles or decomposing into triangles and other shapes; apply these techniques in the context of solving real-world and mathematical problems.
6th Grade Standard
Understand the concept of a ratio and use ratio language to describe a ratio relationship between two quantities. For example, “The ratio of wings to beaks in the bird house at the zoo was 2:1, because for every 2 wings there was 1 beak.” “For every vote candidate A received, candidate C received nearly three votes.”
In order to solve this problem, students need to:
First find the area of the triangle using the measurements given. Then, use the area of the triangle and create a ratio of triangle ABE with ADE, or other equivalent ratio, then find the ratio of the triangle CDE (students have to know that CDE is the same as ABE) with the total rectangle.
How these problems are different:
1. Old problem uses only surface area in isolation with basic operations (subtraction) to find the difference between two surface areas; new problem requires that students calculate area and relate it to ratios (multi-standard)
2. Old problem is multi-step, but again simple steps that really require fluency, whereas, the new problem requires multi-steps of different concepts (both area and ratio) and pushes kids to create ratios given different information and shapes within the diagram. This new problem forces kids to use ratio language to describe a ratio relationship between two quantities.
3. Old problem is rote use of the standard algorithm for finding surface area (fluency) whereas new problem requires that students decompose a polygon and the information given to determine the area of a part of the polygon.
Multiple standards are being assessed at an earlier grade level.

21. “These Standards are not intended to be new names for old ways of doing business. They are a call to take the next step… It is time to recognize that standards are not just promises to our children, but promises we intend to keep.”
-- The Common Core State Standards in Math, page 5
EngageNY.org

22. So, what can parents really do to help?
EngageNY.org

23. Parent support can help students succeed
By staying involved, informed and engaged, parents can help students be successful
There are many ways to help:
Read with your children
Review and discuss their homework
Communicate with their teachers
Attend public meetings to learn more
Learn about the standards and how they affect your child’s education and school
Look through your child’s backpack each afternoon
EngageNY.org

24. Activity: After school routines
Think about your after school routines. Be specific!
Ask yourself and your spouse these questions:
How do we help our child with homework? How closely do we review it?
How closely do we review their schoolwork?
How often do we communicate with their teachers?
How do we celebrate our child’s success in school? How do we address poor performance?
What is our favorite part of our after school routine?
EngageNY.org

25. So? What works best?
EngageNY.org

26. Backpacks: What you should see
Books that are both fiction and non-fiction
Real-world examples that makes what they’re learning in English and math make more sense
Writing assignments that require students to use evidence instead of opinion
Math homework that asks students to write out how they got their answer
Math homework that ask students to use different methods to solve the same problem

27. Some questions to ask your child
Did you talk about anything you read in class today? Did you use evidence when you talked about what you read?
How did you use evidence in school today? Where did you get it?
How often did you use math today? How did you use it?
Did you learn any new words in class today? What do they mean? How do you spell them?

28. Activity: Talking to your kids about school
With your spouse, neighbors and friends, talk about strategies you use to get your kids talking about their days after school
What questions do you ask?
Do you discuss what they tell you?
How do you get them excited to talk?
What do you do when they refuse to talk?
EngageNY.org

29. What works best?
EngageNY.org

30. There are some excellent Resources for parents at www.EngageNY.org

31. EngageNY
EngageNY.org

32. Additional resources www.achievethecore.org www.pta.org/4446.htm

33. Thank you courtesy of Canandaigua CSD
EngageNY.org