Thinking DeeplyThe GSE standards emphasize critical thinking. They require students to analyze more, discuss more, evaluate more, justify more, and explain their thinking and understanding deeply, especially in writing. Really thinking deeply is hard. Let it BE hard, help them talk it out. Integrating Learning The GSE standards emphasize learning across disciplines (reading with math and social studies standards combined into one task). Students spend more time working together with different settings, structures, and tools. Problems and Solutions happen everyday in the real world. Showing How They Know The GSE standards emphasize proof and evidence. Worksheets, fact memorizations, and skill and drill are not a best practice of education like in days past. Students are not taught this way and are not assessed this way. The new tests will require students to explain how they know. Support At Home -Ask "why" when children tell you they want something or want to do or not do something.
-Use the word "because" after "no" or "not tonight..." -Give reasons - you to them and them to you. -Encourage questions and explore answers (especially questions whose answers are yes or no). -Explain and discuss issues or problems in your house, neighborhood, and community. Brainstorm solutions. -Compare how things are alike and different - video games, movies, food -Look for patterns -Describe and categorize stuff. -Tell your children what you value and why. -Encourage and celebrate opinions. One of the best gifts parents can give their children is a lifelong love of reading. Read more:
http://blog.theliteracysite.com/cs-lifetime-literacy/#6t2t5y7k6TRYQLDG.99 We write for many different purposes, and the writing standards address that fact. Teachers will ask students to write opinion pieces about books or topics, informative pieces that contain facts about a topic, and more traditional-style writing called narrative in which students write about specific events or details. How parents can help: Help your child see the different types of writing you do in your adult life. Talk about the writing you do for work and the more casual writing you do to friends. Then have fun encouraging your child to write their own opinion pieces — ask them to write a review of last night's dinner or the last family movie you watched. Writing standards address editing and publishing work. Teachers and students may work together to edit drafts of written pieces, focusing on specific suggestions to make the writing more clear or informative. The standards also address sharing written work using a variety of digital tools. How parents can help: Help your child feel good about receiving feedback. Constructive suggestions can help make a child's writing clearer and the writing process more enjoyable. Then, discover ways to share your child's writing with a larger audience — email or mail stories and poems, have your child contribute to the family blog, and keep an eye out for writing contests designed just for kids. Students will be working with classmates on research and writing projects. Together they'll collaborate to gather information and present findings in an accurate way. How parents can help: Consider checking out some "how-to" books from the library. Discuss the way the book is designed to teach someone to do something. Notice the format, short directions, and pictures or diagrams. Then, choose a topic to create your own family "how-to" book. It could be for a well-loved recipe or some other task that has multiple steps — how to clean the bathroom, unload the dishwasher, or program the DVR. Parents can help promote their writer in many ways, and here are just a few: find time to share and celebrate the writing that comes home from school, highlight how writing is a part of every day, and take the time to notice and appreciate the beautiful writing found within books. Used with permission from Reading Rockets Ms. Welch needs help to prepare materials and resources for our students. Can you give the gift of time?
Sign up here: www.SignUpGenius.com/go/4090E4BADAA2CA31-curriculum PARENT VOLUNTEERSBefore you volunteer at New Prospect Elementary School, please see the new information below this gives you step by step instructions on how to fill out your new volunteer forms. Volunteers - The new automated process has been placed on the districts webpage – www.fultonschools.org. Volunteers may now register by clicking on "Community" and "Partners and Volunteers". Individual campus registration is no longer required as volunteers will now be approved centrally. You can also go directly to the page by the link below. http://www.fultoncountyschoolssafetysecurity.org/ Create a Homework Station with this Checklist:
Set up a Home Command CenterGreat ideas and printables for setting up a home command center:
http://blog.homes.com/2013/08/18-back-to-school-family-command-center-ideas-free-printables/ An easier way to access our school website is here! Type npepanthers.org into your browser! You can continue to find our site via the Fulton County Schools site as well.
Click here to read about our summer reading initiative:
http://school.fultonschools.org/es/newprospect/Pages/Summer-Reading.aspx Are you interested in raising environmental awareness? Do you want to help our school become "green"? I will be applying for NPE to receive Evergreen School status (we will work with the city of Alpharetta) but I need your help! An environmental committee will be created to help plan and make decisions. Let me know if this sounds like something you'd like to help me with! [email protected]
Some initiatives we plan to work toward are:-creation of a schoolyard habitat (already in the initial stages) -creation and implementation of an outdoor classroom/garden with lesson plans you can use -creation and launch of an Environmental Club -expansion of our recycling program to include other items like plastics -service projects such as adopt a road, adopt a stream, waste free lunch days, etc. -environmental lessons/field trips Read more here. |
AuthorMs. Heather Welch is the Curriculum Support Teacher at New Prospect Elementary in Alpharetta, GA. Archives
January 2016
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