Professional Development
Preparing more children for Kindergarten depends on the quality of early childhood teaching. Teaching quality cannot be solely defined nor achieved through a static indicator such as degrees or credentials earned. Teachers need preparation, individualized feedback, ongoing professional development, and support in order to facilitate high-quality interactions and instruction. Teachers and their leaders need training and ongoing support to implement all of the components of a curriculum with high-fidelity.
VPI Guidelines Section 1: To improve kindergarten readiness in Virginia, all publicly-funded early childhood programs need access to high-quality classroom interactions and instruction.
Desired Outcomes
1.All VPI teachers will receive access to 15 clock hours per year of high-quality professional development, as defined by the VDOE PD Rubric, that supports their knowledge, skills, and practice to facilitate effective teacher-child interactions and instruction that promotes children’s learning and development towards kindergarten readiness.
Action Steps/Progress
Carroll County's will provide at least 8 hours of introductory curriculum training, implementation support, and coaching to teachers new to the curriculum & assessment practices.
Support all VPI teachers to be trained on VKRP so that they understand how kindergarten readiness is measured and can promote children’s learning and development towards kindergarten readiness.
Support all VPI teachers to be trained on Pre-K PALS so that they understand how this assessment reflects skills that are predictive of future reading success and measures name writing ability, upper-case and lower-case alphabet recognition, letter sound and beginning sound production, print and word awareness, rhyme awareness and nursery rhyme awareness.
Support all VPI teachers to be trained in Toddler/Pre-K CLASS so they can measure and improve classroom interactions — a key factor proven to drive children’s academic and life-long success.
Carroll County will document teachers and instructional assistants annual participation in professional development and make it available for monitoring purposes.
Carroll County will ensure VPI teachers have access to individualized classroom data.( e.g. CLASS scores or children’s assessment data)
All professional development will be delivered with fidelity with the necessary leadership and the organizational support.
When planning PD, Carroll County will include includes the following key features (outlined in the PD Rubric):
A Data-driven approach to PD planning ensures that the content is relevant, amount is sufficient, and ultimately that the PD is effective.
Specific, articulated objectives delineate the precise knowledge and skills teachers will gain, limited to a few key areas of ongoing focus.
Practice-focused PD formats intentionally build teachers’ skills (e.g., coaching or professional learning communities with video review).
Feedback and analysis loops provide teachers opportunities to implement a new practice, receive feedback on their practice, and analyze their practice with a colleague.
Coherence involves an intentional approach to integrating curricula (what teachers teach), assessments (e.g., child outcomes), and classroom observation (e.g., CLASS™ scores) with the PD that teachers receive.
Access refers to the extent to which PD is provided to all full-time teachers (teachers and teaching assistants) across early childhood settings.
Progress
Carroll County has supported all VPI teachers to be trained on VKRP so that they understand how kindergarten readiness is measured and can promote children’s learning and development towards kindergarten readiness. (See Below)
Carroll County has supported all VPI teachers to be trained on Pre-K PALS so that they understand how this assessment reflects skills that are predictive of future reading success and measures name writing ability, upper-case and lower-case alphabet recognition, letter sound and beginning sound production, print and word awareness, rhyme awareness and nursery rhyme awareness. (See Below)
Carroll County has supported all VPI teachers to be trained in Toddler/Pre-K CLASS so they can measure and improve classroom interactions — a key factor proven to drive children’s academic and life-long success. (See Below)
Carroll County has designed a document for teachers and instructional assistants to record annual participation in professional development. This document will ensure teachers get the training they need, and the division will make it available for monitoring purposes.
Carroll County is ensuring VPI teachers have access to individualized classroom data (e.g. CLASS scores or children’s assessment data). Teachers receive Pre-K CLASS domain scores with an individualized feedback form with details on each of the domains. Pre-K Pals & VKRP data is accessible by all teachers before, during, and after assessments with teachers' login information.
All professional development is delivered with fidelity with the necessary leadership and the organizational support. (Liason for PD is a trained Letterland Coach, a VKRP TTT, a Pre-K CLASS TTT, a certified reliable Toddler and Infant CLASS observer, a trained ECERS-R administrator, and a Virginia Quality Curriculum Specialist.)
When planning PD, Carroll County, include includes the key features (as outlined in the PD Rubric): Click here to see evaluation of PD
Professional Development Activities
MyTeachstone
All Carroll County Teachers have access to MyTeachstone. Guide and Track Professional Development. MyTeachstone promotes teacher-growth by providing data-driven and individualized professional development. With myTeachstone, division coaches can:
Give teachers’ access to a growing and searchable library of research-based resources that target best-practices in social-emotional learning, language and literacy skills, supporting dual-language learners, and more.
Extend teachers’ learning by recommending resources that feature real-classrooms, engaging in discussion prompts, and tracking completion progress.
Use observation data to identify and access formal professional development opportunities, responsive trainings, and online courses.
Create professional learning communities and engage in online discussion and facilitated learning.
Observe classrooms virtually with video upload and informal observation functionality.
Pair teachers with a certified CLASS® coach to provide intentional and facilitated coaching sessions.
This 15-week book study guided participants through implementation of 12 CLASS© correlated strategies to foster the seven skills of discipline in your classroom. Teachers & administrators were able to collaborate with others, see examples, and get individual feedback on their practice in an asynchronous learning environment. Click here to learn what participants said about this professional development opportunity and more.
Pre-K CLASS Observation Feedback Sessions
Each Pre-K classroom was observed in the Fall using the Pre-K CLASS instrument. Following each observation, teachers participated in a Coaching and Feedback session to discuss how the classroom scored in the areas of Emotional Support, Organizational Support, and Instructional Support. This same process will happen again in the Spring. Often teachers request informal CLASS observations for individual goals. At the end of the year, teachers and assistants who p[participate in the Coaching and Feedback Sessions receive documentation of their individual professional development points.
Friday, December 10, 2021 from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM
United Way of Southwest Virginia hosts the Tender Loving Caregivers Conference to celebrate the great work of early childhood professionals in Southwest Virginia. UWSWVA wants every attendee to leave with information and best practices that will either add to their teachers’ tool-kits, or help them become the best version of themselves for the students that are in their care.
Carroll County Pre-K teachers joined hundreds of early childhood professionals from across Southwest Virginia at the 2020 Virtual-Tender Loving Caregivers conference. They spent time focusing on early learning techniques and best practices for becoming a trauma-informed early childhood classroom, sharing our passion for early childhood development, and hearing from experts working in the early childhood field.
12:00 pm- What If Today Was Their Only Day? (Keynote)
1:45 pm- MANY KINDS OF SMART! Understanding the Theory of Multiple Intelligences
3:30 pm- LISA MURPHY ON..... PLAY! The Importance of Early Experiences.
ALs Pals Training
Virtual Training September 21-23
Al’s Pals, a comprehensive social–emotional learning curriculum designed for the specific needs of preschool children. Al’s Pals provides young children with the skills to prepare for life’s challenges through interactive lessons, engaging puppets, original music, and impactful teaching approaches.
Activities and Strategies discussed:
Cultivate Conflict Resolution and Problem-Solving Skills
Help Children Manage Feelings and Behaviors
Build Positive Relationships & Prevent Bullying
Create Caring, Cooperative Classrooms
Teach Children to Make Healthy Choices
Build Authentic Family Partnerships
This was a virtual training that took place September 21-23. Participants received 6 hours of re-certification points.
VKRP-Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Training
The Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP) aims to build a more comprehensive understanding of school readiness. As an assessment system, VKRP adds measures of mathematics, self-regulation, and social skills in Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten to complement Virginia’s statewide assessment of literacy skills (PALS).
Teachers attended: Preparing for VKRP - Online Training
The online training is available on the VKRP web portal, which is accessible via the PALS website to teachers, administrators, and division leaders. It includes five modules, each focused on a key topic:
Module 1: An Introduction to VKRP
Module 2: The Child Behavior Rating Scale (CBRS)
Module 3: The Early Mathematics Assessment System (EMAS)
Module 4: How to Navigate VKRP
Module 5: An Introduction to Reports and Resources
Each module is available on demand and can be completed at one’s own pace.
Teachers attended: Preparing for VKRP Data Use-In Person Training
This in person training was held at Laurel Elementary in the technology Lab. Activities guided participants through:
finding and printing reports,
disaggregating data to identifying student strengths and weaknesses,
disaggregating data to identifying teacher strengths and weaknesses,
and communicating data to parents.
Pre-K PALS
Pre-K PALS Administration Training
Pre-K teachers received a 1/2 day in-person training on administering the Pre-K PALS assessment, disaggregating data to identify student strengths and weaknesses, disaggregating data to identify teacher strengths and weaknesses, and communicating children's progress to parents.
In addition to the local training, Pre-K teachers have access to professional learning opportunities through the PALS website in the form of Assessment Video's, Tutorials, Webinars, Practice Accounts, and Modules. Click here to learn more.
Letterland
Pre-K Letterland Training-Central Office
August 24, 11:30-3:30
Pre-K teachers that are new to Letterland attended an overview of the instructional delivery of the program. Teachers left the session knowing how to deliver Letterland Strategies & Routines on a daily and weekly basis.
PreK Back-to-School Professional Development, August 10, 2021
PreK Back-to-School Professional Development
Laurel Elementary School
August 10, 2021
Agenda
Welcome Back!
Pre K PALS
Testing calendar
Training
VKRP (from PALS website)
Fall and Spring
2 parts: EMAS & CBRS
Consider having parents complete one for behavior at home and compare
Training modules and practice test found on website
VQB5 (The Unified Virginia Quality Birth to Five System)
Practice Year #1 Begins July 2021
Practice Year #2 Begins July 2022
VQB5 Year 1 Begins July 2023-Scores from this year will be publicly shared in the Fall of 2024. All programs required to participate (VPI, Head Start, ECSE).
VQB5 focuses on two key areas to determine a “score”: Curriculum & Interactions
Interactions are measured with the PreK CLASS tool.
Curriculum is reviewed using the Curriculum Checklist provided by Virginia Quality. (evaluates curriculums not already approved by VDOE for Depth, Coverage, Difficulty, and Assessment in relation to and correlated to the Milestones for Child Development and the Virginia Building Blocks).
Additionally, programs must document that all lead teachers have attended at least 8 hours specifically related to the curriculum/s in place.
Virginia Quality
Level 3
Let’s go for Level 4 & 5! QIP
More info to come on ERS
LinkB5
Registration August 2-September 17
Look for email
Professional Development Log
One for Curriculum
One for everything else
electronic
PreK CLASS
2 X local observation, external observations are random.
Instructional Support historically the lowest score
Google Classroom
Get one ready just in case
3 hours
Remote PALS In-service
Tentative Plans Draft /Agenda for Remote PALS In-service September 16, 2020
Participant Needs:
1. Computer and/or Chromebook
2. PALS username (e-mail)/password and class list for testing.
3. Access to or hard copies of In-person and Remote Testing Administration manuals, teacher materials, and student materials (PALS Form B (blue notebook K and 1-3
4. Pencil/pen highlighter
5. Handouts:
A. Information Sheet
B. School assignments
C. School-level Remote Testing Information Sheets
D. E-WRI Administration Notes
E. Practice Accounts email and passwords
Presenter Needs:
1. Computer Access and way to project PALS site
2. List of participants
3. Optional- Tabs
4. Optional -Highlighters
Tentative Process if time permits:
Briefly View actual PALS site.
Show where remote testing resources are found.
Watch video for remote testing (K and/or 1-3)
Go to Practice site with student to show OAW process with in-person and remote administration.
Review/Show how-to use virtual platform- set up a meeting.
Practice Remote PALS testing.
Agenda (Informational Sheet for Participants)
Website: https://pals.virginia.edu
E-mail: pals@virginia.edu
Phone: 1.888.882.7257
PALS Practice Accounts
Username- carroll@pals.virginia.edu
Password-practice!1
A. Introduction
B. PALS (Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening) a reading foundational screener.
Screens, diagnoses, helps plan instruction (electronic plans) for and monitor(Quick Checks) students.
C. Information on Form B Binders
Note: Materials adapted for Remote Testing
1. Go to PALS Site
2. Click on yellow tab: Login Enter Scores and View Reports
3. Select Pre-k 3 in Virginia
4. Login
5. Select Blue Resources Tab
6. On drop down menu, select remote administration materials
Blue Tab 1- Introduction and Overview (Note page numbers can vary somewhat in notebooks; topic headings remain constant)
Table of Contents:
Preparation for Testing
PALS practice accounts (pre-k-3) will provide invaluable information on
in-person and remote screening.
1. Go to PALS Site
2. Click on yellow tab: Login Enter Scores and View Reports
3. Select Practice Accounts from Drop down menu.
4. Enter Login info.
5. Practice account username and password.
6. Select Assess tab
7. Under Class List select the arrow by Pre-K for preferred grade level.
Student Demographic Info.
Once a score is entered must contact PALS to change demographic information.
Basic Screening Procedures
Note: With virtual students, all tasks will be administered individually.
Group Rhyme and Group Beginning Sound are given on different Days
COW is not required; you can place 0 s for those scores. In leu of COW Blending and Sound-to-letter is recommended for K and 1.
Blue tab 2- Administration and Scoring Guide
Most important section to help understand subtests and how to administer and score whether you test in-person or remotely.
Table of Contents:
Level A: Oral Read in Context (in 1-3 Pals notebook only)
Grades 1-3
For information, review (Materials for running record),(Scoring accuracy) and (fluency rating guide) and comprehension questions.
Note: OAW (Online Assessment Wizard) Populates required tasks as you test under the Required Task heading for individual students.
Student Summary sheets are needed to record student responses when in-person (pencil paper) or remote testing.
Note: OWA populates the comprehension question task under the required reading passage task, starting with 4th grade. However, we give primer through 3rd comprehension questions. They are accessed under OAW Additional Tasks.
Note: Primer and 1st grade Oral Reading comprehension questions and answer choices are read aloud to students with in-person and/or remote administration.
Kindergarten
Individual rhyme or Individual beginning sound are only given if scores on group rhyme or group beginning sound are under 5 and will populate under required tasks in OWA for the student.
Blue Tab 3 Teacher Materials
Table of Contents.:
Spelling Inventory
Spelling words and sentences for administration.
In K binder, spelling words and directions are under Blue Tab 2.
Oral Reading in Context: Running Record and Comprehension Question
Note Booklets: Readiness- Breakfast; Preprimer A- Sam and Tom; Preprimer B – Time for Dinner; Preprimer C- Making Soup
Materials for running records for paper pencil and remote administration.
Need Copy of Comprehension questions for in-person (OAW/ paper pencil) and Remote administration.
Blue Tab 4 Student Materials
Table of Contents:
Word Recognition in Isolation
E-WRI are recommended for all students.
E-WRI list words flash for student on computer screen; tester score student responses using space bar and directional arrows. E-WRI is also projected and given remotely.
Note: after giving the E-WRI the required student Oral Reading passage with populate in OAW.
Oral Reading in Context
Need copies for in-person (OAW/paper-pencil) and remote.
Need copies of running records for in-person paper pencil and remote administration.
Alphabetic
For K and 1 Letter sounds and Alphabet recognition copy for in-person (OAW /paper pencil) and remote administration.
OAW has more item (individual and class) reports, is faster, scores can be entered during testing or from paper- pencil administration. PALS results from in-person or remote testing are entered via OWA.
Note: Remote PALS testing results do not change the student’s identified or unidentified status.
PreK Back-to-School Professional Development, August 7, 2020
Pre-K Meeting August 7, 2020 Hillsville Elementary
Agenda
1. Superintendent's Memos 223-19 Virginia’s Initiative to Advance Effective Instruction and Interactions in Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI) Classrooms
Reminders: Evidenced-based Curriculum OWLS
Teacher-Child Interactions-Local Observations (Sherry)
Professional Development- TeachStone, OWLS
2. Assessments (Memo 173-20)
Focus on PreK PALS with A schedule kids/B schedule Kids (F, S required, CCPSD will do M)
Flexible testing Window -Can start assessing anytime, must be completed by November 19
Teachers will complete the PALS assessments, Use Substitutes
3. Physical Contact/Social Distancing in PreK
Be as safe as you can be.
Wash hands frequently, wear masks, and do the best you can!
No masks if 6 feet away.
Can’t use the playground but you can go outside. (can’t share toys, do not have to wear masks)
Work Social Distancing into Rules and Routines!
Naps-no sheets, can have blankets and pillows but must be stored in the individual kid’s cubby. Wipe down cots to stack.
4. Purchase Orders
$150 for what you need
Use County Purchase Order
More funds to come “possibly”
5. Chromebook Options
Consider individual situations
Complete Paperwork
Chrome books at home all the time, at school all the time, or blended model
6. Google Classroom-
Consistent Method of Sharing Materials, lessons, videos, activities.
Inservice on Google Classroom Updates
7. Clorox, Hand Sanitizer
Teach kids how to use Hand Sanitizer safely.
Will ask if kids can use Clorox wipes to be responsible for themselves in the classroom?
8. Snack
Use proper safety procedures to prevent the spread of germs when providing snacks.
To think about….Can Cafeteria provide? Individually bagged snacks?
9. Possible Inservice
Come together for Google Classroom Training to promote consistency (maybe our second Wednesday)
Correlation of Building Blocks with OWLS
Training on social distancing while being social
Teachstone (CLASS)
10. Programs/Resources Interested in
More Starfall
Letterland
IXL for PreK
Supporting Children’s Development
of a Core Social-Emotional Skill
The ECE Resource Hub features a new set of targeted strategies to help birth to five educators better foster children's social emotional skills each month. these professional development suites are free to Early Childhood Educators and particpants may sign up at their convenience.
The ECE Resource Hub is organized around key social-emotional skills called Core Skills. Core Skills examples include Building Teacher-Child Relationships, Supporting Children’s Strong Emotions. For each Core Skill, you will find the following Foundational Resources: ♦ Core Skill Summary Sheets (found by selecting “Learn More About It”) ♦ Three “What it Looks Like” exemplar clips ♦ Book Reading activity ♦ Activity Cards.
Goals:
Use the Foundational Resources on the ECE Resource Hub to: ♦ Explore how one Core Skill develops. ♦ Learn the intentional teaching practices that best support the development of this Core Skill, including viewing exemplar classroom videos. ♦ Plan for observing and supporting children’s development of this Core Skill.
For more information, click here for the Foundational Resources Guide.
External Coaching Support for VQB5 Teachers
Coaching Support for VQB5 teachers- AEII-CASTL with UVA, is excited to open 50+ coaching slots to support ECE teachers who are interested in strengthening their teacher-child interactions and promoting equitable social and emotional skills for all children.
· HEAR more about AEII Coaching - https://watch.screencastify.com/v/yYZu8FoYj8VMaO3YsMZk
· LEARN more about AEII Coaching – https://virginia.box.com/s/kt78zkzu3krx3jzc02psa8h5zcz06c6l
· SIGN UP for AEII Coaching - https://tinyurl.com/AEIICoaching
Here is a small snippet about this opportunity https://watch.screencastify.com/v/tLz7UKHzO3rHyUqCWEvW