Did You Know?

Did you know that it is best to sync your grades for progress reports and report card time a little early?  Syncing the week before can help avoid longer wait times due to a heavier volume of people and also allows time to seek help for any sync errors that may occur.  

Blended Learning Focus: Rigor and Mastery

Scuba Diving is a rigorous form of diving that requires a basic level of training in order to master the skills required for the safe conduct of activities in an underwater environment which would include procedures and skills for the use of the diving equipment, safety, emergency self-help and rescue procedures, dive planning, etc.  These skills are necessary to master before taking that first dive.  

As we move forward this month with rigor and mastery, it is important to consider the goals and objectives that students need to master by the end of each unit of study.  If you want your students to master  standards in a meaningful and relevant way, rigor is the key.  Rigor is also what makes a learning unit robust, engaging, and appropriately challenging.  (ASCD.org) Just as Scuba Diving can be challenging the reward of what may be found at the depths of the deep blue sea are what motivates the learning.  How can you motivate your students to remain engaged in the unit of study? 

Here are a few things to consider as you look at building a lesson that promotes rigor/mastery.  

• The Importance of Adding Rigor and Relevance to Learning

• The Ultimate Guide to Academic Rigor

• Rigor in the Classroom: What it is and isn't

• How to Bring "Mastery Learning" to the Classroom

• Mastery of Learning: What is it and hot wo implement it?

Rigor/Mastery-Specific Resources 

(*While these resources are free, they are not district-supported).

• Kahoot: Students compete against each other to answer questions quickly and correctly.  The teacher receives feedback on who answered correctly and who did not.

• Quizizz: Create lessons, conduct formative assessments, assign homework, and have other interactions with your students (for all grades) in a captivating way.  

• Flipgrid: Hear what students are thinking as they explain (and show) what they know about the focus standard.