Miscellaneous

Sample PLC Schedule for one year

Meeting 1

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Successes and Questions (opening)
  2. Sorting reflection pieces (from last year) → gets at describing research theme/long-term goal
  3. What does this research theme look like at each dimension? (activity)
  4. Brainstorm teacher moves that could help us move toward long term goal


  • Use reflection pieces from last school year to develop a long term goal for the year (/multiple years)
  • Name 1-2 short term strategies to try in classroom between now and next meeting

Homework: Try out the instructional strategies and come prepared to reflect

Meeting 2

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Reflect on what you tried - what did you do? How did students react?
  2. Watch video using Observation Guide
  3. Brainstorm teacher moves
  • Need video
  • Instructional Strategies document
  • Need video
  • Instructional Strategies document

Homework: Try out the instructional strategies and come prepared to reflect & invite a course team colleague into your classroom to gather data on your strategy for you

Meeting 3

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Reflect (using TRU) on what you tried - what did you do? How did students react?
  2. Identify math topics that are challenging to teach/challenging to learn, come up in a different course, etc
  3. Identify volunteer to video in
  • Reflection graphic organizer
  • Revisit long term goal - turn into a research question
  • Identify a math topic for Fall Research Lesson Study Cycle

Homework: Try out instructional strategies. One person has lesson videoed

Meeting 4

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Beforehand- share google doc so participants can type in reflections on instructional strategies, start meeting by reading...what questions does this raise for you about research theme
  2. Looking at TRU dimensions, which dimensions are covered in research theme and theory of action? Anything missing?
  3. Look at standards and progression documents related to math topic
  4. Watch video of instructional strategy


  • Define the research theme
  • Construct a theory of action
  • Decide on math topic to understand unit it falls in

Homework: Unpack unit of math topic (Discussion Guide)

Meeting 5

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Watch video of instructional strategy
  2. Discussion on the math
  3. Student engagement conversation - why are students disengaged?

  • Decide on summary statements of what we’ve learned about 3 Things so far and student perseverance

Homework: Decide on math task

Meeting 6

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  • Do math for purpose of informing planning of opportunities to build TRU


  • Do the math of the research lesson together

Homework: Use feedback from dept to write your research lesson plan

R e s e a r c h l e s s o n

Meeting 7

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?



  • Reflect on first research lesson cycle
  • Determine next steps

Homework: Plan a lesson with attention to the Mathematics Dimension and bring back a reflection [capture video in 1 or 2 people’s classrooms]

Meeting 8

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Reflect on lessons that they planned and taught
  2. Watch video
  3. Identify a strategy to try that will help students interact with the big idea of the lesson
  • Video clip → look fors from observation guide
  • Connect math dimension to research theme → what are students persevering on? Is it worthwhile?
  • Identify a shared strategy to focus on

Homework: Identify an upcoming unit (teaching in April) that you and your course team buddy want to focus on; try the strategy

Meeting 9

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Reflect on how strategy went
  2. Course buddies discuss what the big idea of the unit is and land on a research lesson lesson → name 3 experiences students have to have to get at the big idea
  • Unit planning materials (same questions from planning & reflecting doc)
  • Happy Pi Day!
  • Work to design a whole unit, rather than just a lesson that encompasses the strategies we’ve been working on to help students access the big idea

Homework: Calendar unit, including the 3 experiences that students need to have to get at the big idea, [possibility: video clip where students are engaged in a math task that was designed with our goals in mind and we unpack at next meeting by answering question: did task design help students access big idea?]

Meeting 10

Activities

What will participants do?

Tools

What materials/tools will we need?

Outcome(s) of Meeting

What will participants walk away with?

  1. Do math of research lesson (unmodified task to start)
  2. Discuss implications for task design based on big idea and how students will need to persevere through the task
  • Selected conversation guide questions from at least The Math, AOI, and Access
  • Research lesson task
  • Help planning team prepare!