Staff Meeting #2: 10/26/2022

Our 2nd staff meeting took place on October 26th.

The agenda is posted below as well as a summary of the information discussed and determined during that meeting.

SUMMARY

Ultimately, teams build the outlines of action plans for all four target areas. The various pieces of the action plans will be organized into one comprehensive planning document by Ms. Saia. She will reach out to relevant people where needed to fill in any gaps and then the plans will be shared out with admin, staff, and the board of education once final details are incorporated. In summary, the four areas being addressed are:

1. Build upon the cycle of teaching, learning, assessment, and data analysis to improve alignment with NJSLS and student performance by reviewing (and possibly redefining) curriculum scope and sequence and prioritizing skills and standards to maximize student growth and achievement.

2. Increase student engagement in school, both in class and outside of class, by continuing to develop more engaging classroom learning activities, increasing the number of exciting school and district-wide activities to interest students, and embed more academic challenges and assemblies to improve the overall culture and climate.

3. Build upon existing academic supports to tailor instruction, interventions, and assessments so they meet our diverse student needs by identifying and addressing learning gaps across grade levels, differentiate learning to meet personalized needs in the classroom, and explore ways to provide more inclusive classroom support for ELL students.

4. Enhance and build upon the professional culture of the staff by finding ways to make time for the professional work that needs to be done, facilitating that time with purpose, targeting professional growth activities to support our growing ELL population, and utilizing a feedback system from staff for continued improvement.

Our Four Blue Ribbon Target Areas

We will work on:

• Reviewing curriculum scope and sequence, revising as needed, to maximize focus on priority areas

• Using Benchmark and NJSLA data to identify grade/course areas of weakness and supplement those areas as needed

• Facilitating vertical articulation to identify gaps, increase common language, refine a natural skill continuum

• Facilitate horizontal articulation to increase common language, develop common rubrics, and find connections and additional supports.

We will work on:

• Identifying gaps that exist across grade levels and between student groups

• Research, develop, and implement strategies to address those gaps.

• Increase formative assessment to enhance differentiation including better use of "as needed" scaffolds and remediation rather than whole group re-teaching

• Brainstorm ways of increasing supports for struggling students, both individually and for identified groups.

We will work on:

• Researching and sharing best practices for engaging students in classroom learning for different subjects and grade levels.

• Incorporating more academic challenges and assemblies for students and whole grades to engage students in attendance, participation, and positive behavior

• Finding and implementing available trips, activities, etc. that take learning outside of the classroom to make learning more engaging and relevant.

We will work on:

• Find or make time within our professional day to pull teachers together in small groups or whole group to do the work needed to make change over time.

• Make sure that professional growth time for teachers is relevant, purposeful, goal-oriented, and organized.

• Make sure our professional learning activities support our greatest areas of need, including our growing ELL population.

• Find ways to make our professional learning opportunities fun and engaging and improve our positive professional culture.