AIM for Excellence - Elementary Content Updates

English Language Arts

Coordinator - Kim Dahl

FastBridge

What a celebration it is to have completed our first round of FastBridge as our Universal Screener! Conversations around the data have begun and next steps taken--working through diagnostic screeners. You are doing amazing things for students!

Bite-Sized PD: Fluency

Listening to students read gives us so much information on them as readers and can let us know why they may be struggling with comprehension. Is it a decoding problem or a fluency problem? What is the benefit of giving an oral reading fluency? The research might surprise you. Interested in some fluency activities for your students? Click here!

Math

Coordinator - Spencer Brown

KSDE Updates

Please consider taking a moment to read through the most recent newsletter from KSDE. There is a vast array of fantastic information and professional learning opportunities outlined. To access it, click here!

Quarterly Benchmark Assessments (QBAs)

Quarterly Benchmark Assessments (QBAs) have been created to replace math DCMs. Students in grades 2-5 will take these assessments upon the completion of each quarter.  They will be placed into classroom trackers at the end of each quarter.  QBAs are dark gray and will be located at the end of classroom trackers.  Scores for the QBAs cannot be edited in Mastery Connect.

QBAs have been designed to efficiently and effectively determine if a student has a full depth of understanding of the rigor of 2-3 key standards. (See table below for the standards that will be included on each grade level’s QBAs). The standards were selected based on critical topics for each quarter of instruction. These assessments contain no more than 15 items.  QBAs can be given during math MTSS time.  Teachers can use the data to measure students’ understanding of grade level standards.

Please reach out to Spencer Brown or your MTSS Math Support Specialists with any questions or concerns.

Cyclical Review Updates

The next round of cyclical review is ready! It is located in the Resources section on the last page of the Pacing Guide. We are actively working on placing these on the Digital Store Front as well. You can access the pacing guides on your grade level page of the repository linked here!

Science

Coordinator - Julie Miller

Kansas Association of Teachers of Science in the Cosmos!

The Kansas Association of Teacher of Science has teamed up with the Cosmosphere to bring the joy of all things STEM to you and your families! This lab-coat-casual professional development opportunity will blend “out of this world” simulators, interactive labs, and engineering challenges that only the Cosmosphere can provide alongside cutting edge classroom teaching techniques and strategies offered by Kansas educators. Click here for more information.

Snacking on the Wonder of Science

Social Studies

Coordinator - Julie Fishburn

Snack & Chat About Social Studies

Sign Up for a Snack & Chat About Social Studies with Julie! Use this link to sign up for a spot Sept. 27 OR Oct. 4 and Julie will bring the snacks!

Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration

September is National Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month (9/15-10/15) Click here for resources.

Social Studies Artifact Checkout:

Social Studies Artifact Checkout is BACK! Check out the collections which are stored at the IRC and sign up for a time to reserve them to enrich your instruction. We have added a globe to our spreadsheet, too! Click on the link to reserve a collection for your class today!

Instructional Technology

Director - Thomas (TJ) Ulmer

Apple Education Community

Apple has launched a new Apple Education Community! In addition to the content from the Apple Teacher Learning Center, there is now a Forum that allows you to interact, share a resource or an impact story, and explore subject-specific content areas. You just need to login with your AppleID. The Apple Education Community can be found at http://education.apple.com.

FREE Apple Professional Learning

Explore helpful resources, practice new skills, and reflect on ways Apple technology can support great learning and teaching. These sessions run approximately 60 minutes and are hosted by Apple Professional Learning Specialists. Visit apple.co/apl to learn more and register.

Everyone Reads - Department Updates