Hidden Oaks Elementary School

School Improvement Chat

Welcome to FY14!

When we first opened, we had just about

30%of our students receiving Free and Reduced Lunch.

This year, we are at 60%! In addition to this, we have increased our

minority rate with 69% of our students falling into this category.

This means we need to be changing as well!

We are changing!

The New, Beautiful Faces of Hidden Oaks!

Now, for the hard part…..How do we best teach them? What is working?

What needs to change?

Let’s look at some data!

FCAT FY13

Subject Proficient

Gains

Reading 59% 72%

Math 56% 57%

Science 64% n/a

Writing 61% n/a

2014 Targets

Subject AMO Target

Reading 73%

Math 73%

Science 72%

Writing 65%

VAM scores are in! Our combined school VAM score was 78% Our reading VAM was 90% Our math VAM was 49%

Houston…We have a problem!

Let’s add an additional layer!

Key reading interventions… Utilize Lucy Calkins Reading Workshop model Increase reading stamina Implement HATS tutorial program Utilize pre- and post- assessments to drive

instruction Use data from diagnostics, SRI, and Reading

Running Records to inform and drive instruction

Before we get to that…what worked?

A Culture of Reading

Our science scores continue to rise, and they

are heads and tails above the district and state scores.

This year we used a unique learning system, a comprehensive curriculum map, created by a team of teachers during the summer.

Use of science journals daily We have a science resource teacher that also

teaches on the Fine Arts wheel.

Science!

Our writing scores have dropped substantially

over the last two years. The expectation of students needing appropriate grammar and spelling to pass the writing portion of the FCAT are responsible for this drop.

We are working to create grade level maps of accountable spelling and grammar skills for each grade

Common Core Standards are also addressing this gap.

Areas of greatest need

Compare our classroom values with the following quick video:

http://youtu.be/o_ixHe_fWBI

Our Current Nemesis: Math

Our school’s literacy culture is overflowing!

Hey! What about me???? (Says Math)

Using Mountain Math and ADD math

supplemental programs Assigned morning computer lab time HATS after school tutorial program GIZMOS FasTTMath Scholastic program for math

fluency Weekly school wide math challenges Academic Resource Teacher

What math interventions are in place?

Our Academic Resource Teacher provides

guidance to teachers and individual student attention

Students that regularly attend morning labs and afterschool tutorials are making math gains

Students that are given multiple opportunities to use computer-based adaptive technologies, such as FasTTMath and Gizmos are making math gains.

What’s Working?

What needs to change?

In math this year a leadership team was created to evaluate our math curriculum. We are trying to create not only a literacy rich environment, but a math and number-

rich environment as well.

Create Math nights similar to Literacy nights

previously held at Hidden Oaks Create grade specific curricular maps for math,

understanding that the “page by page” mentality is not working for our students

Hold various professional development trainings at school relating to how to create a year-long plan based on standards, differentiation, stations, available supplemental resources, and the use of manipulatives

Recommendations

In his book Classroom Instruction That Works

Marzano suggests certain strategies contain high yield probability results to increase student achievement. (2001) We will using some of these strategies in our planning cycles for math.

Recommendations of Specific Strategies

Strategy 1: Summarizing and

Notetaking

We will teach students the rule-based summarizing strategy, use summary frames, and use reciprocal

teaching so students can identify the important parts of what they are learning.

Representing Knowledge

We will utilized nonlinguistic representations such as graphic organizers, pictograph representations, mental

images, physical models and kinesthetic learning experiences to enhance math instruction.

Learning Groups

We will use cooperative learning with flexible groupings to create experiences in which students learn with and by

each other.

This year we want to not only focus on our literacy

initiatives, but we want the feeling of math and science to also permeate through our school environment.

In order to monitor that this is happening, one LTM per month will be dedicated to math that will be facilitated by an administrator

Teachers will use common assessments and analyze the standards taught through this method

The math coach will assist in the planning cycles, and in the instructional strategies used with students.

How do we monitor our improvement efforts?

Through intentional planning and teaching we will improve in all content areas.

As teachers we may need to step outside of our comfort zones….but remember: It’s about the kids!

These goals are not “pi” in the sky!

Working together we can make a difference for our students….speaking of “pi” let’s kick off our (not)“pi” in the sky goals with a blast from the past!

http://youtu.be/4e6Ctils7ck

Marzano, R., Norford, J. Paynter, D, Pickering, D. & Gaddy, B (2001). A handbook for classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Let’s DO THIS Hidden Oaks!