Dear LOCS Parents and Community,

It is hard to believe that the first marking period is almost over. We have had a great start to the 2012-2013 school year.

Please take a few minutes to read a few highlights happening in our district.

Thank you for your continued support and collaboration in providing our students with an exemplary education.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

Heidi Kast

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

A M e s s a g e f r o m H e i d i . . .

N o v e m b e r , 2 0 1 2 Curriculum, Instruction

and Assessment

Parent NEWSLETTER 2

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High School Hybrid 2

LOEF Impact on Classroom

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Technology 3

Freshman Academy 3

Common Core 4

G.E.D. Testing 5

Book Drive 7

Words Their Way 7

Requesting Donations 7

Using grant dollars, each elementary building has a Kindergarten Early Interven-tionist for the 2012-2013 school year. The role of the Kindergarten Early Interven-tionist is to work with kinder-garten teachers to ensure all kindergarten students are meeting reading learning targets.

The kindergarten early inter-ventionist will provide litera-cy intervention for students

needing extra support. Student progress will be monitored and reviewed every two weeks.

It is critical that we do every-thing we can to ensure a solid educational foundation for our youngest learners.

KINDERGARTEN EARLY INTERVENTIONIST

Parent Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

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“ B L E N D E D ” C L A S S E S A T T H E H . S .

As the face of education evolves, we continue to strive to stay at the fore-front of providing sound educational practices to ensure students are given the best learning opportunities possible. Next year, the high school will be of-fering several “blended” courses.

The blended model consists of some school days in which attendance is mandatory. Other days attendance is optional, students have the choice of attending class in person providing other requirements are met such as grades, parental permission, etc. Stu-dents must have parent permission in order to have optional attendance days.

By implementing this model, Lake Orion’s High School goal is to provide opportuni-ties to students that will lead to their success in future endeavors. The state of education is changing rapidly with many advances in technology. It is im-portant that we provide the experiences in high school where students have more guidance so that they are better pre-pared for these opportunities when they are more on their own.

The high school is currently piloting an A.P. Physics blended class. Next year, we are hoping to offer blended classes in the areas of Social Studies, Industrial Arts, ELA, Math, World Language, Art, Business and Science.

LAKE ORION EDUCATION FOUNDATION IMPACTS CLASSROOMS

The Lake Orion Education Foundation is a non-profit organization attended by friends and supporters of the Lake Orion Community School District to enhance and enrich the educational opportunities to children.

At the September 26th Board of Education meeting, the foundation presented over $9,800 to teachers for their classrooms. Twice a year teachers have the opportunity to submit a grant to the LOEF for their classroom. These grants vary widely from math manipulatives to technology to snowshoes. To date, the Foundation has given over $150,000 to LOCS classrooms.

For further information regarding LOEF, please visit our website under the community tab.

MEAP Testing Thank You!!!

MEAP testing is now complete. Thank you so much for your extra efforts during this time. Due to everyone’s teamwork and collabo-ration the administra-

tion of the test was successful. Results are anticipated in Decem-ber/January.

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LAKE

ORION

TECHO DRAGONS

A group of Lake Orion Teachers have joined forces and committed to developing and providing professional development on in-structional technology topics for fellow L.O. staff.

Techno Dragons, as they call themselves, recently launched a new website. While the website was originally created for staff, par-ents may also find it very helpful. Please take a few minutes to check out this great re-source.

http://lotechnodragons.weebly.com/index.html

A huge thank you to the following Techno Dragons for sharing their expertise and love for technology.

Zach Abeel—Waldon Nick Coccia—Waldon

Dakotah Cooper— Carpenter/Webber Scott Cox—Oakview

Jillyan Fuller—Oakview Gretchen Hynes—Carpenter Leann Maddox—Oakview

Rick Messick—LOHS Melissa Middleton—LOHS

Kat Montei—Waldon Steve Tighe—LOHS

FRESHMAN ACADEMY

This year a Freshman Academy was implemented at the high school for all 9th grade students. The purpose of the academy is to ensure a successful first year of high school, therefore, establishing a strong foundation for the remaining three years.

Students are in teams, sharing the same three teachers in their schedule, very similar to the mid-dle school concept. These three teachers meet weekly to discuss student progress including aca-demic and behavioral.

In addition, there is a mentoring component to

the academy where upper classmen interact and build relationships with freshmen.

While it has only been a short couple of months for this new concept, teachers report it is going well. This is a concept that the high school had researched and thought about for several years. They are excited to finally have the Freshman Academy started. A survey will be done near the middle of the year to gather input and feedback. Revisions and/or en-hancements will then take place accordingly.

Words Their Way

K-5 classrooms recently revisited how spelling is taught in elementary school. Based on al-most 20 years of research on how the brain acquires new words and remembers how to spell them, Lake Orion adopted Words Their Way. This developmental word study program instructs students at their ability level. Each classroom has several word study groups, studying skills in the area where assessments show they would most benefit. The program includes instruction in phonics, spelling and vocabulary. Unlike its predecessors, Words Their Way does not only rely on weekly spelling words or Friday spelling tests. The heart of the Words Their Way program is in sorting words into categories, learning spelling rules and applying word knowledge to deter-mine meaning and spell unknown words. There is an emphasis on more than just a predetermined list of words. Students are taught to apply their knowledge to new contexts, use their knowledge to edit their own writing and to use resources to spell words when they are not able to determine the spelling on their own.

Please see the attachment for further details including how you can support your child at home.

Parent Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

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COMMON CORE Frequently asked questions…..

What Is the Common Core State Standards Initiative?

The Common Core State Standards Initiative is a state-led effort to establish a shared set of clear educational standards for English lan-guage arts and mathematics that states can voluntarily adopt. The standards have been informed by the best available evidence and the highest state standards across the country and globe. They are designed by a diverse group of teachers, experts, parents, and school administrators, so they reflect both our aspira-tions for our children and the realities of the classroom. These standards are designed to ensure that students graduating from high school are prepared to go to college or enter the workforce and that parents, teachers, and students have a clear understanding of what is expected of them. The standards are bench-marked to international standards to guarantee that our students are competitive in the emerging global marketplace.

Why do we need educational stand-ards?

Educational standards help ensure that all stu-dents, no matter where they live, are prepared for success in postsecondary education and the workforce. Common standards will help ensure that students are receiving a high qual-ity education consistently, from school to school and state to state. Common standards will provide a greater opportunity to share experiences and best practices within and across states that will improve our ability to best serve the needs of students.

Standards do not tell teachers how to teach, but they do help teachers figure out the knowledge and skills their students should have so that teachers can build the best les-sons and environments for their classrooms. Standards also help students and parents by setting clear and realistic goals for success.

Standards are a first step — a key building block — in providing our young people with a high-quality education that will prepare them for success in college and work. Of course, standards are not the only thing that is need-ed for our children’s success, but they provide an accessible roadmap for our teachers, par-ents, and students.

What will these Common Core State standards mean for students?

The standards will provide more clarity about and consistency in what is expected of stu-dent learning across the country. Until now, every state has had its own set of academic standards, meaning public education students at the same grade level in different states have been expected to achieve at different levels. This initiative will allow states to share information effectively and help provide all students with an equal opportunity for an education that will prepare them to go to college or enter the workforce, regardless of where they live. Common standards will not prevent different levels of achievement among students. Rather, they will ensure more con-sistent exposure to materials and learning experiences through curriculum, instruction, and teacher preparation among other supports for student learning. In a global economy, students must be prepared to compete with not only their American peers in the next state, but with students from around the world. Theses standards will help prepare students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in college and careers.

How will these standards impact teachers?

The standards will provide important goals for teachers to ensure they are preparing stu-dents for success in college and the work-force. They will help teachers develop and implement effective strategies for their stu-

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COMMON CORE Frequently asked questions….. continued

The common core state standards will help colleges and pro-fessional development programs better prepare teachers; pro-vide the opportunity for teachers to be involved in the develop-ment of assessments linked to these top-quality standards; allow states to develop and provide better assessments that more accurately measure whether or not students have learned what was taught; and guide educators toward curricula and teaching strategies that will give students a deep understanding of the subject and the skills they need to apply their knowledge.

Lake Orion is in the process of transitioning to Common Core Standards. Full implementation will take place in 2014-2015.

We have been preparing for this change which ultimately raises the bar on student expectations and performance at each grade level. Common Core is a very important initiative in education. Additional information can be found at: http://www.corestandards.org

DID YOU KNOW…….

In Lake Orion Community Schools there are a total of 215 students who are English learners, meaning English is their second language. Of those 215, 145 of these students are receiving services to increase their English speaking skills by our English Learner Services program .

The first languages of our EL students include the following:

Albanian, Armenian, Arabic, Bengali, Bosnian, Chinese, Farsi, Filipino, Finnish, French, German, Guajarati, Hangzhou, Hmong, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Macedonian, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, Tagalog, Telugu, Thai, Urdu, Vietnamese, Cambodian/Spanish, French/Japanese, Punjabi/Hindu, Japanese/Russian, Tagalog, Ilocano, Chinese/Japanese.

G.E.D. Test—New test coming soon

A brand new GED test will be offered in January, 2014. Once the new test begins, incomplete scores from the current test will expire.

The new test will only be offered on the computer. It is a computerized test, but not on-line, which means it cannot be accessed on any computer only at an au-thorized GED testing site. Individuals will need to be familiar with the computer and terminology such as drag and drop, etc. The new test will be more rigor-ous, just like the high school curriculum has been up-dated to get students ready for post-secondary educa-tion and employment training.

Until the new test is presented, Lake Orion Adult Educa-tion will provide the current test either paper and pencil or computer based.

There is no better time to test than NOW!

CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION AND ASSESSMENT CONTACTSAND ASSESSMENT CONTACTSAND ASSESSMENT CONTACTS

Heidi Kast……...Asst. Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

Marysue Schwartzmiller….Administrative Assistant 248-693-5409 or Ext. 3908

There are items that are used in the classroom that are not what one might think to be “typical.” Besides books, maps, pens and pencils, education is enhanced by some everyday items. There are a few ideas listed below that would be very much appreciated by classroom teachers.

Please contact Marysue, in the Curriculum office at 248-693-5409 with any other ideas, drop off infor-mation or questions.

Board Games, Potato Heads, Legos

I pods

Magnetic letters

Area rugs, vinyl bean bags, and low folding beach chairs (for Reading Workshop)

Puzzles

Shell or rock collections

Fabric scraps

CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION AND ASSESSMENT CONTACTSAND ASSESSMENT CONTACTSAND ASSESSMENT CONTACTS

Heidi Kast……...Asst. Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

Marysue Schwartzmiller….Administrative Assistant 248-693-5409 or Ext. 3908

Parent Curriculum, Instruction

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All LO schools will be collec ng used books from November 5th‐15th. Books for all ages will be collected. Boxes of books may be dropped off at any Lake Orion school during regular school hours or during parent teacher conferences (if the dates coin‐cide). Books will be sorted and teachers will “shop” for books for students in their classrooms. Books that go un‐adopted will be donated to charity. It’s a great me to clean those bookshelves!

SEE ATTACHMENT

LOCS to Host 3rd Annual Book Drive

REQUESTED

REMINDER:

Fall Parent Teacher Conferences are dur-ing the month of No-vember.

Check your calendar.

Your future is calling

need help? We’ve got your back.

Visit finishtheGED.com or text ged to 58124.

Starting in 2014, there will be a new GED® test. The current version of the GED® test is expiring at the end of 2013 and your scores will expire too if you don’t finish and pass the test by then. Finish the test now so you won’t have to re-take the parts you’ve already passed.

Finish your GED® test by the end of 2013 and get started on the life you deserve. With a high school credential, more doors open – to a better job, college, and the respect you deserve. The current version of the GED® test is expiring at the end of 2013. Answer the call today.

For more information about the GED® test or GED® testing centers near you, please contact:

The

Lake Orion Community Schools

Book Drive!

Lake Orion Community Schools is committed to supporting authentic

literacy development. By implementing the Reader’s Workshop approach to

reading instruction, we are focusing on student choice, control, and

independence. Our readers make important decisions about what they read,

and their books are matched with their abilities and interests. It is therefore

vitally important for all students to have a wide selection of appropriate books.

The average elementary student reads as many as two books a week

during Reader’s Workshop. Each child reads 80 great books a year, and that

means each classroom reads at least 2,000 books! For our younger readers that

number doubles. Our middle school readers read approximately 40 books a

year! The bottom line . . . our schools need books more than ever before. We

hope you will be able to help us meet our goal of expanding the variety and

volume of books in each classroom.

For the 3rd consecutive year, Lake Orion Community Schools will collect

books November 5th through November 15th at all schools in Lake Orion.

Drop-off will be available during school hours and during parent teacher

conferences when applicable.

Donated books can be new or gently used. They may be of any reading

level, preschool through adult. Teachers will select books appropriate for

school use; these books will go directly to Lake Orion classrooms! Books that

are not school appropriate will be donated to charity. With the LOCS book

drive, all kids in our community benefit!

No books to donate? No problem. You are invited to become a book

sponsor and support our book drive with the purchase of a gift card to Amazon

or Barnes and Noble. Gift cards can be accepted at all Lake Orion drop off

locations.

Thank you for your supporting Lake Orion readers!

DONATE NEW

OR GENTLY USED BOOKS

TO BENEFIT

Lake Orion Community Schools

To volunteer your time or for more information on this event contact Kate DiMeo at kdimeo@lakeorion.k12.mi.us

November 5th- November 15th

at ALL

Lake Orion Community Schools Book Drop available during school hours

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Are your kids driving you crazy? Enjoy your kids again!

LA CASA AMIGA and LAKE ORION COMMUNITY SCHOOLS are happy to invite you to our class free and in spanish:

LOVE AND LOGIC This program can help you with practical advice to reduce discipline problems, temper tantrums and power struggles. You will learn tips on how to motivate your children to be more responsible with love and respect. Where: CERC Building (455 E. Scripps Road, Lake Orion) When: FRIDAYS starting January 18th 2013. Time: 11:30 – 1:30 PM Cost: FREE! - CHILDCARE PROVIDED If you are interested fill out the attached form and return to MaryAnne Thorndycraft, CERC. If you need more information, please call Gabriela Méndez at (248) 3384250 Ext. 3707.

WE’LL BE WAITING FOR YOU! ___________________________________________

I am interested in attending Name _________________________________ Phone number__________________________ Attending #____adults and #______children. Children’s ages __ ______________________

Lake Orion Community Schools

Word Study Program Words Their Way: Word Study Program for Phonics, Vocabulary,

& Spelling Instruction Words Their Way (WTW) is a developmental word study program, developed by Invernizzi, Johnston, Bear, and Templeton. WTW is an approach to spelling and word knowledge that is based on extensive research on how kids learn to spell and read. Students benefit from differentiated instruction in phonics, spelling and vocabulary. To accomplish this goal, students are taught how to examine words to learn the regularities that exist in the English Language. They are also taught some irregularities (a.k.a. oddballs). The process of sorting words into categories is the basis of the Words Their Way. When students sort words, they are engaged in the active process of searching, comparing, contrasting, and analyzing. Word sorts help students organize what they know about words and to form generalizations that they can then apply to new words they encounter in their reading. As they demonstrate mastery, they move through developmental stages. It is not unusual for students to spend a year or longer in a developmental stage especially in lower elementary. We often refer to a student being early, mid or late in a stage to help differentiate how they have progressed on the developmental continuum.

Developmental Stages

Emergent Spellers: Students spell their words with random marks, representational drawing, mock linear or letter-like writing, random letters and numbers (ages 1-7, pre k-mid first). Letter Name Spellers: Students generally spell their words with initial and final consonants and some vowels (ages 4-9, kdg thru early third). Within Word Spellers: Students spell their words with initial and final consonants, and with some blends and digraphs. In addition, they use some long- and short- vowel letter combinations (ages 6-12, grades 1 thru 4). Syllables & Affixes Spellers: Students are able to spell some words that include consonant doubling, common suffixes, and past tense endings (ages 8-18, grades 3-8). Derivational Relations Spellers: Students begin making connections between spelling and meaning. They begin learning internal morphology in syllables (bases and roots) as well as prefixes (ages 10+, grades 5-12).

At the outset, WTW may surprise parents. For those who had a traditional spelling program in school, with a list of random words to memorize and a test on Fridays, this will be different. Research clearly indicates that many students were getting 100% on Friday spelling tests but were not necessarily good spellers. These scores suggest that they were good at memorizing words for weekly tests. Conversely, WTW teaches students to look critically at words so they can build a deeper understanding of how spelling works to represent sounds and meaning. This is accomplished by sorting words into like categories based on the features words share. In a nutshell, you will see…

• Students who are grouped into appropriate developmental levels based on word study inventories. Not all kids in the classroom will have the same words.

• Students introduced to a new group of words with a specific feature as its focus weekly or bi-weekly.

• Students working with hands-on activities to sort words with common characteristics into defined groups. They may also complete word hunts, create a word wall, keep a word study notebook, or play games to apply their word knowledge.

• Students assessed using various measures not just weekly spelling tests. Students will be assessed frequently. Assessment structures vary based on developmental levels of children. Some teachers will choose to send words home to be studied in addition to the practice at school, while other teachers may choose to only practice the words at school. Both decisions are supported by the school district. Students may be assessed in multiple ways: correct identification or use of the word study feature (pattern/rule), correct spelling of words on classroom assessment and/or correct spelling in their daily work. Often assessments include words that may or may not have been shared with families to see if the child can apply the word pattern to a new word(s) that was not studied. Researchers agree, a child’s use of their word knowledge in their written work in class on a regular basis is what matters most! Lake Orion has identified year-end expectations to monitor the growth and development of our students. Please note that these expectations are for students who have been immersed in Words Their Way instruction for several years. At the onset of the program, we expect that many of our upper elementary students may fall short of these targets with the number of students meeting the expectation increasing each year that the program is in place for that child.

End of the Year Expectations Grade Level Word Study Developmental Stage

K Middle Letter Name-Alphabetic 1st Early Within Word Pattern 2nd Late Within Word Patterns 3rd Early Syllables & Affixes 4th Middle Syllables & Affixes 5th Late Syllables & Affixes

Lake Orion Community Schools Supporting Your Child’s Word Study Development

Home Support Activities • Do a “sort” with your child. Remind your child to sort words into categories like the ones at school,

having him/her read each word aloud as he/she places the words. Ask your child to explain how he/she has sorted the words.

• Have your child complete a “blind sort.” Lay one word from each category in a separate column and have your child decide in which category the remaining words belong.

• Do a “buddy sort” with your child. Lay the pattern/column headers in front of your child. Have your child listen to the word, visualize it in his/her head and determine the category without seeing the word.

• Assist your child in doing a “word hunt” by looking for words in books or magazines with the same pattern. Try to find 2-3 words for each category.

• Help your child focus on words they are close to spelling correctly. If your child spells confident (confadint), help them focus on the feature he/she is close to understanding.

• Help your child notice their patterns in words they are reading at home. Making connections between words they are sorting at school or home and words they are reading will move them into their long-term memory.

• Help your child proofread their writing for words they know how to spell. Proofreading is an excellent way to help your child understand the importance of spelling correctly.

Glossary Sorting-organizing words into groups based on similarities in their patterns or meaning. Oddballs-words that can’t be grouped into the categories of the sort. Sound marks //-sounds marks around a letter or pattern tell the student to only focus on the sound rather than the actual letters. Vowel (represented by V)-one of the six letters causing the mouth to open when vocalized (a,e,i,o,u, sometimes y). There is a single vowel sound in every syllable of a word. Consonants (represented by C)-all letters other than vowels. Consonant sounds are blocked by the lips, tongue or teeth during articulation.

Additional Information Words their Way: Word Study for Phonics, Vocabulary, and Spelling Instruction by Donald R. Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, Francine Johnston

Words Their Way Spelling Inventories: Reliability and Validity Analyses Center for Research in Educational Policy

Word Study: A New Approach to Teaching Spelling www.readingrockets.org