Adventure Works Marketing Plan

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In learning you will teach and in teaching you will learn - Phil Collins

I thrive on the opportunity to learn with my students each day. As an educator, I am tasked with providing a rich environment for my students to encounter and discover new things. In return, I am able to experience these things with them as they observe, understand, and make connections for the first time. Through my career (and my life), I am continuously searching for areas in which to grow. Although I am continuing to grow, I am confident that I am making a positive difference in my students lives. I am able to achieve this through strong and meaningful relationships, engaging activities, positive classroom management, and data-driven lesson planning tailored to individual students. I take pride in building a safe and inviting environment that allows students to grow not only educationally but also socially and emotionally. Providing a space where students feel comfortable to ask questions enhances the educational experiences of all students and builds a learning community that fosters successful life-long learners. Thank you for taking the time to view my portfolio. Please feel free to contact me with any questions.

ContentsContents2A Tour of My Classroom3Environment Building4Classroom Management5Assessment Data6Parent / Family Contact7Creative Lesson Plans8Certification and Professional Development9

A Tour of My ClassroomStandard Boards are used to display essential questions being discussed in the current unit. Along with essential questions, which may cover many standards and units, student-friendly I can statements are posted for reference through each unit or lesson. This standard board shows students answering the question What is matter made of?. The standards that were covered while answering this question are 6.PS.1.1.a Each atom takes up space, has mass and is in constant motion. Mass is the amount of matter in an object, 6.PS.1.1.b Elements are a class of substances composed of a single kind of atom, 6.PS.1.1.c Molecules are the combination of two or more atoms that are joined together chemically, and 6.PS.1.1.d Compounds are composed of two or more different elements. Each element and compound has properties, which are independent of the amount of the sample. At this time, students were comparing and contrasting molecules and compounds. Word Walls are located directly above standard boards for each grade where students can view and review content-specific vocabulary terms. Theses terms are chosen directly from the curriculum and content standards. These word walls also take the stress of spelling new terms out of using them in extended responses and promote the use of the proper content-specific vocabulary in class discussion.

The Reading Corner is available to all students. As a science teacher I use this area to promote literacy across the content areas. Both non-fiction and fiction texts are accessible to students for reading in class and also to borrow and read at home. Texts that are related to the current unit are displayed prominently for students to browse and discover more about topics that interest them.

Environment Building I take pride in building a safe and inviting environment that allows students to grow not only educationally but also socially and emotionally. I believe that this environment needs to be cultivated from the first day of school and nurtured throughout the year.

Welcome Back letters to students provide information about me as a person and as a learner, allowing students to begin to get to know me and become more comfortable looking to me for help. All About You Activities give students an opportunity to let me know who they are and how they learn.

Goal Setting Activities provide students with the opportunity to determine what their goals are and what steps they can take to reach their goals in and outside of the classroom.

Class Meeting takes place each day at the start of every class. Each student is asked how they are feeling and what their goal is for the days class. Examples are provided at the beginning of the school year and students elaborate as they learn to share their feelings and set short-term goals for behavior and productivity.

Character-Building Activities are integrated throughout the school year, providing opportunities for students to grow socially and emotionally. Pictured is a team-building cooking activity where students had to work together to make a dessert and an activity where students practiced giving and receiving compliments culminating in valentines written to themselves. Classroom Management I believe that positive behavior management is key to a well-managed and friendly environment. Setting expectations for students and providing consistent rewards and consequences related to these expectations provides students with the consistency, stability, and positive reinforcement they need to develop positive behavioral habits that will follow them throughout their lives.

Expectations are posted where they can be seen at all times. As expectations for a specific activity or time of day change or become more specific they need to be communicated and posted for reference by students and the teacher.

I use Class Dojo in my classroom to provide immediate feedback to students as they participate in class allowing them to self-monitor their behavior throughout class. This also provides families with constant and immediate updates of student behavior both positive and negative.

Assessment Data I use data from assessments to guide lesson planning and grouping. Data is gathered from pre-assessments, formative, and summative assessments. As data is collected and analyzed, adjustments are made to meet the needs of individual learners. I collect data using spreadsheets that allow me to identify many details related to student success. Each question is analyzed individually to provide insight into the individual students understanding and an overall class understanding of each question. All questions are also labeled based on its Marzano Level of understanding, allowing me to determine how deeply each student understands the material. Once data is collected, I review and analyze it to determine a course of action to ensure that all students are moving toward mastery and students who have reached mastery are being challenged to go above and beyond, building deeper understanding of the concept at hand.

Parent / Family Contact Keeping parents and families informed and active in student learning is key to helping student develop into life-long learners. Contact Sheets are sent home at the beginning of the year to help me get to know my students families and how they would like to communicate with me throughout the year. This also allows families to provide any additional information about the student they may find relevant.

Class Dojo keeps families informed about student behavior both positive and negative and also allows another forum for communication.

Monday Folders are a consistent form of communication that provides a weekly update on all class activities. Students take home their Monday Folders each week containing a weekly newsletter, completed work, and any additional news that needs to be shared with families. The folder then comes back to school and provides a means of communication for families to contact me with any concerns or needed information.

Student-Led Conferences allow me as the teacher to facilitate students communication with their families about their own progress. These conversations help students communicate their goals and achievements. Through these interactions with whole families I am able to discuss the goals of the family and how we can support the student in achieving them as a team.Creative Lesson PlansMy goal for each school year is to provide learning experiences where students are introduced to new material and given the tools to understand and apply these new concepts in meaningful ways. I achieve this by mixing differentiated, hands-on activities, class discussion, independent practice, and group work that allow students to interact with the material in a multitude of different ways.

Certification and Professional Development

Certification / Professional Organizations 1. Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics2. National Science Teachers Association3. Flinn Scientific Safety Certified4. CPR / First Aid

Professional Development1. Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics Annual ConferenceOctober 19, 20122. Positive Behavioral Interventions and SupportsAugust 20, 20133. Response to Intervention August 22, 20134. Teacher Based Teams TrainingAugust 29, 20135. Marzano Training October 14, 20136. Value AddedJuly 16, 20147. Professional Learning Communities July 17, 20148. Standards Based Grading July 29, 20149. Alternative AssessmentJanuary 24, 201410. Ohio Teacher Evaluation SystemJuly 15, 201411. Value AddedJuly 16, 201412. Professional Learning Communities July 17, 201413. iCurioJanuary 13, 2015[Type text]Page 4