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www.enfieldschools.org 860.253.6500

rank Gulluni of Asnuntuck Community College (ACC) is

one of the state’s leading proponents for helping to “fill the pipeline” for career opportunities in Connecticut’s growing manufacturing industry. Growing, you ask? Absolutely. With the increased demand for a highly skilled manufacturing staff, many companies are looking to Connecticut to provide the bright, trained labor force not available overseas. New contracts for Pratt & Whitney, General Dynamics, and Sikorsky will all bring job openings, and Mr. Gulluni wants to make sure that our students today are ready to fill them. Coupled with hundreds of upcoming retirements from engineering and technology in CT – Mr. Gulluni calls them a “silver tsunami” – he wants to help the Enfield Public Schools partner with ACC to prepare students to step into these well-paying and fascinating careers.

This vision of skilled jobs and challenging careers fits well with Enfield’s vision for STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics). Enfield is in the process of developing new technology learning

pathways, revising our existing curriculum, and strengthening our curriculum and facilities to embrace a K-12 STEAM model of integrated subject area learning. Dr. Sarah F a u l k n e r , E n f i e l d ’s S T E A M Coordinator, has been working closely with Enfield and ACC staff to develop and implement a long-range plan for curriculum improvement. This year we revised our computer science curriculum in Grades 2-5 to expand keyboarding and computer skills (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, etc.), preparing students for more advanced computer-based work in middle school. We made huge changes in the middle school curriculum (see page 2), expanded our Project Lead the Way engineering courses at the high school, added a new STEAM Design high school elective, and are in the process of revising our high school computer science courses.

The varied learning and career pathways for students include engineering, science, mathematics, computer science, and, now with our expanded partnership with ACC, robotics and advanced manufacturing.

inSightsA Publication of Enfield Public Schools

Asnuntuck Community College and Enfield Public Schools: A Collaborative Partnership

From the Office of Academic Achievement

Winter 2015

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This edition of inSights highlights the valuable partnerships that Enfield Public Schools has developed. These partnerships offer a wide-range of advantages for the students, families, and teachers of Enfield Public Schools. Their impact is seen in classrooms across content areas, encompassing all grade levels throughout the district. Many of the opportunities outlined in this issue would not be possible without the support of these partners. We look forward to the continued collaboration and further s t r e n g t h e n i n g o f t h e s e relationships.

— Michelle Middleton Chief Academic Officer

inSights - Winter 2015 !2

Middle School Computers and Technology Education Pathways

A s p a r t o f o u r r o b o t i c s , computers, and technology education programs, Enfield worked with ACC to update our curriculum at JFK this yea r fo r 6 th g rade Compute r Education and 7th and 8th grade Technical Education. Sixth graders are now introduced to SCRATCH p r o g r a m m i n g , w h i c h t i e s t o mathematics concepts and computer logic. The students are highly engaged this animation-design programming with teacher Barry Scott at JFK, and are being well prepared for more advanced classes in future years.

Even bigger changes have been made in the 7th and 8th grade Tech Ed classes. Two teachers from ACC, Chris Foster and Dan Coffin, come to JFK two days a week to teach Computer Aided Drawing with SolidWorks and advanced additive manufacturing. They are working in close partnership with Tech Ed teachers Adam Mitchell, Steve Fix, John Chaves, and department chair John Dague to integrate the ACC curriculum with our traditional materials design curriculum at JFK.

An entirely new computer lab has been set up for the computer design work. Their instruction with 3-D printers extends and enhances the already exciting and challenging curriculum delivered by our JFK teachers.

Bringing ACC staff into our Enfield classrooms introduces our students to more career options, real-world applications, and college-level interest in the manufacturing and engineering fields. This coming summer, we’ll once again revise our curriculum to add even more challenging computer-aided design and three-dimensional scanning for next year’s 8th graders.

Future Extension into High School: ACC 5th Year Associate Degree

In the fall of 2016, with the opening of the renovated Enfield High School and its new Enrico Fermi STEAM Wing, Enfield will extend our ACC partnership to high school. We will offer ACC partner-taught c lasses in Technology Education in 9th grade, and, the following year, in 10th grade. These more intensive classes will provide detailed skill development in design, robotics, metals, engineering, and manufacturing. Students selecting this learning path will be able to take

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courses at ACC in their junior and senior years on more advanced manufacturing equipment, earning college credits as they do so.

To further offer opportunities to students, ACC will be offering supplementary, voluntary summer exploration programs for industry careers, plant visits, and internships with manufacturers for students interested in the 5th year program. Together, the classes can lead into ACC’s “5th Year” Associate Degree Program in Advanced Manufacturing Technology. With only one year of study at ACC after high school graduation, students will be ready to step into industry careers.

College Level Opportunities for High School Students

One of the Enfield school district’s goals is to increase the number of Enf ie ld graduates attending college. To assist students in starting on this path, Enfield offers a variety of dual-enrollment and on-

One of the Enfield School District goals

is to increase the number of graduates

attending college.

ACC Instructor Chris Foster writes with a student.

Steve Fix assists a student with 3-D design.

inSights - Winter 2015 !3

he Elementary Mathematics Department decided to look for a partnership within our schools to support the math learning for the students in the four primary schools. Over the past few years the implementation of the CT Core Mathematics curriculum’s focus on a deep understanding of number sense introduced us to many new strategies for helping our young learners deeply investigate how our number system works.

O n e t o o l t h a t h a s b e e n introduced into our instruction is the Rekenrek®, a manipulative developed by a Dutch mathematician, used to decompose and compose numbers. We wanted to put a Rekenrek® into the hands of every one of our 1,100 K-2 students throughout district.

We knew that with a few affordable art supplies, we could

A Partnership Within: Art Students Support Primary Mathematics

accomplish this; foam board, pony beads, and pipe cleaners were all it would take. There was a major hurdle to manage, however: foam board can’t be bought in a manageable size. We needed people who could manage the tools of an artist to prepare foam board and make it useable in classrooms. So the Mathematics Department turned to Richard Fahey and his high school student artists. They agreed to partner with us and prepare the materials needed for primary students to build their own tools.

Painstakingly, they cut 1,100 pieces of foam board into 4 x 6 rectangles and provided them to the primary school Art teachers, Ms. Delisio and Mrs. Martin, who, with the support of the building Math Consultants, had students make their own number rack. Now the students in the primary buildings are using their bead racks to understand 1 and 2-digit numbers, add and subtract within 100, and understand 2-digit place value. They are becoming better mathematicians through the help of the high school students.

We sometimes only have to look within our own district to find great collaborations to enhance student learning. Thanks to the high school art students for supporting the learning of our younger students!

T

ShopRite Supports Enfield Public SchoolsFrom the beginning of their time

in Enfield, Ray and Charles Miller have built a relationship with Enfield Public Schools. They are yearly supporters of the Family Resource Center, through which they provide financial support for the Autism Support Group and other parenting programs. The Millers also highlight EPS students. They sponsor the m o n t h l y R a c h e l ’s C h a l l e n g e Exceptional Acts of Kindness Awards. This award recognizes students from John F. Kennedy

High School students configure material for number racks.

to interested classes or school groups. Soon, the Art Department from EPS will be show-casing student work throughout the store. In addition, the Business Department has been working with Shop Rite and the Millers to bring real-world marketing experiences to their students. This is a partnership that continues to grow in new and exciting ways!

Middle School, Enfield High School, and Enrico Fermi High School for exemplary citizenship, leadership, a n d c o m m i t m e n t t o o t h e r s . Recipients of this award have their picture and a brief write-up posted in Shop Rite’s lobby. The Millers go to each school and present the award and prize to each student. They also take out an advertisement in local newspapers to publicly acknowledge the recognition these students have received. Shop Rite has also offered their in-house dietician as a speaker

inSights - Winter 2015 !4

The Building Tomorrow Project Expands to 2,200

grade two in 2013-14 where they c o n t i n u e t o b e s u c c e s s f u l l y implemented. The product is an effective 3-D graphic organizer for students to organize their thoughts in response to rigorous questions. Prompting questions are proposed in ELA, math, science, and/or social studies lessons, and students use their kit to create a response. Students’ creative building time supports c o m m u n i c a t i o n b y i n c r e a s i n g discussion and writing opportunities. Students effectively present their ideas by describing and elaborating on their build.

As the district moves forward with the Building Tomorrow Project, students throughout Grades K-5 will continue to use bricks in a variety of ways to unleash their imaginations. This partnership is affording students the chance to work on building 21st Century skills in unique and engaging ways.

5th Grade student from Prudence Crandall School

shares his build.

partnership with LEGO® Systems, Inc., LEGO® Education, The LEGO® Foundation and Enfield Public Schools, The Building Tomorrow Project, entered its second year in September as students in all Grades K-5 are utilizing a LEGO® product to build their way to better understandings in English language arts, math, science, and social studies. Launched on September 23rd 2013in grades K, 2, and 4, the Building Tomorrow Project is a charitable gift from The LEGO® Foundation and includes products, training, technology, and support. In September 2014, all 109 classrooms in the primary and intermediate buildings became actively involved in building with bricks.

Kindergarten students are continuing their work with Creative Builder®: a brick based product designed to teach students the basics of bui ld ing. Students have loved exploring shapes, position in space, and number sense using their kits in pairs. Grade two students continue to enthusiastically use Build to Express®. It has engaged them in hands-on lessons in higher-order thinking tasks

i n c l u d i n g c r i t i c a l t h i n k i n g , communication, and problem solving. In the intermediate buildings the f o u r t h g r a d e s t u d e n t s u s i n g S toryS tar te r® a re work ing on developing a deeper understanding of story structure, character analysis, genre, and point of view. Their building kits, used in small groups, help students develop the ability to analyze literature and retell stories, while enhancing their writing and editing skills.

This year, grade one students are working with Early Simple Machines®, a product featuring Duplo-sized bricks. Students undertake the scientific process of experimentation as they use t h e i r k i t s t o b u i l d , c o n d u c t experiments, gather data, record observations, and discuss results. During the year they will build cars, rafts, and spinning tops as they investigate forces of motion and weather conditions and develop their skills in collaboration as well as experimentation.

During the 2014-15 school year third grade students have begun using a LEGO® brick product, WeDo Robotics®. Students partner to explore six simple machines (their function and interconnectivity) to produce working robots with which they conduct experiments. Computer programming is undertaken as well, as students learn to write code with a graphics driven program and create commands for their robots to follow. Aside from the hands-on exploration these activities provide, students must collaborate with a partner and express their findings to the class as a whole in various formats.

The LEGO® product Build to Express® has been implemented in Grade Five this year. The district has entered its second year of using these bricks, which were first introduced in

A

Grade 1 students at Nathan Hale School conduct experiments

with their race cars.

inSights - Winter 2015 !5

inSights - Winter 2015 !6

nfield Public School teachers in kindergarten through eighth

grade are using the writing units of study developed by Lucy Calkins, the founder and director of the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project. These units of study ensure that students at all levels of Enfield Public Schools are being exposed to instruction of a variety of genres of writing. Students are also writing more with the idea of choice playing a critical role in the development of their writing. Enfield Public Schools has

provided primary, intermediate, and midd le schoo l t eacher s wi th professional development from Teachers College in the effective delivery of writers’ workshop. These p r o f e s s i o n a l d e v e l o p m e n t opportunities have come in a variety of forms. Over the past two years, we have had consultants from Teachers C o l l e g e d e l i v e r l a rg e g r o u p professional development sessions which explore both the elements of the writers’ workshop model and the units of study. Another form of professional development consists of

consultants spending a day at a school and modeling elements of the workshop model in classrooms with Enfield students. Enfield Public Schools has also sent language arts consultants and administrators to New York City to attend a workshop at Teachers College. Several teachers from Enfield Public Schools took advantage of The Teachers College Fall Saturday Reunion, traveling to New York City to attend this free event which offered over 125 different sessions.

E

Teachers College Implementation Now Encompasses Grades K-8 Enfield Public Schools is in its second year of implementation of the writers’ workshop model.

The strong partnership between MassMutual and Enfield Public Schools continues to flourish. Since 2006 MassMutual has supported the offering of Junior Achievement Financial Education curriculum to EPS students. Last year, students from John F. Kennedy Middle School took part in the JA in a Day curriculum that was presented by MassMutual volunteers in the spring and fall. The fall cohort of students also took part in MassMutual’s FutureSmartSM Challenge at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, MA. The FutureSmartSM Challenge is arranged in conjunction with select NBA teams where the students learn the importance of saving, career choices, staying in school, and going to college, and how each has a profound impact on their future financial success.

Enfield High School students were invited to attend MassMutual’s Building Your Future Conference at which more than 400 students from Springfield, MA and Enfield, CT gathered at Western New England University to attend interactive workshops to learn about career paths, as well as how to get into and pay for college.

At the 2014 Career Convention held at Enrico Fermi High School, MassMutual employees shared information with students regarding the Career Pathways program which provides internship opportunities, as w e l l a s r e n e w a b l e c o l l e g e scholarships that can total up to $20,000 per student. In addition, several Enfield students have been involved in MassMutual internship programs, as well as have been hired in permanent positions after college.

MassMutual has also provided space at their Chicopee Learning Center for the Enfield Public Schools’ Administrative Retreat. During the development of the new innovation lab located at John F. K e n n e d y M i d d l e S c h o o l , MassMutual was a valuable resource. Not only did they open their doors for representatives from EPS to explore their facilities so we could model the lab after their innovative style, but they also toured our site to give input on the design of the space. This is a partnership that Enfield Public Schools will work to further develop in the future.

Growing Partnership Between EPS and MassMutual

inSights - Winter 2015 !7

ohn F. Kennedy Middle School is in its second year working with

the Hartford Stage’s Connections program. The Connections program involves artist instructors going into classrooms at JFK to engage students in five days of pre-reading activities. Through the use of theatre techniques, these pre-reading activities strengthen students’ reading comprehension and build excitement about reading. These sessions also help develop students’ ability to collaborate with others, as wel l as re inforce grade- level Connecticut Core Standards in Speaking and Listening.

and students at John F. Kennedy Middle School . The s tudent engagement observed during these lessons was extremely high. The time EPS spends involved in the Connections program will benefit us for years to come, as the units developed will be used each year and the techniques learned by watching the artist instructors engage in pre-reading activities will add new tools to our teachers’ instructional practices.

Hartford Stage Brings Reading to Life

Students who successfully complete the courses are awarded college transcripts for their work while earning high school credits. Like many Advanced Placement (AP) courses, students can use these credits toward earning an associate’s or bachelor’s college degree at a variety of different colleges and universities.

Another avenue for earning college credit while still in high school is available through ACC’s High School Partnership. This program, available to juniors and seniors, enables qualified students to take one class per semester for free at ACC.

campus programs that allow students to earn college credits while still in high school. Our two largest programs are with ACC and UConn. Through our dual-enrol lment partnerships with ACC’s College Career Pathways program and the University of Connecticut’s Early College Experience program, students can earn college credit while taking qualified high school courses in science, mathematics, English, business, social studies, child development, and more. For both programs, our Enfield teachers are screened, trained, and certified to teach college-level courses to high school students.

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It is the belief of the Hartford Stage that students’ involvement in these activities will increase their interest in the book. At the end of the five days of lessons, the Hartford Stage provides students with the text that is the focus of the unit. Students read the book within their classes and then engage in interdisciplinary projects that focus on the themes presented in the reading.

Last year, the artist instructors introduced the sixth grade teams to the book The Man-Eating Tigers of Sundarbans. Teams were able to engage students in projects that related to science, social studies, math, and english/language arts topics. This year, the eighth grade teams will be working with the artist instructors through the Connections program. The focus of the unit will be Diary of a Young Girl.

This program was well-received last year by the sixth grade teachers

JFK 6th Grade students acting out a scene.

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A Hartford Stage Artist Instructor introducing content through role play.

Adam Mitchell facilitates student work in SolidWorks.

Enfield Public Schools Central Office 27 Shaker Road Enfield, Connecticut 06082

Contact Information

Tel: (860) 253-6500 Fax: (860) 253-6510 www.enfieldschools.org

Since the 2003 formation of Enfield’s Early Education Collaborative, Key Initiatives To Early Education (KITE), the Enfield Public Schools has sat at the table as a committed partner. The mission of KITE is to ensure that all families with young children in Enfield have knowledge of, and access to, quality early care and educational opportunities both in and outside of the home. KITE works to heighten awareness and aims to promote the shared use of local resources to ensure that our youngest residents are prepared to learn. The work is guided by a comprehensive Early Childhood Community Plan with three areas of focus: Early Education and Care, Health, and Family Engagement.

Being a part of a strong, town-wide collaborative provides numerous opportunities to work together on behalf of Enfield’s children, birth to age 8. The first five years of a child’s life are particularly important for the development of the child's brain, and the first three years are the most critical in shaping the child's brain architecture.

• Partnering with KITE, Enfield Public Schools has had the opportunity to participate in a state sponsored Age 3 to Grade 3 Institute affording the district the opportunity to create an action plan to align teaching practices and curriculum to a state framework. As an outgrowth of that work, practices and strategies are being implemented in various areas including: increasing family engagement, sharing professional development for area early educators and the schools, opening lines of communication between early education and care centers and the primary schools, and embedding techniques to support the development of executive function skills in children.

• Asnuntuck Community College has created an Asnuntuck Substitute Teacher Training Institute in partnership with the Enfield Public Schools and KITE. The Institute offers training to individuals who are currently employed as a substitute teacher and/or those wishing to become a substitute teacher in the future. Instruction is given on a variety of classroom management skills, including strategies for working with special needs children, and how to handle emergency situations. The coursework is designed for students interested in substitute teaching in Pre-K through grade two classrooms.

• First Readers is a unique town-wide program that recognizes and celebrates a key milestone in learning - becoming a reader! Once a child has been certified by his or her teacher as being able to read one of a selection of books fluently for the first time, each child’s huge accomplishment is acknowledged by celebrating with the Enfield Community. Children receive a First Readers certificate and medal presented by their teacher, and recognition at a special town ceremony where they will receive a First Readers t-shirt.

• Through a grant secured by KITE, a series of literacy and math events for families whose primary language is Spanish are being held. The series focuses on giving families information on grade level expectations and offers strategies they can use in the home to help their children. Bilingual parents have been trained to conduct the workshops, facilitate family game nights, and organize a tour of the Pearl Street Library.

• As a result of KITE’s Early Childhood Community Plan, which showed that the community wanted more Family Resource Centers in Enfield, the second Family Resource Center opened in September 2012 at the Hazardville Memorial School through a grant from the LEGO® Children’s Fund. In its second and third year of operation, the local business community has also provided funding to sustain this program. This site just moved to the Harriet Beecher Stowe building, which will become an Early Learning Center in the near future.