Principal s Breakfast

2. Principal’ s Breakfast –  Updates: - Kindergarten Open House – Approximately 12 families attended a successful program. Several families called in advance who could not attend but planned on enrolling. It was a great night! - Registrations are currently being taken for students in grades K-8 for the 2011-12 school year. - Preschool Enrollment – The preschool currently has enrolled 51 students in its programs for next year. Registrations are still being taken. - Security – Following our security assessment, we have moved the desk by the front entrance to face the doors and parking lot. We are in the process of insuring that staffing is consistent every day. Currently, we have volunteers working the front desk, but may need to move to staff to attend this main entrance. In the mean time, we have received bids to have an external camera and buzzer system installed for use during school hours. Students would still enter and exit in the Ministry Center and the front doors, but during school hours, these doors would be locked and all visitors would enter through the side doors (old entrance) that leads to the office. Visitors would be welcomed and let in this door and come right to the main office to sign in and receive a visitor badge. This would help us monitor all visitors and welcome them in our main office as well. It will be approximately 4-6 weeks before the installation is complete. We will keep you up to date on any new information. - Hot lunch – We have moved to 5 day hot lunch again. Mary has come up with a plan that will allow her one day to attend to other duties while seeking volunteers to help with a “power prep” that will help also. Thank you for your feedback as we continue to work on providing a great hot lunch program that also fits within the resources allowed for the program. - Marketing mailings – The Marketing committee has helped mail postcards for our school to school age families in Mahtomedi and the neighboring cities where our students come from. - Look for more updates to come in Principal emails.

3. Overview of Program The unique benefits of the PYP

4. Contents Why consider the International Baccalaureate? IB mission statement IB Learner profile Defining the PYP PYP curriculum model Essential elements Knowledge Concepts Skills Attitudes Action Assessment Catholic Connections Next Steps Questions and Answers Page 4

5. Why consider the International Baccalaureate? Last year, St. Jude of the Lake School completed our Accreditation renewal process. From the Self Study, strengths and weaknesses were identified. Since then, we have been expanding the self study, doing evaluations, discussing future options with parents, staff, and leadership. From this, we have identified several areas of focus - One key area identified was enrollment. To increase enrollment, we have looked at our school from all areas – identifying strengths, challenges, opportunities and threats. Page 5

6. Why consider the International Baccalaureate? We have noted that Catholic schools have seen a decline in enrollment nationally. At the same time, education has become much more competitive. Schools are providing more specialized programs or a specific focus for their community. How parents choose schools has changed as well. Though this can be a challenge, it is also an opportunity for us to look at ways to improve and provide an even higher quality of Catholic education.  Page 6

7. Why consider the International Baccalaureate? IB takes the best practices and forms them into a cohesive framework that the whole building lives in.  Everyone uses the same language so it’s an expectation of how things are done.  It’s a concept-based (rather than content in isolation) so connections are made continuously through all of the disciplines – that’s “transdisciplinary”. It also pushes us all to become more globally-minded in the process. IB provides an external accountability and reputation of rigorous academics. Page 7

8. Why consider the International Baccalaureate? IB is rooted in “best practice” - Best practices are the pedagogy that teachers are using every day in their classrooms to effectively instruct.  They can include but are not limited to:  Inquiry (the backbone of the PYP) Collaboration (another backbone – we often think we are working collaboratively because we are “getting along” but it’s more than just the social getting along piece – it’s the negotiating of instruction and collective agreement of what is good for students) Reader’s & Writer’s Workshop Responsive Classroom The viewpoint that every teacher is a reading and writing teacher (or a teacher of language) Page 8

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14. Page 14 Definition: How is the PYP defined? The IB Primary Years Program focuses on the development of the whole child as an inquirer, both in the classroom and in the world outside. The PYP addresses the social, physical, emotional and cultural needs of each child. At the same time, it gives children a strong foundation in all of the major areas of knowledge: mathematics, social studies, drama, language arts, music, visual arts, science, personal and social education and physical education. The IB program is based on the principle that children learn by using their previous experience to make sense of new information.

15. Page 15 Learners constructing meaning: How is the PYP curriculum defined?  Written curriculum Taught curriculum Assessed curriculum This is a model whereby all three components inform each other.

16. Learners constructing meaning: What are the essential elements of the programme? Page 16 Knowledge Concepts Skills Attitudes Action

17. Essential elements: How are they described in the PYP curriculum? Knowledge Significant, relevant content we wish the students to explore and know about, taking into consideration their prior experience and understanding Concepts Powerful ideas that have relevance within the subject areas but also transcend them and that students must explore and re-explore in order to develop a coherent, in-depth understanding. Skills Those capabilities the students need to demonstrate to succeed in a changing, challenging world, which may be disciplinary or transdisciplinary in nature. Page 17

18. Essential elements: How are they described in the PYP curriculum? Attitudes Dispositions that are expressions of fundamental values, beliefs and feelings about learning, the environment and people Action Demonstrations of deeper learning in responsible behaviour through responsible action; a manifestation in practice of the other essential elements Page 18

19. Concepts: What are the PYP concepts? Form - What is it like? The understanding that everything has a form with recognizable features that can be observed, identified, described and categorized. Function - How does it work? The understanding that everything has a purpose, a role or a way of behaving that can be investigated. Causation - Why is it like it is? The understanding that things do not just happen, that there are causal relationships at work, and that actions have consequences. Change - How is it changing? The understanding that change is the process of movement from one state to another. It is universal and inevitable. Connection - How is it connected to other things? The understanding that we live in a world of interacting systems in which the actions of any individual element affect others. Page 19

20. Concepts: What are the PYP concepts? Perspective – What are the point of view? The understanding that knowledge is moderated by perspectives; different perspectives lead to different interpretations, understandings and findings; perspectives may be individual, group, cultural or disciplinary. Perspectives may be individual, group, cultural or disciplinary. Responsibility – What is our responsibility? The understanding that people make choices based on their understandings and the actions they take as a result do make a difference. Reflection – How do we know? The understanding that there are different ways of knowing, and that it is important to reflect on our conclusions, to consider our methods of reasoning, and the quality and the reliability of the evidence we have considered. Page 20

21. Page 21 Attitudes: What are the PYP attitudes? Appreciation Commitment Confidence Cooperation Creativity Curiosity Empathy Enthusiasm Independence Integrity Respect Tolerance

22. Page 22 Action: How is action defined in the PYP ? Successful inquiry may lead to action, initiated by the student as a result of the learning process. This action may extend the student’s own learning, the learning of others or it may have a wider social impact It is intended that the student taking action will grow from the experience, and that the process of taking action, or not, will contribute to each student establishing a set of values.

23. Assessment in the PYP The prime objective of assessment in the PYP is to provide feedback on the learning process. It identifies what students know, understand, can do, and feel at different stages in the learning process. Teachers select assessment strategies to support how students learn and perform Teachers design assessment instruments to reflect the particular learning outcomes on which they intend to give feedback. Students and teachers are actively involved in the assessment process. Page 23

24. Overview of the PYP Page 24

25. Catholic Connections Page 25

26. Next Steps: Continue visits to schools Evaluate program from academic perspective Use concepts in classrooms as part of exploration Complete Self Study Present information to councils Share information with parents, parishioners Make recommendation to Father Talbot Page 26

27. Questions? Thank you for attending Page 27

28. Some additional information should the IB program be implemented in the future: TUITION: The implementation of the IB program would not impact tuition. Tuition has been held for the last few years. Any future increases would be based on the same factors as in the past. These increases would be similar to those over the years. St. Jude of the Lake School will remain competitive and continue to be a Catholic school, not a private school, so our tuition will continue to reflect this. TIMELINE: The exploration phase is currently underway. The self study and information will be shared with the Parish, Finance and School Advisory Councils in late March. Summary information will be shared with parents and parishioners in late March, early April. A recommendation will be made to Father Talbot preferably in April. If the decision is to implement the IB, the first application would be submitted this spring. Over the next 18 months, the program would be implemented with an application for authorization completed in the fall of 2012. We would receive notice regarding authorization during the 2012-13 school year. CURRICULUM: Because the IB is “how” you teach, not “what” you teach, St. Jude of the Lake School will continue to use our curriculum which is based on State and National Standards. True learning comes from communicating these standards so students learn them and retain the information as “life-long learners”. So the most important part of education is instruction. Teachers would be trained in “best practices” of instruction in the IB framework. In addition, it is important to teach the whole child. The IB program develops inquirers who acquire the “learner profiles” as attributes that can be applied to any future program, school, job or situation. With the cohesive language and way of instructing, all students develop the skills needed to succeed in any situation. Page 28

29. Additional Information continued…. MARKETING: In a time when more schools are specializing and “branding” themselves, the International Baccalaureate at St. Jude of the Lake School would give the school a unique brand that would provide a world renowned, rigorous academic program in a Catholic environment. St. Jude of the Lake School would be the only Catholic school to offer the IB, setting the school apart from both public and Catholic schools. For families looking for the Catholic identity and environment but also high academics, St. Jude of the Lake would provide both. TRAINING: Staff would attend training and then begin meeting in levels to apply their learning. “Best practices” in instruction would be enhanced as the staff would work to organize our curriculum in transdisciplinary themes using the elements of the IB program. Students would experience a gradual deepening of these practices and a focus inquiry within the classroom with the student at the center of the learning. FUNDING: To help cover the costs to provide additional training and for fees to implement the program, we are seeking funders or programs that would help fund the staff development or assist with other costs. Funding for staff development, improvement costs for classroom supplies, library, technology and others are part of the operating budget and need to be addressed to keep the school focused on excelling and competing in the future. Page 29