NEW HOPE SCHOOL DISTRICT CURRICULUM INITIATIVE

1. NEW HOPE SCHOOL DISTRICT CURRICULUM INITIATIVE Anne Hoover

2. ISLLC Standards Components Addressed by the Reading Workshop Initiative Standard 1: The Vision of Learning Standard 2: The Culture of Teaching and Learning Standard 3: The Management of Learning Facilitating the development, articulation, implementation and stewardship of a school or district vision of learning that is shared and supported by the school community by • 1.17 --Developing the vision • 1.19 -- Communicating the vision • 1.22 -- Implementing plans to achieve goals • 1.23 -- Using data to develop goals • 1.28 -- Monitoring and evaluating Advocating, nurturing and sustaining a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and staff professional growth by • 2.29 –Promoting student growth • 2.34 -- Developing assessment strategies • 2.40 –Monitoring the student learning focus • 2.43 – Expecting lifelong learning • 2.44 – Using professional development • 2.55 –Having high expectations • 2.67 – Meeting students’ needs Ensuring management of the organization, operations and resources for a safe, efficient and effective learning environment • 3.76 -- Making management decisions to ensure successful teaching and learning • 3.80 -- Supporting quality instruction and student learning • 3.82 -- Creating a safe, healthy environment to ensure successful teaching and learning • 3.84 -- Developing procedures to ensure successful teaching and learning • 3.81 & 3.96 -- Developing distributed leadership • 3.92 -- Allocating resources to ensure successful teaching and learning

3. SWOTS Applicable to the Reading Workshop • Weaknesses • Blanketed  directives/policies from school board • Summative assessment is primary method of assessment • Student data not driving instruction • Outdated  curriculum/textbooks • Insufficient  professional development   • Opportunities • Increasing  population  of retirements/hiring of new teachers  • Parent Volunteers • Staff/Administration communication • Full day kindergarten • Scheduling • New initiatives for new assessment methods • Threats • Budget • Cut programs/personnel • Global change • Traditions holding back progress • Time testing/teaching to the test • Time stolen to NCLB • Federal and state mandates without funding Strengths Tradition  of  excellence   Committed  staff High expectations of professional growth through education/training for teachers Opportunities for students to be civically involved Parent Involvement High standardized tests Culturally strong ethnic groups/communities

4. Activate Your Thinking • Think of your favorite book and why it was your favorite book. Was it a book you had to read or one you choose to read?

5. Why Read? • To become functional literate? • To score proficient on a test? • or • To nurture lifelong readers and thinkers? • To cultivate social responsibility? • To inspire relevant 21st century thinking? • To make a difference?

6. Non-negotiables in the Teaching of Reading • A set of beliefs about how children learn to read • Beautiful settings in which to read • Real reasons to read • Big blocks of time • High-quality books and plenty of them • A school wide stance that reading is “cool” • Powerful models • Well-informed teachers (Harwayne, 2000)

7. Why a Reading Workshop? • Problem: • Districts implementing scientifically based commercial reading programs to move students to proficient reading levels which has caused teachers to dramatically change their pedagogy (Miller & Higgins, 2008) The Real Problem: • Districts are not focusing on characteristics and abilities of the readers they are teaching (Serafini, 2005)

8. What is a Reading Workshop? • Components: • Mini-lesson - Whole Group 10-15 minute lesson Based on students’ needs Strategies, skills, and literary analysis (Fountas & Pinnell, 2001)

9. What is a Reading Workshop? • Components: • Independent Reading/Conferencing- One to one or small group instruction Teaching a student, not a text Strategy groups based on need Students become lost in their books which they are reading with approximately 98% accuracy (Ivey, 2000)

10. What is a Reading Workshop? • Components: • Peer Discussions – Students paired with students on their level Motivates, substantiates, validates, investigates, and evaluates (Cole, 2003)

11. What is a Reading Workshop? • Components: • Closure – Whole group Summarizes Guides instruction more than compiling materials and methods, must infuse them with a sense of priority and vision, passion, and grace (Calkins, 2001)

12. Strengths and Opportunities Specific to New Hope

13. ReferencesAssaf, L. (2006). One reading specialist’s response to high-stakes testing procedures. The Reading Teacher, 60, 158-166.Assaf, L. (2008). Professional identify of a reading teacher: responding to high-stakes testing pressures. Teachers and Teaching, 14, 239-252.Calkins, L. (2001). The art of teaching reading (1st ed.). New York: Addison WesleyCole, A.D. (2003). Knee to knee, eye to eye circling in on comprehension. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinemann.Fountas, I. C. & Pinnell, G. S. (2001). Guiding readers and writers grades 3-6. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinemann.Ivey, G. (2000). Redesigning reading instruction. Educational Leadership, 58, 42-45.Lause, J. (2004). Using reading workshop to inspire lifelong readers. English Journal, 93, 24-30. Miller, D. (2009). The book whisper. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-BassMiller, M. & Higgins, B. (2008). Beyond test preparation: nurturing successful learners through reading and writing workshops. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 124-127.Reutzel, D. R. & Mitchell, J. (2005). High-stakes accountability themed issues: how did we get here from there? The Reading Teacher, 58, 606-608.Santman, D. (2002). Teaching to the test? Test preparation in the reading workshop. Language Arts, 79, 203-211.Serafini, F. (2005). Implementing a workshop approach to reading. Academic exchange quarterly. Available: http://www.frankserafini.com/PubArticles/ImplentRdgWkshp.htm.Swift, K. (1993). Try reading workshop in your classroom. The Reading Teacher, 46, 366-371.