SIT Minutes from 10/16/09

SIT Purpose
Ed Yes - NCLB
Data driven to support strand 4 - parent & community parent involvement

SIT Literacy goals - same as last year as identified areas of focus from MEAP and rept card data.
paragraphing
revision
rdg
differentiated
discussion - writing paragraphs ...sorry, but you asked
GLCE expectations
staff will continue to address grammar in the revision/editing process

strategies
EMU workshops - camille reported out past wkshops
attendance ~ 25 families a night
Q - to continue w/ EMU workshops and/or do Literacy Night
Differentiated between the 2
Lit Night - focus on what we do at King
EMU - family participation
Point of leverage - what makes the most sense for parents
focus on one literacy night - what happens in the classroom
focus- personal narrative - camille reported out
kevin will bring back to staff to elicit teacher help for literacy night

-I can put together a keynote personal narrative/small moment presentation for K-2 teachers. I would be interested in presenting the 1st and I could also present the 2nd gr writing if you'd like -- if they are not at the same time each night.

Minutes from 2/6/09 meeting

Introduce session
Model session with students
Discuss what has been seen

Set up childcare

Reading journals
3-5 reader’s workshop: minilesson, guided reading, independent reading, reading journals, literature circles
K-2 reader’s workshop: minilesson, centers, guided reading, word work

K-2 Writer’s workshop
3-5 writer’s workshop: mentor book, minilesson (writer’s hook the readers with their lead), write, share

Keep in mind how teachers interact during the lesson

From Lisa—thanks!
Family Writing Night
-survey = 2+s and 1 wish
-dates set
-add another required field for Writing Night sign-up -- email address or phone number for sign-up for follow-up survey purposes
-Q Should we do a follow-up survey to help us plan for next year? What is it that we want to find out?
Was this workshop helpful to you this year?
How did this workshop help you?
Check-in w/ parents in survey to see if families had the opportunity to follow-up and use some of the writing ideas?
Do we want to know if parents are doing something differently, or do we want to know if parents have a better understanding.
Kevin and Camille will power through the survey idea and determine a Q that represents what we want to find out and bring it back by April 3
-inform parents and make sure there's an understanding that we're not all about MEAP writing

Literacy Night Models
-not on curriculum night
-make sure there's a connection between K-2 demo models and 3-5 demo models in what is presented
-Hey Kevin...is this a one or two night thing?

readers workshop
explanation to parents about what is a readers workshop and how guided reading is one piece of the readers workshop
K-2 mini lesson, centers, guided rdg
3-5 mini lesson, reading response letters, guided rdg

writers workshop
explanation to parents about what is a writers workshop
sharing writing calendar w/ parents so that they see how their kids are involved in multigenre writing throughout the year. Share this information at Curriculum Night, too.
model,/show parents what a mini lesson looks like and then have students' writing to demonstrate how students...
revise to show and not tell, craft a lead, inner thought

SIT Plan

Minutes of 2/6/09 SIT meeting

Reviewed SIP action steps w/ SIT

Ed Yes draft will be sent to all to review before submitting to Todd

Family writing workshop:
Three 90 minutes workshops
Time: 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.
Dates: Thurs., March 26
Tues., March 31
Mon., April 6
Place: Media Center and workspace in classrooms?
Kevin will give teachers workshop insert for newsletters
Kevin will explore having one of the three workshops at Greenbaxter
-we'll need shuttle service
-enough room?
-Colleen will draft a survey parents at Greenbaxter as to their needs (transportation, what nights of the week, etc.)
Follow-up survey: Camille will check into combining EMU & King survey - quick check w/ a place for comments to give families at the end of each session. Possible survey for kids
Food: Water - Camille will check w/ Busch's for a donation

Literacy Night (plan for next year)
-earlier rather than later in the school year, Sept. suggestion
-combination curriculum night & literacy night suggestion
-separate K-2 and 3-5 sessions
-informative - what happens in the workshops and ways for parents to support
-create common understand
-common language
-reading workshop
guided reading
read aloud
shared reading
interactive reading
word work
idea to have some kids present to model guided reading & mini lesson
-writing workshop
word work
reading like a writer
writing process- brainstorm, draft, revise, edit, publication

Minutes from 1/9: SIT direction for Ed Yes strand 4 based on 1/9 meeting

We discussed implementing the following regarding strand 4 . . .

Communication--
• List SIT goals on the website and Principal’s blog.
• Progress towards the goals could be communicated in the monthly newsletter.
• Teachers updates in their weekly newsletters.
• Use the PTO meetings to communicate about the SIT goals and the progress made – either during the Principal’s update, or set aside a time slot just before or after the PTO meeting. Teachers can make presentations too.
• Tips/handout for parents on how to help foster writing at home
• Copy of writing report card given to parents at Curriculum Night
• Writing samples & update on writing progress shared at parent-teacher conference
• Displayed student work in classroom and hallways
• More completed student writing work sent home (perhaps a photocopy)
• Copies of model writing or benchmarking by grade level accessible to parents (either from classroom writing or meap writing)

In the workshops/programs area--
Begin planning literacy night for 09-10 school year
Schedule EMWP 90 minute family literacy initiative for 08-09 school year

Notes from 12/5 SIT meeting

-review last year's Ed Yes, strand 4 and looked at what benchmarks were implemented and exemplary
-Ed Yes
-communication over time rather than just at Curriculum Night
-Lucy Calkins 3-5 writing homework
-workshop for parents
EMU writing project - 90 minute family literacy initiative
Q about ELL parents even though we have only 50 kids receiving svcs
-A to Z books - opened ended Q at the end of the books for kids to write paragraph
-literacy night like King did ~3 years ago - Have two 45 minute sessions - parents sign-up for guided reading, writing workshop, literature circle
-show and tell - parents receive benchmark writing samples
-writers visit classes -

send brainstormed action steps to Camille

SIT Minutes/Notes 11-7

SIT Goals

- Kevin shared proposed staff goals

Discussion:

-Teresa Q re clarity for parents re "measured by report cards & GLCEs"

-kevin could/will include secure outcomes from report cards on forms

-proposed changed to "MLK students will write paragraphs"

-suggestion to put descriptors on the website of report card outcomes and GLCEs

**Keep statement as is and spell out grade level content expectations - w/ link to full descriptors of outcomes**

-reiterated this is collaborative effort - buy in by all stakeholders

-next steps - look at practice as related to discreet, focused goals

----------------

Strand 4 of Ed Yes

Strand 4 = 1/3 of school grade

2 standards:  

- parent & family involvement

-community involvement

We're going to look at Ed Yes strand 4 through the lens of our SIT goals

-including making parents aware of goals

-going beyond communicating what we do, by extended day opportunities???

-making information accessible IF parents want it -- the opportunity

-brainstorm what we already do and then determine what's our greatest needs

-didn't achievel leve 5 due to a lack of systems and sustainability 

Homework

-Think of ED Yes strand 4 through lens of SIT goals

-Kevin will give us a list of what we''re already doing (from last year's ED Yes forms)

-email  lists of what we're already doing and what we could do to Kevin or Camille 

Minutes from 10/3/08 meeting

SIT
ED Yes - review purposes of SIT as it relates to ED Yes, strand 4.
-everyone rec’d a cc of ED Yes document via email
-today’s objective is look at King data as it relates to strand 4
-making an informed decision about how to focus/best support strand 4
community/communication efforts
Observations from Data:
-attend to task at hand, self control and uses time wisely - how does this impact
kids ability to write???
-no district-wide rubrics for learning and social behaviors
-how to teach kids to learn how to self-monitor over time
Identified threads/strands that run through the grades that are low
-paragraph writing
-revising
-money
Disconnect between genre and writing skills- kids tend to achieve at higher levels on
genre studies than in discreet skills
-grammar and usage - so many skills under this skill...kids may be low due to not
achieving one or two of the subskills
-fifth grade genre - what is meant by cohesive writing projects? Scores from
fourth to fifth significantly down
-s there a small cohort of kids that are struggling from grade to grade to show that
- that’s the reason why -- is it a change in rubric, or kids (new to King)
-generally trends lines go up, however, looking look at specific skills
-how is MEAP writing being scored (team of teachers w/ Kevin worked on it over
summer) Grading of MEAP is big concern at state level.
-aside from looking @ overall data, Kevin meets w/ staff about specific at-risk kids
-state rubrics different from AA rubrics
-writing seems overall lower than other academic areas
-grammar and usage
-much larger gap between male and female in writing that other academics - females
score higher
-Is there a disconnect between what is tested and expected daily behavior
-Are MEAP topics more geared to girls (feeling writing) -- gender bias
-MEAP - lifeskill

SIT Agenda - 3/7/08

Education Yes! - Final Input
Additional input around diversity--ideas for this year still

• Identify families who will help translate, etc. for non-English speaking families enrolling at MLK
• Have a social component that overlays the PTO Welcome Night
• Do local industries provide any assistance with this? Camille will ask husband
• Ask PTO to include international liaisons by language during collection of volunteers
• Planning for next year needs to start now--like it did today.
  

Writing Night Update

• Colleen reported out on this Level 2 workshop
  

SIT Newsletter

• discussed this briefly
• Looks good
  

Minutes from 5-25-07

Can writing be shared with families more frequently

Generally we talked about II. from the agenda and issues related to it.

• parents need to know what is expected at each grade level
• share what MEAP writing looks like
  

Start next year with:

• continued planning on II. from agenda
  
• a review of Education Yes! from this past year.

Please let Kevin know if you are interested in continuing for next year by the last day of school.