Second Grade Screening Update ITBS Testing has been completed for students who qualified to participate in that assessment opportunity. Families will be notified of the results once we receive them. An informational session will be held to support families of students who will potentially create a portfolio on Thursday, December 11th from 5:00-6:00 pm in our Media Center. A flyer and letter will be sent home with eligible students this week. We have started working with some second grade classes on our Flex Schedule, but regular direct services for identified students have also recently begun. We will work within second grade classrooms to support literacy and math instruction. Additionally, we will be working directly with our portfolio candidates to ensure opportunities are provided to demonstrate advanced language, analytical thinking, and other gifted behaviors. November was a short, but busy month in the world of Talent Development! Keep reading for November updates and a peek into our classrooms! Third Grade Our third graders have participated in their first Paideia Seminar of the year using the selection "Shells" from our William & Mary Language Arts curriculum. We were impressed with their thoughtful responses and their speaking and listening skills. In addition, our students explored symbolism with character relationships within "Shells," then applied the strategy to their own independent reading books. Students are now working in small Book Clubs. Our minilessons have focused on how to incorporate Socratic Questioning to deepen and enrich discussions with their Book Clubs. Our study of algebra continues with Hands-On Equations. Our students have learned some "legal moves" to simplify our equations. For example, they have learned that you may remove an "x", or blue pawn, from each side of the equation. They have also learned that you may subtract the same value from each side of an equation to simplify it. Solving for the value of "x" becomes easier with legal moves! We enjoy chanting "Reset to check! Reset to check!" as we reset the equation back to its original form and plug in the value of "x" to check our work. Some classes have even worked on a RAFT task to demonstrate what they have learned in creative ways. RAFT stands for Role Audience Format Topic. Check out some examples below! Fourth Grade To help support our students study of nonfiction, we have introduced the fourth graders to Jacob’s ladder, a reading comprehension program designed to enhance critical thinking skills. We began with an Interactive Read Aloud (IRA) of the nonfiction text, “It’s Electric”. The students enjoyed this piece because it connected well with their science unit on electricity. After the IRA, we worked through ladder B which focuses on identifying uses of electricity, classifying and categorizing these uses, and finally making generalizations about electricity. Coming up, we will be working to enhance our students’ book club discussions by introducing them to Socratic Questioning, a technique used to develop critical thinking and thoughtful dialogue between students. The fourth graders recently concluded their study of multiplication methods of the past. They showcased their newly acquired knowledge in the form of a culminating project that compared the methods of the past with the methods that are currently used. We were impressed with their hard work and insightful comparisons! As the students continue to learn new concepts related to geometry, we will kick off our next project to expand their knowledge of this topic and encourage their expression of creativity. We will be launching “That’s A-maze-ing!”. This project involves researching mazes and designing one of their own. They will utilize their knowledge of geometric concepts to do this. Stay tuned next month for pictures of their finished work! Fifth Grade Our focus in fifth grade has been on tackling nonfiction text. To help us accomplish this goal, we have integrated different nonfiction selections from Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program. Students have noticed text features and applied their strategies to complex nonfiction selection. Then, we worked our way up the different skill ladders. Ladder A allowed students to sequence, analyze cause & effect relationships, and consider consequences & implications, while Ladder D provided them practice with paraphrasing, summarizing, and creative synthesis. Our students love moving from simpler to more complex tasks by working their way up the ladders. Our math studies have centered around fraction concepts and extending what students are learning. Recently, some of our students created a RAFT about fractions. This task allowed them to take on the role of different fractions and explain what they know in creative an engaging ways. Check out some examples below! We hope everyone had a very happy Thanksgiving and extended holiday weekend. We are thankful for all of your support! As always, please feel free to contact us at any time! We love hearing from our families and value your feedback.
--Ms. Pagano & Mrs. Deegan
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First Quarter has literally flown by! It has been a busy quarter with lots of learning and growing. We have enjoyed collaborating with teachers and teaching our students and look forward to a challenging and exhilarating remainder of the school year! 3-5 DEP Meeting It was great seeing so many families at our annual Differentiated Education Plan meeting for grades 3, 4, and 5! We hope you found the session useful and have a better understanding of how Talent Development is integrated into everyday instruction at Elon Park. If your schedule did not allow you to attend in person, the presentation and all accompanying handouts can be accessed at this link. Second Grade Testing Updates Results from CogAT testing have been sent home and shared with families. Our district utilizes multiple forms of data to identify students as Academically Intellectually Gifted, or AIG. These forms of data include the CogAT, Gifted Rating Scales, and the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, or ITBS. We will conduct ITBS testing for students who qualify to participate in this opportunity within the first two weeks of November. Participating students will receive written notification to let families know the exact dates of testing. Some of our second graders have qualified to participate in the portfolio opportunity for possible AIG identification. We are planning to host an informational session for families of these children in early December. Stay tuned for more details! Once ITBS testing is completed, we will begin providing "push in" support to classrooms. We look forward to working closely with our second grade teachers and students! Third Grade Our third graders have been active and engaged! We have learned about the different components of the Literature Web, a Teaching Model from William & Mary Language Arts units. In our lessons, we modeled identifying these elements from our classes' interactive read aloud texts, 'Stone Fox' and 'Because of Winn Dixie'. Students then had an opportunity to create a Literature Web and apply this strategy using their self-selected, independent reading text. We also had an opportunity to conduct an interactive read aloud using the selection 'Shells' by Cynthia Rylant, a realistic fiction text from the William & Mary Language Arts Unit, Journeys & Destinations. Students are beginning to explore the concept of change and symbolism in literature. In math, we have wrapped up our higher level studies with identifying and extending patterns with Project M3: Awesome Algebra. Currently, we are intensifying our study of algebra by utilizing Hands-On Equations. Some students were exposed to this fun, kinesthetic way of learning algebraic concepts last year and we are extending lessons this year by integrating addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills. Our color-coded Circle Map allows us to keep track of the important ideas we learn through each lesson. Some scholars are even working on creating their own algebraic equations and putting these equations into both word form and story problem form. Wow! Fourth Grade Our fourth graders have impressed us with their ability to think deeply about literature! We recently read "The Power of Light" by Isaac Bashevis Singer. This selection comes from our William and Mary curriculum. After reading the selection, we modeled analyzing the text using the five components of a literature web (key words, feelings/moods, images/symbols, big ideas/themes, and structure). Finally, students participated in a Paideia Seminar, which encourages active thinking through dialogue. Next, we will incorporate nonfiction reading strategies into our time together. Our 4th graders have been on a virtual tour of the past exploring ancient methods of multiplication. We have practiced using Napier's Bones to multiply numbers, and have also tackled methods that the Ancient Egyptians and Russian Peasants used as well. The students have shown a lot of interest in this historical look at multiplication and we are now applying this information to a culminating project that compares the methods of the past with the current methods we use today. Stay tuned next month for some examples of their finished products! Fifth Grade Our students have worked hard within their small groups on their PBL task, the Cupcake Conundrum. Their products were engaging, visually appealing, and extremely creative. Check out some pictures below! You can also catch glimpses of some of their presentations & products in this YouTube video that was shared at our DEP Meeting. We are now focusing on fractions and integrating higher level, creative tasks during their Math Workshop block. Our fifth graders had a blast reading the short story, 'Charles' by Shirley Jackson. It is a realistic fiction selection from the William & Mary Language Arts curriculum that gave us the opportunity to expose our students to the character analysis diagram, an enriched strategy used to gain a deeper understanding of characters in a text. The students also participated in our first Paideia Seminar this year. This strategy is powerful because it encourages active thinking through dialogue. We also explored symbolism to represent character relationships in our interactive read aloud, Hoot. Next, we will incorporate nonfiction reading strategies into our time together. Thank you so much for all of your support! Please reach out to either one of us at any time with questions or concerns. 'Till next month...
--Ms. Pagano & Ms. Deegan The 2014-2015 school year is off to an excellent start! We already have some great things happening in the world of TD and look forward to even more amazing things to come. Our teachers have welcomed us into their classrooms with open arms and our consistent collaboration and planning has allowed us to seamlessly integrate higher level thinking, gifted strategies, and TD curricular resources into daily instruction. Keep reading for grade level updates and to gain a glimpse into teaching and learning at Elon Park! Third Grade We have integrated lessons from Project M3 Math to supplement mathematical concepts students are working on, such as patterns and algebraic thinking. We have aso introduced students to differentiated learning contracts to help them build responsibility and extend their learning. We have even combined reading with math concepts by utilizing a selection from the Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Program titled Geometry All Around Us. In reading, we are using the interactive read aloud text of Stone Fox as a basis for our mini-lessons. For example, we recently explored identifying character traits with specific evidence from the text. See some examples below! Fourth Grade Our mini-lessons in Reading have centered around exploring characters on a deeper level while reading fictional texts. We have used Number the Stars, their interactive read aloud text, as the basis for modeling strategies before students try them on their own. We have introduced students to a Character Trait Web and have showed them how to track changes in a character over time, or revise our initial thoughts about characters. Check out some examples below!
Fifth Grade Our fifth graders are deeply analyzing their texts. We have modeled how to apply a Teaching Model from the William & Mary Language Arts Units called the Literature Web with their interactive read aloud text, Hoot. The Literature Web allows students to dig deeper by considering the Structure of the text, Feelings & Moods, Concepts/Themes, Key Words, and Images & Symbols. Check out some student examples below! We have also really enjoyed individual reading conferences to learn more about our students and help them grow as readers. We have exposed students to ancient forms of multiplication to enrich their math studies, including Vedic mathematics. Our fifth graders have recently started their first PBL (problem based learning) experience of the school year, The Cupcake Conundrum. In addition to applying multiplication, division, estimation, and problem solving concepts, students will also utilize "soft skills" essential for 21st Century learning, such as creativity, communication, and collaboration. We can't wait to see what kinds of solutions & final products they develop! Kindergarten, First & Second Grade We recently completed CogAT testing for all second graders and scores will be available by the end of October. Parents will be notified of their child's performance on the CogAT and possible next steps with the Second Grade Screening Process once scores are received. If you missed the meeting about the identification process, please check out this link. We will begin "pushing in" to second grade classrooms soon to work with our identified gifted students and students moving forward with the portfolio process. A DEP Meeting for newly identified 2nd graders will take place later in the fall. Our identified Kindergarteners and First Graders will primarily receive indirect services. We are planning with their teachers and providing them with higher level resources and materials to ensure appropriate levels of differentiation are taking place. Individual Differentiated Plans will be updated soon. Annual DEP Meeting for 3rd-5th Grade--Mark your Calendars! Our annual Differentiated Education Plan, or DEP, Meeting for parents of Third, Fourth, and Fifth Graders will take place on Thursday, October 23rd from 5:00-6:00 pm in the Media Center. The meeting will provide an opportunity for you to meet the Talent Development Team at Elon Park (if you haven't already, learn more about how we are meeting the needs of gifted & high ability learners, review the Differentiated Education Plan for students, and gain a better understanding of how the Catalyst Model is being implemented. An official invitation will be sent home with students next week, but we wanted to give families a heads up! All meeting information will be posted on our websites if your schedule will not allow you to attend. Thank You...
Thank you for taking the time to read our blog/newsletter! We welcome any and all feedback. Are there additional items you would like to see shared on our blog? For example, a section that details a specific curricular resource or a session about social & emotional needs? Would you like us to offer additional parent sessions? How can we better support you and your child? As always, please feel free to reach out to either one of us at any time through email or phone and be sure to visit our websites. We greatly appreciate your support and partnership. It's a great YEAR to be an Eagle! --Ms. Pagano & Mrs. Deegan Happy new school year and welcome to our electronic blog and newsletter, The Eagle Eye! This blog will contain monthly updates from the Talent Development Team at Elon Park. We are very excited about this year and what's to come in the world of TD for our Eagles! We are two creative and passionate educators on a mission to strengthen our TD program by effectively collaborating with our teachers and providing consistent, differentiated, and appropriately challenging learning experiences for our students. Learn a little bit more about us by checking out the Circle Maps below. We will implement the Catalyst Model this year at Elon Park, which means our approach to educating our gifted and high-ability learners is a little bit different than what has been done in the past. Rather than pulling students out for direct services, we will "push in" and support them within their own classrooms. We are excited about planning co-taught lessons, tailored small group lessons, and individually conferring with students to meet their needs. In addition, our schedule will provide time for us to meet to collaborate and plan with teachers and provide them with ongoing professional development in gifted strategies and resources. This will result in optimal student growth and more frequent, differentiated learning opportunities for our students. We will hold a Differentiated Educational Plan, or DEP, Meeting later in the fall so you can learn more about our approach to gifted education and receive details on how your child's needs are being met. Stay tuned for more information! As you know, the first few weeks of school are busy as students and teachers get back into the "groove" of school. Our expectations are high and the first weeks of school will focus on procedures, routines, and getting to know each other. We will spend time in our 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classrooms. Please note that CogAT testing for 2nd graders will take place September 9th, 10th, and 11th. Once CogAT testing is completed, our schedules in grades 3, 4, and 5 will be much more consistent. We value communication and look forward to partnering with you. This blog/newsletter is just one way we will communicate this year. Both of us have also established our very own websites, which will be updated frequently. You can visit Ms. Pagano's website by clicking here and Mrs. Deegan's website by clicking here. Please feel free to reach out to us with questions any time! We can be contacted by phone at 980-343-1440. We can also be reached through email at l[email protected] or [email protected]
We look forward to working with you and your children this year! --Ms. Pagano & Ms. Deegan |