+ The Link Issue 3 December 2012 A Partnership Newsletter “Linking” the University of Florida and Miami-Dade County Public Schools What’s Inside … Governor Rick Scott’s Visit to the David Lawrence K-8 Center Who’s Who Faculty Profile: Dr. Patricia Snyder Going Public with our Partnership’s Success: NAEYC Convention Cover Pg.2 Pg. 4-5 Pg. 7-8 “We’re deeply committed to joining colleagues from other universities to support the governor’s goals of boosting teacher - UF Lastinger Center Director Don Pemberton Governor Rick Scott’s Visit to the David Lawrence K-8 Center Governor Rick Scott traveled to David Lawrence Jr. K-8 Center, a University of Florida partner school in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Governor Scott heard of the University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning’s work across the state and wanted to witness it first-hand. During his visit, Governor Scott made a special announcement about the State of Florida’s plans to devote $2 million to support teacher professional development like the kind that Miami- Dade teachers are receiving. Governor Scott said that what the State of Florida will be doing is what the Lastinger Center is already doing within its partner schools. The school’s namesake, David Lawrence Jr. spoke about the power of teachers to impact children’s lives, including his own. Dr. Marisel Elias- Miranda also welcomed the governor to the district, commended his interest in professional development and applauded the University of Florida for their strong partnership and support. The school’s Principal Bernard Osborn and his teachers – Maureen Thompson, Evelyn Lampner, and Laurie Futterman – also shared their own powerful stories about the personal and professional impact of the support and learning they have experienced with the University of Florida partnership through the i3 grant project. more on 2 The Common Core State Standards: The View from Pre-K Pg.3 Professional Pg. 6 Teacher of the Year TNTP Scholarship
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The Link Issue 3 December 2012
A Partnership Newsletter “Linking” the University of Florida and Miami-Dade County Public Schools
What’s Inside … Governor Rick Scott’s Visit to the David Lawrence K-8 Center
Who’s Who Faculty Profile: Dr. Patricia Snyder
Going Public with our Partnership’s Success: NAEYC Convention
Cover
Pg.2
Pg. 4-5
Pg. 7-8
“We’re deeply committed to joining colleagues from other universities to support the governor’s goals of boosting teacher
- UF Lastinger Center Director Don Pemberton
Governor Rick Scott’s Visit to the David Lawrence K-8 Center
Governor Rick Scott traveled to David Lawrence Jr. K-8 Center, a University of Florida partner school in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Governor Scott heard of the University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning’s work across the state and wanted to witness it first-hand. During his visit, Governor Scott made a special announcement about the State of Florida’s plans to devote $2 million to support teacher professional development like the kind that Miami-Dade teachers are receiving. Governor Scott said that what the State of Florida will be doing is what the Lastinger Center is already doing within its partner schools.
The school’s namesake, David Lawrence Jr. spoke about the power of teachers to impact children’s lives, including his own. Dr. Marisel Elias-Miranda also welcomed the governor to the district, commended his interest in professional development and applauded the University of Florida for their strong partnership and support. The school’s Principal Bernard Osborn and his teachers – Maureen Thompson, Evelyn Lampner, and Laurie Futterman – also shared their own powerful stories about the personal and professional impact of the support and learning they have experienced with the University of Florida partnership through the i3 grant project. more on 2
The Common Core State Standards: The View from Pre-K
Pg.3
Professional
Pg. 6 Teacher of the Year
TNTP Scholarship
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Dr. Patricia Snyder is the Director of the Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Studies, the David Lawrence Jr. Endowed Chair in Early Childhood Studies and a Professor in the School of Special Education, School Psychology, and Early Childhood Studies. Dr. Snyder has over 25 years of experience working to improve the educational opportunities available for children birth
2
through age 5.
Dr. Snyder’s research focuses on the developmental impacts of early experiences and learning, social-emotional foundations of early learning, and how families and practitioners support young children’s development and learning. She is currently serving as a member of the Early Childhood Teacher Leadership for School Improvement (ECTLSI) design team, as both a consultant on current research and as a contributor to the i3 grant course design. Dr. Snyder has a special interest in the areas of early childhood systems building and policy, interdisciplinary professional development, and the application of evidence-informed early prevention and intervention strategies in homes, preschools, and other
Who’s Who Faculty Profile: Meet Patricia Snyder
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Governor Rick Scott’s Visit to David Lawrence K-8 Center (Continued from Pg. 1) We look forward to working further with state leadership to support teacher professional development as a key part of Florida’s education reform strategy. Read more here: http://lastingercenter.com/gov-scott-lauds-uf-program/
community settings. Her expertise, knowledge and extensive publications have played a role in the redesign of the Families in Early Childhood Education course and the foundational design process for the Transition and Policy in Early Childhood Education course, which will be taught in the Spring. Dr. Snyder has also served a leadership role in the design of two other courses Developmentally Appropriate Practice (Summer) and Assessment and Evaluation (Fall). She is a tremendous wealth of knowledge and a leader in the field of Early Childhood; we’re fortunate to have her working on the ECTLSI team!
For more information about Dr. Snyder and the Center visit http://ceecs.education.ufl.edu
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Going Public with Our Partnership’s Success: NAEYC
Convention
+ The Link
Issue 3 December 2012
The success of the Florida Master Teacher Initiatives partnership was shared at the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) annual conference on November 8, 2012 in Atlanta Georgia. NAEYC conferences are attended by tens of thousands of early childhood educators (including teaching staff, administrators, teacher researchers, and the like) in order to discuss best practices and share wisdom.
This year NAEYC’s theme focused on issues of Developmentally Appropriate Practice. A team of UF and MDCPS representatives shared the success of the university and district partnership through a session titled: Authentic, Meaningful Professional Development: The Florida Master Teacher Initiative. Two Gainesville based professors from the School of Special Education, School Psychology, and Early Childhood studies, Dr. Tina Smith-Bonahue and Dr. Stephanie Smith shared their work on program development, course design and research based support for the partnership at the University level. Miami based Professor in Residence from the School of Teaching and Learning, Dr. Raquel Munarriz Diaz and a Miami-Dade County Public School District Administrator, Dr. Marisel Elias-Miranda discussed the partnership from a field based perspective; sharing their experiences implementing professional development, the Teacher Fellows Program and the graduate program at the district level. Concurrently sharing the university and county-based perspective, the presentation team demonstrated the high level of collaboration and communication required to develop a job-embedded program that’s mutually beneficial. Overall, the presentation highlighted the hard work and dedication put forth at all levels of the partnership, as well as, the tremendous level of success we’ve reached thus far. Session participants asked thoughtful questions and were eager to learn more about implementing a similar program in their area.
To learn more about NAEYC please visit:
http://www.naeyc.org
To learn more about the Florida Master
Teachers Initiative please visit:
http://education.ufl.edu/fmti/
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By Raquel Diaz
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UFPD 203: Dr. Marcia Tate’s Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites Tuesday, November 7th was an EXCITING day! Not only were Americans heading out to the polls to vote, but 470 MDCPS teachers were also headed to the most excited and stimulating workshop they have ever attended. Dr. Marcia Tate’s Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites session was all-around success. Dr. Tate discussed and modeled the 20 instructional strategies that she says increase student engagement. She also discussed the characteristics of a brain compatible classroom and lesson plan. Following the session, participants reported that this was the best PD they had ever experienced and that Dr. Tate’s message reinvigorated their passion for teaching!
A huge THANK YOU to our host Schools in the month of
November!
Doral Middle School
TERRA Environmental Research Institute
Rockway Elementary
Professional Development Updates
UFPD 104: School Culture
One highlight of UF PD 104 was trying out a new protocol called the 6 personalities. This is was twist on the traditional NSRF Compass Points. An article called, The 6 Personalities Every Startup Needs To Thrive by Jon Stein, inspired the protocol twist. Although the article was written for the business world and discussed the personalities companies should consider hiring if they want their business to thrive, participants felt a strong connection to the content. They realized through the use of this article in conjunction with the NSRF compass points protocol, that a range of complementary personalities allows for diversity of perspectives; something they should consider as they recruit colleagues in an effort to build a more collaborative school culture. The participants left energized and ready to assist with the collection of school culture data, which they could use to cultivate an even stronger culture of commitment, innovation and collaboration!
The 6 personalities protocol, along with all the other materials we use in our PD sessions can be found on Dropbox by following this link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5cr1vkwph2m6q2o/AzYkGT7Fny
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Upcoming Professional Development
December 4: UF PD 303: Leading Brain-Based Engagement Strategies Part 1 of 2. Location
Who? Two of the same participants that attended UF PD 203 who will become Engagement Coaches’ at their respective schools.
What? The U.F. team will facilitate a 1-day PD session to train UF partner school facilitators on how to incorporate brain-based strategies in PLC/PD sessions for their faculty.
December 6: Principal PLC Session 2 of 4, 8 am-12 pm,
Who? U.F. partner school Principals are expected to participate.
What? Regular learning community sessions for U.F. partner school principals to participate in a PLC and collaborate across regions.
January 23-24: UF PD 201 Professional Learning Communities (PLC) Facilitators Institute
Who? Experienced PLC facilitators/coaches partner schools are invited to participate. Participants must be actively involved in the Leadership Team and facilitating a learning community group at their schools. In addition, they must have previously participated in a Coaches Training Institute (i.e., UF PD 101 or RSM 201).
What? This two-day institute is designed to help experienced facilitators examine the role racial equity has played in their own lives. The sessions show participants how to address racial equity within collaborative groups of their peers and how to monitor the impact of these conversations on their teaching practice.
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Where? North- Golden Glades Elementary Central- The United Way Center South- Rockway Elementary
Where? North location is Ben Sheppard Elementary. South location is Dr. Edward Whigham Elementary
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Issue 3 December 2012 The Link Congratulations to the 2012-2013
Teachers of the Year and Rookie Teachers of the Year!
We’re so proud of your hard work and dedication to being the best teacher you can be for your students and school community!
Teacher of the Year Name School Comment Damaris Fernandez Rockway TFF Juliette Hinds Ben Sheppard TFF Tatiana Valencia Pina Villa TFF / TLSI Dionnie DeSilva Whigham TF Mirta Madonia Redondo TFF / TLSI Sandra Castellon Cutler Ridge TF Vivique Pemberton Hibiscus TF Kimmi Lattery Golden Glades TF Andrea Hernandez Lake Stevens TFF
Rookie Teacher of the Year Name School Comment Monique Navarro Whigham TF Zurisadday Arrocha-Pellon Comstock TF Renee Rankine Hibiscus TF Paul Olivares Golden Glades TF Alina Hernandez David Lawrence K-8 TF/TLSI Linda Garcia SantaClara TF
WINNERS RECEIVE $25,000 AND PARTICIPATE IN A SUMMER RESIDENCY WITH TNTP
TNTP (The New Teacher Project), a nonprofit organization working to ensure that all students get excellent teachers, today opened the application period for the 2013 Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice. The prestigious award is given to no more than five public school teachers a year who demonstrate exceptionally effective teaching with students from high-poverty communities. THIS YEAR, TNTP IS OFFERING AN EARLY APPLICATION DEADLINE OF MONDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2012. Early applicants will learn whether they have been selected for the next application stage about a month before other applicants. The final deadline is Monday, January 14, 2013. For more information on how to apply or to refer a great teacher for the Fishman Prize, please visit tntp.org/fishmanprize
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The Common Core State Standards: The View from Pre-K
By Pilar Baldwin
Defining Early Literacy
Good early childhood education provides opportunities to learn emergent literacy skills, such as to identify letters, to recognize high frequency words, and to identify letter-sound correspondence. The value of these early literacy activities is undeniable, as children who do better at letter recognition, phonological awareness tasks, and reading words, as four and five year-olds are likely to have an easier time learning to read. But these isolated skills alone, are not enough. In addition to knowledge of foundational literacy skills; providing access to knowledge and engaging in deep conversations about texts and topics related, for example, to self (i.e. senses) to nature (i.e. animals), or to history (biographies), is vital to a rich and well-rounded early childhood program.
Text Talk So, how do we
provide this access?
According to Fisher and Frey (2012), one way we can accomplish this task is through a carefully crafted progression of text dependent questions which become part of a Close Read. As Pre-K teachers, we already incorporate read-aloud in our daily routines as an opportunity to point out words and letters in meaningful contexts. What if we were to modify a Close Read to become a “Close Read-Aloud” by planning a variety of activities stemming from questions about the same text read for a variety of purposes over the course of several days? Let’s take Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar as an example.
Using the Very Hungry Caterpillar Example…
• After reading the story for the first time to my students
I may begin by asking General Understandings questions such as: What happened first in the story?; or, Retell the story in order using the words beginning, middle, and end.
• During subsequent re-readings I will alert my students to their purpose and ask
Ø Key Details questions (who, what, where, when, how, why) which promote closer listening: How long did it take to go from a hatched egg to a butterfly; or What is one food that gave the caterpillar a stomachache? ;
Ø Vocabulary and Text Structure questions which bridge explicit with implicit meanings. Take the word cocoon- It is amply defined and supported in the story. So instead of asking students to define or draw a cocoon, how about we ask: How does the author help us to understand what cocoon means?
Continued on page 8
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Want to be featured
in the next issue? We hope you enjoyed our newsletter and that you’ll keep it in mind as you accomplish tasks and meet your goals through out the year! We’re always looking to spotlight what’s going on in the Miami Dade schools to share stories of success!
If you’re interested in sharing a story, photos or have a topic you’d be interested in reading about please contact Darbi Shannon our UF Graduate Assistant at [email protected].
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Ø Author’s Purpose questions to draw attention to genre or point of view: Who tells the story- the narrator or the caterpillar? How do you know?
Ø Inferential questions to probe information or key details further. For example: The title of the book is “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”. How do we know he is hungry?; and finally
Ø Opinion questions like- Is “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” a happy story or a sad one? How do you know?
The Common Core State Standards: The View from Pre-K (Continued from page 7)
Advanced literacy is a prerequisite to adult success in the twenty-first century. It goes beyond the ability to decode words or read a text fluently – the foundational skills of literacy- requiring students to use reading to gain knowledge and to understand new subjects, to synthesize information and to evaluate arguments; individually and collaboratively. Developing text dependent questions for read-aloud is one way we can promote critical thinking and understanding beyond basic facts. These higher-level skills are essential for preparing our students for college and career readiness. The foundational blocks for our students’ future goals must being in Pre-K! Please visit http://earlychildhood.dadeschools.net/ for more information. Fisher, D. & Frey, N. (2012): Close reading in elementary schools. The Reading Teacher, 66(3),
A 3 Minute Video Explaining the Common Core
The link below is for a pictorial video explaining the CCSS in simple terms using a stair case metaphor.
