TAG Quarterly

In this issue of TAG Quarterly, you will find information about the following:

• TAG Services for K-5 Language Arts
  
• TAG Referrals
• Acceleration
• Let's Talk
• TAG Family Office Hours
• TAG Advisory Council
• Additional Resources

TAG services in Portland Public Schools are provided by the classroom teacher using best-practices for differentiation and small group instruction. Extensions and differentiation for TAG students are built into the lessons of the new language arts materials and incorporate the elements of Text Complexity, Knowledge Building, and Evidence from Text as defined by the Common Core State Standards.

What makes a text COMPLEX? Lexile level is not the only indicator to determine text complexity. Complex texts are those that provide students opportunities to work with new language, knowledge and ways of thinking. They typically:

• Contain more implicit meaning and use unconventional structures.
• Use figurative language, ambiguity, archaic or unfamiliar language
• Assume the reader has life experience (cultural, literary, and content knowledge) that will contribute to their understanding of the information in the text.
• Have literal meaning that is intentionally at odds with the underlying meaning. In informational texts, the purpose might be implicit or hidden.

Why does building KNOWLEDGE matter? Knowledge of a topic has a much bigger impact on comprehension than generalized reading ability does. Why does EVIDENCE grounded in text matter? It is used in service of understanding high quality texts that build world and word knowledge. The increasing rigor in the standards comes from the increasingly complex themes, features, ideas, characters, arguments in texts across the grades. Students in K-5 classrooms will:

• Respond to text-dependent questions and discuss their answers in a group.
• Explore and define vocabulary, content-area terms, and figurative language.
• Record evidence on a graphic organizer and write sentences for the body of an informative essay.

FALL Referral results are being processed and letters will be mailed as soon as all schools complete their identifications.

Assessments are nearly complete for SPRING Referrals and data will be sent to schools next week. Once decisions are made families and schools will be notified of the results.

If you have questions about identification, reach out to the TAG Facilitator at your child's school. A complete list of names and contact information can be found here.

There are many opportunities for students to access rate and level instruction in our current K-5 and middle school curricula. At times, there are students whose rate and level needs might be better served through Single Subject Acceleration in Mathematics (SSA-M) or Whole Grade Acceleration (WGA).

The first step for acceleration is to work collaboratively with your child’s teacher and school team. Please reach out to your child’s teacher to start the process. If you would like to learn more about the procedures for either of the acceleration options, please visit the TAG website.

Conversations about acceleration can start any time!

• Whole Grade Acceleration eligibility is determined during a family/school team meeting. Applications must be submitted before May 15, 2023 in order to complete testing before the end of the year. Families will be notified by June 15 of the final decision.

• Single Subject Acceleration in Mathematics application can be submitted by the family until May 15, 2023 and any additional assessments will be administered starting May 1, 2023. Please collaborate with your child’s teacher during this process.

Do you have a question about your child's school experience and are not sure where to go? Let's Talk is a new tool in PPS that helps direct your enquiries to the right person - without all of the email chains and phone messages back and forth. You click on the link and choose the topic: TAG has it's own category! We will make sure your question goes to the right person to help you.

You can also consult an expert familiar with the school building and TAG support. Find your school's TAG Facilitator on this page: Parent Page.

The TAG department will hold the last family office hours of the year on April 26 from 6:00-7:00pm. The focus will be on the TAG Concilication Plan Report. You can join the meeting virtually with this link.

We keep a running document of Frequently Asked Questions that come up at these office hour meetings. We encourage you to check these out if you have questions, as the answers you seek might be found there.

The Tag Advisory Council (TAGAC) is a volunteer body of parents who serve as representatives of the TAG community. TAGAC advises and informs the Superintendent, the TAG administrator, and the Board regarding TAG services as well as students' educational experiences and needs within PPS schools. The focus is on supporting the needs of diverse learners, and TAGAC believes that by doing so all students will benefit. TAGAC meets monthly with the TAG director for updates and discussion, to hear from parents, and to problem solve.

TAGAC is seeking new membership to increase representation from all community groups.

The last TAGAC meeting of the year will be held virtually on May 11, 2023 from 6:30-8:30pm (Google Meet Link)

PPS TAGAC web page: https://www.pps.net/Page/1548

Email: emailtagac@gmail.com

Resources from the Oregon Department of Education: OER Commons TAG Page

PPS District TAG Page (currently under construction)

Building TAG Facilitator List