CURRICULUM CORNER

Off to a great start with great people! I am so honored and excited to be in my new role as Director of Instruction for Wadsworth City Schools. Our office covers many topics and offers many resources in the areas of Professional Development, Curriculum, Literacy, Gifted Services, and others as well. We are busy but in such a wonderful way!

One of the biggest challenges, this fall, was the introduction of our new ELA curriculum (K-5), which is set to transform and support our teaching methods and provide our students with an even better learning experience. To support this change, our office wants to reiterate that support in so many forms is readily available whenever you need it. We are a phone call, email, or click away!

PLEASE consider using Literacy Landing as a valuable tool for insight, knowledge, and support, signing up regularly for assistance from our Literacy Coaches. We want to share our expertise and support one another in implementing the new curriculum. This collaborative approach will not only benefit our students but also foster a stronger sense of teamwork and support within our school community.

Embrace the change... from RIMPs to RTI, new Science curriculum to gifted services, let's work together to make this transition a success for our students and our school community.

What's Next?

Fantastic Fall Activities

Productive Professional Development Day

Lovely Literacy Data Team

Intriguing Intervention Materials Review

Steering Social Studies Adoption Committee

Tedious Testing... but necessary!

Wishing you all the best this school year,

-Eric

Thank you for your efforts to complete the Science of Reading (SOR) requirements by the state.

Remember your stipends are paid out on the 2nd pay of the following month the completion certificate has been sent to our office.

Below is the status of where we are as a District to complete this assignment.

• NUMBER OF STAFF EXEMPT DUE TO COMPLETING ORTON GILLINGHAM - 100

• TOTAL REMAINING NUMBER OF STAFF TO COMPLETE SOR - 217

• TOTAL COMPLETED SOR - 106

• % SOR COMPLETED TO DATE - 49%
  
  

Keep plugging away and let us know if you have any problems accessing or completing the pathway you have been assigned.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B7XR7MYsuI0UZjBSM25IOEg2bnM

Follow the above link to a great resource of information

About Me

• Graduate of the University of Akron

• Licensure in Early Childhood Education, K-12 Reading Endorsement, and K-12 Gifted Endorsement

• Experience working with students in grades preschool through high school

• Previously taught K-5 gifted students in the Gifted and Talented program for Akron Public Schools
  
  

Full-Day and Lunch Bunch Services

Full-Day Services-Students who receive a full day of gifted services participate in ELA, math, and STEM/STEAM lessons throughout the day. ELA lessons include fiction and nonfiction content with a writing component. The writing may take the form of a journal, a Google Slides presentation, poetry, etc. Math lessons are purposefully designed so that students use numbers in creative ways and in real-world situations. Graham Fletcher’s 3 ACT math tasks, Steve Wyborney’s Esti-Mysteries, and Robert Kaplinsky’s Open Middle problem solving are great resources.

Lunch Bunch Services (Math and ELA)-Students who participate in lunch bunch are challenged to work with a partner or in small groups to play mental math games like 24 and Proof! Students are also given math challenges where a solution is given but no problem or math equation. Students are responsible for coming up with equations that fit the solution. For ELA enrichment, students play word games to build vocabulary and grammar skills. Another favorite activity is Stories with Holes. In this activity, students must come up with yes/no questions to figure out what really happened in a story.

Tips for Working with Gifted Students

1. Allow time for students to be creative and explore their interests.

2. Provide opportunities for students to show leadership.

3. Allow students to work together to build social and emotional skills.

4. Provide choice in activities.

5. Give time for students to reflect on their work.

6. Ask students to think critically by asking higher level questions.

7. Provide students with open ended questions and activities.

8. Ask students to justify or explain their thinking. Simply ask “why”.

Thank you for letting me be part of Wadsworth City Schools! It is a great place to be. Go Grizzlies!

As we settle into Fall, you all have asked inquisitive questions about our new adoptions. We just want to ensure you're all set with the new language arts and science curriculum/resources. Are you feeling good about the materials/resources? Do you need more assistance? Can I get one more book?

Continue to ask good questions. If anything's got you scratching your head, we want to know. Just give us a shout, send us an email, talk to your principal, or sign up on Literacy Landing for some consultation. We are all about making sure you're feeling like the superheroes you are as you dive into the new resources.

Thanks for being the Top-Notch Teachers that we know you are!

We've got your back, and we're stoked to see you crush it yet again. You all are rock stars!