HERE WE GO AGAIN...

So there's a Data corner in our room.
It really didn't serve much purpose other than rank kids.
It was something the entire school, via local district required us to do.
It makes sense in some ways, and in others, not so much.

We have lots of wonderful walls that the students look at and talk about and are proud of...
this one wasn't one of them.
So...
It's gone.

But with 96 days of ETK left to prepare my students for kindergarten,
I wanted to try something else.
Something to track growth for parents, students, and teachers.
Either way you look at it, some kids will always be behind others,
but luckily right now, it's not a big deal to them yet.
It won't be a big deal to us because we are going to highlight progress.
So here's what I envisioned and with the help of my amazing team, we started our new data display.

Work in progress:

So, we took the exact criteria from the Preschool Learning Foundations and created a visual. I like to assess the kids informally every trimester.. data stays in the classroom and not inputted into any data base to follow the kids. (That happens next year!) We use data to reflect on our teaching and plan instruction to help support our kids.

We're not hitting alphabet hard, through songs, poems, art projects, games... they get a repeat in kinder. But it is important as a teacher to know where your students are so that we can differentiate appropriately. Friday, my partner assessed most of the students. Next week we will color in the road to "green"-aka benchmark, with the students. *Mind you we have some 3-4 year olds that are redshirting this year and will be back for another round next, so the numbers don't worry us.

This is just one measure. I know that although I have some kids that know all the letters, 1/2 of them have not connected the sounds yet, and the other half are ready for more! Hence... small group instruction! #teachingnerd #LovemyStudents #EarlyLiteracyRocks! #WhentheyRready

Part #2: From tree to bees

We had this tree and some learning goals...

  

It was too much. So we wanted to simplify...


Thought it would be better to list goals-all from the CA PLF Preschool Learning Foundation (aka PK Goals) What would be the most important goals for our students to walk out of ETK with so that they would be successful in kindergarten and beyond? *That is the purpose of ETK... to give students a head start. Here is what we came up with...

It is a blend of ECE and what they will face in K-5. The love of learning, sharing stories, art, music, and rich content is included in #1-2. The last two will give them a foundation in the more academic subjects.  I shared my idea of creating a visual for families (I had bee cut outs), and my creative TA's ran with it. In case you're wondering... bees will move upward according to how many goals they meet. They shouldn't be at the top now because we have more than half a year to go... but some are there already! 

***Goals are not in order. 

I have some kiddos with amazing academic foundation skills, 

but social-emotional development isn't there yet, and vice versa. 

Data should provide us with information to help fill in those gaps needed.

I love all my busy bees! 😍😍😍