October+2009

=October 2009 Department Meeting= toc

Informational Items

 * I would challenge each of you to teach from bell-to-bell, hoe to the end of the row, etc. I would hate for our department to be the one that Kevin was writing about in his recent email. Our PSSA scores are OK, but they could be better. Let's make the most of the time we have with the kids in class.
 * Some information from looking at the PSSA data: 100% of AP students scored Advanced of Proficient on the PSSAs; 94% of level 1 students scored Advanced/Proficient; 47% of level 2 students scored Advanced/Proficient. I'm hoping to see a further breakdown of specific skills in the near future.
 * Information on working with Power School to finalize marking period grades has been cross posted and linked here.
 * When a decision needs made that will impact the department as a whole, please bring the issue to the whole department for discussion. There are a number of avenues we can pursue for discussing the request, which will allow for all feedback to be heard. A final decision will be reached through compromise or consensus. From there, if necessary, the idea can be taken to either building or district administration for final approval.

Shared Instructional Strategies

 * Julie shared a partner activity with a series of note cards to reinforce both a theme of MacBeth and iambic pentameter. The pairs have to unscramble the cards, working to recreate iambic pentameter. It activates the students getting them to think about both the theme and skill. Julie also encouraged us to think about the concept of an "article of the week" and asked if anyone wanted to collaborate on the activity to get things moving, she would appreciate another person or people to get it rolling for 9th grade.
 * Liz shared a graphic organizer for an activating strategy. They had to come up with terms, themes or ideas from Mockingbird to fill in each letter for the alphabet. XYZ were together. A second item was another graphic organizer: Atticus vs. the Mob. A series of quotes and explanations (sort of like a dialectical journal): two quotes for both Atticus and the Mob. The activity was then extended in to a "poem for two voices" called Atticus and the Mob.