Monday, October 7, 2013

Meeting Notes-Mike, Mara, Rachel, Rebecca, Annmarie, Cathy & Christy were present. Joe & Julie had goal meetings, so they arrived late. 

Math-The team agrees that the the District Math Unit 1 assessment is not aligned to the Investigations program the way that it is. Additional materials must be created in order to prepare the students for the style of questioning on the assessment. More reasoning and real-life connections are recommended in the revision of the Unit 1 assessment (i.e. There are 36 desks in a classroom. Find all the ways that the desks can be arranged in rows and columns.) Overall, the students did not score well. The average score is 6/12. We are hesitant to send this home to parents, to have them see that their child did not "pass" the first major test of the year. Rebecca is going to email the math specialists to request that they create a parent letter to explain the outcome of this first test. Lengthy discussions were had about acceptable answers and what exactly is acceptable for "show your work." We all agree that the kids need more exposure to multi-step word problems. 

Native American Presentations for November-circle talk on how Native Americans use resources or bring in supplies to make husk dolls, the cost would be $80 for the first group presentation, plus $25 for each additional presentation. 

We will request money for bussing from VEPTO to attend Helmer Nature Center. Rebecca and AnnMarie will attend VEPTO meeting to request funds. 

Susan B. Anthony Virtual Trip-Christy called-not available to 4th grade classes, the only option is to travel there. 

Narrative Assessment-the team agrees to push back the district narrative assessment to the week of October 28th. We will update this on the district calendar.