Empowering Gen Z... Leading and Learning in the 21st Century

  Our Literacy Crisis.... We have discussed the following topics for empowering our students with deep reading skills: Oral Language Early Literacy Systematic & Explicit Phonics Meaningful Read Alouds Vocabulary Instruction Reading Fluency Reading Comprehension Teaching Writing Response to Intervention Assessing Our Students According to Cox Campus, there is a national illiteracy crisis with only 37% of 4th grade students entering with grade-level reading skills. Additionally, “we know that people with better literacy tend to have better social outcomes in terms of things like finding employment, being paid well, and being able to afford better food and housing. Not being able to read or write holds a person back throughout their life and they often become trapped in poverty or more likely to commit crime. We also know that lower literacy is related to poorer health, chronic diseases and shorter life expectancy.” PROMPT: With reducing those percentages of negative outcomes for ...

   RTI Why It Matters Response to Intervention (RTI) is a prevention framework for implementing data-driven decision-making. It’s important because it provides necessary stakeholders with timely and specific information about children so that they can improve learning and increase student performance. Middle School: Please review this article . Then, respond to the prompt below. Elementary: After watching Lessons 1-3 and completing your Assessment, please respond to the following prompt : Prompt : Refer to this RTI Reflection Questions Resource . Glance over the questions and identify one area you would like to improve at Empower. Tell us what you selected and why.  Monelle Dalman and Rebecca Minerd

Let's Talk About Writing... Why It Matters Three-quarters of both 12th and 8th graders lack proficiency in writing, according to the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, 2017). Writing is a critical skill for our students’ self-expression and self-actualization. We know from decades of research how students learn to write and what and how to teach so that the majority of our students can be successful.  Middle School: Please listen to this podcast . Then, respond to the prompt below. Elementary: After watching Lessons 1-3 please respond to the following prompt : Prompt : Writing has a heavy cognitive load, and keeping students motivated is difficult and critical. What are your ideas for giving students opportunities to explore their interests, choices and voices in writing while still developing the writing skills they need AND showing learning of content area? How do you balance these important factors? Monelle Dalman and Rebecca Minerd

  Empowered Teachers Empower Students Middle School: Good news! During effective Reading Comprehension Instruction, your lesson should only target the specific comprehension processes required for students to meet their lesson objectives or purpose. While there are many aspects of language and new concepts to address, only those that further the purpose should be included in the lesson plan. This ensures you maximize the instructional time of your lesson. Please: watch this 4-minute video ; review this framework ; and, this example . Then, respond to the prompt below. Elementary: After watching Lesson 8 and completing your Assessment, please respond to the following prompt : Prompt : These lessons describe a shift to a more in-depth approach to lesson planning that highlights the complex processes readers engage in during a reading of text, instead of reading a text from beginning to end and then hoping for a meaningful product at the end.   Reflect on your own lessons. After...