Priority #3
Instruct with focus on thinking strategies and feedback
Provide both rigorous and responsive instruction by using the elements of intentional design, with a specific focus on making student thinking visible and giving specific, meaningful, feedback.
| Strategic Priority Three | Instruct with focus on thinking strategies and feedback |
|---|---|
| Why is this important? | Research shows that ability and skills are not enough for students to reach their potential. Students need to develop and be taught the attitude and alertness to think deeply and to communicate their thinking. Thinking can be practiced. Teachers who attend to ways of asking students to demonstrate their thinking visibly, find students who are more engaged and responsible for their learning as well as successful in mastering content. Paired with thinking strategies that promote student engagement and growth, is a teacher’s intentional use of feedback to students. Students need much more than a final score; learners need to know what is expected, what success looks like, and what needs to be done to move toward greater success. Feedback is the vehicle to do this. Our instructional strategy priorities are to develop students’ thinking and provide meaningful feedback. Prioritizing these two strategies will foster student engagement, student ownership of their learning, and mastery. |
| Action steps related to the priority | 1. ​Logical & Sequential Thinking- putting a focus on the development of the problem solving and design process 2. Grading- Implement grading strategies that support feedback and growth mindset 3. Questioning- Use DOK (Depth of Knowledge) questioning techniques that are level 3 and 4 4. Grit and Resilience |
| Evidence of Implementation | READ Plans GT Plans RTI Plans ELL Services DOK Questioning ​Grit and Resiliency Trainings Student Goal Setting Leadership Trainings- Sources of Strength |
| Evidence of Impact | Attendance Average from Preschool-12th Grade is 95% Sources of Strength Leadership in Students 95% Participation in Extra Curricular Activities Graduation Rate 100% Youth Sports with HS athletes and coaches |
Documents:
Attendance 24-25 School Year
Extra Curricular Activities
HS Sports
Youth Sports
Grit and Resiliency
​
Dr. Rich Patterson has been working with the staff and students during his Grit and Resiliency trainings. He helps students find hope by asking the right questions. While working with Rich, youth gain understanding and the desire to succeed is restored (or sometimes discovered for the very first time). He is a commended author whose book, Making Sense of Life: A Guide for Teens and Parents, shares the results of more than 40 successful years of working with youth. These thoughts are tried and true in that they have proven results with the youth of today.
Rich has worked with thousands of kids and has a sterling reputation for success. He has a powerful presence on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. He has a weekly coaching blog for teens and parents and his passion for working with kids, parents and families have glowing results.
DOK- Depth of Knowledge
​
Teachers are striving to use questions and projects that reach level 3 and 4 on the DOK.
Level 3: Assess, Revise, Develop a Logical Argument, Compare, Formulate, Critique
Level 4: Connect, Apply Concepts, Analyze, Create, Prove, Design
In Geography, the Freshman are playing FanSchool Geopolitics. to boost their awareness about what’s happening in the world and connect their learning to current events. Students ‘drafted’ countries and are competing against their classmates.
During the contest, students will be doing the following in class:
- Discuss and write about current events happening in players’ countries.
- Draft countries from certain continents to encourage geographic awareness.
- Debate U.S. foreign policy solutions in different countries around the world.
- Pick up WWI or Cold War countries to examine historical legacies in those places.
- Play low-score wins to analyze countries outside the mainstream media.
- Utilize foreign language news to add a twist to instruction
Holocaust Presentation
Think Fast Interactive Teen Safety
ThinkFast™ Interactive was developed in 1997 to provide an engaging and educational program that tackles important topics such as underage drinking, drug use, bullying, traffic safety, and distracted driving.
Science Projects- Earth Worm/Sting Ray Dissection, Rollercoasters, and Protein Synthesis
Band and Music Concerts
Knowledge Bowl
High School Sports
Youth Sports
JH Melodrama
