INFORMATION ITEM

MEMORANDUM August 19,2013

TO:Elementary Principals

FROM:Academic Services

SUBJECT:Prekindergarten Update

CONTACT:Alison Heath, Early Childhood, 713-556-6823

Curriculum

The PK curriculum has been revised and updated based on student data and feedback from teachers and administrators. The curriculum is aligned to the state PK Guidelines and supports the implementation of the district-adopted PK instructional materials. All curriculum documents and resources can be located on e-learn.

The following resources are available to support planning and delivery of instruction:

  • Scope and Sequenceby grading cycle by content area
  • Pacing Calendar outlining when each instructional theme begins and ends; includes report card dates and PK assessment windows
  • Curriculum Planning Guides by grading cycle and themes
  • Exemplar Units written for all content areas for the first week of each theme and aligned to the district PK adoption
  • Progression of SkillsRubricsused by teachers to determine individual student skill attainment and support decision-making when completing the report card for each student. These content area rubrics are linkedat the bottom of each PK and K Planning Guide.
  • Homework Calendars for each month include activities aligned to the HISD curriculum. These resources are located on the Early Childhood website.

Professional Development -PK training calendar for 2013-2014.

The Early Childhood Department has scheduled training for Prekindergarten teachers in the following areas:

  • Report card grading and best practices
  • Curriculum Previews based on the scope and sequence of instruction (sessions will be offered before each new theme begins)
  • Frog Street resource kit
  • Frog Street Assessment
  • Differentiationstrategies using PK Assessment data

PK Communication -PK Lead Teacher meeting dates.

In a separate memo posted August 19 (Elem. Lead Teacher- 2013-2014), principals are asked to identify campus contacts for various roles and programs. Please complete the google document and include identification of one person from your campus to act as PK lead teacher. The PK lead teacher will attend five meetings during the school year that will include training and information on curriculum, rigorous instruction, and current early childhood topicsas well as district and state updates.

Early Childhood Blog:

The Early Childhood Department has created a blog to communicate Early Childhood information and happenings. The blog will have information pertaining to curriculum resources, teacher resources, professional development, the PK adoption, and the PK assessment. Previously posted principal memos concerning prekindergartenand Frequently Asked Questions will also be posted.

PK Assessment

All prekindergarten students are required to participate in PK assessment administration. The assessment is administered to individual students by the classroom teacher three times within the academic year and takes approximately 30 minutes per student to complete all subtests. To accommodate administration and ensure time for daily instruction, three week administration windows have been defined. The required PK assessment subtests have been reduced for the upcoming school year. Additional information can be accessed through the following links:required subtests

recommendations for administration scheduling

Frequently Asked Questions

PK Assessment / Administration Window
Beginning of Year (BOY) / September 30-October 17, 2013
Middle of Year (MOY) / January 13-30, 2014
End of Year (EOY) / April 21-May8, 2014

In the August 19 memo mentioned above, schools are also asked to identify a PK Assessment contact person. This person will be the liaison for information to the campus concerning the PK assessment. The person will also have access to all PK assessment data for the campus.

Administrative Support in Early Childhood - Instructional Practice Rubric Supplemental Guide for Early Childhood:In collaboration with the Human Capital and Accountability department a supplemental guide for Early Childhood was created to support teachers and administrators with aligning the Instructional Practice Rubric to best practice in an Early Childhood classroom.

Parent Resources: The Early Childhood website has a page with resources for parents concerning topics such as academic support at home, instructional links, and family support services.

The Principal’s Guide to Early Childhood Handbook: A handbook is in development to support administrators with information concerning best practices in Early Childhood. This resource will serve as a quick reference on policy and procedures, classroom environment, classroom observations and developmentally appropriate practices. Additional information regarding the handbook is forthcoming.