North Otter Elementary
Principal – Ms. Dianne Chretien
NORTH OTTER ACTION PLAN 2016 – 2017
SCHOOL CONTEXT
North Otter is a growing rural community school in the Langley School District. We have a population of 268 students, 11 divisions K through 7. We have an excellent team of educators including 11 enrolling teachers, one 0.7 and one 0.4 Resource teacher, 0.2 Reading Recovery, 0.1 ELI, a full time Youth Care, an ELL teacher, a Speech and Language teacher, an Aboriginal Support worker (0.3) and 9 Special Education Assistants. Further supporting our students are our Admin Assistant, two full time Noon Hour Supervisors and two custodians. Approximately 9% of the population requires support from Learning Support Services, 12% receive speech and language support, and 5% are English Language Learners. Students of Aboriginal ancestry make up approximately 10% of our population. Further community supports include Big Brothers, Big Sisters Langley running two programs in our school and our RCMP liaison officer. We have a Strong Start, a Pre-school, and a Day Care on site. We have a strong music program with a music teacher (0.4) for K-5 and a band teacher who comes from Poppy Secondary to teach grade 6 and 7 students. The students are then able to continue with the same teacher throughout their high school music career. We have a vibrant, engaged PAC and parent community who funded and built a beautiful new playground last in 2014-2015, started up a breakfast program last year and are working with staff and students to create a community garden and outdoor learning space this year. Our students are very active, engaging in a variety of games each day including noon hour hockey and sports throughout the year including cross-country running (4-7), volleyball and basketball (6 and 7) and track and field (4-7).
Over the past two years, we have been pursuing a math goal.
INQUIRY QUESTIONS:
How can we improve the math achievement of our students?
- How do we help students acquire number sense and build on concepts from year to year?
- How do we foster a positive attitude to math, eliminating anxiety and developing a growth mindset?
RATIONALE:
The impetus for pursuing this question is conversations between staff of the needs they were observing in their classrooms. Teachers noticed that students had not mastered number concepts and math strategies taught in previous years and therefore unable to move forward in the curriculum.
Math Plan Reflection:
A. How did we help students acquire number sense and build on concepts from year to year?
70% Taught math vocabulary using Math Word Wall and glossaries for each student
60%Focused on teaching students to interpret the task
80%Implemented differentiated instruction in math (Leaps and Bounds, open questions, and parallel tasks)
90%Continued to have Teachers and SEAs work closely to plan adaptations (one class had no SEA)
80%Used technology to deepen math instruction (see attached Zone of Innovation Grant application which was accepted)
Some examples:
Used white boards and other manipulatives when beginning to understand tasks.
Student collaborated on working on questions.
Shared answers and explained strategies.
Focused on understanding word problems, creating own word problems and sharing problems.
Related math to real world situations, students listed jobs related to math.
Differentiated math questions.
Displayed anchor charts and referred to these while teaching.
Used math journals and index cards.
Asked students to transfer and extend their learning to new applications.
Math vocabulary used and concepts referred to during K “Show and Tell”.
Class website included the following: tutorials and interactive math activities related to lessons taught in class, Math Focus lessons on line, list of math websites, math term (dictionary) under student links.
Used You tube videos, Quizlet, iPads as an interactive white board, Explain Everything, Jeopardy math games (to play in class and study at home while playing)
Next year:
-have kids created instructional videos and post on web
-use math journals for showing your work – have students show their work for only a small portion of the questions so it doesn’t become tedious
-clean up iPads (take off some apps) and use if for filming communicating thinking
-put computers in computer lab with Success Maker on them for practice for struggling students
B.How can we improve students’ attitudes towards math, thereby eliminating anxiety?
60%_Sent home games
20%Did Big/Little Buddy math activities
Some examples:
Broke math teaching into smaller chunks.
Made more opportunitiesfor small group instruction.
Tried to level the work to their ability.
Created opportunities for them to share their work and create their own questions.
Constantly checked in with those who I knew would struggle.
Adapted certain lessons when needed (providing multiplication tables when working on division strategies to help alleviate the worry of knowing times tables for example).
Provided positive reinforcement for those who struggle to show them they were being successful.
Did math games at least once a week.
Used games to reinforce concepts.
Will send games home over summer.
Reminded them I am here as a coach and a guide.
Linked back to math done last year.
Provided art activities related to math.
Used connections, clues, hints (e.g. circumference and area of circle – pi – always circular like a pie.
Modeled good attitude toward math.
Reminded students not all assignments are marked for report cards – allows kids to learn from trial and error.
Established positive classroom environment – safe to take risks.
Practice included daily math questions and daily math facts.
Had students teach students.
Had students work in pairs to produce a video on math terminology.
Talked about making mistakes being a huge part of learning.
Had students share their mistakes and shared mine.
Had math activity every day followed by kids’ choice math centres so that they have lots of opportunity to play with math.
Had side-by-side teacher preteach math lesson in small group, so they came to the lesson better prepared and less anxious
Will have math game afternoon in June
Had math bulletin board which changed the language students use to describe their math work – plan to send this home and remind parents to be careful of communicating a negative bias against math
MEASUREMENTS
Note: This year we tried a variety of assessments to see which ones were the most accessible and applicable.
- Pre-assessment used :
Island Net – Gr 3-7
The tool was designed for the goals of a particular school or district. It was not always accurate.
Do the Math (2/3)
Staff decided that a comprehensive math pre-assessment was not useful. It was too overwhelming and increased anxiety and too many concepts were lost over the summer months. Pre-assessment for individual concepts before starting a unit of study was much more helpful
- Pre-assessment for planning instruction used :
Math Focus
Leaps and Bounds – found to be too strategy-based
Classroom discussion and feedback
Do the Math
What Do They Know – from Deanna
Jumpmath
Math Makes Sense
Math Fluency Computation Strategies
A Matter of Facts
Math Power
Teacher made
The pre-assessments found most effective were Math Focus, What Do They Know, Math Power and Teacher made.
- Classroom assessments and observations:
Assessment worksheets throughout unit to work on specific skills
Small group instruction for those who are struggling
Mid chapter reviews as a way of seeing who have the skills mastered and those who need more review
Math journals where students show their learning through creating and solving problems.
K: white boards, game time, workbooks, marking mathbook individually with student right after completion and while still fresh in their heads, observation during centres
Looking for demonstration of understanding, not just right answer
One-on-one testing
Quizzes
White board questions for practice
Thumbs up for understanding
- Post-assessments:
DNA 3 20152016
NY21
MM93
FM1618
E52
DNA 620152016
NY22
MM66
FM1212
E--
Overall, the data shows that we are building stronger skills at the primary level and maintaining achievement at the intermediate level. We need and will continue to work on developing skills as the math becomes more complex.
Math Attitude Survey
Reflections:
I watch for understanding and growth during formative assessment to see where I need to spend more time and who needs extra help. I find we tend to move slower to try not leave any student behind, but I am finding some of my students are not challenged enough. My goal would be to structure my math instruction to better meet the needs of those who are stronger with math concepts.
Teaching split grades in math is extremely difficult and does not provide the time to do the extra exploration as we are constantly bouncing back and forth as teachers. It would be helpful to receive extra support during math periods for small groups to be pulled and given more 1 to 1 support.
Our school is also missing a good wealth of resources for differentiated instruction. We are often pulling from our own collection of resources or relying on online activities.
I plan to try more new things next year.
In discussion as we reviewed the year, staff felt that practice with basic facts must still be a continued focus. It was noted that students were much more able to explain their thinking, and that it is not necessary for them to explain every solution they reached, but rather only a portion of the work they do. Continued work on communication willbe carried through next year with the use of math journals and technology. It was also noted that having a number of strategies is beneficial, but students should not need to master each of the strategies taught for a given concept, rather they should choose the one or two that suit them best.
RATIONALE:
Rationale for changing our focus for next year:
These last two years we have established a trajectory of growth and development in our math instruction. For the four years previous, we concentrated on reading. We will continue to pursue gains in numeracy and literacy, supported by a district instructional coach two days a week next year. We will enhance our instruction byadding a focus on the core competencies, particularly self-regulation and personal responsibility. By concentrating on developing these competencies, combined with solid instruction in numeracy in literacy, we hope to maximize our students’ growth and development.
INQUIRY QUESTION:
How will focusing on the core competencies of social and personal responsibility combined with solid numeracy and literacy instruction increase student achievement?
ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN:
Paraphrased Core Competency profiles from the “Self-Regulation” facet of Personal Awareness and Responsibility:
I identify my emotions and use strategies to regulate them.
I persevere in challenging tasks, implementing, monitoring, assessing results and adjusting the learning plan.
- How will we help students become successful self-regulating learners?
•Use five-point scale to help students self-monitor levels of noise, behavior
•Use Aboriginal Talking Circles to conduct classroom meetings and build community
•Teach students how to identify the physical and emotional impact of stress and the things that act as stressors to them
•Present and practice stress-reducing and stress-managing strategies and help students choose those that work for themselves
- Teach students to adopt a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset
- Commit as staff members to practice self-regulation ourselves
• Commit to research-based reading instruction such as guided reading and lit circles
•Commit to research-based math instruction (as used this year)
Paraphrased Core Competency profiles from the “Solving problems in peaceful ways”, “Building relationships” and “Contributing to community “ facets of Social Responsibility:
I identify how my actions and the actions of others affect my community and work together to make positive change.
I am kind to others, work and play co-operatively, and build positive relationships.
I clarify problems or issues, generate multiple strategies, weigh consequences, compromise to meet the others, and evaluate actions.
- How will we help students solve problems in peaceful ways, build relationships and contribute to their community?
- Use Anchor Charts to develop use of common language for framing behavior
- Teach students to adopt a growth mindset versus a fixed mindsetemotionally and behaviourally as well
- Identify individual needs of students and use team approach to brainstorm ways to meet them
- Teach students problem-solving processes and actions for building relationships
MEASUREMENTS
- Self-assessments in the form of the I-messages rubrics in the Core Competencies in the New Curriculum
- MDI Reports
- Reading assessments of primary students
- DNA 3 and 6
Baseline Data - MDI
Grade Four
Overall: 26% Thriving
37% Medium
37% Low
Self-Reg44% High
Long Term48% Medium
7% Low
Self-Reg55% High
Short Term34% Medium
10% Low
Grade Seven
Overall: 31% Thriving
38% Medium
31% Low
Self-Reg53% High
Long Term27% Medium
20% Low
Self-Reg80% High
Short Term13% Medium
7% Low
Perseverance53% High
13% Medium
33% Low
RESOURCES
•Dr. Shanker’s books: Calm, Alert and Learning andSelf-Reg
•Anchor Charts
•Five-point Scale materials
•Calm.com
• Keltymentalhealth.ca
•Apps from BC Children’s Hospital
METHODS TO BE USED FOR STAFF COLLABORATION AND CAPACITY BUILDING:
- Focus on student engagement
- Share implementation ideas, successes and questions at staff meetings
- Work with District Instructional Coach
- Work with Poppy high school teachers to implement Maker Space
METHODS TO BE USED TO PARTNER WITH PARENTS
- Parent evening session on Self-Reg