Kelly M - Hi bg how are you?
bubba's gram - I am great. I think you just emailed me today about this site. I am getting ready to go to a party but had to stop and say hi.
Kelly M - Hi, Monika - welcome! BG - could be....did you write to me about EC-GEN?
Monika - how are ya Kelly?
Kelly M - I'm well, thanks! And you?
Monika - good thanks, I came up for air (reading downloaded info) for a chat LOL
Kelly M - Monika - Are you reading from the files? .... or did you find something else to bury yourself in?
Monika - I feel so far behind, except for the overwhelming feelings, I am caught up on those!
Kelly M - Hi Becca! How are you?
bubba's gram - What files are you referring to? Would they be a help to me?
Monika - I just downloaded the NBPTS info this week,,,very beginning stages
Becca - STRESSED. jamey comes home in three hours so I'm trying to rework my science bu I wanted to stop in and say hi!
Becca - How are you?
Becca - Foot still in the cast?
Monika - I am JUST beginning to work on Entry 4
bubba's gram - I have to leave but thank you Becca and Monika. Sounds like I am in good company here! I will be back for the next chat.
Becca - When is you due date?
Kelly M - bubba's gram - the files on our website. There's a lot to read there!
Kelly M - Becca - nope...foot out of cast! (Finally!)
Becca - Mine is in 8 weeks and we are going on a ski trip for my boyfriends 30th birthday over the holidays
Becca - Kelly-I bet that feels great!
Monika - Which file Kelly? Same from NBPTS? I am still so confused, tryint got get the bigger picture of this monster
Kelly M - Monika - I meant the files on our website (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EC_GEN/).
Kelly M - Becca - what are you working on?
Becca - Kelly I have REALLY trimmed the sequence of event section in science. That way I spend LOTS on the analysis.
Becca - Does this seem to sparse?
Becca - The sequence of events iss as follows: 1) Discussion on how to use the ramp when rolling the creations; 2) Discussion on potential plans for exploring the guiding science and math questions; 3) Sharing of plans for checking the measurement distance via comparison; 4) Sharing of ideas on how to modify the rollers to improve their speed and distance; 5) Review of the goals of the lesson; and 6) Individual and paired exploration time.
Monika - ohhh, those
sue - hi yall
Tonja - Hi everyone!
Kelly M - Hi sue and Tonja...welcome! Becca - sounds great to me!
sue - becca- are each of the kids going to be given the same equipment to build creations?
sue - ((( aggie))))
Tonja - Monika, Have you had a chance to look at the files. They are AWESOME! Hey aggieb
Kelly M - Hi aggieb! Good to 'see' you!
aggieb(NC) - Hi, to everyone!!
Becca - SUE- each child had their own creations that were built in a previous whole class lesson. The vedeo showed the small group inquiry
Monika - yah, but the whole process is clear as mud right now so I think I need to learn more about the process-product before getting details ?
Tonja - Monika, Trust me---it will get clearer!
sue - becca- but did each have to use the same stuff? if it was varied it might lead to more "why" questions. ie. varying weight and size
Monika - I am just starting on #4, feeling quite behind!
sue - monika- go to the grid (in getting started) it'll make it clearer for you
Monika - How many accomplishments did you all include in entry 4?
Tonja - Monika, don't feel behind. I had done very little at this time last year. A rough draft of Entry 4. It is doable!
aggieb(NC) - Monika everyone has to do this at his/her own pace..
sue - this is so slow today!
Tonja - Oh--I would have to look to see. I know I cut out one at the last minute---Just didn't think it was linked strongly enough to student learning/impact.
sue - maybe it's becuase santa is brining me a new computer LOL!
Becca - Sue- the creations were made from, various cups, straws, disks so they were all very different.
Tonja - Yes-it is slow. Thought it was just me!
sue - becca-sounds like a great lesson to tape
Tonja - Boy this is a quiet group! LOL
Kelly M - Anybody have questions?
Monika - well, I WAS waiting till I got my box got here until I told otherwise
Becca - Yep! In SS or scienc if you use student work as an instruction a=material and words are spelled phoneticall y ... (this is long)
Monika - aggie - did you go to A&T ?
Kelly M - Monika - but now you're using the downloaded things from the NBPTS site?
Becca - Do you write the standard spelling above or LEAVE it be
Tonja - When are you expecting you box, Monica? I believe you can get the information from the NB site.
Kelly M - Becca - check the directions. They used to specify what to do in that case. Not sure about the current directions, though.
Becca - In SS or scienc if you use student work as an instruction a=material and words are spelled phoneticall y Do you write the standard spelling above or LEAVE it be
Monika - should be anytime now, I think. I downloaded everything & am now trying to understand it all
Tonja - Becca, I don't remember on the Sci/SS. We turned in a conventional spelled writing piece with the phonetically spelled one on entry 1.
Monika - right, Kelly
Kelly M - Hi Susan! Glad to see you here!
Susan (NC) - Hi guys! Sorry I'm late.........
Monika - I'm wondering, is it best to work on 1 section at a time or to continually work on them all?
Susan (NC) - Kelly, I'm thinking about redoing my math AC, what do you think?
Tonja - I think it depends on how you work. I could do only major work on one entry at a time. My friend worked on all 4 at the same time. Hi Susan.
Kelly M - Monika - everybody has to do what 'fits' for them! I know some who worked hard on one, moved to another, and another...and so on....and then went back to edit/rewrite. Others have several going at once. Whatever works for you is the right way!
Monika - I seewha you mean,I am just trying to figure out my plan of attack
aggieb(NC) - I helped to let an entry get cold to edit.. I could do a better job editing a cold entry..
Susan (NC) - Has Debbie MC been here already ? I probably missed her..........
Monika - aggie - did you go to A&T?
Tonja - I agree Aggie...
Kelly M - Susan - did I send you a bunch of stuff for the math AC?
Kelly M - Susan - nope - haven't seen Debbie yet today!
aggieb(NC) - Monika, no I did not attend A&T.. I am a bucking bronco
Becca - I aggree with aggie to I'm back to my science today after letting it sit for a month. It is going SO much better now!
Monika - oh LOL I live in Greensboro & hear "Aggies" all the time
Susan (NC) - Kelloy, yes you did and I saved it all.........I thought I wrote everything down in sections in my AC book, now I'm questioning myself whether I wrote enough??
Tonja - See you guys later!
aggieb(NC) - Becca, I think you will do fine,,continue to stay focused.
Susan (NC) - I thought I'd maybe try it again and just write MORE - my scores improved from a 1.5 to a 2.5.....have you ever heard of someones score going DOWN ??? - yikes!
Susan (NC) - aggie, is your computer giving you fits today?
aggieb46 - For my generation at the AC,, the focus I think was did you "answer" the question.. we did not have to write a lot to get a high score
aggieb46 - Susan you are right,, rural NC with no high speed internet.. all dial-up
Kelly M - Susan - I just sent you one that I meant....see if you have it. aggieb, the old generation is very different. You have to write for 90 minutes on each topic....VERY detailed.
Susan (NC) - Aggie - I'm in the older generation where each prompt was 90 minutes........
Monika - where is the info on the AC?
aggieb46 - I am glad it worked out for me to be a part of the new generation.. I would have gone brain dead
Kelly M - Monika - AC info can also be found in our files....
Susan (NC) - just got it Kelly - thanks.........I don't know if I wrote that or not...........so many ? so little time! ha
Susan (NC) - aggie, I'm in rural NC too but last summer, we sprang for a satelite ISP..........it is lightening fast!
aggieb46 - Becca how is your literacy coming
Kelly M - Susan - I think I'm about to go digital. This dial-up drives me nuts!
Susan (NC) - I hated our dial up..........it was down more than it was up!!
aggieb46 - Digital sounds great.. I was thinking about it..
Susan (NC) - Kelly, the reason I want to do the AC math again is for insurance purposes only......I need 25 points and planning on redoing Science & Community again!
Becca - Aggie- It's really coming along. I set it to the side so I can approach it with a new face next week.
Kelly M - Becca - sounds like you have at least something going on each entry, right?
Becca - It was difficult writing the lit with the analysis and support sections being seperated. For the writing I put kid one with kid one and kid 2 with kid two I will separe them the way NB wants before I send it off
Kelly M - Susan - that should do it!
Becca - I offically have a draft for all four! #4 only needs a bit more work....The other I will probably cry as I send them off because I don't think they will ever be done
Susan (NC) - Becca, it sounds like you have a handle on it......the first go round; I didn't have a clue!
Kelly M - Becca - you just hit the nail on the head....they will NEVER be done!Hi Lori - welcome!
Susan (NC) - well, folks - keep up the good work and don't ever give up......that is my new battle cry!
Lori/FL - HI! I remember rewriting my papers n college right up until te time the prof took them out of my hands!
Susan (NC) - Thanks Kelly! you have helped me more than you know - hope to be back next week!
Kelly M - Hey there sinetag! How are you???????????????
sinetag - good enough - and you?
Lori/FL - I'm trying to decide which student to spotlight for literacy. I have one who is a perfectionist and has to keep up with her 3rd grade sister and another who just came to me....was in K last yr up north until Feb, withdrew and went to Puerto Rico and just came to us...did not attend in P.R.! I have a lot of questions about him, but wonder if he would be a good candidate
Kelly M - I'm fine.....tired and busy, like everybody else!
sinetag - just checkingin for a minute before i go shopping
sinetag - still holding that date next august i hope
Monika - I have a ?? ... it was suggested to me to use a unit we did on rhymes in entry 4. We turned it into an "informance" & taught the rhymes to the other k-2 classes. I am just trying to figure out how this can be written up / titled?
Lori/FL - sorry, nothing letft, i bought it all already! ;_)
sinetag - very funny
Kelly M - sinetag - re next August - YES! with bells on! and by the way, your kitty is absolutely adorable!
Kelly M - Monika - can you build a case for it being 'above and beyond' normal unit building with colleagues?
sinetag - thanks - he's a pistol
sinetag - alright, i'm off to the shops
Monika - I feel like I can, but the emphasis was on the kids & them expressing their depth of learning & the entire process we went through to get to the final sharing step...
Monika - it didn't seem like something that would easily fit that entry, that's why I asked
Kelly M - sinetag - tell susan hi!
sue - hi yall, sorry took me this long to reboot!
sue - lori- it doesn't matter the level as long as you can address your question and student needs
Becca - Have a great week everyone! I need to re-focus myself! Thanks for listening
Kelly M - Hi again sue - glad you made it back. Monika - I think that you have to put your 'accomplishments' to the test of two things: 1) did it have a big impact on student learning (and how do you know that?) and 2) the wonderful age-old question for this entry....so what? You have to be able to show that it IS something above and beyond what is 'normal'...whatever that is. After all, you are calling it an 'accomplishment'...so it shouldn't be something teachers do routinely. I'm not in any way suggesting that what you did is NOT above and beyond....I just mean that you have to decide if it meets that criteria...and then document it!
sue - I agree with Kelly. what is an accomplishment at one school for one teacher may be the "norm" at another
Monika - ok...makes sense, thanks
Lori/FL - sue, I know that the new boy is going to take a great deal of work...he's already 6 1/2 and knows basically nothing! They put him in my room after 2 days in first grade!
sue - ie- communcation folders. I started them in PK, principal took and it ran with the rest of the school LOL! even used the same company
Monika - But I was also encouraged to include supervising a student teacher and being a mentor to a new teacher (which seem more "routine" then the other)
sue - lori- are you K?
Lori/FL - sue, yes
sue - monika- supervising student teacher is not "routine" in my area. Your need to have a masters and take a grad level course
sue - lori- OK so you already have your list of questions for your low one then right?
Lori/FL - all kinds of questions for him
Monika - I am expecting to put in about 6-7 accomplishments I think, so I am trying to be selective & make them stand out, weed out the watered-down ones
sue - monika- write them all and then decide which ones to include.
Lori/FL - I'm thinking of asking for the ESI-K teacher manual again so can do an ESI-K on him...which we did on all our students in September
Lori/FL - its a kindergarten readines instrument
Kelly M - Monika - for using the student teacher, etc....be sure to dwell on the impact it had on your students.....and also perhaps on how YOU learned new things/kept abreast, etc. from it...and therefore YOU were a learner as well as a leader!
Monika - So if I wrote a grant for a program that I am listing as an accomplishment should I list the grant separately or include it with the other entry?
sue - lori- if he's ESL don't forget to mention how you use the resources at the school level to meet his needs-- who you consulted with
sue - lori- use the results of the ESI to start your questions.
Monika - good idea Kelly - I am looking hard for the learner category
Kelly M - Lori - be sure to include how you collaborated with a colleague to get that manual to give the ESI again....
Lori/FL - yes, he still needs to be tested for our ESOL program also...hope that gets done in the next week
sue - for example, one of my kids scored 2.5 standard deviations below average on our screening
Kelly M - Monika - be sure to document WHAT you learned from the student teacher! also, I would do the grant and program as one....but what does anybody else think?
Lori/FL - We also have a "Kindergarten Intervention Team" which we use prior to putting a student up for child study...I will be talking with my team member about him also
sue - monika- do you need it more as a leader or learner?
Monika - more learner
Monika - and boy was it ever!! LOL
sue - lori- record all of that and be sure to analyze info from that to devise you plan for him and involve his parents\
Kelly M - can't you use it as both? I think you can claim both in one documentation....
Kelly M - but be sure to check the directions for that!
sue - here's a good resource for assessment-- " The Literacy Map"
Lori/FL - involvng parents...the parents are spanish-only...not unlike a lot of my other parents....my spanish is very basic, but I use our bilingual parent educcator person to make contact
sue - kelly- you can on the cover sheet but most like to make sure they have some in each category
sue - lori- mention it! what about bilingual labels in your class, read alongs books with spanish and english on same page so both parent and child can increase skills?
Kelly M - sue - thanks! I wasn't sure about that. But I know that my candidates here were claiming both in a couple of accomplishments....
sue - another good resource-- national kindergarten writing standards
sue - don't forget to document reading play,too
Lori/FL - I have a subscription to readingatoz and they ahve their leveled books in english and spanish
Monika - have you seenthe website that will translate letters for you? I had great success witht hat last year...you can use it both ways (spanish-english & back)
Lori/FL - yes, the translation sites are goo fo very basic comunications, but they translate word for word and sometimes make no sense...I usually try to write something out and then have our parent educator rewrite it for me
Monika - lucky you Lori, to have that help
Lori/FL - where are the national kdg writing standards found on the web?
Monika - ok, heading out...have a good weekend all
Lori/FL - for several year I had a full time bilingual aide...this year I don't
Kelly M - good luck, Monika!
Kelly M - I need to be on my way, too....things have really piled up here (as I'm sure they have everywhere!). See you all next week!
Monika - thanks...I think I'll be needing it LOL
Lori/FL - i've alo been known to schedule my confeences so that I hve a bilingual parent available when my spanish parents come in without an interpreter
Lori/FL - I also go against the ESOL grain by aloowing my students to repond to assesments of numbers and colors in spanish if they don't know it in English...I fiugre if they know the content they know it regardless of what language it is in,,,they will pick up the English as soon as they can.
sue - monika- be careful with that site. It doesn't translate exactly and you can get some comical and somewhat obscene translations sometime LOL!
sue - lori- go a search on google. if you can't find them, post a note and I'll send you a hard copy from my office
Lori/FL - thank you
sue - lori- make sure you address all the areas of language arts listed in the standards including viewing
sue - the cycle should be assess/analyze/implement/ assess
Lori/FL - i think that's where i fell apart last year..., i think i'm much more focused this year...don't have as many distractions since my daughter and her family moved out of state
sue - is that the only portfolio you need to focus on this time?
Lori/FL - unfortunatley, no...i'm also doing science and social studies........
sue - lori- it's doable, don't panic
sue - gotta go make cookies. see you next week
Lori/FL - since I have to focus on physical enjoy..i've got my baking waiting for me, too
Lori/FL - bye
Lori/FL - "national writing standards" kindergarten
