Spring has arrived at Richland which is a terrific time to talk about something new and fresh coming to schools in America.  Many of you have probably heard of the new national standards called the Common Core  Standards.  The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are a coherent progression of learning expectations in English language arts and mathematics designed to prepare K-12 students for college and career success.  The CCSS communicate what is expected of students at each grade level, putting students, parents, teachers and administrators on the same page, working toward shared goals.

While California already had articulated content standards aligned to the California Standards Test, (CST) the Department of Education joined  44 other states to implement common standards across the nation.  Here in San Marcos teams of teachers and administrators are collaborating to implement the new standards, develop timelines of study and write instructional units to be used district wide.  During the 2013-2014 school year our K-5 grade classrooms will follow the Common Core State Standards in mathematics.  These mathematic standards also include standards for mathematical practices.

To prepare for the shift our teachers have been learning the standards and the mathematical practices during our Wednesday early release days. Your children have been participating in Math Talks and learning from a powerful resource called Math Investigations.  Both of these practices engage the students in developing a rigorous math vocabulary, problem-solving, writing about math and explaining their thinking.  Grade level teams will be taking a release day in May to plan and prepare for the  math units they will teach when the new school year opens.

Parents will want to stay informed as the new standards are implemented during the next two years.  There are several resources listed below that  I can recommend.  While our focus will be on mathematics next year, we will also be introducing new writing standards to our students.  They will learn to improve their informational and persuasive writing at each grade level.  During the 2014-2015 school year we will implement the English language arts standards.  In the spring of 2015 students in grades 3-5 will take a common assessment aligned to the Common Core State Standards.  We promise to keep you informed along the way!

Have a restful Spring Break,

Lynda McDonell

http://educationnorthwest.org/webfm_send/1106

http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/cc/

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos?landing_page=Common+Core+Landing+Page&gclid=CKPwyPaC_7UCFe4-Mgod4QwA3A