ANNOUNCING!!!!

FALL 2007 COURSES
ADDISON RUTLAND CONSORTIUM

REGISTRATION DEADLINE: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4*
*(Number of folks enrolled by 3:00 PM on September 4 determines whether course runs or not.)

To register for consortium courses contact Alyson Cota at acota@anwsu.org or call 877-3332

Bridges in Mathematics, Support and Ongoing Study

Credits: 1 Castleton State College graduate or undergraduate credit

Instructors: Susan Dula (for more information contact: Sue at dulasj@verizon.net)

Location: Vergennes (TBA)

Schedule: 3:30-6:30 on the following dates:

October 16, November 20, January 15, February 19, March 18

Target audience: All teachers K-4

Course description: This course is designed specifically for those who have participated in the Getting Started workshops. Participants will be given on-going support throughout the school year as they implement Bridges in Mathematics in their classrooms. Participants will 1) have time to share what is working and what is not in their classroom and brainstorm solutions to challenges, 2) collaborate with other teachers to plan upcoming units, 3) explore the

underlying mathematical principles in the units they are teaching.

Education in Human Values

Credits: 1 graduate credit from Castleton State. 2 additional credits available for students doing independent study with the instructor.

Instructor(s): Cheryl Mitchell

Location: Mary Hogan Elementary School in Middlebury

Schedule: Negotiable. Proposed schedule: Thursday afternoons 3:30 – 5:30 on 9/20 , 10/4, 10/18, and 11/1. This course requires one hour a week of implementation in either a classroom or after-school setting for six weeks.

Target audience: Teachers in grades K- 10, or after school programs.

Course description: Education in Human Values is a climate change curriculum developed in the UK and adapted for the US, that helps students to explore their own values and to interact more respectfully with one another. This course will explore the concept and specifics of a values based curriculum, where it fits in the continuum of anti-bullying and climate change programs, how it relates to the Vermont Framework of Standards, and how it can be implemented. The five values in the curriculum are: truth, love, peace, right conduct, and non-violence.The basic course will be experiential. Each class session will introduce the materials and specific instructional approaches; provide time for planning, and time for reporting on results from previous class sessions. It is expected that students will implement segments of the curriculum between classes. Students doing independent study for additional credit will compare this curriculum to two other anti-bullying or climate change curricula; develop and implement an action research project to assess the impact of Education in Human Values sessions; and do a brief documentation (video, article, or other format) of the implementation process.

Developing Leadership for School Change

Credits: 3 Castleton State College graduate credits

Instructors: Bonnie Bourne, Principal, Mary Hogan Elementary School; Inga Duktig, Principal, Middlebury Union Middle School; Christina Johnston, Principal, Webridge Elementary School; Louise Vojtisek, School Psychologist, ACSU; Vicki Wells, Director of Student Services, ACSU; Patricia Aigner, Director of Technology, ACSU; Jan Willey, Associate Superintendent, ACSU; and a panel of teacher leaders

Location: Mary Hogan Elementary School

Schedule: Classes will be held on the following dates, and will run from 4-7 p.m. The two exceptions are the Saturday class on January 26 (8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.) and June 23 (8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.): 9/12, 9/26, 10/10, 10/24, 11/14, 12/5, 1/9, 2/20, 3/19, 4/16, 5/14, 6/23

Target Audience: K-12 teachers and administrators

Course Description: This course is designed to help school leaders (teachers and administrators) make the connection among Vermont’s Grade Level Expectations, local curricula, and assessments of student learning (both state and local). Participants will explore ways to use data to make decisions about instruction and to guide school action plans. This course will assist school leaders in developing an understanding of curriculum in the context of standards, assessment, and instruction. There will also be a focus on teacher leadership and change.

Structuring the Writing Experience for the Elementary Student

Credits: 2 Castleton State College Graduate Credits

Instructors: Laura King, with guest instructors

Location: Mary Hogan Elementary School

Schedule: The following Thursdays from 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 pm:

9/13 10/4, 11/1 11/22, 1/3, 1/31, 3/6, 4/3, 5/1, 5/22

Target Audience: Teachers K-6

Course Description: Participants in this course will review key concepts of guided writing and writing workshops. The focus, however, is on how to embed directed lessons on the structures of written language within authentic writing experiences. There will be an emphasis on reaching all students via differentiated instruction. Teachers who want to improve their students’ writing fluency, voice/tone, conventions and independent writing skills will benefit from this course, which is aligned with the Vermont Standard/GEs, NAEP, and NECAP.

Fifty Literacy Strategies, Step By Step

Credits: 2 Castleton State College Graduate Credits

Instructors: Laura King, with guest instructors

Location: Mary Hogan Elementary School

Schedule: The following Thursdays from 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 pm: 9/20, 10/11, 11/8, 11/29, 1/10, 2/7, 3/6, 4/10, 5/8, 5/29

Target Audience: K-6 Teachers

Course Description: What are the top fifty instructional practices in literacy? How do teachers tailor these literacy experiences to the diverse learners in the classroom within manageable structure? How can we address grade level expectations assessed through the NECAP, yet still create a joyful community of learners? During each meeting of this course, participants will address these questions and learn five instructional strategies adaptable to grades K-8 and correlated to the standards. Everyone will gain understanding of these strategies through actual simulation activities, demonstrations, and models. Between classes, participants are responsible for trying at least one of these strategies in their classroom and discussing its success with others. By the end of the course, all participants will gain access to 50 core teaching strategies, with ten firmly placed in their literacy instructional “tool box.” Gail Tompkins’ book, 50 Literacy Strategies, Step By Step, will be an optional resource for this class. The most invaluable resource will be the exchange between colleagues, as we explore what motivates and encourages our young students to become better readers, writers, and thinkers.

Writing Helps Me Get It: Helping Students Construct Meaning Through Writing
Credits: 1 Castleton State College Graduate Credit

Instructor: Joey Hawkins

Location: Mt. Abraham Union High School

Schedule: Course begins with a half day morning session on October 11 (8:30 – 12:30). Subsequent sessions are scheduled for November 1 and December 6 (3:00 to 6:30) , and January 10 (3:00 to 7:00).

Course Description:

In this course for grades 7-12 teachers, participants will design a content unit in which reading and writing play an integral part. Teachers will work with sample model units in various content areas. Then, using the principle of ‘backwards design,” teachers will plan a 1-2 week unit for their own students, which culminates in a piece of standards-based writing of any genre. As a group, teachers will share stages of the design process, as well as samples of student work at the final class. Overall, the class will emphasize how helpful it can be for teachers to share both planning and student work, all with the goal of improving student content learning as well as helping them to become more independent writers.

Implementing a Standards-based Mathematics Curriculum

Credits: 2 Castleton State College Graduate Credits

Instructor: Beth Hulbert

Location: Bristol Elementary School

Schedule: Course meets on Thursdays from 3:45 to 6:45 PM on the following dates:

September 20, October 4, November 1, November 29, December 13, January 3, January 24, February 7, March 6, and April 3

Course Description: This course is designed to support all staff in the thorough and effective implementation of the Investigations mathematics curriculum. This will include, but not be limited to: acquiring knowledge of the structure of the program; understanding the scope and sequence across the content areas as it grows from grade to grade; helping teachers to make informed decisions about the implications for either supplementing or supplanting lessons/units as they appear in the curriculum; developing a thorough knowledge of the gaps and extensions of Investigations in relation to the Vermont GEs and ANESU Math Power Standards; acquiring flexibility and depth of understanding about computational strategies employed by the program materials; employing formative assessment techniques to enhance students’ access to content; analyzing student work for the purpose of making informed instructional decisions; providing opportunities for students to attain automaticity with math facts; increased mathematics content knowledge; use and importance of effective questioning strategies in a standards-based curriculum to encourage all students access to classroom discourse and content; and use of end-of-unit assessments for evaluating students’ acquired content knowledge. Teachers will learn, and practice using, strategies and methods that reflect current research in mathematics instruction. An important aspect of the course will be the opportunity for teachers to work collaboratively both within a grade level and across grade levels to reflect on teaching methodologies and lesson design for the purpose of increased student understanding.