Where are teachers on Thursday mornings?
They are not in the halls, the copy machine is idle, and teacher desks are empty. Where are the teachers on Thursday mornings?
For the second year, Kimball teachers are setting aside one morning per week to participate in a Professional Learning Community (PLC). From 7:30-8 a.m., teachers are meeting with their grade level or department to collaborate, develop common assessments, align curriculum to standards, participate in vertical teaming between grade levels, and more.
Moved to Thursday mornings because data from 2014-15 showed the least number of teacher absences on Thursdays, PLCs are gaining momentum as a way for teachers to work together on a common project. Directed by the District-Wide Staff Development committee, trained PLC leaders developed both district- and building-level goals. The leaders meet bi-monthly to track progress on the goals and to share successes and concerns among the PLC groups. There are 14 PLC groups meeting each Thursday morning.
Kimball Elementary PLCs are mostly focusing on collaboratively planning and discussing the new reading curriculum, Reading Wonders by McGraw-Hill. Daily 5, a framework for structuring literacy time so students develop lifelong habits of reading, writing, and working independently (www.
thedailycafe.com) was implemented in all KES classrooms and teachers are using PLC time to apply the framework with consistency across grade levels.
At the High School, departments are working on a project which they chose, and will present their findings at a monthly staff meeting. Projects vary and include analyzing data and creating power standards in the math department, developing standards-based assessments in the English department, and creating consistency in Career and Technical Education classrooms in regards to craftsmanship.
The copy machine will continue to be idle on Thursday mornings.
Submitted by Nancy Bonnifield,
Curriculum Director