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Office of Teaching & Learning
October Newsletter
October 11, 2024
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Office of Teaching and Learning
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Welcome to the launch of the monthly 2024-2025 Teaching and Learning Newsletter! We are excited to share information from the following departments:
- Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
- Early Education Expansion
- Multilingual Education
- Educational Technology
- Fine and Performing Arts
Each department works collaboratively to develop coherence in support of the District’s Instructional Priority; If student-centered educators utilize intentional lesson design that includes clear objectives, strategies, scaffolds, and extensions based on individual profiles of students (IEP needs, Language Proficiency levels, various data points) to provide access to grade-level Tier I instruction for all students, especially students who are dually identified, then students will be able to master priority grade-level literacy standards and communicate their progress and how their work supports their growth and achievement. An intentional focus on the priority and the named subgroups focuses efforts on closing the opportunity gap while providing high-quality instruction for all students.
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We continue to expand our Pre-kindergarten programming and offerings and efforts. In the school year 2021-2022, the District partnered with two community partners to offer Pre-Kindergarten experiences for eligible students at no cost to families: Metrowest YMCA (25 seats) and Framingham State University (23 seats). These 48 seats were in addition to 14 seats at BLOCKS/Juniper Hill, the District’s public preschool location. In the school year 2022-2023, the District was able to add an additional site at Loving Nest Preschool (15 seats) while simultaneously adding seats at the previous sites, bringing the total to 93 students. In the 2023-2024 school year, the District yet again added more seats across the four sites for a total of 113 students. Lastly, for the 2024-2025 school year, the District added a Pre-K classroom at McCarthy Elementary School (20 seats), continued to offer a Spanish Immersion classroom (20 seats) and 56 Pre-K seats at BLOCKS/Juniper Hill. In partnership with our community programs and district expansion we are able to offer 204 Pre-K students and currently 114 Pre-K special education students an early learning experience before entering Kindergarten.. BLOCKS/Juniper Hill also serves 60 preschool students, most of whom receive special education services. |
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K - 5 Vision of Literacy
In Framingham Public Schools, we foster critical readers, writers, speakers, and thinkers who are engaged members of our community by providing culturally sustaining, relevant, and standards-aligned literacy instruction.
Framingham’s 7-Year Strategic Priorities
- Strengthen Standards-Based, Grade-Level Instruction to Meet the Needs of All Students
- Deepen Relationships and Develop Partnerships to Benefit All Students
- Create Opportunities for Expansion and Innovation to Benefit All Students
2024 - 2025 District Instructional Priority
If educators utilize intentional lesson design that includes clear objectives, strategies, scaffolds, and extensions based on individual profiles of students (IEP needs, Language Proficiency Levels, various data points) to provide access to grade-level Tier 1 instruction for all students, especially students who are dually identified, then students will be able to master grade-level literacy standards and communicate their progress and how their work supports their growth and achievement.
2024 - 2025 K-5 Literacy Priorities
Priority 1 - K-2 RFS: All K-2 teachers build knowledge of evidence-based explicit, systematic, kid-friendly and responsive foundational skills instructional practices so students can demonstrate mastery of grade-level foundational skills.
Priority 2 - RLC: All teachers incorporate standards-aligned, text-dependent comprehension questions and tasks into daily lessons so all K-5 students have opportunities to build knowledge of content and have ownership over their learning.
Priority 3 - Assessment: All teachers use formative and summative assessment data to provide meaningful feedback to students and inform daily instruction.
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Fall Curriculum Night at Elementary Schools
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This year’s Fall Curriculum Nights included parents and caregivers visiting classrooms, meeting teachers, and learning about our literacy curriculum. |
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The United States of Readers (USoR) is a literacy program empowering PreK–8th grade students to choose their own books, build home libraries, and develop the self-confidence and cognitive skills foundational for academic and life success.
This program will be held at all of our Title 1 schools -
Barbieri, Brophy, Harmony, McCarthy, and Stapleton.
What to Expect:
- October 8 - Students select and submit their orders for their 2 books/teacher 5 books.
- October 21 - Book Box Arrives - find fun ways to engage families in the joy of reading.
- Students will select books again in January, March, and April.
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In light of the political climate, please remember that it is essential to maintain neutrality regarding political views, particularly within our classroom settings. Not only is this promulgated in School Committee Policy IJ, which urges instructional programs and materials to "present balanced views of international, national, and local issues and problems of the past, present and future," but it is also an important means to ensure that all students, regardless of beliefs or affiliations, feel valued and respected. As such, discussions, materials, or activities should promote such balance and nonpartisanship. Remember, as educators we are tasked with teaching our students how to think, not what to think. |
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FPS Math Vision
In FPS, we as math educators aspire to developm math literate students, use grade level standards to create authentic learning experiences, prioritize equity and access and foster math mindsets, perseverance and academic risk-taking.
This is being accomplished by conducting a Mathematics Curriculum Review in partnership with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Details are provided in the ‘Math Curriculum Review’ section above. This Math Curriculum Council will strive to maintain transparency and thoughtful rationale’s throughout the process to ensure we are finding HQIM to support all learners in Framingham Public Schools.
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Mathematics K-6 Curriculum Review
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The Office of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment is working collaboratively with members across Framingham Public Schools that represent our Curriculum Council and guidance from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to evaluate and select a new math curriculum for PreK-8.
The Curriculum Council (CC) is a representative group of school, district, and community stakeholders who will lead and/or contribute to the investigation and selection of new curricular materials. The CC will investigate High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM), which are curricular materials that are standards-aligned, culturally responsive and that exhibit a coherent sequence of target skills, instructional practices and understandings, and are accessible for all students, including students with disabilities, students above and below grade level, English Learners, and students of color.
The CC’s main tasks in the fall and early winter is to unpack the FPS Vision, the Non-Negotiables for K-8 Mathematics Instruction, and modern research around Mathematics curriculum, instruction, and assessment. They will compare recommended high-quality instructional materials against our vision and non-negotiables in an effort to identify around 2 or 3 curriculum resources for teachers to field test in the spring.
It is important to note that this process will also determine the HQIM that are chosen for the Dual Language programs.
As we navigate through this process, we will continue to communicate the progress and identified curriculum materials being reviewed. As we narrow down to promising curriculum for adoption, we will seek participants to test out the curriculum and provide input. We hope to field test the curriculums in the spring.
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To begin the elementary school year, students worked through the Technology and Design Process while applying real life phenomena to a design problem. The design projects were based on grade level appropriateness and standards-alignment.
MA STEM Week - October 21 - 25, 2024
The theme of Massachusetts’ annual STEM Week this year is ‘STEM starts Now’ to promote that anyone, at any age, can work within STEM looking towards STEM jobs of the future. Teachers and coaches will be working together to create a variety of STEM experiences for our students throughout the Framingham Public Schools.
To support MA STEM Week at home, please use this resource. Also, if you are looking for ideas to engage your children in a project or activity check out these local activities happening within and around the Framingham area:
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Department of Multilingual Education
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Oral Language Assessment- Framingham (OLA-F)
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All students enrolled in our Dual Language Programs located at
- Brophy
- Barbieri
- Potter Road
- Harmony Grove
- Fuller
- Walsh
- Framingham High School
will take the Oral Language Assessment (OLA-F).
Our Dual Language programs will be observing students with Framingham Oral Language Comprehension and Production Observational Assessment Matrix (OLA-F).
Teachers will add the students’ scores in each category in X2 in the OLA-F Assessment Tab by October 31st.
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2024 MCAS ASSESSMENT RESULTS
Cargeivers of students in grades 4-10 should expect to receive their child's 2024 MCAS Assessment Results Friday, October 18th.
IREADY - ALL STUDENTS GRADES 1-8
The diagnostic window has just closed. Students engaged in the assessment in both literacy and mathematics. For more information on the assessments, please see our previous September Assessment Update. We will be sharing the results in next months newsletter.
ISTATION - DUAL LANGUAGE SPANISH PROGRAMS
Brophy, Barbieri, Fuller, and Walsh
Students in Grades K-6 in the Dual Language program in Spanish-English (Brophy, Barbieri, Fuller and Walsh) use the iStation Spanish Literacy.
Istation Spanish Literacy cultivates biliteracy growth through lessons that build language skills based on the natural hierarchy of a transparent language.
The initial baseline assessment needs to be completed by October 16th.
Students will dedicate 30 minutes a week during the Spanish Literacy block on the l language and literacy lessons.
As students complete the online tasks and formative assessments, the platform will identify areas of strength and next steps for students.
ELEFANTE LETRADO - DUAL LANGUAGE PORTUGUESE PROGRAM
Potter Road and Harmony Grove
The Elefante Letrado platform includes curated authentic literature in Portuguese that are aligned with the five levels of reading proficiency, offering literary and informational texts in more than 20 genres and hundreds of authors.
After reading, students complete reading comprehension tasks, while teachers monitor learning results through standards aligned reports. Students will also complete a recording of students' reading and writing tasks.
Students will use the platform for 30 minutes a week during the literacy block.
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PreK-12 Parent Conferences
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The parent/caregiver conferences will now be PreK-12 and were moved to January to allow for educators to have a mid-year discussion about progress using multiple data points. In the past, having the conferences in the Fall in addition to Curriculum Night/Open House resulted in mandatory conferences happening only at the beginning and end of the year. Additionally, the Fall conferences did not rely on a robust set of data points and only reflected elementary schools on the district calendar.
The 2023-2024 school year began a commitment to scheduling three days in the calendar for Kindergarten screening. These days continue in the 2024-2025 calendar and are used to screen our newest students and transition students and families to the new school and teacher. These days are intentionally developed to create a sense of mattering and belonging from Day One.
Curriculum Night/Open House opportunities are scheduled for the fall to orient parents to the new grade level, provide interaction with the educators servicing their children, and provide awareness and access to school supports. The January/February conferences will allow parents to have a mid-year check-in on progress towards the standards that were presented at Curriculum Night/Open House. The end-of-year conferences will allow each parent/caregiver the opportunity to close out the year and learn about areas of success towards mastering grade-level standards and also address any areas in need of improvement. This cycle of Curriculum Night/Open House, conferences in the mid-year (after the second trimester at the high school and as the first trimester comes to a close in middle school), and at the end of the year allows for a more streamlined approach to working with parents/caregivers to progress monitor their children. Parents/caregivers are always encouraged to reach out to set up additional conferences as needed throughout the school year.
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The recently approved Collective Bargaining Agreement aligns to these shifts. As a result, the following dates, which were originally dedicated to Professional Development (PD) for middle and high school, are to be re-dedicated to Parent Conferences (PC) for all school levels, rather than for elementary schools only: January 23, January 30, February 6, May 15, May 22, and May 29.
The District planned professional development for the 2024-2025 school year anticipating that these dates may be converted as a result of contract negotiations so there is no impact on professional development topics to be addressed on other scheduled professional development days. This increased family engagement opportunity is an outstanding development as we work to improve our relationships with parents/caregivers as partners in the educational process.
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Professor Mahesh Sharma’s Masterclass (free) on mathematics education for Teachers, parents, and interventionists
Mathematics For All/Center for Teaching & Learning Mathematics
Sundays, 8:00 - 9:00 AM EST
October, 29, 2024
Topic: How to Teacher Number Concept Effectively
Zoom ID: 5084944608
PC: mathforall
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OTL Previous Communications
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