Folsom Cordova USD, Grades 6-12
Common Core Professional Development
8 August 2013
Creating inquiry-based classrooms, in which students are challenged to explore ideas, interact with text,
and develop thoughtful and logical understandings of their world is the common goal in all subject areas.
The key to literacy is the idea that every teacher teaches reading, writing and critical thinking in a classroom that
integrates the three through discussion, exploration and problem solving.
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Session One, 8:00 - 10:00 am
Goals for the Day:
Inquiry-Based Classrooms
Essential Questions
Subject area inquiry lesson planning using Common Core Standards
Dr. DeArcos’s Intro:
What is Literacy: Mission Statement for Common Core
Goal for the opening lesson: a common understanding and vocabulary surrounding inquiry and literacy.
Expectations regarding assessments: the whole nation is moving in this direction...we are there.
Introduce leads, goals of PDA:
Kelly Baquero, Social Science
Lynn Blodgett, English
Barbara Brydon, Science
Jean Cavanaugh, ROP
Kelly Hillesland, English
Stacy Kopshy, English Learners
Pam Oien, Technology
Christy Wilkerson, Math
TED Talk
Homaru Cantu and Ben Roche: Cooking as Alchemy
Essential Question: What does this talk have to do with teaching and learning? What ideas can we,
teachers, get from it?
http://www.ted.com/talks/homaro_cantu_ben_roche_cooking_as_alchemy.html
Essential Questions: What Makes a Question “Essential”?
Source: Wiggins & McTighe, (2013). Essential Questions, Opening Doors to Student Understanding. ASCD
The Inquiry Process
1. QUESTION
2. RESEARCH
3. CLAIM
Students develop guiding question(s) from prompt
Problem solving, close reading, discussion, depth of understanding
Thesis--think of answer to the guiding question(s)
Sample Lesson(s)
Essential Question: How do historians document history?
Washington City Map
Map Discovery!
Anchor Standards: Common Core Literacy Standards for ELA, History, Science, CTE, VAPA, PE, electives
KEY IDEAS for Academic Reading and Problem Solving:
● Expand our definition of text
● Multiple touches to text
● Compare/contrast pieces (multimedia)
● Read with purpose
● Grapple with text (students get first read)
KEY IDEAS for Writing:
● Focus mainly on argumentative writing and problem solving (Informative and narrative writing
shouldn’t be ignored, but can be an integral piece of argumentation.)
● Focus on content, but hold students accountable for mechanics. A second grader can write a
complete sentence with proper mechanics.
Session Two, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
Subject Area Specific
● Content Area Standards
vs.
Common Core Standards
What (Content)
vs.
How (Strategies and Practices)
● Lesson and Unit Building focused on inquiry
Lunch: 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Session Three, 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Human Resources/District Policy
Session Four, 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Subject Area Specific
● Wrap up
● Next Steps
● Self-Reflection and Evaluation - please complete the reflection/evaluation survey online.
Next Professional Development Day: October 11
Professional Development SELF-EVALUATION
Name:
Site:
Subject Area/Grade Level:
Unit of Study:
Common Core: From Day One!
Big Ideas/Enduring Understandings:
Creating inquiry-based classrooms, in which students are challenged to explore ideas, interact with text,
and develop thoughtful and logical understandings of their world is the common goal in all subject areas.
The key to literacy is the idea that every teacher teaches reading, writing and critical thinking in a classroom that
integrates the three through discussion, exploration and problem solving.
Learning Targets -- To be completed at end-of-day.
Teachers, rate each Learning Target from 1-4, depending on your understanding.
1 – I do not understand, and I need further instruction.
2 – I am beginning to understand, but I need to review.
3 – I understand, and I can explain it.
4 – I completely understand, and I could help someone else understand too.
I am ready to move on.
I can...
...explain the process of inquiry, and
what it does for student learning.
...explain the difference between
essential and non-essential questions.
...use the Common Core standards to
create learning experiences for my
students.
...design lessons in my subject area that
are inquiry-based.
Rate
1–4
Explain
Please answer:
1. On a scale from 1-4, how ready are you to implement Common Core standards?
2. In terms of your own learning on Common Core, what’s next? What do you need?
3. What instructional strategies are you comfortable with? What strategies do you still need to
understand/work on?