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Department of Secondary Curriculum
 Updates
 Language
 Test
Arts Florida Standards (LAFS)
Specifications for Florida Standards Assessment
(FSA) and FSA Writing
 Scoring
of Palm Beach Performance Assessments
and FSA Writing
 Best
Practices for Administrators
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Economics with Financial Literacy
o All Economics courses, including AP, AICE, and IB will need to
include financial literacy.
o Resources and PD will be provide to all Economics teachers during
preschool.
o We can offer dual enrollment Economics this year.
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30% rule for EOC courses has changed.
o The 30% must be applied to the full year course and grade, not just
the second semester.
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Gender Equity Corrective Action Plan
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LA.910.1.6.3 The student will use context clues to determine
meanings of unfamiliar words
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LAFS.910.RL.2.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative
meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a
sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
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LAFS.910.RH.2.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases
as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing
political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science.
Though this may assess one
vocabulary standard, it also
assesses reading comprehension
and author’s purpose.
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LA.910.2.1.2 The student will analyze and compare a variety of
traditional, classical, and contemporary literary works, and
identify the literary elements of each (e.g., setting, plot,
characterization, conflict).
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LAFS.910.RL.2.5 Analyze how an author’s choices concerning
how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel
plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create
such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
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LAFS.910.RL.3.7 Analyze the representation of a subject or a
key scene in two different artistic mediums, including what is
emphasized or absent in each treatment (e.g., Auden’s
“Musée des Beaux Arts” and Breughel’s Landscape with the
Fall of Icarus).
Select 4 out of 8
sentences and arrange
them in order to create a
summary.
Part A and Part B Questionsstudents have to explain how
they determined the answer.
Questions might have more
than one correct answer.
Complete a diagram by
dragging and dropping options.
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LA.910.4.2.1: The student will write in a variety of informational/expository forms,
including a variety of technical documents (e.g., how-to-manuals, procedures,
assembly directions).
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LAFS.910.W.1.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex
ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective
selection, organization, and analysis of content.
a. Introduce a topic; organize complex ideas, concepts, and information to make important
connections and distinctions; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., figures,
tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts, extended definitions,
concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s
knowledge of the topic.
c. Use appropriate and varied transitions to link the major sections of the text, create
cohesion, and clarify the relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage the complexity of the
topic.
e. Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to the norms and
conventions of the discipline in which they are writing.
f.
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information
or explanation presented (e.g., articulating implications or the significance of the topic).

Writing to Explain (Expository)
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Writing Situation:
Suppose you are a reporter and have been assigned to
interview a fascinating person of your choice.
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Directions for Writing:
Think about a person you would choose to interview.
Now write to explain why you would choose to interview
this person.
Test specifications: students will
receive 2-4 texts with a combined
word count of:
Grade 9: 1100-1900 words
Grade 10: 1100-2000 words
Grade 11: 1100-2000 words
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The materials in the HMH (language arts classrooms) and
reading adoption were designed to meet the rigor of the new
standards and assessments.
o It is imperative teachers adapt to the new resources and materials.
Doing what we’ve always done will not be successful.
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Teaching and assessing benchmarks in isolation will not prepare
students.
All forms of literacy will need to be taught.
o Visual literacy
o Speaking and listening
o Traditional and non-traditional text
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Learning Village will be the portal for providing teachers with
resources and lesson plans.
Professional development will be crucial.
With a few exceptions, professional development will
be school-based.
 Each school will be assigned a resource teacher and
specialist who can provide modeling, small group PD
(done during common planning, before or after school,
etc.), full staff PD, etc.
 District-wide professional development opportunities:
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•
•
•
HMH Day 1 (resources)
HMH Day 2 (best practices)
Reading Practices
FSA Writing Scoring
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Have teachers review the training tests.
Monitor Palm Beach Performance Assessments
o The data is only as good as the scoring.
o Provide time for teachers to collaborate to score and design lessons.
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Create a school-wide policy for grammar.
o Non-negotiables may be use of complete sentences with capitals and end
punctuation.
o Editing will be a portion of the reading/language exam.
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Look for an integration of literacy practices in all content areas.
Check for student-centered learning in addition to direct instruction.
o Study from SCOPE (Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education)
found that student-centered practices increase engagement and academic
achievement (January 2014).