Balanced Literacy

Ensuring relevancy for teachers in professional development is but one of the variables that determines whether or not our plan has the impetus to be implemented with fidelity in the classroom. Our professional learning program for teachers provides numerous avenues in which to deliver content to teachers in a way that we know will impact instruction in a positive manner. Where a personalized approach puts teachers in the drivers seat when it comes to charting a path forward, that is but one means in our delivery model. Indeed it is also important to create a paradigm of consistency, teamwork, and dare I say standardization in some of our approaches? You are correct, I stated on October 31st that 'Abandoning a system that relies on a standardized approach requires a paradigm shift'. I'll stand by that statement, but offer up the caveat that at the same time we all need to be rowing the boat in the same direction. That means having an understanding of what the district is trying to accomplish collectively and working together and smarter to achieve that goal. For us that goal is pretty simple: improve student outcomes when it comes to reading proficiency. Getting the results we aspire to achieve however is a totally different story!

A balanced literacy initiative is one of the primary ways we can do this. We know that dedicating a large portion of our instructional day to literacy instruction isn't enough. Its what is done with those instructional minutes that count the most. That is where our balanced literacy framework is helpful. This includes ensuring the five core elements of reading are part of our daily instructional practice: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. A comprehensive literacy program includes standards encompassing reading, writing, listening, speaking, and foundation skills (Gambell & Morrow, Best Practices in Literacy Instruction). The key here is the realization that we don't teach [one], reading for example; without making a connection to [another], writing for example. In fact, the literacy program should be balanced among those strands.

Take a moment to view the graphic depicted here. Notice that within the large center circle, which is the [all encompassing] topic of literacy instruction, it is divided into separate areas of emphasis. The largest (green) being reading instruction, where the instruction may look different depending on the needs of the students. The next largest subset of literacy instruction is writing (blue), and again the instruction may look different dependent on the needs of the class that day. The final slice of the framework is word study (red), which includes such topics as phonics and word structures. As you can see from this graphic, implementing a balanced literacy framework takes quite a commitment of instructional time for our teachers. Further, it requires an immense amount of teamwork and collaboration, because not one teacher can do all this alone. The collaboration is critically important for a number of reasons, but you may recall a discussion about ensuring a guaranteed and viable curriculum. In a nutshell, this is every student, every day, can expect to receive the same content. 

This segment of our professional development then, is designed to manage the implementation of this framework within our system. Indeed, this is a very complex change in instructional design for our educators that began over a year ago. In addition to designing instruction that identifies and meets both major and minor literacy standards the 'in district' professional development includes delivery via workshop model that includes coaching support from our literacy coach Mrs. Kiewiet, and support from Mrs. Blohm at the AEA. Further, these experts conduct literacy walk through observations where they are able to determine to what extent key instructional practices are being implemented with fidelity and what are teachers' most pressing needs and supports are.

What has been most impressive for me from my view in the balcony is seeing truly transformational instructional practice in our classrooms. For certain this can be attributed to the hard work and dedication of our teacher leaders who have steered this work, and to the teacher in the classrooms that have embraced these practices. 

An Exciting Week Comes to a Close

What an exciting week for our school district! From the beginning of the week until the end, we have shown the world that it is 'Great to be a Pirate'! Without a doubt, we have a lot to be proud here in Hudson and in our schools. Indeed, the entire week seemed to almost have a homecoming feel to it. I promise this is on that our students will not soon forget, and will reminiscence about for decades to come!

Monday began with our annual Veterans Day observance assembly in the high school. The government class under the direction of Mr. Simmer always does a great job planning this day. Following the assembly, we had a nice luncheon with Veterans at the Community Church. Again, outstanding job by our students for planning this very special meal to honor our Veterans! While a lot of attention is on what happens at the high school, we can't forget the middle school observance. Each year Mr. Haskovec invites Veterans in to his classroom to offer their perspectives on service and to answer questions from the students. 

Indeed, everyone did their part this week to showcase our school and community. Pictured above is the music department, under the direction of Mrs. Davis conducting a performance of patriotic service music with members of the band and choir during the Veterans Day assembly. Junior Sara Klunder is the narrator. 

Of course to top off what was already a fantastic week, our Hudson Pirates won the state title. That makes three state football championships in school history: with the last one being in 1994. It is worth noting; we began the season ranked #1 and retained that ranking all through the season, culminating in the state championship yesterday afternoon with a 30-7 victory. But of course you already knew that!

The photo included above is immediately following our state championship win over AHSTW, Avoca. It is great to be a Pirate! In the final analysis we have a lot to be proud of in our school and community. Next week is Thanksgiving. While we all have our list of things for which to be thankful, one of the items of which I am grateful is the support of this community. The number of fans we had at the game on Thursday was impressive and inspiring. The Veterans who took time out of their lives to join us on Monday was awesome and motivating. We are very appreciative and thankful for the support of our community. On behalf of the school district, have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Hope to See You at the Game

In most Iowa schools when one of the athletic teams begin a deep run into the playoffs it is a pretty big deal, not only in the school itself, but the entire community. Inevitably, not everyone can play their games at 7:00 in the evening; so athletic associations are forced to schedule contests during the day. So the decision must be made as to whether or not to hold classes as normally scheduled, or to cancel classes so as many people as possible can participate. While these decisions can be subject to great scrutiny, my stance has been events and experiences like these are rare opportunities for a school community to celebrate, build positive momentum, and improve climate and culture. Indeed it is a rare occurrence: in my nine years at Hudson, we have had the privilege of participating in the state tournament three times where the school day has been impacted: girls basketball, and football the last two seasons. Relying on this precedence, the decision to cancel classes on November 9th was relatively straight forward.

So I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity to demonstrate pride for your school and community by joining us for this state tournament game on Friday morning at 10:00 a.m. Research shows us that students who have a strong connection to their schools do better in classes. Those who have pride in their schools are less likely to cause a disruption or become behavior concerns. It doesn't matter if you are a member of the team or a spectator in the stands. Your involvement allows us to share in the excitement that comes with winning a close game; or the disappointment of falling just short. It builds character in our students and the camaraderie builds lifelong skills that transfer to the workplace. Some of my fondest memories from high school are going to the state tournament as a spectator.

But the loss of academic time, you state! I agree, the whole point of our existence as a school is the academic component of our program. Whether we are teaching our youngsters to read or do advanced trigonometry, ultimately we are preparing them for the next challenge they will face. But that challenge will be not be met with an understanding of statistical variability alone! All of the other components that go into the recipe: athletics, drama, music, student council are secondary and even tertiary characteristics of our school that are vitally important as well. They are part of the American public education experience, and are why we have one of the best educational systems in the world.

So, I hope to see you on Friday. And in case you are wondering, we haven't really cancelled classes. They are just postponed. This day will be mad up on May 28th, 2019!