REPORTS TO THE BOARD

Woodland Intermediate School Report

To: Michael Green

From: Steven Carney

Date: December 14, 2016

RE: Monthly Report Woodland Intermediate School

Focus on Learning

Standards-Based Progress Reports

On December 20th, Woodland Intermediate School will send home Washington Learning Standards aligned progress reports.  The purpose of the Standards-Based Progress Report is to provide detailed feedback to parents regarding the progress their child is making toward specific learning standards at their grade level.  The progress report allows parents and students to understand more clearly what is expected and how to help them be successful in a rigorous academic program.  

The progress report is aligned to the Washington Learning Standards (based on the Common Core Learning Standards) and reflects updates in our curriculum and instruction.  Parents will find:

1. Category titles and descriptors reflecting the Washington Learning Standards
2. Grading keys reflecting student progress toward the Washington Learning Standards (3-1 scale)
3. Learner Qualities reflecting student skills necessary to be a successful learner, also known as “The Woodland Way”.

There are four essential components of a standards-based system.

1. The content standards as outlined by the Washington Learning Standards that describe what a student should know and be able to do at an identified point in time.
2. The standards-based curriculum that a teacher uses to ensure that classroom instruction targets these standards.
3. The assessments that a teacher uses to measure learning and the extent to which a student has met each standard.
4. The communication tool that allows a teacher to report accurately a student’s progress toward meeting standards three times throughout the school year.

Student Learning Goals

Grade levels teams continue to meet every Monday morning to analyze student learning, refine instructional practice, and set student learning goals. Collaboration is a sacred event on campus.  Teachers are deepening their knowledge and expertise of the Washington Learning Standards and effective instructional practices as a result of the collaborative inquiry structure provided.  

Focus on Social Emotional Learning

WIS Job Corps

As part of our school-wide Social Emotional Learning, we are incorporating themes from The Leader In Me (7 Habits of Happy Kids), including giving students leadership responsibilities.  In his book, The Leader In Me, Steven Covey, along with Sean Covey, Muriel Summers, and David K. Hatch explain the importance of giving students leadership responsibility:

"It gives students an opportunity to feel what it means to be responsible, as opposed to just talking about what it means to be responsible.  It teaches them that being a leader means being a contributor, and sometimes doing what others will not do.  It allows students to feel regular successes.  They feel of worth, appreciated... Fulfilling leadership roles, even simple ones, can be behavior changing, if not life changing for students."

The Woodland Intermediate School Job Corps provides students the opportunity for leadership responsibility.  We have a wall full of job postings in our main hallway (posted by school staff). Any student is welcome to apply for a job by filling out an application and interviewing for their job. Once a student accepts a job, they work closely with their Job Corps mentor, receiving acknowledgement for their work and effort.  The job corps mentor also builds a positive relationship with the student working for them.  

Parents have commented on how excited their children are to come to school to do their job, staff members are thrilled to have help with some of the many tasks that need to be done to keep the school running, and students are coming to school each day eager to check in, put on their badge, and head to "work."  We currently have 159 students serving in our Job Corps! More applications have been turned in this week.

Upcoming Events

Holiday Program

December 19, 2016 - We look forward to our annual Holiday Program on December 19th. This is a well-attended event that is open to the community.