Teachers as Learners

Dear Families:

While some of you have already had your Family Conferences, the bulk of middle school families will have their conferences tomorrow. Students and advisors have invested significant time in preparing for these conferences and I hope that they provide you with a clear picture of your child’s learning experience so far this year. A key belief that informs these conferences is the idea that students need to reflect in meaningful ways on their experience as learners in order to further the depth of their understanding; it is this act of reflection that helps students to understand in more profound ways their strengths and challenges. It also helps them to take appropriate action to address both of these domains.

The same is true of LREI faculty who are fully committed to the idea of being reflective practitioners. A critical component of the work of reflective practitioners is dependent on the time that they are able to spend with other colleagues engaged in purposeful dialog about their practice.

In this spirit, approximately once a month during our Tuesday divisional faculty meetings, middle school faculty members meet in their chosen Professional Learning Group (PLG). PLGs are facilitated by a colleague or a pair of colleagues and represent a forum for shared inquiry and professional growth. The PLGs are non-evaluative and faculty run; they represent a focused and solution-oriented approach to supporting reflective practice. The aim of these meetings is to provide a space for faculty members to exchange ideas, learn from each other and support one another in reaching their professional goals. The group allows each member to examine his/her practice in a non-judgmental and non-evaluative setting. A group succeeds to the extent that it helps all of its members to set and reach their goals and move to a new level of professional practice. This year’s groups have chosen to focus on:

• Differentiated Instruction
• Integrating reading into the curriculum
• Assessment and Action Research

Agnes de Lima observed in The Little Red School House that “we take the child as he is and where he is [and] try to understand him, and then seek to help him understand the kind of world in which he lives and the part he is to play in it.” This represents a core value at LREI and one that hinges on our ability to “fit the school to the child.” This is certainly hard work and while no school can be all things to all children, it does create for us a moral imperative to try our best to meet the learning needs of our students.

Through thoughtful inquiry and reflective practice, teachers can and must come to know their students. This allows teachers to structure the learning experience to meet the varied needs and approaches to learning that are present in the classroom. So from a historical perspective, differentiating instruction is nothing new at LREI. The faculty members who have chosen this as their area of focus are framing their work around the foundational ideas that

• no two children are alike,
• no two children learn in the identical way,
• an enriched environment for one student is not necessarily enriched for another, and
• we should teach children to think for themselves,

Their inquiry recognizes that although essential curricular goals may be similar for all students, the methodologies employed in a classroom must be varied to suit the individual needs of all children. Therefore, learning must be differentiated to be effective. Differentiating instruction calls on teachers to create multiple paths so that students of different abilities, interests or learning needs experience equally appropriate ways to absorb, use, develop and present concepts as a part of the daily learning process. Through their work, the members of this group will make this work the focus of their inquiry.

Assessment is a crucial component of the learning experience for students and structuring meaningful assessments is a demanding and important task for teachers. In addition to the more traditional forms of assessment, like tests and quizzes, which require thoughtful planning and preparation, as a progressive school, we are also committed to the use of meaningful authentic assessments. The creation of these kinds of assessments also require substantial teacher expertise.

Authentic assessments ask students to read real texts and use real materials, to write for authentic purposes about meaningful topics, to confront meaningful problems that may have multiple solutions, and to participate in tasks such as discussions, presentations, experiments, journal and letter writing, and regular revision of their work. Most importantly, authentic assessment values the thinking behind the work, the process, as much as the finished product. As you can well imagine, creating assessments that are focused on clear learning goals and aligned with the curriculum and that are simultaneously relevant to and appropriately challenging for students is no small feat.

The group of faculty members who have decided to dig beneath the surface of their assessments has also chosen to do so using action research as a way of gaining greater insight into their work in this area. Action research is a methodology that calls on teachers to look at their own work and to identify areas of inquiry that can be investigated in their classroom or schools. It is a “reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as part of a ‘community of practice’ to improve the way they address issues and solve problems.”

Reading is a critical cornerstone of the LREI experience. Our third professional learning group has chosen to look at the many ways in which reading is integrated throughout the curriculum. They are approaching this work with a particular focus on connecting with students through texts that are meaningful and relevant to the adolescent experience.

Through targeted readings of thematically related texts and scholarly writings on the integration of reading in the curriculum, group members will become more familiar with a diverse selection of grade level titles so that they can make individual recommendations to students, select titles for literary circles and book partnerships, and supplement classroom libraries. Group members will also share insights on texts and reading strategies and will discuss ways that these texts and strategies can be better implemented into the curriculum and used to better meet the needs of individual students.

While the work of all three Professional Learning Groups allows teachers to focus in on important elements of their teaching practice, ultimately, the work of these groups is focused on enriching the learning experience for all middle school students. What better goal could there be!

This Week’s Attachments
General:
Eighth Grade:
DC Trip Registration Form
Seventh Grade:
Fifth and Sixth Grade:

Of General Interest . . .
1) From Phil Kassen, Director: While I am always happy to have people drop in to see me, I am not always in my office. I will be available for drop in conversations, in the Sixth Avenue cafeteria, from 8:45AM-9:30AM on November 21st, December 5th, December 12th and December 17th.

2) From the LREI Family Handbook: Vacations: We remind families to only take vacations during LREI breaks and that your child’s time away from school does not begin before the school break does or end afterwards. Teachers use each scheduled day to support their classroom program goals and the School’s mission. Students who miss days adjacent to breaks, or who take vacations outside of our break times, miss work and can disrupt planned activities. This affects the learning of the absent students and her/his classmates. In addition, divisional or all-school assemblies often precede our longer vacations. These gatherings are essential for creating the sort of community that drew you to LREI. Students sing, listen to speakers, applaud their schoolmates, meet students in other divisions and generally strengthen community ties.

We will not honor families’ requests to receive work their children will miss due to family vacation plans. Families that are presented with once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to make an extended visit to another city, country, etc. should speak to their child’s principal. In general, we are focused on making sure that we are using each moment of each school day as effectively as possible. Part of being able to do this is to have each student in school each of these days. Thank you for your support of these efforts.

3) Some important dates:

• Wednesday, November 19, 2008: Irwin Scholar applications are due. Each year LREI offers merit scholarships to students moving from our eighth grade into the ninth grade who have demonstrated exceptional accomplishment and promise in the areas of scholarship, citizenship, leadership and service.
• Monday, December 1, 2008: Sibling and Alumni/ae Admissions to the Fours, Kindergarten and First Grade Early Notification forms are due. LREI offers the option of Early Notification to siblings of current LREI students, and to the children and grandchildren of LREI alumni. Should you wish to participate in this program, please download the Early Notification form from our web site and submit by Monday, December 1, 2008. Please note that all Early Notification application files must also be completed by this date.
• December 15, 2008: Tuition Remission deadline for applying for Tuition Remission.
• January 15, 2009: Re-enrollment contracts will be mailed to all families no later than this date.
• February 1, 2009: Re-enrollment contracts are due.

4) Click here to view the LREI Fall Newsletter, which is focused on the theme “Learning By Doing.” As part of our ongoing sustainability efforts, the newsletter is only available in PDF format at this time.

5) Upcoming Event: LREI School Night at the Apple Store is Wednesday, November 19, 2008 at 6:30 PM. Come celebrate music, film, photography and theater work produced by LREI seniors. School Night at the Apple Store is designed to give students the opportunity to celebrate the works they have created using Apple technology. The store becomes a theater for students and teachers to showcase these projects for family, friends and teachers. The Apple Store Soho is located at 103 Prince Street and the event will take place in the screening room on the second floor.

6) As a follow up to our very successful Family Book Night event Beyond Batman: Graphic Novels for Kids and Teens. Click here for a review of the event and pictures and click here to view the 2008 Family Book Night booklist.

7) From the Red is Green Committee: This week The Red is Green Committee launched LREI’s monthly recycling drive. Each month you will have an opportunity to recycle items that are not easily recycled at home. November’s recycling drive is dedicated to plastic bags, which currently cannot be recycled with regular plastics. You can find a box for collecting these bags by the reception desk at the Sixth Avenue campus as well as in the Charlton Street building. Our first day we collected over 150 bags! The monthly recycling drive is a fun and easy way for our kids to get involved in taking better care of our planet so please keep an eye out for the monthly drive in the lobby. Next month’s recycling drive will be old sneakers! Stay tuned for future recycling drives. Our next meeting is Monday November 24th at 8:45AM in the Sixth Avenue cafeteria. If you would like to receive updates please email Liselotte at lhommen@hotmail.com or Kim at kbeck2@nyc.rr.com.

8) From the Big Auction Committee: The Big Auction will be held on March 5th, 2009 and the Art Auction is scheduled to take place during the 2009-2010 school year. You should have received a letter in the mail, along with a donation form. Our goal this year is to have every parent solicit one item for the auction…we hope that you will join us in realizing this goal! If you have any questions or would like to discuss a potential donation, please contact Jenn at jenn_espo@msn.com or Mamie at mamie.mcindoe@gmail.com. If you prefer, you can also contact the Office of Advancement. Pippa can be reached at 212-477-5316 x236 or pgerard@lrei.org, and Sandra at 212-477-5316 x275 or ssong@lrei.org. Thank you in advance for your support!

9) For updates on faculty performances, openings, presentations, and publications visit the Faculty in the News page on the school web site.

10) LREI is a member of NYC-Parents in Action (NYC-PIA). NYC-PIA provides parenting education, information and a communications network to help parents prepare their children and teenagers to cope with social pressures and to make sound choices towards a future free of alcohol and drug abuse. Please read the attached flyer to view their 2008-2009 calendar. You can also access their website at http://www.parentsinaction.org/.

For all grades . . .
1) Retakes and individual and class pictures for the fifth and sixth grade will be taken on Tuesday, November 18th. If you want your child to do a retake, please contact me directly at msilberberg@lrei.org. You will receive proofs in the mail directly from Coffee Pond and can choose which photograph you like best. All orders will be placed online using the Coffee Pond website. If you have any questions about ordering, you can email Coffee Pond at lifeguards@coffeepond.com or call 800-632-2323 ext. 0 between 9AM and 5PM on weekdays.

For Eighth Grade Families . . .
1) Deadline Extension: The Irwin Scholar Applications are due no later than 4PM on Wednesday, November 19, 2008. Irwin Scholars are expected to be exemplary members of the community. Students will be considered for Irwin Scholarships on the basis of:

• Knowledge, understanding and commitment to the program;
• Sustained commitment to academic excellence;
• Positive contributions to the daily life of the Middle School community;
• Demonstrated leadership skills in and out of the classroom;
• Meaningful contributions to the Middle School co-curricular and community service programs.

Scholars will receive up to $10,000 per annum towards their high school tuition at LREI.

2) Just a reminder that the eighth grade will attend the National Book Award Teen Press Conference next Tuesday, November 18th. Click here to learn more about this exciting event. Students will need to bring a lunch on this day (no nuts, seeds, and glass bottles).

3) While the trip to DC is not until the spring, please use the attached form to register your child for the trip. If you have questions about payment, please do not hesitate to contact me.

For Seventh Grade Families . . .
No updates this week.

For Sixth Grade Families . . .
No updates this week.

For Fifth Grade Families . . .
No updates this week.

============= For additional information, follow these links: =============

• View important middle school dates here.
• View all events with the LREI On-line Calendar
• LREI Athletics. For general LREI Athletics news go to this link . This page will provide general announcements, game summaries, league standings and season recaps.
• Click here to view the Middle School Photo Gallery.

A reminder that the individual homework blog and the “feeds” for every class can be accessed from the Digital Classroom link on the sidebar (you may want to bookmark this page for easy access). These feeds provide an easy “one-click” solution to find out what has been assigned for homework. Keep in mind that a feed will only show what has been posted as of the time you check it.

Don’t forget to check the LREI website for updates and other interesting school-related information.

Be well,
Mark