So, if you're not in a classroom, what DO you do the first week of school?
As an EL specialist, I get asked this question often, especially by people who are not teachers or who are not in my building.
Below is a small snapshot of some of the things I did last week:
As an EL specialist, I get asked this question often, especially by people who are not teachers or who are not in my building.
Below is a small snapshot of some of the things I did last week:
- Data, data, and more data. I work with our other EL teacher and our reading specialist to compile a list of our EL students, gather their scores in other areas, determine which classrooms they are in, other services they receive, and who needs which type of support. This year we have over 200 ELs in our building of 450 students, so that's a LOT of data! You can see a snapshot of how we set up our spreadsheet here.
- Scheduling. Since I co-teach in different classrooms, scheduling can sometimes be a logistical nightmare. This year it hasn't been too bad. I try to plan once a week with each teacher I work with - we use one of their planning periods. I also try to be as consistent as possible in each classroom. This means being in the classroom for the full class period every day. Sometimes this is not possible because of other scheduling conflicts, but that is the ideal goal.
- Planning. I have been gathering information, ideas, and materials to use in my classes this year. I also have been working on a conferring form, using Google Forms, for use during individual math conferences. Look for that resources coming to you soon!
- Testing. When we have move-ins from out of state, I grab our WIDA screener and get them tested. This gives us an idea of where they are at in each language domain, and what support they would benefit from. This year, our new move-ins have been VERY low, especially in literacy. Looks like we have a lot of work to do!
So, there you have it! A full week's worth of work, setting us up for success for the rest of the school year.
What do YOU do the first week of school?