Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) is phasing elementary students, kindergarten-third grade, back to the classroom. Due to COVID-19, students have experienced a virtual learning environment since last school year. Identifying learning loss or gaps for students is crucial for academic growth and success. Students complete the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) to measure knowledge of various literacy fundamentals: alphabet recognition, phonological awareness, concept of words, and knowledge of letter sounds and spelling. In addition, students complete the Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program (VKRP) and division fall formatives to measure mathematical thinking. The results of these assessments identify any learning loss or gaps for students. To improve and provide a high-quality instructional experience, students would receive targeted support from a VBCPS evening tutor.  These planning documents are intended to support tutors in developing effective and targeted small group instruction for students.

In this science-based unit, students begin to build respect for and understanding of living things by studying the life cycles of different plants and animals. In the first bend of the unit, students continue their exploration of seasons by exploring what makes spring the season of growth and the different characteristics of living, nonliving, and dead things. In the second part of the unit, students observe and learn about plants and what seeds need in order to grow into a plant. In the third part of the unit, students observe and learn about frogs and butterflies and the process in which tadpoles turn into frogs and caterpillars transform into butterflies. In the fourth part of the unit, students learn about birds and how birds grow and change inside of an egg. The unit culminates with students studying different ways humans change the environment and coming up with solutions for ways to reduce human impact on the environment. For each bend of the unit it is incredibly important that students are able to participate in hands-on labs and activities that help them see and observe the life cycles in action. Therefore, there are multiple project days within the unit. After the projects and labs have been set up, students should be pushed to predict, observe, record, and explain the changes that they notice. Throughout the unit, students should be challenged to think critically about how the life cycles of plants and animals are similar and different, and what all living things need in order to thrive and survive.

In reading, this unit serves as a chance to review all previously taught reading strategies. With that said, one main focus of the unit is on describing the connection between ideas or pieces of information, particularly in regard to sequencing. Another focus is on describing the relationship between illustrations and the text in which they appear, and using the illustrations to deepen understanding of key details in a text. When the text demands, students should also be challenged to ask and answer questions about key details, identify the main topic, ask and answer questions about unknown words, identify the reasons an author gives to support points in a text, and compare two texts on the same topic. If there are other strategies from the year that students are struggling with, plan strategic places over the course of the unit to spiral in and remediate the strategies so that students are prepared for first grade.

In writing, the main focus of this unit is on ensuring that all students are scoring a 3 or a 4 on the reading response rubric. Therefore, targeted whole-group and small-group mini-lessons should be planned based on student needs.

In this unit, students will read the novel, A Long Walk to Water, analyzing characterization, plot, and setting in small groups.   Students will read informational text and watch videos about The Lost Boys of Sudan and the water shortage crisis in Sudan to give them background knowledge regarding major events in the novel.   A journaling activity will be used to help students respond to events in the novel.   The unit will culminate with a two voice poem performance based assessment.

I created this activity to review proper fractions and whole numbers.  Also, it is a beginning lesson for improper fractions and mixed numbers.  This activity supports sol 3.2b, represent fractions and mixed numbers with models and symbols.  This activity begins in small groups of 2-4 students.  The teacher gives 4 cards to each group, one each of proper fraction, whole number, improper fraction, and mixed number and a recording sheet.  The teacher directs the students to work together to write characteristics about the numbers on the cards and draw any models they can but does not tell them the names of improper fractions and mixed numbers.  Activities like this one gives students opportunity for productive struggle by allowing them to collaborate without too much help from the teacher, it is more rigorous, and the result is students have a deeper understanding.