Yes, the end of the school year is in sight. Teachers are worried about finishing the curriculum, checking in books, taking down the posters from the walls, entering grades, and all of their other year-end tasks. Administrators are ticking items off of their own lists and sending out reminders and final instructions for the last days of school even as they contemplate their summer worklists. Everyone is anticipating liberation from this school year. This is a typical ending for many schools across the country. There is just a seemingly abrupt ending followed by a collective sigh.
But, what if it was different? What if there were time for reflecting on the accomplishments and celebrating the backbone of all school districts — the teachers? What activities would show your staff how much you appreciate their efforts to meet the challenges of student learning and meeting expectations of the curriculum and district initiatives?
Take time for reflection and celebrate the positive accomplishments that might otherwise be over looked. The checklist below is republished for its value as a guide to districtwide and classroom reflection.
Governance – Curriculum Council (CCC) Checklist
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Tasks | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum documents slated for draft implementation are scheduled for completion, review, and interim approval. | ||
| Curriculum documents validated and revised through implementation data are completed and scheduled for CCC and school board approval. | ||
| An audit for effectiveness of working groups has been completed, evaluated, and priorities for improvement established. | ||
| The end-of-year summary of activities report is prepared for communication to the school board, district as a whole and community. | ||
| A schedule of work for next year has been completed and shared with participants. | ||
| The district mission, mastery definition, curriculum policy and regulations, and grading decisions have been reviewed and possibly revised based on discussion and feedback. | ||
| CCC and SAC memberships are updated for the next school year. |
Curriculum – Subject Area Committees (SAC) Checklist
|
Tasks | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum documents are completed for implementation next year. | ||
| Validated curriculum documents are stored securely, shared with teachers, and given public access. | ||
| Resources have been identified and requested. | ||
| Professional development needs have been shared with CCC for planning. | ||
| Schedule of work activities and tasks to be completed for next year have been shared with teachers. | ||
| Validated curriculum documents are now considered to be final, so are recorded and carefully stored. |
Instruction – Teacher and Building Principal Checklist
|
Tasks | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Instructional planning evidence (from IPRs) is completed according to CCC guidelines and available within the district. | ||
| Resource recommendations are complete. | ||
| Professional development has been requested, if necessary. | ||
| All feedback for curriculum validation has been provided to the SAC. | ||
| Plan time for pacing guide review or completion has been established. |
Assessment – District Office and Building Principal Checklist
|
Tasks | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Common assessments are complete and ready for validation by teachers. | ||
| Validated common assessments are stored securely and will be shared with teachers according to CCC guidelines. | ||
| Validated common assessment scores have been collected, reviewed, and stored for use in discussions and decisions by instructional teams. | ||
| All feedback for assessment validation has been provided to the appropriate SAC. |