PG PLT Meeting 12/16/15

We discussed RTI and finalizing everything for the semester.

We discussed whether to adopt the ALEKS program. RTI may trial it, but we will not adopt it as a team.

We discussed the new calendar and how we have adjusted to it and what can be done for next year.

PG PLT Meeting 12/9/15

We discussed timelines. Due to the short amount of time remaining in the semester, the RTI referral process is not possible. But students who have done their homework for Unit 5 will be allowed to retake the tests.

We aligned the final exam questions with the standards they represent. We compared our answers to the final exam while checking the exam for accuracy.

PG PLT Meeting 12/2/15

We discussed how RTI is going. A resource was shared with the group that has been helpful for students in RTI.

We discussed timelines and when we will have our final unit test for the semester. All will be ready to test  by the end of next week.

We evaluated the final exam question by question and made changes accordingly. We will make an answer keys and compare them next week.

PG PLT Meeting 11/18/15

We discussed timelines and how things are going in RtI.

We used data to determine who should be recommended for RtI for unit 4.

Unit 5 will end close to the final exam. There will not be enough time for students to be recommended for RtI based on data analysis. So we are considering allowing students to recommend themselves, if they are willing and able to attend every day until the final exam.

We discussed the possibility of giving another comprehensive exam on units 3-4 or 1-4. We like the idea, but there is not sufficient time before the final exam. If the timeline changes, we will revisit this. We will work on a comprehensive exam for units 6-7 to be given about halfway through semester 2.

PG PLT Meetin 11/4/15

We discussed RtI and how students are progressing.

We discussed timelines. We will not be assessing the unit before the next meeting.

An online demo was shared the can be used to show the differences between the three transformations:
http://illuminations.nctm.org/Activity.aspx?id=6475

We continued to modify the final exam.

PG PLT Meeting 10/28/15

We looked at data and decided who should be referred to RtI.

We discussed Unit 4 timelines. We realized that some students are lacking in the prerequisite material needed for unit 4. So some websites were shared to help differentiate for those students.

Also, a teacher demonstrated how Kahoot.it can be used for formative assessments in class.

We discussed further how to best assess Common Core Practice Standard 3.

PG PLT Meeting 10/21/15

We discussed RtI procedures. How best to record data, especially if a student fails a retake. We will not use the "Exit Date" column in the intervention instrument. Instead we will use other correspondence.

We discussed timelines. Everyone is still on track to test Unit 3 by the end of the week. We will decide who to assign to RtI at our meeting next week.

PG PLT Meeting 10/14/15

We discussed how students are doing in RtI.

We discussed timelines for unit 3. All teachers should be ready to assess by the end of next week.

We discussed how to assess Common Core Practice Standard 3. We looked for a topic the students knew the content, so we could focus on their ability to construct viable arguments. It was suggested that we use a question involving determined if lines cut by a transversal are parallel. We will continue to discuss how best to assess this.

We looked at the first semester exam to see which questions fit which standard so we can use it as a post assessment.

PG PLT Meeting 10/7/15

We discussed how RtI is going for unit 1.

We looked at data to determine who should be referred to RtI for unit 2.

PG PLT Meeting 9/30/15

Discussed how students are doing in RtI.

We discussed adopting the Algebra 1 policy that a retake can only raise a student's grade to 70% (or 15% higher than their original...whichever is higher).  This sends the message that the original test matters and that improvement is still available. We like this idea, but need to discuss further whether missing homework will still result in a replacement or an average of the two grades.

We discussed timelines. All will be assessing unit 2 by the end of the week. We will assign student to RtI at our next meeting.

PG PLT Meeting 9/23/15

We discussed RtI; which students are succeeding, which are struggling, which are not taking advantage of the opportunity. We will use this information to better decide who gets assigned to RtI for future standards.

We discussed Standard 1.1. Some strategies that were successful for multiple formative assessments and using wax paper to allow students to draw and redraw on the figure.

We discussed the new cumulative assessments. The quarter 1 assessment is ready to be given and should be given before the next progress report. We discussed the pros and cons of making future cumulative assessments on a single quarter or the entire year. We decided to focus on each quarter, but include a limited amount of questions on previous standards.

We looked at the 3-Act Math tasks and discussed whether we could tie this in with Common Core Practice Standard 3. We will trial this the the Pythagorean Theorem taco cart problem. We will try this after we complete unit 2.

PG PLT Meeting 9/16/15

A comprehensive assessment for units 1 and 2 was created. We discussed the validity of the assessment. We decided to give the assessment about a week after the unit 2 exam. This is being treated as a retention assessment. As such, we will not review for this exam. It will be counted as a test, with no retakes.

We discussed our policy of who to refer to RtI. We continue to strive to find ways to assign students who will most benefit from this intervention. As such, we are stressing that students who do not put in the effort will not be assigned. We used this criteria to assign students to RtI for unit 1 standards.

PG PLT Meeting 9/9/15

We discussed timelines for Unit 1. All should be ready to assess and assign students to RtI by next week's meeting.

We shared Socratives creaaed for Unit 1

1.1
SOC-17082309

1.3
SOC-17178221

1.4
SOC-12678542

1.6
SOC-17309091

1.9
SOC-17421137

Solving Linear Equations
SOC-17040069
SOC-17057713

Further work was done on Common Core Practice Standard 3.

PG PLT Meeting 8/26/15

We discussed timelines and we will not be ready to assess unit until roughly 9/11. The first referrals to RtI will happen after that assessment.

We discussed the possibility of assessing common core practice standard 3 district wide, as Algebra 1 is beginning to do this year.

PG PLT Meeting 8/19/15

RtI is intended for those needing extra help, not those who are trying to avoid taking responsibility. So we will only assign those who are taking responsibility.
Test retake scores will be replace the original if all homework has been handed in, if not the scores are averaged.
We reviewed our benchmarks and smart goals from last year.
We discussed our building goals.
We decided to give cumulative quizzes periodically throughout the year to assess if students are retaining knowledge. These will be created during PLT time. They will be counted as quiz grades.

PG PLT Meeting 6/3/2015

We discussed the final exam and how we will implement it. Students will be given a formula sheet and property chart on the day of the test. A copy of it may be given to them early for them to get used to.

We discussed how RtI is going.

We discussed the overall layout of the class and whether changes need to be made for next year.

PG PLT Meeting 5/13/2015

We discussed how RtI is going. We looked at data to decide which students should be added to RtI for standards 8.1 & 8.2.

We discussed timelines. All will be assessing standard 8.3 by the end of the week.

We looked at the 8.3 assessment and decided on a grading rubric for each question.

PG PLT Meeting 5/6/2015

We discussed timelines. All teachers should be assessing standards 8.1 & 8.2 by the end of the week. We will assign students to RtI at next week's meeting. All students in RtI for unit 7 standards will need to finish by next Thursday.

We discussed how RtI is going and who is being successful.

PG PLT Meeting 4/29/2015

We discussed student progress and which students would gain the most from RtI.

We shared summative assessments with our department head.

We created formative assessments for the final exam on socrative.com and shared them with each other.

We discussed timelines for unit. Most should be ready to assess by the end of next week.

PG PLT Meeting 4/22/2015

We analyzed data to determine who should be recommended for RtI for standard 7.3. The RtI specialist discussed how interventions are going.

We talked about the final exam and decided to use our PLT time Friday to take a closer look and create reviews.

John shared some interactive sites that help teach the area formulas of different polygons:

(Area of a triangle)                             Examples of finding area of a triangle http://www.shodor.org/interactivate/activities/TriangleExplorer/

(Area of a parallelogram)               Illustration of base/height on par. needed for area http://www.mathopenref.com/parallelogramarea.html

(Area of a kite)                                      How kite formula relates to rect. Formula http://tube.geogebra.org/student/m14644

We discussed timelines for the unit and the remainder of the year.

PG PLT Meetng 4/15/2015

The RtI specialist discussed standards 7.1 & 7.2. We did not feel we had enough data to recommend any new students to RtI at this time.

We discussed timelines. Mr. H suggested beginning Unit 8 with areas of irregular shapes. He will send a link to interactive websites that could be used to help teach this. He also shared a Socrative review on area.

Any shape constructed by selecting corner points  http://www.sketchandcalc.com/

Any shape constructed by using coordinates http://www.analyzemath.com/Geometry_calculators/irregular_polygon_area.html

PG PLT Meeting 4/8/2015

We discussed timelines for Standard 7.3 (trigonometry). All will be done by the end of next week.

We looked at data to determine who would getting added to RtI for standards 7.1 & 7.2.

We compared and contrasted the educational apps Socrative and Pear Deck.

PG PLT 3/25/2015

We looked at data to decided who should be assigned to RtI for Standards 7.1 & 7.2. Some will have a starting date of 4/7, others of 4/9.

We discussed interactive ways to introduce the trigonometric ratios. A good one was found on Geogebratube: http://tube.geogebra.org/student/m64895.
A review game was found on another site:
http://www.learnalberta.ca/content/mejhm/index.html?l=0&ID1=AB.MATH.JR.SHAP&ID2=AB.MATH.JR.SHAP.TRI&lesson=html/object_interactives/trigonometry/use_it.html

PG PLT Meeting 3/18/2015

We discussed timelines for Unit 7.  We should all be assessing on Standards 7.1 & 7.2 in the next week.  We will use data on those assessments to make referrals for RtI next Wednesday.  These students will not start until after spring break.  This will give those in for Unit 6 time to test out.

Three Socrative quizzes for Unit 7 were shared by John Hauenstein to be used for formative assessments.

Further work for done on the literacy framework.

PG PLT Meeting 3/11/2015

We looked at data and decided who should be recommended for RtI for standard 6.3.  We also discussed the recommendation process in general to ensure we are all on the same page.

We discussed timelines for Unit 7 and when we could potentially assess the standards.

PG PLT Meeting 2/25/2015

We discussed which new students should be assigned to RtI based off of new data from this week.

We discussed the upcoming Standard 6.3 assessment and made appropriate changes. We also discussed timelines for the unit.

PG PLT Meeting 2/18/2015

We discussed how things are going in RtI. Our RtI specialist discussed what is needed for students to be successful.  She also shared how she has taught the properties of quadrilaterals in a way that has connected with more students.

We discussed how coordinate geometry is going in the sections that have begun that standard.  We also discussed timelines for the unit again, as we continue to adjust based on data and student response.

One of our members is currently taking the assessment literacy training. He reported on the training thus far.  We discussed it as a group.

PG PLT Meeting 2/11/2015

Those who have assessed standards 6.1 and 6.2 assigned more students to RtI based on data from the assessment. We also discussed timelines for the remainder of the unit.

We (teachers and RtI expert) discussed successes and failures in teaching and learning unit standards.

Some modifications were made to the assessment to improve its accuracy.

PG PLT Meeting 2/4/2015

Discussed schedules.  Some are testing today, others Friday.  Some of those testing today will try to assign students to RtI by the end of the day.

A Socrative review of the properties was shared. SOC#14853270. 

The rest of our time was spent connecting the practice standards to the literacy framework.

PG PLT Meeting 1/28/2015

We discussed timelines and decided to assess at least standard 6.1 by next Tuesday.  We will use the data to determine early in the unit and semester who could benefit from RtI.

We looked at data from the final exam to determine if the assessment and its individual questions were valid. At this time, no changes were deemed necessary.

The remaining time was spent filling out the documentation for unwrapping the practice standards.

PG PLT Meeting 1/14/2015

We discussed ways to identify students who would need RtI earlier in semester than after the first unit exam.  We will use a common assessment within the first week or two of the semester to identify students sooner.  We also discussed how to best use Rti for those students who lost time due to the cold days. Our RtI specialist discussed how sessions have been going the past couple of weeks.

We spent time unpacking practice standards and discussing how we are addressing them.

We also continued to fine tune the final exam.