Do you hear the teachers, your children, or other parents talking about things like Guided Reading, Writers' Workshop, AIMSweb, and mobi boards and want to know more? Are you curious about the professional development our teachers have been participating in? Do you want to know more about our instructional philosophy and approaches? Come to Curriculum Night on Wednesday, October 12th!
It will be a chance for parents to go back to school and listen to presentations given by our teachers on current curricular initiatives at St. Matthias. The following sessions will be offered:
Balanced Literacy: Teaching Reading and Writing Across Grade Levels - Learn how our teachers combine direct instruction with authentic opportunities to read and write. Gain a better sense for what phonics, Guided Reading, and Writers' Workshop look like from preschool through 8th grade and how to support your children with these approaches at home.
Inclusion: Supporting All Students - No two children are alike, in learning preferences, communication styles, and aptitudes. This session will familiarize you with our philosophy on meeting all students' needs within the classroom context and the supports that we have in place to meet that goal. You will learn how we use data to inform our decisions on instructional support and enrichment and about the team of teachers that we have in place to collaborate with teachers and parents to be sure all students are successful.
Inquiry Based Learning and Technology Integration - Our kindergarten through 8th grade teachers have been piloting Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) in Social Studies and Science this school year. What does it look like when students direct their own learning through IBL units? How do we incorporate cooperative learning and critical thinking skills? You'll also learn about the technological tools that your children have access to (mobi boards, laptops, ipads) and how they are seamlessly integrated into the curriculum, teaching the skills necessary in the world today.
Our Family Life Program - This year we are introducing the Family Life curriculum in grades 4 - 8. This program was chosen to help teach our children about healthy self-image, relationships, and human sexuality in the context of Catholic moral principles. You will learn about the issues that will be addressed through this curriculum and discuss how to continue healthy dialogue at home with your children.
Each 25 minute session will be presented three times, at 7:00 PM, 7:30 PM, and 8:00 PM. Parents can choose topics of interest and "change classes" to hear more than one session. Our doors will open at 6:45 PM and we will begin Session #1 promptly at 7:00 PM. Please contact me with questions. I hope you can make it!
