Ms. Mendiola’s Handbook

2019-2020

Table of Contents

About Me …………………………………………….……………………….3

Parent Letter …………………………………….…………………………..4

Syllabus………………………………………………………………………….5

Course Description………………………………………………………...6

Roles, Rights, and Responsibilities Part 1…………………..…..7

Course Description………………………………….……………….…...8

Collaborations…………………………………………………….………...9

Standards-Based Grading (SBG) ………………………….………11

Rubrics…………………………..………………………………….………..13

Reflection vs. Self-Evaluation……………………………………...15

ABOUT ME

Hello! My name is Kimberly Mendiola I am the Common Core Math 7 and Academy teacher at

Norco Intermediate school in Norco, CA. I was born in Santa Monica, but have lived here since

1998. I graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a BA in Liberal Studies and have a Master’s

degree in Educational Technology. I earned my Mathematics Authorization to teach single-

subject mathematics later to teach here at Norco Intermediate. I initially taught elementary

school beginning in 1995 in Torrance, CA and was hired by Corona Norco Unified School District

in 1999. My first school that I taught at in this district was at Norco Elementary when my maid-

en name was Hawkins. In the past few years, I have seen some of my former students as aunts,

uncles and parents. I love teaching math at the intermediate level!

I currently live in the Inland Empire with my son, Lorenzo, who is a junior at Santiago High

School. I love museums and traveling. The photos you see are taken in a bamboo forest in Ja-

pan, a city tour in Cabo San Lucas, and joining an installation at the Museum of Modern Art in

San Diego.

Parent Letter Dear Parents/Guardians, Hi, my name is Kimberly Mendiola. I will be your child’s mathematics teacher for the 2019-2020 school year. I am honored to join him/her in his/her mathematical learning journey this year. This year will mark the seventh year of my own learning journey here at Norco Intermediate School, and I truly believe that this year will be my best year ever. And as I look ahead to my “best year ever,” here are some things I would want you to know. What I want you to know. I want you to know that I care about your child. She or he is not a number. He or she is not a “seat-filler.” She or he is a person, and I will treat her or him as such. I will strive diligently to get to know her or him as an individual person, so I may best help him or her as an individual learner. I believe all my students come to me at different places socially, emotionally, and academically, and I will meet them wherever they are. I want you to know that I encourage and value your role as a partner. By the time students reach high school, as a system, we tend to place parents at arm’s length. I think this is unfortunate. I believe that optimal learning requires a shared responsibility among teachers, parents, and students. We have to partner in this, and so with that I offer you an open invitation to be a guest in room T101 this year. Please join us. All I ask is that you be willing to participate in the day’s activities. Ideally, you would schedule this with me, but an open invite is an open invite. You are welcome. Always. I want you to know that communication between us is important. Just as I presented an open-door invite above, I also offer a direct-line of communication assurance. Communication is a must. If there is ever anything that you wish to address with me, please do so. My contact information is below. My preferred form of communication is email. Please never hesitate to contact me. I want you to know that I believe that your child owns her/his learning. I am not passing the buck. I simply believe that if your child is going to make the most of his or her learning opportunities, then he or she must take ownership. I believe that this is the key to true learning. You have to own it, for when you own it, you take responsibility for it. I am responsible for joining and aiding students in their journey, and I enthusiastically own that. But the students are responsible for their learning. I want you to know that I value learning over grading. In the past year I have made major strides in providing an approach to as-sessment that places greater emphasis on learning, not grading. As such, your child will find himself or herself in a feedback rich environment, which has been made more possible with my stepping away from traditional grading practices. Please carefully read my grading policies. And, as offered above, please do not hesitate to contact me with questions. I want you to know that I understand the strain that homework can place on you and your child. It is not my goal to burden your child or your family with a heavy workload outside of school. I believe success in mathematics requires practice and reflection. In the classroom we will be doing most of the practice and at home the students will be required to practice and reflect.I want you to know my approach to life and teaching: Do. Reflect. Do Better. I do not have all the answers. I am just seeking to do better each day, each year. This year is no different. I will make mistakes, and some of my plans will fail miserably. But I expect and accept that because I know I will learn from it each and every time. This is how I approach my learning. It is how I will ask your child to approach his or her learning. These are the things I would want you to know as we set out on our own journey together as the adults in the party. I am keenly aware of the trust that you place in me for your child’s care and education each day when she or he walks out the door. I, too, am a parent, and have the same expectations for my own children. And so, please know that I take my role in your child’s journey very seriously, and I will do my best to see him or her safely to our destination at year’s end. Thank you for joining me this year. I hope it is a “best year ever” for you and your child . Sincerely, Kimberly Mendiola kmendiola@cnusd.k12.ca.us

Syllabus

CCSS Math 7

Student will be using the several curriculums as the basis for their learning. This

year I am printing out partial packets by Investigations. If a student is absent they

can view the worksheet online oand/r print it out to work on.

Course Description The fundamental purpose of the CCSS Math 7 course is to formalize and extend the mathematics that students learned in the elementary grades. This course in-cludes Common Core standards from the conceptual categories of Number Sys-tems, Algebra, Functions, Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. Instructional time will focus on eight critical areas: 1. 1. Extend the number system to include rational numbers

2. 2. Synthesize understanding of similarity

3. 3. Deepen and extend understanding of linear relationships

4. 4. Compare various quantities and apply to scaling figures

5. 5. Develop the broad principle that form and function of natural and designed

objects are intimately related

6. 6. Develop understanding of surface area and volume

7. 7. Develop understanding and reasoning about theoretical and experimental

probability.

8. 8. Apply statistics and data analysis to focus use of measure of center and

spread to describe and compare samples and populaions

Roles, Rights, and Responsibilities Rights As a member of this community, you have the following rights. I have the right to feel safe.

I have the right to learn. I have the right to ask as many questions as I want.

I have the right to make mistakes and not fear penalty. I have the right to “prove” my learning in various ways.

I have the right to feedback as an essential part of my learning. I have the right to access the teacher for help whenever possible.

I have the right to express that my rights are not being granted or protected. Responsibilities Beyond your rights and roles of the room, you will also have responsibilities as a member of our learning com-munity. I have a responsibility to get to class on time. If I am late, I will not disrupt the class. I will quietly apolo-gize and sit down. I understand that if my being late becomes a habit, we will have to find a solution. I have a responsibility to know and honor the CATS expectations. I have a responsibility of monitoring my behavior so I do not disrupt the learning of my community mem-bers. I have a responsibility to self-regulate my use of electronic devices in this room. I will use the device as a mathematical tool only. I understand that if I cannot self-regulate, my device will be sent to the office according to school policies. I have a responsibility to be a great listener. This means, I will not talk while others are talking; I will visu-ally track/connect with the speaker; and I will use gestures to demonstrate that I am listening. I have a responsibility to take ownership for my learning. It is my learning. I have a responsibility to be sensitive to and respectful of others’ viewpoints. In short, I have a responsi-bility to be kind. I have a responsibility to clean my space before I leave for the day. Failing to meet the expectations of the class or individual responsibilities will result in consequences unique to each individual and situation.

Roles, Rights, and Responsibilities ABSENT AND MISSING WORK

When a student is absent, it is their responsibility to update their planner by checking with classmates,

Google Classroom, or check the Assignment board. They should then get worksheets that are needed from a

student accessible file box or print form Google Classroom. If they are absent the day of a quiz or test, the

student must make those up after school on Tuesdays or Thursdays. They may also take assessment during

Success (with teacher’s permission). Absent work is to be turned in prior to the end of the Unit Test in the AB-

SENT WORK BASKET located in the student area or online through Google Classroom, if applicable

NO NAME, NO GRADE

Any papers turned in without a name or period on it will be placed in the NO NAME / NO PERIOD crate locat-

ed in the student area of the classroom.

EXTRA CREDIT

THERE IS NO EXTRA CREDIT GIVEN IN THE MATH DEPARTMENT.

COLLABORATION Group roles will be used in our class as it is important students

will learn how to work in a collaborative group setting. These

roles also challenge each student to build their character traits

as they work in groups and grow as mathematical think-

ers. Each role is designed to be equal in status with no role

"seeming" more important than the other.

Team Captain

Responsibilities:

The only student who can get out of their seat to get resources and mathemati-cal tools for the team.

Ensures the team is using all resources well, espe-cially people.

The only student who can ask the teacher a ques-tion.

Cares for and returns sup-plies.

Organizes clean up.

Sound Bite:

Would any resources or tools be helpful for this problem?

Do we all have the same question?

Do we have any ques-tions for the teacher that we can’t answer our-selves?

My group wants to know…

We need to clean up. Can you… while I…?

Coach

Responsibilities:

Gets the team off to a quick start.

Asks every student to share their ideas or ques-tions.

Makes sure everyone’s ideas are listened to.

Invite others to make sug-gestions on what to do next.

Keeps track of time.

Substitutes for absent roles.

Sound Bite:

Who knows how to start?

I can’t get it yet...can someone help?

We need to keep mov-ing so we can…

What questions did you have about the prob-lem?

Where did you get stuck?

How did you approach the problem?

What do you suggest

COLLABORATION Group roles will be used in our class as it is important students

will learn how to work in a collaborative group setting. These

roles also challenge each student to build their character traits

as they work in groups and grow as mathematical think-

ers. Each role is designed to be equal in status with no role

"seeming" more important than the other.

Role designs: www.teacherarium.org

Accountability

Manager

Responsibilities:

Gives update state-ments on the team’s progress.

Makes sure each mem-ber of the team records the data.

Makes sure that all group members can answer teacher’s questions.

Makes sure that all group members are prepared to present their group’s ideas.

Organizes and introduc-es report.

Sound Bite:

We need to keep mov-ing so we can…

Did everyone get that in your notes?

Can you explain our group’s ideas?

Do you understand why…?

What if the teacher asks…?

How would you present our group’s ideas?

I will introduce the repo

Skeptic

Responsibilities:

Group skeptic - challeng-es each group member to justify and explain their thinking in detail.

Questions each students approach and ideas.

Asks questions about the group’s activity.

Helps the group reflect on their work during the task and at the end.

Sound Bite:

Why does this make sense?

How do you know that works?

Can you represent your ideas in a differ-ent way?

Why did you…?

Can you explain…?

What strategies have we used?

What worked?

What isn’t/didn’t work?

GRADING

What is Standards-Based Grading?

Standards-based grading (SBG) communicates how students are performing on a set of clearly defined learning targets called Learning Standards. The purpose of SBG is to identify what a student knows, or is able to do, in relation to pre-established learning targets, as opposed to simply averaging grades/scores over the course of a grading period, which can often mask what a student has learned or not learned, in a specific course.

How Does SBG differ from Traditional Grading?

Unlike the traditional grading systems, a standards-based grading system measures a student's mastery of learning standards using the student's most recent scores. This allows a student who may have struggled with the material at the beginning of a course the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of learning standards by the end of a grading period with no penalty. In a traditional grading system a student's grades are averaged together for the entire quarter. This penalizes students who initially struggle with the material as their lower assessments scores would be averaged together with the higher scores later in the course, resulting in a lower overall grade than current performance indicates. Standards-based grades separates academic performance from work habits and be-havior in order to provide parents a more accurate view of a student's progress. Varia-bles such as effort, participation, timeliness, cooperation, attitude, and attendance are reported separately, not as an indicator of a student's academic performance.

Grades are Entered in Relation to Specific Skill Mastery

My gradebook is set up with the goal of helping my students and their parents better understand exactly where they are succeeding and where they are struggling. My hope is that this would make it easier for students to focus on the areas where they were struggling and for parents to better support their children.

Assignments are listed with the standard/s that are being measured. The student can see how he or she did in relation to each skill. Then they can focus their energy on developing the specific skills they are struggling with.

I allocate different amounts of points to different elements or assign them different weights in the gradebook depending on the difficulty of the skill being assessed.

Grading for Mastery Using a 4 Point Scale

Rubrics

Rubrics are a tool for evaluating student work. There are mainly two different types of rubrics: holis-tic (one that provides an overall score) and analytic (one that provides scores for different catego-ries). The rubrics I will be using are 4-point holistic rubrics. The rubric provides a broader picture about a student’s understanding of the learning objectives and standards for mathematical practic-es. The primary purpose of a rubric is to provide specific feedback on critical elements of the task and the student work. In addition, rubrics may be used to show students the expectations before they perform a task and to give students feedback and an opportunity for revision after they per-form the task. Both of these uses strongly support student learning and achievement. How do I use a rubric? Each assessment or project, students will be given a copy of the rubric where they will highlight or circle the parts of the rubric that apply to their work. This feedback is useful for students because it gives them an indication of the next steps they could take to improve their work. Students will be using a 4-point rubric and receive one score for the learning objective they are being assessed on. How is this reflected in Student Connect? The rubric scores are not converted into percentages proportionally. If a student receives a 2, it is not equivalent to a 50% or an F, but means their are large misconceptions of the mathematical con-cept. If a student receives a 3, it is not equivalent to a 75% or a C.

Learning Objectives Rubric

4 Exceeds Exceeds Expectations. The learner demonstrates outstanding scholarship and fluent understand-ing of content mastery. Learner has deeper application of skills or analysis of the content be-yond grade level expectations.

3 Meets Meets Expectations. The learner has demonstrated content understanding and skill application of the outcomes for the particular summative assessment. Expected level of performance.

2 Approaches

Approaches Expectations. The learner has demonstrated partial mastery of the expected con-tent/skills in the assessment. Partial development indicates a progress with gaps in understand-ing or misconceptions. Progress means not yet fully meeting the expected grade level perfor-mance.

1 Incomplete Little or no evidence of content mastery of outcomes. The learner has large gaps in understand-ing/application and is able to show success only with significant adult assistance.

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Classwork/HomeworkRubric

4 Exceeds

I worked on the task until it was completed. I used an appropriate strategy to solve the problem and described using sound mathematical reasoning. I replied to all feedback questions and comments and pushed myself to keep working when it became difficult and challenged myself to strengthen my understanding of the mathematics.

3 Meets

I worked on the task until it was completed. I used a reasonable solution strategy BUT the solution did not have sufficient detail and/or contained flaws in the mathematical reasoning. I replied to most feedback questions and comments and pushed myself to keep working even when it became difficult.

2

Approaches

I started to work on the task but did not complete it. I used a strategy that was not sufficient to solve the problem or did not give a solution. My replies to the comments and feedback were minimal and demonstrated minimal understand-ing of the mathematical concepts, OR did not reply to any feedback. I put effort into the task, but stopped when it became difficult.

1 Incomplete I put very little effort into the task and shows not understanding of the mathe-matical concepts. I did not reply to comments, OR I did not submit the tasks.

Reflection Rubric

4 Exceeds I provided a detailed explanation and examples of my thinking and learning processes, as well as how it helps me in future learning.

3 Meets I provided an explanation of my thinking and learning process, as well as how it helps me in future learning. I am showing growth in my understanding of how to better communi-cate my thinking and learning processes.

2

Approaches

I have attempted to demonstrate my thinking about learning but is vague and/or unclear about the personal learning process. I attempt to analyze my learning experience but the value of the learning is vague and/or unclear. I am not showing any significant growth in understanding how to better communicate my thinking and learning processes.

1 Incomplete I do not address my thinking or learning. I do not articulate any connection to other learning or experiences.

Creating Learners

I believe in empowering students to take control of their learning. No longer will they be passive receptors of infor-mation or grading, waiting for the teacher to tell them what they have/have not learned. Students will learn how to learn. Students will be reflecting weekly and tracking their learning journey as they work towards mastery on all the learning objectives. Below are some of the tools students will be using. Reflection vs. Self-Evaluation - Students will practice these two very important skills and understand the differ-ences. When the students are reflecting weekly they are focusing on the process of their learning; the how's, what's, and why's. The self-assessment tools are the end result of the process of learning where the student is able to identify their level of mastery and whether they have reached their learning goal.

Mathematical Reflections

After each lesson and Unit assessment, students are asked to reflect in writing on their weekly work habits, group and class interactions, and mathematical concepts.

Students will use this tool after assessments, documenting the standards they have excelled in and those which they need to continue to focus on.

Self-Assessment Tool