Saxtons River Elementary School
Schoolwide Action Plan, 2008-2010
David Lesser, Principal
Narrative:
A staff subcommittee began meeting in the fall of 2007 to revise the schoolwide action plan. Input was gathered from parents at a PTO meeting, and the full staff met in June, 2008 to draft the final plan. This plan is based on student data, consolidated federal grant strategies, and district/school goals.
The Schoolwide Plan
1. Comprehensive Needs Assessment: Student NECAP data has been thoroughly analyzed by our staff. Other sources of data with which to develop goals include the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test, AIMSweb, formative and summative math assessments in Everyday Math, math and writing portfolios, town preschool data, and staff/parent observations/input. The Data Warehouse and NECAP results offer multitudes of disaggregated information that has been used to determine future areas of concentration. Additional student needs were identified through initial testing, progress monitoring, attendance reports, special ed service plan calculations, staff schedules and lesson plans. Close attention to staff qualifications,
skills and talents were taken into consideration when developing staffing patterns and resource allocation.
2. Schoolwide Reform Strategies: This requirement focuses on strategies to deal with low income, migratory and at risk students. Saxtons River Elementary School is in compliance with the McKinney Vento law for reporting and supporting homeless children. Our student population that receives free or reduced meals hovers near 42%. This figure is an inaccurate measure of the standard of living of many of our families who are living in poverty. Our EST, 504 and SPED teams meet on a regular basis to support all at risk students.
3. Instruction by Highly Qualified Teachers: All teachers and paraprofessionals at SRES meet the standards of the NCLB Act for highly qualified staff. The pool of candidates, even mid-year for medical leave positions, has plenty of highly qualified teachers to meet the needs of our system. This is not a concern at the elementary level.
4. Strategies to Attract Highly Qualified Teachers: Internal advertising for new positions and the use of School Spring is adequate to attract highly qualified candidates. See above.
5. High Quality and Ongoing Professional Development: The District level administrative team, while planning the allocations for the Federal Grant, coordinates professional development activities. At the elementary level, all four schools have adopted aspects of the Responsive Classroom Model. Most teachers have been trained in the Collins writing program. Science and Math curriculum development and grade level meetings have supported teachers in their understanding and use of the grade level expectations. At the building level, SRES advertises professional development opportunities for teachers, establishes teams and representatives to attend specific trainings and network meetings, and reports at staff meetings to build schoolwide awareness of
best practices and new initiatives from these professional experiences. Student needs are always the focus.
6. Strategies to Increase Parental Involvement: Because SRES enjoys a high level of parental involvement and support, there is less focus in our action plan of increasing this targeted area. SRES is a community center and a strong resource for families. Our attendance data at school events such as conferences, all school meetings, curriculum evenings and open houses indicate a high level
of involvement from parents and grandparents. Our final efforts to engage any family, who we do not know well, include home visits and family support team meetings.
7. Transition Plans: We work with both the local preschools and area elementary schools to provide the smoothest of transitions for new students. Students leaving SRES have opportunities to learn about and visit the Bellows Falls Middle School before attending there in sixth grade. Ongoing conversations and meetings between district principals ensure that students on EST, 504 and SPED plans have the best possible transition between schools.
8. Teacher Participation in Assessment decisions: Our Action Plan addresses this area.
9. Strategies to Address Areas of Need: The Action Plan indicates how certified staff will be involved in the action steps of each part of the plan, as well as the continual analysis of new data and adjustments to the plan.
10. Coordination and integration of federal, State and Local Services and programs: Where funding is necessary to support the implementation and progress of the action plan, funding sources are indicated. Coordination of resources to benefit student achievement remains the responsibility of the administrative team.
Saxtons River Elementary School Action Plan Fall, 2008-Spring, 2010 (all listed as pdf files, just click and open!)
Math
Math goal0.pdf
Reading
Reading goal.pdf
Writing
Writing goal.pdf
Health and Safety
Health and safety goal.pdf
School Climate
School climate goal.pdf
Early Childhood
Early childhood goal.pdf
| 