Open Educational Resources recommended by MeL

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From Brandy Archer at MeL - some great resources that you may find useful:

Greetings,

Below are links to great Open Educational Resources (FREE).  Some of these (Word Generation) I have shared before.  Keep scrolling down and you will even see some quick mindfulness activities to help students focus.

SERP MEDIA
Open Educational Resources for Public Use. Visit the SERP Media Website.

LITERACY:
WordGen Weekly. Visit the WordGen Weekly Website.
WordGen Weekly (the “original” Word Generation program) is a supplementary curricular resource that offers a series of discussable dilemmas designed to promote academic language and other academic practices prioritized in the 21st century learning standards. The program is unique in its cross-disciplinary design, giving teachers of ELA, science, social studies, and math the chance to collaborate on the shared goal of helping students use academic language to articulate their thinking. Each series (or individual units) can be used school-wide in grades 6-8.
WordGen Elementary. Visit the WordGen Elementary Website.
Word Generation for grades 4 and 5 is comprised of 12 two-week units. It expands students’ background knowledge and academic vocabulary, while emphasizing 21st century learning practices such as argumentation, analytic reasoning, reading to find evidence, oral discussion, and writing.
Strategic Adolescent Reading Intervention (STARI). Visit the STARI Website.
STARI is a literature-focused, Tier II intervention for students in grades 6-9 who are reading 2-4 years below grade level. Using research-based practices and highly engaging texts, STARI addresses gaps in fluency, decoding, reading stamina, and reading comprehension, aiming to move struggling students to higher levels of proficiency at the end of one year. STARI actively engages students in discussions of cognitively challenging content aligned to the Common Core and other 21st century standards.
Also available: Reading Inventory and Scholastic Evaluation (see below)
 
MATH:

AlgebraByExample. Visit the AlgebraByExample Website.
AlgebraByExample is a set of Algebra 1 assignments that incorporates worked examples and prompts students to analyze and explain.
Poster Problems
Poster Problems consists of 12 two-day lessons taught in six instructional phases to support diagnostic teaching in mathematics. Lessons are centered around engaging problem contexts that highlight critical mathematics concepts targeted by the Common Core State Standards.
Tools for Sense-making
Tools for Sense-making was developed to shift the culture of mathematics classrooms away from answer-getting and toward sense-making. These tools help teachers guide their students through solving word problems.
 
SCIENCE LITERACY:

Reading to Learn in Science. Visit the Reading to Learn in Science Website.
Reading to Learn in Science provides a series of classroom strategies to help students and teachers address the challenges of comprehending science texts.
SciGen. Visit the SciGen Website.
Inspired by the original Word Generation program, Science Generation (SciGen) goes in-depth on science topics commonly taught to 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. These curricular materials provide opportunities to read, write, discuss, and build arguments about basic questions in science. Download a one-page description.
 
SOCIAL STUDIES LITERACY:

SoGen. Visit the SoGen Website.
Inspired by the original Word Generation program, Social Studies Generation (SoGen) is comprised of three six-week sequences around topics commonly included in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade social studies content standards. These curricular materials provide opportunities to read, write, discuss, and build arguments about central concepts in social studies.
 
SCHOOL CULTURE:

Internal Coherence Assessment and Protocol. Visit the Internal Coherence Website.
The Internal Coherence work is anchored in an assessment process that generates a profile of a school’s capacity to engage in deliberate improvements in instructional practice and student learning across classrooms. Download a one-page description.
Focus 5. Visit the Focus 5 Website.
Focus 5 is a set of classroom-ready deep breathing exercises designed to minimize distraction and develop a greater focus for learning. Download a one-page description.
The 5x8 Card. Visit the 5x8 Card Website.
The 5x8 Card is an observation tool designed to focus school principals on “Student Vital Actions” associated with the Common Core’s Standards for Mathematical Practice.
 
Available from ETS:
Reading Inventory and Scholastic Evaluation (RISE). Visit the RISE Website.
The RISE is a 45- to 60-minute web-based assessment appropriate for diagnosing the reading skills of students in grades 5 through 10. The RISE was developed to help identify students who struggle with basic reading skills and provide detailed information to teachers about the nature of their struggles. Download a one-page description.

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