New at Kingston Hill Academy
Welcome to the "What's New" section of the KHA website!! Here, you may find the latest Parent Newsletter, family fliers, or information regarding new teaching & learning initiatives at KHA. It will be updated regularly. If you have any feedback or suggestions, please e-mail them to KHA Director, Joe Maruszczak at jmaruszczak@kingstonhill.org
Mathematics Curriculum:
The major work of the KHA School Improvement Team this year has been investigating various math programs to find one that best meets our students' needs while closely aligning with the state's standards known as the Grade Level Expectations (GLE's). The targeted implementation of a new math program is September 2008.
The SIT has investigated five programs- Everyday Math, Saxon Math, Houghton Mifflin's Math Expressions, Harcourt Math, and Math Trailblazers. All of the programs substantially differ in their approach, as some stressskill development while others promote more problem-solving and conceptual understanding as an emphasis.
Click below to see the SIT's summary of each program using the team's generated criteria:
Houghton Mifflin Math Expressions
The next meeting of the SIT is Wednesday, May 7 at 4:30 pm in the multi-purpose room. All are welcome! At this meeting we will finalize the choice for a new mathematics program for the 2008-09 school year. We will also discuss the best delivery of instruction for this program (i.e., keeping the existing ability-based groupings versus homeroom).
Report Card Committee:
Parent informational Meeting on the New KHA Standards-Based Report Card-
Monday, May 12- 7:00 pm
The KHA Report Card Committee met monthly from December through March to commence its work in developing a new standards-based report card to report student progress each trimester. The committee began its work with a brainstorming session based upon the article Helping Standards Make the Grade by Thomas Guskey. The committee brainstormed on three essential questions:
1. What information do we want to communicate?
2. Who is the primary audience for that information?
3. How would we like that information to be used?
The committee also had a discussion on how a new grade reporting system must drive assessment practices. Several examples of standards-based report cards from others schools and districts, in RI, the New England region, and nationally, were offered for examination.
Helpful links:
- The article Helping Standards Make the Grade by Guskey
- To see a copy of the PowerPoint presentation from the meeting of 1/3, click here
- Burrillvile, RI Public Schools Standards-Based Report Card
- Stoughton, MA Elementary School Standards-Based Report Card Guide
- Santa Monica-Malibu, CA Schools Standards-Based Report Card
- Travis, CA Public Schools Standards-Based Report Card
Based upon the work and feedback of the committee, here are the prototypes of a new KHA standards-based report card that we will be piloting for all students in grades K-4 during the third trimester of this school year:
- Kindergarten Report Card
- Grade 1 Report Card
- Grade 2 Report Card
- Grade 3 Report Card
- Grade 4 Report Card
ILP Group Offerings
Parent Newsletters: