SDE Offers PreK - 1st Grade Educators a Direct Route to Success with the New Common Core State Standards
PETERBOROUGH, N.H., Feb. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Staff Development for Educators (SDE), one of the nation's leading providers of professional development for K-12 educators, is pleased to announce its 2013 PreK-1 Educators Common Core State Standards Academy, taking place July 20-22, 2013 in Chicago.
With the onset of the new K-12 Common Core State Standards, which are replacing individually developed state standards in 46 states, educators nationwide are preparing in earnest to align their instruction with rigorous new demands.
SDE's first-of-its-kind PreK-1 Educators Common Core State Standards Academy promises to fully prepare pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and first grade educators to teach to the new standards for an entire year.
"What's really special about the Academy is that PreK-1 educators who have been looking forward to the new standards with trepidation, can now gain the knowledge, skills, practice, and confidence to be successful throughout the school year," explains Melissa Sheldon, a Program Planner at SDE.
The key to mastering the new standards lies in taking each one through a powerful five-step process:
- Unpack and understand learning objectives
- Determine how much there is to teach and in what order it should be taught
- Develop instructional design and delivery methods
- Establish specific methods for assessing student outcomes
- Create ways to evaluate the effectiveness of instruction
One of the most compelling aspects of the Academy is the creation of a yearlong Action Planner by every educator in attendance. Throughout the Academy, each participant—with expert coaching—will build a fully customized Action Plan to take back to the classroom for daily use. This timely, practical product will be loaded with instructional design and strategies for every Common Core State Standard in a grade level, and will be ready to use the next day and every day, all year long.
For a full year after the event, participants will attend CCSS Academy Online Webinars that will extend Academy learning, provide new insights, offer experience-based advice, and more.
And, participants will communicate and collaborate via popular social networks.
Although there are no Common Core State Standards for pre-kindergarten, PreK educators are included in the Academy because of the critical role they play in preparing their students for the rigors of the CCSS for kindergarten.
In order for kindergarten teachers to effectively teach to the Common Core State Standards, children have to arrive at kindergarten with certain skills and knowledge already in place—the alphabet, shapes, colors, and more. PreK teachers are responsible for preparing their students for the Common Core road ahead. And those PreK teachers who attend the Academy will unpack and understand the CCSS for kindergarten and take those standards through the 5 steps from a PreK, preparatory perspective.
Due to limited space, educators are being encouraged to register for the Academy early. Tuition discounts are available for early registrants and for group registrations.
About SDE
SDE provides professional development for PreK through grade 12 educators. Through Onsite PD, PD Events, Web-based PD, and PD Resources, the company empowers teachers and administrators across the country with ongoing professional development that is not only research-based, innovative, and rigorous, but also practical, motivating, and fun. All SDE training is presented by the nation's top authors and educational experts, with the goal of creating extraordinary classrooms that prepare students for the evolving demands of the 21st century.
Educators interested in learning more about SDE's national conferences and the many other professional development opportunities offered by SDE can visit the company's website, www.SDE.com, or call 1-800-462-1478.
SOURCE Staff Development for Educators
Share this article