All LGUSD students, K-8, 2,500 Students

Projected shortfall for the 2005-6 school year budget from state funding is $440,000. This translates to salary for 5 certified teaching staff. This grant will allow the district to:

• Maintain low student-teacher ratio
• Maintain existing electives at the middle school
• Retain Literacy Specialists, and
• Retain the Math and Science Specialist.

Without this grant, teaching staff would be terminated and class sizes would increase, the variety of middle school electives would decrease and we could lose our specialists in literacy and math & science that district staff depends upon. Teachers are ranked by order of seniority, specialization and qualifications. Teachers most vulnerable to layoff are the recently hired teachers at Fisher.

This continues the 04-05 expanded music program K-5, Choral music at Fisher, and extra music support (small group) for orchestra at Fisher. An important dual benefit of this grant is that all grades at a school are taught music coincidentally, thus enabling the grade level teachers 45 minutes per week of collaboration time. This time is used to review, share and plan lessons that further ensure consistency across all classes at a grade level. Teachers have been explicit in their appreciation of the opportunity to plan and learn together and to access the support of our instructional resource teachers during those collaboration times. Parents have noted the benefit of grade level teaming that supports a common curriculum.

• Achieve 100% student participation in K-5 music program
• Parent and teacher survey results indicate 75% satisfaction with the district music program
• 75% of teachers will report effective use of collaboration time in annual teacher survey.  The range of activities surveyed will include analyzing student data, scoring student work, curriculum mapping, discussing differentiated instruction, designing support plans for at-risk students, and planning grade-level units of instruction

Expansion of the science program in K-8

Increase certified science specialist to full time

Improvements have been made over the past years in the K-5 science program with the implementation of hands-on science kits at each grade level. There is still a need to maintain and improve science instruction K-5. Currently the district has been able to support on a .5 Science Resource Teacher which has not been enough to provide the amount of in-class modeling and teacher support necessary. This funding combined with Parcel Tax funding would support a certified full-time science resource teacher.

• FOSS kit usage – 80 % of teachers will report regular use of FOSS kits on the Teacher Survey
• STAR Science Assessment Grades 5 and 8 (5% increase in 2005/06 data)
• Develop three new FOSS science assessments

This grant has two parts:

• Math Leadership Team of classroom teachers
• Math Specialists – Two certified Math Teachers, one to focus on 6-8 math instruction and the other to focus on K-5.

For several years, the district literacy and science initiatives have supported instructional improvements in reading/writing and science to increase student achievement in those areas. While the district will continue its efforts in literacy and science, it is time to include a focus on math. Strategies for this initiative will include:

1. K-8 Math Leadership Team of classroom teachers to help build Math leaders and to guide the district initiative, to be facilitated by the Math Specialists.
   
   
   • Identify and articulate key standards K-8
   • Provide professional development to deepen content knowledge of teachers.
   • Develop consistency of quality of math instruction across all classrooms K-8
   • Provide differentiated instruction and flexible groupings so as to better meet the needs of all students in the development of math conceptual understanding and procedure skills.
     
     
2. Math Teachers—to serve K-5 and 6-8
   
   K-5 Math Teacher Specialist would focus on math content and instruction at the K-5 level. The specialist would provide coaching, modeling and teacher support for improving math achievement of all students K-5. Periodic math clinics would be provided at each of the sites.
   
   6-8 Math Teacher Specialist would focus on 6-8 math instruction for the Fisher Math Department. This same teacher would offer a “math clinic” for students 4 days per week. By working directly with students who need instructional assistance, this specialist would be in a unique position to cycle information back to classroom teachers regarding instructional improvement in the classroom.

• STAR Math Assessment Data (5% increase in 2005/06 data)
• Complete Curriculum Maps for grades K-6 by 6/06
• Establish Math Study Group to increase leadership, coaching, and presentation skills.

This grant has three parts:

1. Two Arts Specialist teachers to each serve two elementary schools $160,000
2. Art Materials $10,000
3. Art Docents $10,000

Part I. Funding would provide two full-time Art Specialists who would each serve two elementary schools. The Art Specialists would provide art instruction for all elementary schools. In addition, they would work with the Art Docents to coordinate the District and Art Docent’s curriculum. The Art Specialists would also work with classroom teachers on the integration of art into the core curriculum.

Schools would work to cluster “specials” (music, art, library, computer lab, PE) as much as possible to extend the time available for grade level collaboration and consistency and to provide larger blocks of time for student instruction.

Part II. Art Materials to support the Art Specialist program

Part III. Funding of $10,000 Art Docent Program

• 100% gr. K-5 students served in Dance and Drama
• STAR scores improve or remain consistent
• Teacher and parent surveys will indicate 75% satisfaction with the arts programs
• Art Docents provide Art History for all students gr. K-6

What happens for students if teachers attend the Academy during the school year? The district would identify a core group of substitutes, who themselves would receive special training to ensure that quality instruction continues and who would be guaranteed a certain number of work days in exchange for committing to the program.

This level of funding would support attendance for approximately 35-50 teachers. The summer training choice is the most expensive, but most ideal of the options.

• 16-20 teachers (gr. 4-8) will participate in Institute
• The percent of gr. 4-8 students scoring advanced or proficient will increase by 5% on the Spring 2007 STAR assessment.
• Teacher Surveys (gr. 4-8)
•    85% of teachers who attend the in-service will report regular use of math strategies and techniques during 2006/07 school year
•    80% of parents (gr. 4-8) responding to district parent survey will report satisfaction with district math program

• Conduct a student survey to gather benchmark perceptual data regarding academic integrity, student responsibility and school safety
• Complete 6th, 7th and 8th grade course curriculum for social emotional literacy at Fisher
• Help-a-Thon participation rates will indicate 20% student participation.