Page 82 - 15-50 April 3 2019

Page 1

What are the

Common Core

State Standards?

By Rifka Schonfeld, Director of S.O.S.
(Strategies For Optimum Success)

A young teacher sits down to write her away from each other)? While your child
lesson plans for the week and all she ŝƐ ƚĂĐŬůŝŶŐ ĨƌĂĐƟŽŶƐ ŝŶ ĮŌŚ ŐƌĂĚĞ͕ LJŽƵƌ
ƚƵƌŶƐ ŽƵƚ ŝƐ Ă ƉŝůĞ ŽĨ ŶƵŵďĞƌƐ ĂŶĚ ůĞƩĞƌƐ͗ ƐŝƐƚĞƌ͛Ɛ ƐŽŶ ŝƐ ƐƚĂƌƟŶŐ ŽŶ ƐŝŵƉůĞ ĂůŐĞďƌĂ͘
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.1 and CCSS. Your child is learning about thesis state-
ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2. In reality, she is ments in third grade, while his cousin is
beginning to put together the standards learning about parallel structure. This
that she will include in her lesson, an ŽŌĞŶ ǁŽƌŬƐ ǁĞůů ǁŚĞŶ ƐƚƵĚĞŶƚƐ ŵŽǀĞ
integral part of lesson planning in most within the same school, but what hap-
schools today. Those jumbles of number ƉĞŶƐ ǁŚĞŶ ƚŚĞLJ ĮŶŝƐŚ ŚŝŐŚ ƐĐŚŽŽů͍ Ž
ĂŶĚ ůĞƩĞƌƐ ƐƚĂŶĚ ĨŽƌ ƐŬŝůůƐ ƚŚĂƚ ƐŚĞ ŚŽƉĞƐ they come out with the same skills and
her students will learn throughout the knowledge?
course of that lesson. But, what do those
Bulletin
standards really mean? That’s the purpose of the common core
state standards. The common core state
There’s a lot of talk lately about the com- standards website explains that “to-
mon core state standards. Forty-four day’s students are preparing to enter a
states around the country have adopt- world in which colleges and businesses
ed those common core standards, using are demanding more than ever before…
them to establish clear, consistent guide- dŚĞ ƐƚĂŶĚĂƌĚƐ ǁĞƌĞ ĚƌĂŌĞĚ ďLJ ĞdžƉĞƌƚƐ
lines for what every student should know and teachers from across the country
and be able to do in math and English and are designed to ensure students
language arts from kindergarten through are prepared for today’s entry-level ca-
12th grade. reers, freshman-level college courses,
and workforce training programs. The
ŝĚ LJŽƵ ĞǀĞƌ ŶŽƟĐĞ ƚŚĂƚ LJŽƵƌ ĐŚŝůĚ ŝƐ ĚŽ- Common Core focuses on developing the
ŝŶŐ ƐŽŵĞƚŚŝŶŐ ƌĂĚŝĐĂůůLJ ĚŝīĞƌĞŶƚ ĨƌŽŵ ŚŝƐ ĐƌŝƟĐĂůͲƚŚŝŶŬŝŶŐ͕ ƉƌŽďůĞŵͲƐŽůǀŝŶŐ͕ ĂŶĚ
cousins (even if they in a school a block ĂŶĂůLJƟĐĂů ƐŬŝůůƐ ƐƚƵĚĞŶƚƐ ǁŝůů ŶĞĞĚ ƚŽ ďĞ

Y-55 # 0'' /$) ǚǔǛǻǖǛǚǻǓǔǕǖ ȗ .ȭ2$'' 0'' /$)ǻ *( April 3 '19