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Using the Site

Learning Modules Roadmap:

This video library focuses on early learning teaching and leading for student learning impact…cognitively, socially, emotionally and culturally.  These professional learning resources are organized around the Plan-Teach-Reflect-Apply (PTRA) teaching cycle that integrates each domain of the Framework for Teaching (Danielson, 2013) into a professional growth cycle. The videos also highlight the alignment of the 2013 Danielson Framework for Teaching clusters with developmentally appropriate practice as represented by various standards of early childhood program quality and practice (e.g., NAEYC, DEC, Head Start Indicators). The PTRA cycle also focuses on both “behind the scenes” professional work of teaching and leading: planning conversations, reflection conversations, professional learning teams, and family involvement AS WELL as high levels of “onstage” classroom teaching practice.

Learning Modules:

For each teacher, there is a suite of up to 9 videos that are outlined below in the Video Roadmap.

  • These videos include a Planning Conversation with the teacher and principal or teacher leader. The planning conference models best practices for planning discussions where both educators collaboratively focus on the lesson plan, desired student learning outcomes, the intentionality of the learning activities (centers, activities, groupings), and the measurable indicators of student learning before the observation process.
  • Each teacher walks us through the priorities of their classroom structure and resources in the Classroom Environmental Walkthrough Video.
  • The next set of videos takes us into the classroom to see high impact teaching and learning “in action”. These videos are organized into four Framework for Teaching Clusters/Learning Areas that highlight essential classroom practices in Domain 2: Learning Environment and Domain 3: Instruction:
    • Classroom Culture (Components 2a, 2b)
    • Classroom Management (Components 2c, 2d, 2e)
    • Classroom Instruction (Components 3a, 3b, 3c)
    • Classroom Assessment (Components 3d, 3e)

Each video set of the teacher’s practice includes artifacts that deepen the learning experience. The artifacts include lesson plans, examples of student work, curricula guidelines, assessment examples, and so forth.

  • Some of the teachers will have a video that highlights how the teacher engages families in their students’ learning with a focus on Communicating with Families.
  • Each video set includes a Reflection Conversation with the teacher and principal or teacher leader focusing on “celebrations” of student learning, as well as “concentrations” of improvement and next steps. The conversations are a collaborative learning process for both educators where both walk away with a deeper knowledge and appreciation for the teaching/student learning process.
  • Finally, there is a Professionalism video in which we see the teacher talk about and/or show their work with other teachers and support personnel to talk about the learning in the classroom, how they might work together to support their students’ learning, or the teachers talk about how they serve in a variety of teacher leadership roles, networks with other teachers in the center or school, and tap into resources offered by their center/school/district or outside their school to continually grow their practice.

The video roadmap below provides more detail about each of the videos, the Framework for Teaching Cluster/Learning Area it highlights, the content, and the resources or artifacts that you will find when you watch each of these videos.

Filters

When you are on the Learning Modules webpage, you will be able to filter the videos by the following: Grade Level and Video Categories (i.e., Planning Conversation, Classroom Management).

Grade Level:

  • If you’d like to be able to view all of the videos available on the modules, click All.
  • Otherwise, you can choose to filter by Prekindergarten (PreK), Kindergarten (K), 1st Grade (1), 2nd Grade (2), or 3rd Grade (3)

Categories:

  • If you’d like to be able to view all of the videos available on the modules, click All.
  • Each of the videos has been categorized according to the video titles. See the descriptions of these videos in the text above the Roadmap highlighted in Bold.

Filtering by Grade Level & Category:

  • To more fine-tune your search, you can search the videos by selecting the grade level of interest and then select the category of video.
    • For example, if I am interested in Classroom Management videos in PreK classrooms:
      • I would select: Grade Level—PreK; Category—Classroom Management. 

Meet the Teachers and Leaders

On the Meet the Teachers and Leaders page, you will see a snapshot and brief description of each of the teachers and leaders who have agreed to be filmed for this project.

  • When you select a teacher by clicking on the teacher’s picture, you will be taken to a page that gives a short bio of the teacher or leader including their current and previous teaching experience, the reason they are an educator, and their educational philosophy.
  • From this page, you will see all of the videos that are associated with this teacher or leader and can watch all of his/her videos to see the Planning, Teach, Reflect, Apply process in action.

News & Events

This page will contain current announcements of news and events associated with this project. This can include up-to-date announcements of new publications, videos, and resources that are uploaded to the website on a regular basis. We will also publicize upcoming trainings, workshops, and presentations that the project team and other affiliated colleagues will offer that are related to the work of this project.

Teaching and Leading Toolbox

This page will highlight useful tools and resources for teachers and leaders in early childhood communities.

  • There are two Teaching and Leading Toolboxes, one for teachers and one for leaders that gives early childhood educators guides and resources that they can use in their centers/schools to maximize the use of the videos and resources in this website. These “tools” will include a variety of high-interest topics focused on improving teaching and learning practices in early learning classrooms.
  • The 2nd section of this webpage will be a listing of resources developed outside of this project that are integrally related to the purpose of this project and that we believe will be helpful to teachers and leaders as supplements to the videos and resources developed in this project.