2.0 1st grade curriculum: Carbon Dioxide? Yes! Telling time? No!

[Anonymous]

It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If there is no math tracking,,then what are the groups that are meeting each day? random?

Not the OP, but I have a kid in 2nd grade in MCPS.

Our school has NO math tracking. Not sure if this is school specific, or just MCPS policy because DD is our first kid going through.
No math groups that meet daily. My DD is a pretty good reporter, so I'm pretty confident that she's not just making it up. All kids get the same worksheets.

What ESs in MoCo have math tracking for 1st and 2nd graders? We have two younger kids, and are currently renting, so are open to moving into a different cluster!

We are in a Whitman cluster and we have math, spelling and reading groups all at different levels. I know it started in 2nd grade but I can't remember what they did in 1st.

WHEN was this? They used to do this -- no more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

+1,000,000. It is so rushed and crazy but I was told if they tracked classes, the poor students and non-english students would all mainly be in one class and that isn't a positive thing for them? Huh? So instead we are politically correct and match class sizes by gender, race, culture and sprinkle ESOL all around. And then you have 10 minutes of reading a day and 10 minutes of math a day - IF your group gets picked. My daughter is in the highest reading group and gets called only 2-3 times a week. So she gets 30 minutes of direct teacher time A WEEK for reading.

Maybe think about why it would be a bad thing to put, in first grade, all of the students who are behind, and all of the students who don't speak English, in one class. And "political correctness" has nothing to do with it, unless you include under "political correctness" the idea that all children should get a decent education, even the ones who are behind and the ones who don't speak English.

Who is denying anyone a decent education? Put the non-english kids in the same class with a teacher with an aide. ESOL teacher comes in and helps instead of the kids getting pulled out and missing direct class time. Let the advanced kids be in a class of 30 kids with no aides. Everyone is getting a decent education and just maybe the kids far behind will have the resources to advance quicker.

Just stop the 10min a day of direct teaching. It sucks and it benefits no one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

+1. It is also more eco-friendly and helps parents follow along and help.

I volunteered last week and took a 10 pound binder down to the copier and proceeded to copy 13 pages of worksheets. 38 copies of each page. Ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

They didn't used to have BOOKS, either. Except for maybe a math textbook, which wasn't bad but also wasn't good, and weighed a ton, and I don't think that there were many third-graders referring to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

+1,000,000. It is so rushed and crazy but I was told if they tracked classes, the poor students and non-english students would all mainly be in one class and that isn't a positive thing for them? Huh? So instead we are politically correct and match class sizes by gender, race, culture and sprinkle ESOL all around. And then you have 10 minutes of reading a day and 10 minutes of math a day - IF your group gets picked. My daughter is in the highest reading group and gets called only 2-3 times a week. So she gets 30 minutes of direct teacher time A WEEK for reading.

Maybe think about why it would be a bad thing to put, in first grade, all of the students who are behind, and all of the students who don't speak English, in one class. And "political correctness" has nothing to do with it, unless you include under "political correctness" the idea that all children should get a decent education, even the ones who are behind and the ones who don't speak English.

Who is denying anyone a decent education? Put the non-english kids in the same class with a teacher with an aide. ESOL teacher comes in and helps instead of the kids getting pulled out and missing direct class time. Let the advanced kids be in a class of 30 kids with no aides. Everyone is getting a decent education and just maybe the kids far behind will have the resources to advance quicker.

Just stop the 10min a day of direct teaching. It sucks and it benefits no one.

School systems that segregate non-English-speakers and students who are behind into their own separate tracks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

We are in a Whitman cluster and we have math, spelling and reading groups all at different levels. I know it started in 2nd grade but I can't remember what they did in 1st.

WHEN was this? They used to do this -- no more.

I'm not in a wealthy/white cluster, and they are doing this right now in my child's school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

They didn't used to have BOOKS, either. Except for maybe a math textbook, which wasn't bad but also wasn't good, and weighed a ton, and I don't think that there were many third-graders referring to them.

There are so many on-line resources that I can not agree on the need for a book. My kids have books (HS) and never use them. They like the variety of choices on line so they can find something that makes sense to them...and pre-2.0 there were no books either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

They didn't used to have BOOKS, either. Except for maybe a math textbook, which wasn't bad but also wasn't good, and weighed a ton, and I don't think that there were many third-graders referring to them.

My entire education K-12 was based on books. We took them home when we needed them and they were reused the next year by the kids entering that grade. Simple. Useful. Educational.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

The achievement gap has not reduced due to class integration, so placing all levels in a class is not working either. All you have done is dumbed down the class for ALL the students with no advantage for the slower students. Maybe you should Google "achievement gap" before insulting another poster.

There is research on the topic of tracking/ability grouping. Let's look it up, instead of universalizing from our own personal experiences.

I just looked it up and there are many articles pointing to tracking working best for all students, especially those at the bottom. They are less likely to give up, more likely to enjoy school because they don't feel dumb in front of peers, and more likely to raise their hand and participate.

I also read that ability grouping is just as likely to remain stagnant as tracking because teachers are too overwhelmed to reassess as often as ability grouping wants you to do. And I can say without a doubt, my daughter's math and reading groups have been the same all year long for the past 3 years. No one has moved out or in.

So really it depends on what articles and information you click on. Oh, and also what date because tracking became a no no in the early 2000's but is back on the rise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

They didn't used to have BOOKS, either. Except for maybe a math textbook, which wasn't bad but also wasn't good, and weighed a ton, and I don't think that there were many third-graders referring to them.

There are so many on-line resources that I can not agree on the need for a book. My kids have books (HS) and never use them. They like the variety of choices on line so they can find something that makes sense to them...and pre-2.0 there were no books either.

Then they can have an online resource that they are referring to. no need for an in-print book, but an online "resource" or book is fine. AS LONG AS THE WORKSHEETS ARE PINNED TO SOMETHING.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

+1,000,000. It is so rushed and crazy but I was told if they tracked classes, the poor students and non-english students would all mainly be in one class and that isn't a positive thing for them? Huh? So instead we are politically correct and match class sizes by gender, race, culture and sprinkle ESOL all around. And then you have 10 minutes of reading a day and 10 minutes of math a day - IF your group gets picked. My daughter is in the highest reading group and gets called only 2-3 times a week. So she gets 30 minutes of direct teacher time A WEEK for reading.

Maybe think about why it would be a bad thing to put, in first grade, all of the students who are behind, and all of the students who don't speak English, in one class. And "political correctness" has nothing to do with it, unless you include under "political correctness" the idea that all children should get a decent education, even the ones who are behind and the ones who don't speak English.

Who is denying anyone a decent education? Put the non-english kids in the same class with a teacher with an aide. ESOL teacher comes in and helps instead of the kids getting pulled out and missing direct class time. Let the advanced kids be in a class of 30 kids with no aides. Everyone is getting a decent education and just maybe the kids far behind will have the resources to advance quicker.

Just stop the 10min a day of direct teaching. It sucks and it benefits no one.

School systems that segregate non-English-speakers and students who are behind into their own separate tracks.

Tracking is done in many places all over the country. Sorry, it does not deny anyone an education. Many non-english speakers of asian decent are in the highest tracked classes. No one is segregating here so go away with your nonsense. All kids that go to public school get an education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's all those stupid worksheets. They need BOOKS that they can refer to, flip back to previous concepts and say, "Oh, NOW i get it!" Instead it's these absurd exercises with nothing of substance written on them to help them learn. It's just crazy.

They didn't used to have BOOKS, either. Except for maybe a math textbook, which wasn't bad but also wasn't good, and weighed a ton, and I don't think that there were many third-graders referring to them.

There are so many on-line resources that I can not agree on the need for a book. My kids have books (HS) and never use them. They like the variety of choices on line so they can find something that makes sense to them...and pre-2.0 there were no books either.

I believe that if they stick with this awful common core that most parents don't even understand, they would benefit from having math workbooks that progress thru the grade like it was planned to do so. I rather my kids have workbooks than the promethium boards.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

+1,000,000. It is so rushed and crazy but I was told if they tracked classes, the poor students and non-english students would all mainly be in one class and that isn't a positive thing for them? Huh? So instead we are politically correct and match class sizes by gender, race, culture and sprinkle ESOL all around. And then you have 10 minutes of reading a day and 10 minutes of math a day - IF your group gets picked. My daughter is in the highest reading group and gets called only 2-3 times a week. So she gets 30 minutes of direct teacher time A WEEK for reading.

Maybe think about why it would be a bad thing to put, in first grade, all of the students who are behind, and all of the students who don't speak English, in one class. And "political correctness" has nothing to do with it, unless you include under "political correctness" the idea that all children should get a decent education, even the ones who are behind and the ones who don't speak English.

Who is denying anyone a decent education? Put the non-english kids in the same class with a teacher with an aide. ESOL teacher comes in and helps instead of the kids getting pulled out and missing direct class time. Let the advanced kids be in a class of 30 kids with no aides. Everyone is getting a decent education and just maybe the kids far behind will have the resources to advance quicker.

Just stop the 10min a day of direct teaching. It sucks and it benefits no one.

School systems that segregate non-English-speakers and students who are behind into their own separate tracks.

Tracking is done in many places all over the country. Sorry, it does not deny anyone an education. Many non-english speakers of asian decent are in the highest tracked classes. No one is segregating here so go away with your nonsense. All kids that go to public school get an education.

Usually only for math, not for reading. So, if you tracked both subjects, such kids would be in the lower reading groups, separated from their high achieving in math kids. Also, it would be very difficult to get separate bilingual esol teachers for every language.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Tracking is done in many places all over the country. Sorry, it does not deny anyone an education. Many non-english speakers of asian decent are in the highest tracked classes. No one is segregating here so go away with your nonsense. All kids that go to public school get an education.

Yes, it does. This is an established fact. You are saying that something that is a fact is not a fact.

Also a fact: segregation.

And yes, all kids who go to public school get an education, insofar as they are going to school. But some get a good education, some get a bad education, and some get a very bad education.