Niles Elementary School District 71
A Community of Excellence
During the middle of March our 3rd-8th grade students will be taking the annual PARCC assessment. Over the next few weeks, I want to update you on what we are doing to prepare the students for the examinations and provide some resources and information about the state tests.
PARCC assessments are one measure of a student’s progress towards meeting the State of Illinois Common Core Standards in reading and math. PARCC is a very rigorous assessment, requiring advanced problem solving, analysis, and critical thinking skills at every grade level.
Over the past several years, all our teachers aligned our curriculum and classroom instruction to the state mandated common core standards. Teachers regularly incorporate PARCC like questions into daily lessons. Our reading and math instructional coaches work closely with classroom teachers to ensure students are well prepared for the examination.
We also know that a strong parent school partnership leads to student success. Many parents have expressed interest in additional information to support their children at home. We’ve added PARCC information and parent resources to our website at:
http://www.niles71.org/parents/parcc-for-parents
Here’s what students grades three and four are learning:
Reading
3rd & 4th Grades: The students are preparing for the PARCC by practicing the following Common Core State Reading Standard for Informational Text, (RI.3.9.) This skill enables the students to Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
Grade 3 -Reading- Compare & Contrast
Writing
4th & 3rd Grades: The students are preparing for the PARCC by practicing the following Common Core State Writing Standards (W.4.1a. & W.4.2e.) First is the skill of writing an introduction to a topic or text clearly, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure in which related ideas are grouped to support the writer’s purpose. The next skill is the ability to provide a concluding statement or section related to the information or explanation presented.
Grade 4 - Writing- Introductions & Conclusions
Grade 3 - Writing - Introducing & Closing Topics
Math
3rd Grade: Students have been working on multiplication (3.OA.A.1) and division (3.OA.A.2) fluency with numbers 0-9. The have also been using arrays and solving word problems (3.OA.A.3) about area (3.MD.C.5). For additional resources, please click on the blue linked words above.
4th Grade: Students have been adding and subtracting (4.NF.B.3.A) fractions and mixed numbers (4.NF.B.3.C) with like denominators. They have also been using visual models(4.NF.B.4.B and C) to represent fractions and mixed numbers. For additional resources, please click on the blue linked words above.
Thank you for your support!
John Kosirog
Superintendent