CEntennial Elementary School . - Denver Public Schools

CEntennial Elementary SchoolRethinking Time for Expeditionary LearningAn Expanded Learning Time ModelTHECOLORADOEDUCATIONI N I T I AT I V EAugust 2015

INTRODUCTIONAfter more than five years of minimal studentachievement, Denver Public Schools’ (DPS)Centennial, a public elementary school innorthwest Denver, was in dire need of change. In2011-2012, Centennial was in the bottom 5 percentof metro Denver schools1, and the school boardmoved the school into redesign — a process thatrequires all staff to reapply for their positions andgives leadership “full flexibility to identify new ordifferent instructional programming for theschool,” explains Principal Laura Munro. To makethe needed impact on student learning and to buildan improved culture, the school choseExpeditionary Learning, a research-based modelthat creates a learning environment wherestudents are actively engaged with one another andin the world around them.After hiring new staff and launching the model,Centennial’s leadership team continued to searchfor academic initiatives that would enrichstudents’ learning environment. When the schoolwas invited to participate in the TIMECollaborative, the team jumped at the chance.“Knowing that we’ve wanted to really have a deeperimpact on students, we knew that more time — andthe more flexible use of time — could only help usincrease achievement and help us implement anexpanded learning model,” Munro says.Snapshot of Centennial: A School forExpeditionary Learning (2012-2013)2537Total students80%Studentsof color82%Students qualifyingfor free or reduced lunch17%Students participating inEnglish language support11%Growth record(according to DPS)Understanding the Time CollaborativeOne of the most valuable resources in education istime and how it is used. Next generation learningenvironments intentionally use time to personalizelearning, provide deeper interventions, and createlearning opportunities beyond the classroom.The TIME Collaborative is a partnership of the FordFoundation and the National Center on Time &Learning (NCTL), the Colorado Department ofEducation (CDE), and The Colorado EducationInitiative (CEI) to help three Colorado districts and12 schools, including Centennial, rethink the roletime plays in their learning environments.These teams worked closely with NCTL, CEI, andCDE to design a school day and year that ispersonalized to the unique needs of their studentsand community. The redesign process involvedtechnical assistance and targeted coaching with eachschool team. Plans focused on integrating NCTL’sSeven Essential Elements for more and betterlearning time with school and district priorities.11. School Performance Framework, Denver Public Schools, undated. Available lt.asp?chart growthstatus frl es.2. “School Specific SPF — Elementary Schools,” School Performance Framework, Denver Public Schools, undated. Available athttp://spf.dpsk12.org/spf elementary.html.

Vision and GoalsCentennial crafted a vision and goals for expandedlearning time at the school that included: Deeper impacts. Ensure students were growing inliteracy and math competency, and embarking on alifelong love of learning. Equal access to new opportunities. Makeopportunities and experiences available to allstudents. Exciting enrichments. Provide opportunitiesthat both inspire and educate to get students outfrom behind the desk. Self-discovery. Empower students to decide whatthey want to learn by giving them plenty of avenuesfor self-discovery.The ModelTo achieve its vision, Centennial’s team divided eachday’s core academics into two areas of focus:humanities and math. By combining reading, writing,science, and social studies into humanities it allowsstudents to dive deep into a multi-disciplinarylearning experience and literacy becomes the vehiclefor learning, Munro says. For example, kindergartenersspend an entire year studying insects. They workthrough case studies, read and write about insects,and participate in a yearlong project in which theycreate a book about an insect of their choice. Theseacademic blocks are also used for expeditions inschool and, as Centennial continues to evolve, willallow students to learn outside of school as well.Establishing a Supportive Culturefor TeachersThe Expeditionary Learning model also targeted staffby creating a culture focused on staff support andlearning through various activities, including anannual two-day retreat for staff before the start ofeach school year. On a daily basis, professionaldevelopment, data analysis, and collaboration areintegrated into teacher’s schedules. “Teachers have anhour block of planning every day,” Munro says. “It’shuge because most teachers are planning together,some individually. Our highest functioning teams arethe ones that use that time collaboratively. We try todo that through example.”In addition to daily planning sessions, teachers haveWednesday afternoons for a deep dive into data andlearning experiences. These sessions also allowleadership to check in on teachers’ progress andproblem-solve as issues arise.Next, the team added seven days to Centennial’sschool year. (As an innovation school, Centennial isallowed to waive certain union contract protocols,including teacher workday and the school calendar.)Two of these days were allotted to an annual staffretreat, where teachers participate in varioustrust-building activities, including a ropes course, inan off-campus setting that allows them to engage andlearn like students do. “The retreat activities help usgain a higher level of trust,” Munro says.Centennial also supplemented its curriculum withenrichments in three key areas: adventure and fitness;humanities; and science, technology, engineering, andmath (STEM). Yoga, martial arts, coding, and roboticsare among the enrichments offered every Wednesdayafternoon. “We wanted a healthy mix of enrichments2

that were super fun with underlying academics,”Munro says. “We wanted to give kids the opportunityto move and exercise, to play games and sports.”To bring enrichments to Centennial, the staffpartnered with DPS’ Office of Expanded Learning,which provided a vetted list of 25 community partners(see page 7). “Everybody we have asked to partnerwith us is awesome,” Munro says. “All of our partnershave really worked out.”While students are at enrichments led by communitypartners, teachers are collaborating. “One of ourbiggest goals was to create a really long chunk of timewhere teachers could come together for [professionaldevelopment] and collaboration,” Munro says. “Soinstead of allowing time every day, we picked one daywhere teachers were here for three hours.”Explore this Toolkitto learn how to incorporate communitypartners into your school.We are crew, not PassengersAccording to Centennial’s website, all students and staff are “crew, not passengers,” referring to a group in a boat on along voyage, where everyone is needed to pull at an oar and no one sits by watching.“We strive to instill a sense of responsibility, participation, and cooperation among individuals, the student body, theschool community, and the greater community,” Munro says. “This motto represents our commitment to inclusionand action in the service of self and others.” This outlook also allows the staff to focus on the whole child, she adds.“Sometimes in a traditional school, where staff is really pressed for time and the focus is just on academics, teachersfeel stressed to build social, emotional, and character development. The [model] of Crew gives teachers and the wholeschool community permission to focus equally on social-emotional being and character.”3Crew’s impact. Three days a week, Centennial students begin the day in Crew. For 45 minutes, they play a game orparticipate in a trust-building, problem-solving, or collaboration activity to build community and work on social andemotional skills that they can apply for the rest of the day. “So often, kids can spend a whole year together and theymay never call each other by name,” Munro says. Centennial’s model is focused on ensuring that doesn’t happen. “Theteachers know kids well,” she says, and vice versa. “We call our teachers by our first names,” and teachers loop withstudents — following their kindergarten class to first grade and second to third. This year, Centennial also launchedCommunity Circle, a monthly event led by a grade-level team where the entire school comes together and focuses oncelebrations, for example, allowing a teacher to recognize publically a student who has overcome a challenge orachieved a goal.

Rethinking TimeCentennial leadership divided the school year intofive eight-week sessions so that every eight weeks theschedule of enrichments changes. During thethree-hour block, students rotate between threeenrichments. Staff currently chooses the enrichmentsfor students, but in the future, students will have morevoice in these decisions. Below are examples ofteacher and student schedules at Centennial.Typical Schedule for TeacherS at Centennial Elementary SchoolMondayTuesdayBreakfast15 min.15 min.Morning Meeting—15 min.Crew45 min.—Wednesday15 min.—45 min.ThursdayFriday15 min.15 min.15 min.——45 min.Humanities180 min.180 min.—180 min.180 min.Expedition——120 min.——Math105 min.105 min.Science Lab—45 min.Recess/Lunch60 min.60 min.Planning60 min.Data TeamWhole Staff PD——105 min.105 min.——60 min.60 min.60 min.60 min.60 min.—60 min.——60 min.60 min.———60 min.——4

Typical Schedule for First-GraderS at Centennial Elementary SchoolMondayTuesday8:30-9 a.m.9-11 a.m.Morning MeetingFridayHumanitiesMorning umanitiesRecess and Lunch11 a.m.-12 p.m.5ThursdayBreakfast in the Classroom8-8:15 a.m.8:15-8:30 a.m.Wednesday12:15-1:15 p.m.HumanitiesScience Lab1:15-2:15 p.m.ElectivesElectives2:15-3:45 p.m.MathMathEnrichmentsProvided tivesMathMath