Online Courses

We Are Crew: Pathway 1-Preparing to Implement EL Education's Crew Curriculum in Grades 6-8

This self-paced online learning pathway is designed for schools and districts who are preparing to implement EL Education's Crew Curriculum in Grades 6-8.

Students and staff are counting on school communities to be safe, affirming, and healing places, especially in the wake of a global pandemic. When students and educators can feel a sense of belonging at school, nurtured by supportive relationships, they can achieve more than they thought possible. Crew is both a structure and a culture in EL Education schools and districts. EL Education’s Crew builds an authentic community at school so all students thrive socially, emotionally, and academically, and can make meaningful contributions to a better world.

Courses included:

• We Are Crew: Onboarding to EL Education’s Crew Curriculum
• We Are Crew: Enabling Conditions for Crew
• We Are Crew: The Practice of Staff Crew
• We Are Crew: Continuous Improvement for Equity in Crew

We Are Crew: Pathway 2-Building Your Own Crew Curriculum or Structure in Grades K-12

This self-paced online learning pathway is designed for schools and districts who plan to design and implement their own Crew Curriculum.

Students and staff are counting on school communities to be safe, affirming, and healing places, especially in the wake of a global pandemic. When students and educators can feel a sense of belonging at school, nurtured by supportive relationships, they can achieve more than they thought possible. Crew is both a structure and a culture in EL Education schools and districts. EL Education’s Crew builds an authentic community at school so all students thrive socially, emotionally, and academically, and can make meaningful contributions to a better world.

Courses included:

• We Are Crew: Enabling Conditions for Crew
• We Are Crew: The Practice of Staff Crew
• We Are Crew: Charting Your Own Crew Course
• We Are Crew: Continuous Improvement for Equity in Crew

Introduction to EL Education's K-8 Language Arts Curriculum

In this course, we'll explore the foundational research and beliefs that inform the design and structure of EL Education's K-8 Language Arts Curriculum. In this course, you'll identify and locate the resources and materials you'll need to prepare and plan for implementing this curriculum within the unique context of your classroom and your school.

Intended Audience: Teachers and Instructional Coaches

Learning Targets:

• I can describe the research and beliefs that inform the design of the K-8 Language Arts Curriculum.
• I can explain the structure and the components of the EL Education K-8 Language Arts Curriculum.
• I can engage in long-term planning at the year level.
• I can engage in mid-range planning at the module level.
• I can engage in backward and short-term planning at the unit level.
• I can engage in up-close planning at the lesson level.
• I can describe the structures and opportunities within the EL Education K-8 Language Arts Curriculum that support extension and scaffolding

Supporting K-2 Reading Foundations Skills Block

The purpose of this course is to support impactful curriculum implementation through the K-2 Reading Foundations Skills Block. This one-hour instructional block is meant to ensure that, by the end of grade 2, students acquire the depth of skills they need in the Reading Foundations standards to navigate grade-level text independently.

Intended Audience: K-2 Teachers and Instructional Coaches

Learning Targets:

• I can summarize the research behind the K-2 Skills Block.
• I can explain the structure and components of the K-2 Skills Block and locate curriculum resources.
• I can describe the three types of assessments in the K-2 Skills Block and how they inform instruction.
• I can use assessment data to determine a student's microphase and create strategic groupings that support their needs.
• I can prepare for whole group and differentiated small group instruction in the K-2 Skills Block.
• I can prepare for independent rotations in the K-2 Skills Block.

EL Education's Curriculum Walkthrough Calibration

The purpose of this course is to help your team calibrate around the Walkthrough tool, to help your Walkthrough Team “see the same thing, the same way”, and to leverage EL Education's data platform, Dimensions, to capture and make meaning of the walkthrough data collected. Taking the time to communicate and ensure the Walkthrough Team is on the same page is critical to collecting meaningful data that can be used to track progress and inform practice over time.

Intended Audience: Walkthrough Team (to include school/district leaders, coaches, teachers)

Learning Targets:

• I can explain the purpose of walkthroughs and their placement in the Strategic Planning Cycle.
• I can observe, rate, and calibrate instructional practices and student behaviors using the Curriculum Walkthrough Tools.
• I can prepare for and engage in walkthroughs to improve implementation around specifically identified indicators.
• I can use Dimensions to collect walkthrough data and access relevant reports.

MINI: Read-Think-Talk-Write

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the four key components of the read-think-talk-write cycle. You will learn how to use this cycle to give your students the opportunity to synthesize evidence, play with ideas, develop arguments, and "rehearse" various forms of communication. The course is designed to introduce the read-think-talk-write cycle and to provide a resource to continue to return to as you continue to implement the read-think-talk-write cycle within your classroom and across your school.

Intended Audience: Teachers and Instructional Coaches in Grades K-8

Learning Target:

• I can describe how the Read-Think-Talk-Write Cycle deepens students' content knowledge and strengthens their literacy skills throughout the curriculum.

MINI: Management in the Active Classroom

This course is designed to introduce Management in the Active Classroom practices, or creating and running a self-managed classroom that is respectful, active, collaborative, and growth-oriented.

This course can serve as a resource to return to as you continue to implement this curriculum within your classroom and across your school.

Intended Audience: All educators

Learning Targets:

• I can explain how a teacher's presence in a classroom conveys a powerful message to students.
• I can explain how norms support a positive classroom.
• I can explain how routines support students to take responsibility for their classroom, themselves, and each other.
• I can describe how my words and nonverbal messages can empower students in the classroom.
• I can describe how to promote and support effective group work.
• I can describe how to address challenging behaviors.

MINI: Introduction to Dimensions

The purpose of this course is to familiarize you with EL Education’s proprietary data platform Dimensions so you can begin using this tool. The course is designed to introduce the Dimensions platform and to provide a resource to continue to return to as you continue to implement Dimensions within your classroom and across your school.

Intended Audience: Leaders and Coaches

Learning Targets:

• I can login and navigate the Dimensions platform.
• I can determine which tool to use for progress monitoring.
• I can manage and create events within Dimensions.
• I can use Dimensions strategically in my work and run reports to review data.

Phonics Basics

• Designed for partners implementing the Skills Block curriculum in grades K-2.
• Builds knowledge of phonics in order to provide increasingly more effective instruction and support.

Fostering Character in a Collaborative Classroom

• Designed for partners implementing the curriculum in grades K-5.
• Explains how EL Education defines and promotes habits of character in our Language Arts curriculum.
• Describes how the classroom environment and structures help build a culture where students succeed.
• Connects habits of character to academic mindsets (based on the work of Dr. Camille Farrington).

Strengthening Writing through Models, Critique, and Descriptive Feedback

• Designed for partners implementing the curriculum in grades K-5.
• Describes how models, critique, and descriptive feedback are used to promote the development of high-quality standard-aligned writing from students.
• Describes a standards-based approach to writing instruction using EL Education's K-8 Language Arts Curriculum as a model.
• Guides participants to analyze writing lessons to begin to inform their planning.