Core Knowledge Language Arts in Action

Teachers Respond Enthusiastically

Melinda Temple, Ta'iala Academy, American Samoa:

We love the Core Knowledge materials here at Ta'iala Academy in American Samoa!  I'm...now teaching 11 first graders. I was lucky to get the [Listening and Learning] materials, and we have been having great success with them. The students love each unit.  The parents comment how surprised they are at the content their students are learning.... Many of our students are dual language learners and have spent their whole lives on this island.  Many are completely unfamiliar with the "core knowledge" content. We are experience firsthand the spread of knowledge equality, and it's a wonderful thing!

Deanna Maynard, NBCT, Instructional Coach, Matewan Elementary School, Mingo County, WV:

I observed [a kindergarten teacher] as she was introducing the read aloud for Colonial Towns, lesson 5A: Dressmakers, Tailors, Hatters, and Cobblers….  As she opened the discussion with, "I’m thinking of a tradesperson who makes thread out of cotton, flax, or wool…." the students began talking to their partners. One student said, "I think it’s the miller." The partner, however, disagreed saying, "The miller has the flour from the wheat. The miller doesn’t make the thread." They continued discussing for a few seconds until pairs were asked to share out. Several students had thought miller, and some suggested weaver. One student gasped, "Wait! The weaver uses the thread. He gets it from the spinner!"… I sat down with the…teacher to ask her about her impressions of the lessons. She is a veteran teacher with more than 25 years at multiple elementary grade levels. She opened with, "I want to tell you these kids LOVE it. They are excited about the content in a way I haven’t seen with kindergarten before. They are constantly making connections with previous lessons."

A Glimpse into CKLA Classrooms

"More Than Words: An Early Grades Reading Programs Builds Skills and Knowledge," by Jennifer Dubin, American Educator, Fall 2012.

Envisioning a Common Core Curriculum, American Educator, Winter 2012.

In addition to the recent articles featuring the Core Knowledge Language Arts Program (CKLA), the following videos offer a closer look at each strand through teachers who successfully implemented CKLA during the pilot.

• Skills Strand: Decoding and Encoding
  
• Listening and Learning: Read-aloud and Extension Activities

What Pilot Teachers and Principals Have to Say

Teachers, administrators, and students from P.S. 96 and P.S. 104 in Queens, NY share their experiences with the Core Knowledge Language Arts program. (Can't get enough of Olivia? Watch more of her interview.)

Principal Joyce Barrett-Walker, P.S. 96

In this video, PBS's John Merrow looks at how Common Core State Standards will change reading instruction in U.S. schools. P.S. 96 in Queens, NY is among the schools profiled. Says Principal Joyce Barrett-Walker, "When I look at the expectations with Common Core learning standards, we're where we need to be right now!"

Kindergarten Teachers, Three Oaks Elementary School

Five kindergarten teachers discuss their experience piloting CKLA at Three Oaks Elementary School.

Kindergarten Teacher, Oklahoma City Public Schools