SPRING / SUMMER
2013 Events Calendar

April is …
Jazz Appreciation Month
[Smithsonian Resources]

Genocide Awareness Month
[USHMM Educ Resources]

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April 22 - 28
Greater Austin Financial
Fitness
Week
[see, $MART KID Essay Contest]
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STAAR ASSESSMENT CALENDAR
[All Subjects]

April 25 :
- TAKS/TAKS-A /-M
Exit Level Social Studies
- STAAR/STAAR-M /-L
Grade 8 Social Studies
- (Retest) TAKS/TAKS-A
Exit Level Social Studies
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April 27 :
8:30 a.m.
Walk For Water
at Burger Center
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STAAR ASSESSMENT CALENDAR

May 6 – 17 :
Campuses administering EOC online
have this testing window.

May 9:
For campuses administering EOC on paper.
STAAR/STAAR-M /-L
EOC World Geography,
EOC World History,
& EOC U.S. History
____

Join
your Capital Area Council for the Social Studies
at their evening meeting!
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June 7 :
8:30 - 3:30
Summer High School Faculty Prof. Dev.
at Austin High School; Summer Middle School Faculty Professional Development at Covington.

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June 10 - 13 :

AMERICA AT WAR: From the Colonial Era to 1877
This 3-day workshop is sponsored by Humanities Texas and its program partners that include the University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum (the workshop's site location).

see also, AMERICA AT WAR in the 20th Century:
June 18-21 : UTSA

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June 11  - 14 :
8:30 - 4:00
Untangling World History

UT HEMISPHERES
Summer Teachers' Institute
____

June 11 – 28 :
Session I
Summer High School
M – F, 9:15 – 1:45 pm
McCallum, Austin, Travis
Along with the traditional
Credit Recovery /
Acceleration course offerings, Session I includes an End-of-Course Prep Camp for students who failed a STAAR-EOC and plan to retest in July.
____

June 24 :
Don't Miss This Workshop!
Returning to Austin for a 1 day workshop at the Region XIII Education Service Center are the creators of

K - 12 Teachers ...
Get signed up today!
Email Jessica Jolliffe

____

June 27 :
Makeup / Retest
STAAR Grade 8 Social Studies
at Summer School
campuses Covington
& Murchison
____

July 9 :
Makeup:
STAAR/STAAR-M /-L
All Subjects
8 am or 1 pm at all
Summer High School sites
____

July 10 :
Retest:
EOC World Geography &
EOC World History
1 pm at all
Summer High School sites
____

July 11 :
8 a.m. – Retest
TAKS/TAKS-A
Exit Level Social Studies
1 p.m. – Makeup
STAAR/STAAR-M /-L
EOC All Subjects
at all
Summer High School sites
____

July 15 – Aug. 1 :
M – TH, 9:15 – 1:45
Session II
Summer High School
Credit Recovery /
Acceleration course offerings.
McCallum, Austin, Travis
____

M-TH,
8:20 - 2:45
Summer Middle School Social Studies
Credit Recovery
Murchison & Covington
____

July 29-30
This one's for you
Elementary
Social Studies Teachers...
Join one of TCI's skilled presenters for 2-days that are sure to expand the size of your toolbox!
1st-timers and returning veterans welcome.
Get signed up today!
Email Jessica Jolliffe


August 6 - 8
AISD Summer
Profesional
Development
for Social Studies
All ELEM - Patton Elem
All SECONDARY - Small MS
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August 10
Texas Alliance for Geographic Education workshop, A Cultural Perspective on Southeast Asia
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August 26
First Day of Classes
2013-14 SY Calendar

Select from these articles:

Service Learning project sponsored by A Legacy of Giving,
Walk For The Water is April 27

STAAR EOC Social Studies Assessment Calendar Dates
T.E.A. STAAR Resources | Social Studies State Standards (TEKS)

Law Day is May 1 - Download the 2013 Law Day brochure.
Download the 2013 Teachers' Law School application

Stanford University model to frame
AISD Social Studies' 2013 Cornerstone Workshop

Download: Summer 2013 PD flyer

Summer School Staff Professional Development, June 7

Summer School sites & schedules

Social Studies Curriculum Team Directory
_______________________________

Launch Your 2013-14 School Year
armed with new knowledge, new strategies, and new material
that you developed in collaboration with your district colleagues at the...

2013 Summer PD Cornerstone Workshop

Stanford History Education Group's
Award-Winning Strategies and Resources
Focus of Summer Learning and Lesson Collaboration

DATES: August 6 - 8
LOCATIONS:

ELEMENTARY FACULTY - Patton ELEM campus

SECONDARY FACULTY - Small MS campus

REGISTRATION opens on e-Campus in April!

We invite you to participate in the
2013 Social Studies
Summer Professional Development:

Reading Like A Historian

As a participant you will:

- view a pre-assigned 30 minute webinar that will provide foundational information prior to the 3-day event in August. Additional information on this will be provided through email in mid-July. At the conclusion of the webinar, teachers will be asked to begin thinking about the lesson and associated primary texts they would like to use as part of their collaboration exercise.
[For idea-generation, see: Primary Sources on the Web].

- review the research behind and pedagogical philosophy driving the SHEG model and contemplate what its initial success reports in urban school districts [see, 2012 report] can potentially mean for student academic success if implemented with integrity in AISD classrooms;

- with peers, including content-area experts, collaborate on lessons and resources to be used in the classroom in 2013-14 that model the tools, resources, and strategies found in "Reading Like A Historian." 
[View sample SHEG lessons]

- following implementation in the 2013-14 SY of a peer-designed lesson, debrief and revise lesson with your peer.  This work will all be recorded on you and your own collaboration partner's Edmodo page;

- receive one-on-one support during your peer collaborations from district ELL and SpEd specialists aimed at supporting differentiation for diverse learners, especially the incorporation of primary texts in classroom tasks that foster success for all learners.

All participants will receive a complimentary copy of the award-winning book Reading Like A Historian: Teaching Literacy in Middle and High School History Classroom.

Little did we know in 2012
we were promoting the
American Historical Association's
Award Winner in 2013...

When our new Administrative Supervisor Jessica Jolliffe recommended the Social Studies Curriculum team purchase 'the new Wineburg book' as a means of supporting our work that summer with the Curriculum Writers Cadre, the vote was unanimous - after all, the name Wineburg was certainly one we all respected and, more importantly, the book addressed an issue we collectively agreed remains the crucial challenge in our classrooms. Additional purchased copies were later provided instructional leaders on campuses.

The curriculum team is looking forward to supporting you during and following these three days of professional learning as you collaborate with colleagues on engaging new lessons and implement them in district classrooms.

DATES: August 6 - 8
LOCATIONS:

ELEMENTARY FACULTY - Patton ELEM campus;
SECONDARY FACULTY - Small MS campus

REGISTRATION opens on e-Campus in April!

Download the
2013 AISD Social Studies Summer PD flyer.

_____________________
Who is Sam Wineburg &
what does he believe about teaching in the
social studies/history classroom?

Click here.

_____________________

Hemispheres and Not Even Past Launch 15 Minute History Podcast

Hemispheres and Not Even Past are pleased to announce the launch of 15 Minute History, a podcast—with supplementary materials—about World and US history.  This is a joint project of Hemispheres, the international outreach consortium at the University of Texas at Austin, and Not Even Past, a website with articles on a wide variety of historical issues, produced by the History Department at the University of Texas at Austin.

This podcast series is devoted to short, accessible discussions of important topics in World History and US History. The discussions will be conducted by the award winning faculty and graduate students at the University of Texas at Austin.

Our topics will be drawn from the new World History and US History Standards - The Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) - for K-12 social studies courses in Texas, and will be tied to specific objective and goals set in the standards to help educators prepare their students for the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness, or STAAR exams. They are meant to be a resource for both teachers and students.

But the podcasts can be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in History. Each podcast will be accompanied by documents and readings related to the topic for people who want to learn more about the topic.

_______________

Report:

Featured Speaker From The Sikh Coalition
Highlights FALL 2012 DWSD Program

All secondary social studies reported to Crockett High School for DWSD on
August 21. Registration began at 8:00 a.m. in the Crockett courtyard. The morning convocation began at 8:25 in the theater across from the courtyard with the presentation of colors by the Akins JROTC followed by remarks by new Administrative Supervisor for Social Studies Jessica Jolliffe.

Continuing our Distinguished Speaker Series examining World Religions, in 2012-13 we welcomed to our District-Wide Staff Development Manbeena Kaur from The Sikh Coalition.

With a B.S. in Elementary Education from the University of Texas at Austin, Manbeena has taught in Texas and New York. Manbeena also worked at the American Embassy School in New Delhi. She has been at the Sikh Coalition for 6 years, and currently serves as the national Education

Director. The education program seeks to create a positive image and foster appreciation for Sikhs around the country by engaging in nationwide and community-based educational initiatives. One of those initiatives was including Sikhism for the very first time in the Social Studies TEKS in 2010. Manbeena presented at the Texas Council for the Social Studies annual state conference in 2011 and we were all so excited that she accepted our invitation to bring her informative session to the teachers of Austin ISD.

Additional presenters included Dr. Jesus de la Teja from Texas State University in San Marcos, Dr. Cinthia Salinas, and Dr. Rosemary Morrow from the University of Texas at Austin, as well as representatives from the Texas Council on Economic Education, the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Participation, Humanities Texas, the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, Blanton Museum, LBJ Presidential Library & Museum, Teachers' Curriculum Institute, and finally, Rosen Classroom whose presentation introduced teachers of Texas History to their new Spotlight on Texas resources.

All teachers attended one session examining the revisions made to the 2012-13 curriculum for the subject area for which they teach the most sections.  The mandatory session for teachers of Economics introduced them to a new district program with multiple aims - for them, addressing their recently amended TEKS that added methods of paying for college and other postsecondary education and training to the standards for personal financial literacy in order to align with House Bill (HB) 34, 82nd Texas Legislature. A secondary aim of this program is to increase the number of AISD students completing the FAFSA form as part of their own post-secondary preparations. Representatives from TG (Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Association), the Austin Chamber of Commerce, AISD Learning Support Services and Project Advance Counselors have been working hard on the development of this 2-day module that has been added to their Curriculum Roadmaps.

Service Learning projects provide opportunities
to examine Social Studies themes ...

Philanthropy | Global Awareness | Civic Action

WALK FOR THE WATER RETURNS!

APRIL 27, 2013 - 8:30am, Burger Center

<<<Teachers resources in list at left!

This spring, A Legacy of Giving is partnering with Austin-based non-profit the Gazelle Foundation to once again engage 36 participating schools in learning about, advocating and walking for clean water. The 8,000 students on Legacy campuses are uniting to inform their 20,000 school mates, friends, family and community on what they can do to help. On Saturday, April 27th, all Legacy teachers, staff, students and their families are invited to walk a 3.7 mile course together and celebrate the great achievement of raising the funds to bring clean water to citizens in the Songa region of Burundi.

In 2012, over 550 students, teachers, parents, and community supporters walked the 3.7 miles (which is the average distance an African person must walk to get clean well water). The community partner is Gilbert Tuhabonye's Gazelle Foundation. Students and teachers were able to meet, visit, and take photos with Gilbert Tuhabonye of the project's partner the Gazelle Foundation. Gilbert Tuhabonye visited the school that had the most walkers (as a percentage of student body size) and the school that raised the most funds (as a percentage of student body size).

Shirley Hartmann of Covington Middle School reports that her students did more than collect pledges for their walk. Covington students sponsored a silent auction in the teacher's lounge, sold school supplies to the students in the morning, and created original artwork to sell to teachers. "The Walk was amazing." said Shirley, "The kids were saying, 'you can learn about this in class but you don't really understand it until you actually do it."
[Photo: Covington MS students Jonathan Espinosa, Sarah Traylor, and Lily Davidson meet Mr. Gilbert Tuhabonye]

See the Legacy of Giving web site for more info about this service learning project as well as other lesson resources addressing these important social studies themes.

Entrepreneurship | Financial Literacy

AUSTIN'S LEMONDADE DAY 2013 IS MAY 5 - Registration Here

Lemonade Day is a free, fun, experiential learning program that teaches youth how to start, own and operate their own business - a lemonade stand. It began in Houston, Texas in 2007. Since then it has grown from 2,700 kids to 150,000 kids in 31 cities across America and Canada in 2011 - including ours!

Lemonade Day Austin began in 2009, and we have grown from 2,500 kids to 24,000+ kids in 2012.

The foremost objective of Lemonade Day is to empower youth to take ownership of their lives and become productive members of society - the business leaders, social advocates, volunteers, and forward thinking citizens of tomorrow.

Each child who registers receives a backpack with an Entrepreneur Workbook that teaches them the 14 lessons of Lemonade Day like creating budgets, setting profit-making goals, serving customers, repaying investors, and giving back to the community. Along the way, they acquire skills in goal-setting, problem solving, and gain self-esteem critical for future success. They keep all the money they make and are encouraged to spend some, save some and share some.

The program's local sponsor is the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Central Texas. CEO Eugene Sepulveda and Program Director Leigh Christie report that the local media embraced Lemonade Day Austin 2012 - including the Best Tasting Lemonade Contest, six billboards sponsored by Reagan Outdoors, and in all forms of media on the actual day of the event May 6. "Hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised cup by cup (we're preliminarily estimating $450k+) and tens of thousands donated to charity (est. $150k)."

AISD Social Studies Elementary Specialist Janie McClam reports that the Lemonade Day curriculum is now embedded in the K-4 CRMs and the district had an enormous response on multiple campuses. "We are so thankful for the opportunity to participate in this important program that addresses our financial literacy concept in social studies and look forward to future years of full participation within the district."

TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY
News & Events

________

SOCIAL STUDIES CENTER
________
Newly adopted Social Studies and Economics TEKS
________


State Testing Calendars

EOC Assessments


STAAR Resources

Teachers with specific questions about the nature of the new STAAR assessments - including different expectations between STAAR & TAKS - are encouraged to watch the two Social Studies videos provided by ESC Region XIII - click here.

Thanks to all in the community who supported our youth with Lemonade Day Austin 2012!

______________________________

Commissioner Unveils Performance Standards

[April 24, 2012] The commissioner of education today unveiled the performance standards students must achieve to pass or excel on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) end-of-course tests."These standards will be challenging for our students and will push academic performance to a new level in Texas. Students who passthe STAAR end-of-course assessments will be better prepared for success in the next course or in postsecondary pursuits," said Commissioner of Education Robert Scott.

Three performance categories have been set for STAAR EOCs.
Click here to begin familiarizing yourself with this important information.

(More links regarding STAAR EOC can be found here).

New TEKS & Law-Related Education

"Oyez, Oyez, Oh Yay!"

As part of 2011-12 State Bar President Bob Black’s public education initiative, LRE has developed the online resource, Oyez, Oyez, Oh Yay! Civics Resources for Texas Students and Teachers, an interactive web-based project to assist Texas teachers and students in preparing for the new Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) standards in social studies. Oyez, Oyez, Oh Yay! focuses on the landmark court decisions middle and high school students must know to be successful on the state assessments. The web site includes summaries of the required court cases [PDF version available for download], including discussion of the court’s decision, as well as links to other case resources, videos, and curriculum materials and strategies for teachers.

Click here to vist the Oyez, Oyez, Oh Yay! Civic Resources web page.

Be sure you have secured your log-in information for Learning.com from your Campus Tech Specialist...and discover the power of TIME- from Learning.com.
Click here for the LRE's 2012 Summer PD Calendar.

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