The following services are provided to campuses or districts as requested
and tailored to meet specified needs.
Book Studies on Instructional Strategies for Social Studies
For this fee-based service, a member of the Region 10 Social Studies Team will facilitate a book study and recommend resources (e.g. books, online resources, etc.) for teacher teams to study. The book studies can be facilitated, face-to-face or online. A Region 10 consultant will work with the campus administrator(s) to select an appropriate book. A minimum of 2 full days in partial settings for teacher interaction is required.
Coaching in Social Studies
This fee-based service includes an initial set of observations and data analysis in order to focus in on areas or teachers of need: Who needs to change? What needs to change? (minimum 1-2 days of data gathering and analysis). Upon negotiations with the campus leadership, a group of teachers will be selected for coaching for the purpose of "shrinking the change." Whole departments in larger schools would not be eligible for coaching. After needs and audience are addressed, a coaching plan will be established for the campus (minimum 5-7 days of coaching).
Classroom Observations
Classroom observations, complete with a debriefing session, are available upon request for interested campuses. Conducted at the request of campus principals, Region 10 Consultants will observe classroom teachers for the purpose of supporting teachers in professional growth (not evaluation).
Demonstration Lessons in Social Studies
Demonstration lessons, complete with a debriefing session, are available upon request for interested campuses. Presented by Region 10 consultants, lessons are designed to be powerful models of best practices in social studies instruction.
Examining Student Work in Social Studies
This fee-based service consists of a member of the Region 10 Social Studies Team meeting with teachers during their PLC or other planning time to review student open-ended works, such as writing samples, project products, student journals, etc. Teachers will learn to do the following: apply rubrics when evaluating student work; analyze the “why” a student earned a particular score on an assessment; pose questions to ask when analyzing student work; and interpret data gathered from examining student work to improve instruction in the classroom.
Facilitated Curriculum or Lesson Planning in Social Studies
For this fee-based service, a member of the Region 10 Social Studies Team will meet with district/campus representatives to decide upon or learn the lesson planning and curriculum of the district. Emphasis will be placed on whether a campus has the liberty to make changes to the district scope and sequence. Once everyone is of like mind, a content area specialist will lead teachers in one of the following:
- Using data to review the scope and sequence in light of low performing objectives, determining where additional coverage of objectives should be incorporated by adjusting the scope and sequence;
- Assisting in understanding new curriculum documents such as TEKS Resource System substituted for former curriculum documents; or
- Using the scope and sequence (no matter what the origin) to facilitate the writing of lessons by the teachers that are aligned to the curriculum and include the focus elements of the needs assessment (e.g., engagement, rigor, vocabulary, etc.).
Consultant