This Bright Spot comes from students in the Yonkers Public School District where last year Kit Casey, RSE-TASC Transition Specialist, worked with Kim Longville, Global Studies teacher, and Don Solimene, Principal, as well as students to create work-based learning opportunities.

What were students able to achieve? 

⇒ Students at Riverside High School developed a club called the Riverside Entrepreneurs Club. The club  raised seed money for school-based enterprises, and students filled important roles like co-managing funds as club treasurer.  Students successfully ran a business selling plants and this year they are using money from that enterprise to open a café in school.  Last June, six students were hired for summer employment with the City of Yonkers.

What practices or systems made this possible?

⇒ Ms. Longville created a career center in her classroom and students spent several months researching careers, writing resumes and developing community connections.  She also connected with local businesses and service agencies like the Yonkers Workforce Team to solicit donations for fund raisers and learn about local employment opportunities.

 

 

This Bright Spot comes from Stacy Fertile, a Special Education self-contained classroom teacher in Mount Vernon where Denise Jaffe, SESIS, provided professional development support in Explicit Direct Instruction (EDI).

What were student able to achieve? 

Ms. Fertile states: “According to the I-Ready diagnostic reading test, 11/12 of my students significantly increased their scores from September to June. The point increase was as high as 53 points, and four students jumped from a Level 1 to a Level 2 in reading! My students were not only successful academically, but made gains behaviorally and socially as well.”

 What practices or systems made this possible?

“Using  EDI strategies, I model, explain, repeat, and check for understanding constantly in each lesson I teach. Perhaps most effective is the feedback that I provide them on answers. I do not just say ‘correct’, or ‘sorry, that’s incorrect’, I strive to help my students understand why an answer is correct or incorrect, which informs them while also engaging them in higher level thinking.   I also organize my class for small-group instruction. Working with three or four students at a time allows me to differentiate based on their individual needs. Between the EDI and small-group instruction, my students have been extremely successful in learning, thinking, and increasing their skills this year.