May 2023
In this issue:
Dear English teachers,
As the finish line approaches for another school year, I find it hard to believe that it is already May. Where has the time gone? In some ways, I still feel stuck in 2020, and yet time marches onward.
You have almost made it through another school year as an English teacher in Oklahoma. We have the distinct honor of helping students better understand themselves and the world through reading and writing. What an incredible and rewarding responsibility! Thank you for investing in your students, month after month, year after year. You are making a difference, and what you do matters.
Throughout this school year, I have had the opportunity to visit middle and high school English classrooms from around the state--Crooked Oak, Tulsa, Norman, Edmond, Moore, Purcell, John Rex, and Weatherford. I observed teachers reading aloud to students, facilitating group work, explaining thesis statement construction, reviewing learning through games, and more. A handful of times I got to guest teach a lesson, and I found the students to be engaged and entertaining. Guest teaching reminded me how important and fun our profession is.
I hope you enjoy your summer break and take some time to decompress and relax. Maybe you'll read that big book that you've been putting off. Maybe you'll listen to a podcast series poolside. Or maybe you'll binge watch that TV series that your non-teacher friends talked about six months ago. I also know that many teachers work over the summer, either on a side gig or in preparation for the upcoming school year. I'm offering some writing camps this summer if you want some professional learning. (Scroll down for more information.) However you spend your summer, please know that I am rooting for you and your happiness.
Sincerely,
Jason Stephenson
P.S. I promise I didn't use ChatGPT to write this.
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Some schools have already transitioned to the 2021 Oklahoma Academic Standards for English Language Arts. Now is a good time to familiarize yourself with the standards if you have not made the transition.
During the 2023-2024 school year, all schools should shift to the 2021 standards. The 2024 OSTP assessment will be fully aligned to these standards.
The ELA standards webpage has a number of implementation resources including crosswalks, vertically aligned standards, an appendix, and training slideshows and videos.
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From November 2022 through April 2023, a team of sixteen Oklahoma educators has been creating new resources for the English language arts curriculum framework, including proficiency levels, Universal Design for Learning lessons, and writing resources. All resources should be finalized and posted by June 1. See below to learn more about the helpful contents.
"Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching and learning that gives all students equal opportunity to succeed.
To understand what UDL is, it helps to understand what it’s not. The word universal may throw you off. It may sound like UDL is about finding one way to teach all students. But UDL actually takes the opposite approach.
The goal of UDL is to use a variety of teaching methods to remove any barriers to learning. It’s about building in flexibility that can be adjusted for every person’s strengths and needs. That’s why UDL benefits all learners.
This approach to teaching or to workplace training doesn’t specifically target people who learn and think differently. But it can be especially helpful for kids with these challenges — including those who have not been formally diagnosed. It can also be very helpful for English language learners." [Source]
The updated ELA Curriculum Framework has information about UDL along with a lesson for every grade level. You might already be implementing some UDL practices without even realizing it. Learn more at the link.
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Recharge this summer with some free virtual writing camps focused on the three modes of writing from the OAS-ELA: narrative, informative, and argumentative. The camps are three days long, Tuesday through Thursday, and will meet from 9:00-10:30 a.m. on Microsoft Teams.
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Day 1: Writing the mode (Engage in prompts and activities for the mode.)
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Day 2: Teaching the mode (Study mentor texts and learn mini-lessons about the mode.)
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Day 3: Assessing the mode (Reflect on student-friendly writing checklists and teacher feedback samples for the mode.)
These camps are dedicated to Oklahoma's secondary ELA teachers. Sign up for as many camps as you want, and come prepared to write and learn alongside your colleagues from all over the state. Please register in advance at the following links:
It is best if you can attend all three days, but if you have a conflict or two, you can still attend part of the week. Questions? Contact me at Jason.Stephenson@sde.ok.gov.
Writing Prompt
Recently on Twitter, the poet Joseph Fasano shared a poetry template and response he got from a writer. The letter said:
Dear Mr. Fasano,
I came across the poetry prompt you designed for little children to express themselves with poetry, and I gave it to my 95-year-old mother, who has been struggling to express herself through dementia. This is what she wrote (Peter is the name of my late father):
My name is Dorothy
Today I feel like the room where we get to play Scrabble forever.
Sometimes I am a cactus.
Sometimes I am my children.
But I always I am hopeful.
I ask the world, "Where will I see Peter again?"
and the answer is
the room where we get to play Scrabble forever.
Below is the poetry template that inspired Dorothy's poem. Try it out yourself!
 Thanks to my friend and colleague Kristen Tinch from Kentucky's state education agency for sharing this prompt idea with me.
Reading Quote
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