Wit & Wisdom Implementation FAQs

Wit & Wisdom Implementation

Access:

There is an online component to Wit & Wisdom that the district recently decided to purchase. All teachers currently have access to the online site through a trial account which will remain open until the digital teacher purchase has been executed.

Materials have been provided per Wit & Wisdom recommendations. Specifically, core text ratios are:

·         Read aloud – 1 per class

·         Small group – 1 for 4-5 students

·         Partner – 1 for every 2 students

·         Full Set – 1 for every student

Missing instructional materials can be requested by the principal or textbook coordinator through Destiny.

Expectations:

Focus walls are not a district requirement; however, teachers may use them as part of their lessons. There is no expectation for a specific design for focus walls or for teachers to display color copies of the text covers and/or artwork. Schools may have specific expectations to which teachers should adhere.

The slide decks that are provided on SharePoint are student-facing resources and are optional. They are intended to be an instructional resource to help teachers as they present lessons but are not lesson plans.

Walkthroughs by administrators, coaches, and other district personnel are best practice and expected. They are to be used to assess what supports are needed.

Planning/Pacing:

ELA teachers will meet each week to review one lesson using the Lesson Study Protocol Guide. The protocol is used to guide the discussion around the lessons and is not meant to be “filled out”. While there is no district expectation of a “finished product” following the discussion, schools may have expectations to provide evidence of planning.

Annotating the text prior to planning is not a district requirement but is best practice to prepare for collaboration during the lesson planning process. Teachers are asked to write in the teacher edition with only erasable writing tools or use highlighter tape or sticky notes.

There is no district-specific template for ELA lesson plans; however, schools may have specific expectations to provide evidence of planning. The district expectation is to follow the Lesson Study Protocol Guide.

The expectation is to teach only three lessons per week, on average, according to the MNPS implementation calendar for the 2021-22 school year. Module four will not be taught during the first year of implementation.

Teachers should follow the district scope and sequence and the implementation calendar. It is reasonable to expect that occasionally pacing may differ by a day or so; however, every effort should be made to resume consistency with pacing expectations.

 Per the Memorandum of Understanding, the faculty advisory committee (FAC) may propose changes to lesson planning protocols. All proposed changes shall be presented and discussed with the principal for collaboration and consideration purposes. Changes require principal approval. Examples of lesson plan protocols that the FAC can recommend changes for are collaboration planning meeting days, collaborative planning meeting locations, lesson plan templates, procedures for submitting lesson plans, etc. (MOU p.30)