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Enter the Fortress of Solid Learning
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Feb. 2010, Vol. 9, Issue 6
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Introducing Elementary Science
Castle Learning
Grounded in Elementary
Content Areas
It is with great excitement that
we announce the release of Elementary Science, to be followed soon by Elementary
American Studies! These courses complete Castle Learning Online's elementary course offerings in the four primary
subject areas.
You must be getting used to the phrases, "targeted to grades 3-5"
and "provides an introduction to basic concepts in...." This sense of wholeness assures
elementary school educators that Castle
Learning Online provides the same foundation for life-long learning to
which their colleagues in the middle and high schools have become
accustomed.
Elementary school teachers are
challenged to be the experts in many fields. Throughout these formative years,
they offer instruction in the sciences, mathematics, social studies and
English, all of which are addressed by Castle
Learning Online courses. You
can learn more by reading our White Papers on Elementary School Reading, ELA & Castle Learning Online and Elementary Math Education & Castle Learning Online.
We consider it a true measure of success that we regularly
receive reports like that of the 4th grade teacher who explained that
her students' "math has improved in the
problem solving areas and, as a result, their awareness of social studies and
science 'concepts' seems stronger."
Integrating course content and grade level content and
providing the means to consistently and frequently monitor class and individual
progress with unique Assessment Reports are the hallmark of every Castle Learning Online course. We are proud to bring you these
foundations in education for your students!
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New Course: Elementary Science
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Basic Science Concepts for Grades 3-5
Castle Learning Online has released a new course, Elementary
Science, targeted to grades 3-5. This course provides an introduction to
basic concepts in laboratory skills, physical science, earth science, an d life
science that includes: -
Process
Skills covers safety procedures;
laboratory tools; ordering/sequencing, classifying, comparing and contrasting;
cause/effect relationships; experimental data, results and predictions.
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The
Physical Setting covers seasons; weather; the
water cycle; properties of matter; energy.
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The Living
Environment covers living/non-living things;
genetic information; change over time; life cycles and life spans; human growth.
Elementary Science contains 489 short-answer questions, beautifully illustrated
and complete with hints, reasons, and related vocabulary. In addition, the course
contains 112 teacher-scoreable constructed-response questions with model
answers.
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New Unit for Intermediate English
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Literature: The Giver
A new unit, Literature: The
Giver, has been added to Castle Learning Online's Intermediate English.
This unit is based on Lois Lowry's depiction of a futuristic society where all
pain, fear, war and hatred have been eliminated. First published in 1993, the
sometimes-controversial novel won the 1994 Newberry medal. This is the fifth
set in a series of literature short answer questions for Intermediate
English. The unit contains five sections, covering the 23 chapters of the
novel. Questions focus on the plot, vocabulary, analysis, themes and literary
elements.
To add these questions into an
assignment, go to the Add Question page, select the unit named
"Literature: The Giver," choose a section for the desired chapter,
and then use the Browse and Select option to select the questions that
you would like to include in your assignment. The order of the literature
questions for a particular chapter parallels the narrative sequence of the novel. Thus, the use of randomization is not recommended in assignments with
literature questions.
Lois Lowry (1937- ) has written more than
twenty young adult novels including the Anastasia series, A Summer
to Die, and Number the Stars.
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Two New Features Enhance Vocabulary Resource
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English: Vocabulary in Dual Context
A new section, Vocabulary in
Dual Context, has been added to the Vocabulary unit of Castle
Learning Online English. Questions in this section show vocabulary terms
used in two different examples. Students are then asked to choose the correct
meaning of the word based on how it is used in the context of the two examples.
The hints and reasons focus on root/stem words, prefixes, and suffixes as well
as contextual clues, synonyms, and related words. Vocabulary in Dual Context
is a great way to increase students' word attack skills and prepare for SAT and
state tests!
To add these questions into an
assignment, go to the Add Questions page for English, select the
unit named "Vocabulary," and choose the section "Vocabulary in
Dual Context." Then use the Browse and Select option to select the
questions that you would like to include in your assignment.
Geometry Unit: Geometry Vocabulary
Understanding the terminology is
essential to interpreting and correctly answering geometry questions. A new
unit, called Geometry Vocabulary, has been added. The seven sections of
this unit focus on basic geometry concepts in a quiz-like format. Students see
a list of definitions and are asked to pick the one that best matches a given
vocabulary term. The lists include:
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basic
geometry terms (point, line, plane, various types of angles and angle
relationships, parallel and perpendicular lines, slope)
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terms used
in reasoning, logic and proofs (conditional statements, disjunctions,
conjunctions, formal and informal proofs, deductive reasoning)
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triangles
(classification by angles and by sides)
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2- and
3-dimensional figures (polygons, quadrilaterals, polyhedra, circular solids,
area, surface area and volume)
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right
triangle trigonometry (sine, cosine, tangent, angles of elevation and
depression)
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transformations
(translations, reflections, dilations, direct and indirect isometries,
tesselations)
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circles
(arcs, chords, segments, sectors, secants and tangents)
To include these questions in a
Geometry assignment, select the unit Geometry Vocabulary and the appropriate sections
or simply import the questions from one of the 18 pre-made Geometry public
assignments that include "Geometry Vocabulary" in the name.
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The Mail Bag
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FOR TEACHERS
QUESTION:
My school uses team teaching. Is it possible for my co-teacher to view our students' results without logging into my own account?
ANSWER: Castle Learning Online does provide a mechanism to assist team teachers. The primary teacher creates and assigns the assignments, while co-teachers can view student progress. Using his/her own Castle Learning Online account, the co-teacher should form a class including the same students housed in the primary teacher's class. Since teachers can see the overall progress of students in other courses and classes including the work assigned by other teachers, the co-teacher will be able to monitor these students by making use of the Assessment and Course Usage reports available on the Teacher Reports page. The Cumulative Reports located on the Short Answer tab of the Classes link provide even more detail! Here are the steps that the co-teacher should follow.
- Create a class that includes the names of the students housed in the primary teacher's class.
- From the co-teacher's Home page, click the Classes link.
- Next, click on the name of the class that houses the students whose results are to be monitored.
- On the Class Details page, set the course appropriately and click the Short Answer tab. This page summarizes the activity of each student in this class for the given course.
- For an individual student, click on the View Sessions link. This report lists all sessions for this student in the given course and tells who assigned them. Click Sessions or Responses for more details.
- Click Cumulative Reports or Class Cumulative Report on the Class Details page for additional reports.
QUESTION:
A teacher has shared an assignment with me. How do I access it?
ANSWER: When an assignment has been shared with you, a message will appear under the INFORMATION CENTER on your Teacher Home page with directions for locating the shared assignment. - On your Teacher Home page, click the link under the INFORMATION CENTER that says VIEW MESSAGES.
- Next, click the message subject link, which is highlighted and underlined in BLUE.
- A box will appear that reads: "An assignment has been shared with you" and will include information that will explain who the assignment is FROM, the ASSIGNMENT NAME, the COURSE where the assignment is located, and the ACTIVITY type. Make note of the COURSE, ASSIGNMENT NAME and ACTIVITY TYPE.
- Click the Back to Home Page link.
Now you must located the assignment using the information provided in the message.
- Click the Assignments link on your Teacher Home page
- Use the COURSE DROPDOWN so that the course listed in that dropdown is the course where the assignment is located, according to the information retrieved from the Information Center Message.
- Change the Activity Type by clicking the Activity Tabs, located below the Assignment Folder (Short Answer, Flash Cards, Constructed Response, etc.).
- The Shared Assignment will appear in your list of assignments. From here, you can make changes to the assignment or assign it to your students as you would any other assignment.
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS? Email your own questions to Castle Learning Online Technical Support at support@CastleLearning.com or call 800-345-7606.
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Castle Learning Online White Paper
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Benchmarks & Castle Learning Online
Prepared by Bill Ingui
President and Retired Educator
"Are
you measuring up?" might be the question asked of many people who engage in any
activity that requires a knowledge base. Enter the world of the benchmark. Outside the school environment, here
are some definitions of this term with which you might be familiar:
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The United States
Environmental Protection Agency uses
the term benchmark to describe the "measures of
progress toward a goal, taken at intervals prior to the program's completion or
the anticipated attainment of the final goal."
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The United
Nation's World Health Organization
interprets a benchmark to mean some "reference point
or standard against which performance or achievements can be assessed."
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In the world
marketplace, a benchmark is defined by portfolio managers to mean "a
reference index that serves as a basis for performance comparison."
Educators view a benchmark in their own way as it
relates to learning. In education,
it is a detailed description of a specific level of student knowledge or
performance expected of students at particular ages, grades, or development
levels. Benchmarks often are used in conjunction with standards. Attempting
to bring clarity to the term, the Buffalo City Schools (NYS) states that "benchmarks are also known as standards; standards define the
knowledge, skills, and understandings students should demonstrate as a result
of their instruction within the subject and grade level."
Because Castle
Learning Online is correlated to state standards, teachers using Castle Learning have a "friendly" way to
apply benchmark testing with automatic grading and reports that can evaluate
student understanding. Here's a typical example of how
it works:
- In the Castle Learning Online course for Biology, the unit title "Unity and Diversity Amongst Living Things"
will allow the teacher to read the Standards that apply to all questions
within that unit of study.
- To use an example from North Carolina, the teacher can view a section called Unity of Life: The Cell, Instrumentation and find the standard
listed as Competency Goal 2: (The learner will
develop an understanding of the physical, chemical and cellular basis of life)
and a related objective listed as Objective 2.02 (Investigate and
describe the structure and functions of cells).
- Continuing, the teacher
will also see the standard listed as Competency Goal 4: (The learner
will develop an understanding of the unity and diversity of life) and a
related objective, Objective 4.02 (Analyze the processes by which
organisms representative of the following groups accomplish essential life
functions).
Castle
Learning Online has been a leader in
educational technology and has built its reputation around a mission:
To combine
21st-century technology with proven educational principles,
allowing teachers
and administrators to empower every student
to reach his or her full academic
potential.
Note: This white paper is one in a series that we hope you'll find valuable.
Visit the our website for MORE WHITE PAPERS.
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Meet Us at These Conferences
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Check WEB SITE for the latest information.
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Contact Information
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Castle Software, Inc., 626 Layport Dr., Ste. 100, Sebastian, FL 32958
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