I Can Statements

I recently stumbled across a great find while researching potential desperately needed report card changes – “I can“statements!  Rather than the old wording for standards that are typically full of educational jargon and not super parent or student-friendly, “I can” statements make the standards easy to read AND understand!  We are required in our district to post the standards that we are addressing somewhere in our classroom.  I’ve always despised questioned this practice!  (I don’t think it has anything to do with my strong aversion to authority . . . . but that’s another post all together!)  I just think it’s silly to have something on my walls that’s not specifically FOR my students and standards are DEFINITELY not worded for my firsties – at least, not the way I previously posted them!  Here’s the new and improved version: 

I should have at least lined them up properly before taking the picture, but alas . . . . . it'll have to do! 
Thank you to http://www.education.ne.gov/read/StudentFriendlyStandards/ for getting me started with Language Arts!

Notice the cute little sign at the top - "eye" catching, isn't it?  Thank you to Erin Eberhart at  http://eberhartsexplorers.blogspot.com/2011_09_01_archive.html for it!  It really does catch the kid's eyes and now, these standards can be read and understood by my firsties!  Much better than the >BLAH< before! 

I'm anxious to get our report card committee back together and get started revamping our report cards!  The plan?  Use "I can" statements for every standard and use some type of numbering system to indicate if a child needs intervention, is making progress, is proficient at the skill, or is at an advanced level!  I will let you know more just as soon as we figure it out!