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Goal

My goal is to motivate my students to read, develop their reading skills, provide opportunities for STEM activities that support literacy, and have fun learning and teaching. 

What will be done with my students

Last year I used Legos to reinforce good behavior and reward increased reading fluency. This year I would like to "level up" as the kids say. I have already been using Legos again this year to support my ELA students. Students receive a brick for participating, following directions, answering questions, and anything that is a choice that affects their learning in a positive way. The number of bricks they receive are the number of LiveSchool points they receive for the day. LiveSchool is our school's program for positive behavior support (PBS). Students earn points that can then be redeemed for rewards. Each week students can redeem points to earn LEGO and STEM time. I would like to continue doing these things butI realized last year, I did and still do not have enough LEGOS for what the children want and can create with them. I need more Legos to be able to give them Lego Challenges and to be able to display them instead of having to break them down so that they can keep building.
This year I would also like students to choose a Lego building set or come up with their own plan for a build (how many and what Legos they would need-- for the more advanced students) and then work towards earning that set to build by reaching a goal that we set together.
Goals will depend on the students' individual needs and may change throughout the year. Some students will need to work on increasing their reading fluency rate, while others may want to reach an AR point goal or increase their scores on assessments. They will have a data sheet that has their goal on it and how they can record their progress.
I also want to start using the bricks in learning activities such as forming and spelling words, sorting words into word families, creating sentences, building vocabulary, and providing another way for students to answer comprehension questions about texts and books we read.  

Benefits to my students

I have two classes of third grade students that I provide instruction for in the area of English Language Arts. One class has 18 students, the other has 20 students. I have a total of 38 students at this time. Only 17% of these students are considered proficient in reading according the F.A.S.T. PM1. I have one student who is Deaf and needs a lot of extra support in reading, I have 3 students that have behavior plans because they have made choices that is interfering with their learning or the learning of others. I have 4 students that have a 504 or IEP for academics. Third grade students must score a Level 3 on the F.A.S.T. to be considered proficient. In order to score this high, they must be fluent readers and have reading endurance or stamina. The test consists of 4-6 sets or pairs of passages. It is a long and difficult test. If they score a Level1 they are endanger of retention. Students must be a fluent reader in order to understand the text. According the FLDOE, students should be reading 139 words per minute (wpm) in order to score in 75% percentile or higher. They must reading 166 wpm to score in the 90%. My classes average fluency rate at the beginning of the year is 75 wpm. Students are motivated by fun, creativity, and Legos. This is a great way to reward them with something tangible that they can then turn around use to build and create. They can literally see their progress each time they look in their Lego container and graph. They will also get time to build and create with Lego kits and with bricks on their own and in response to STEM and Lego Challenges that I give them. Kids love to build and create and it is good for their minds. This plan will give my students those opportunities, incorporating STEM, along with having a positive impact their reading and classroom atmosphere. The main goal however is to help make them successful readers. 

Budget Narrative

Lego building sets or kits that are for a specific build will support students' individual goals. Base plates and storage boxes are for working on, displaying, storing sets and organizing bricks. Brick boxes are to provide the students with materials for STEM and Lego creativity and challenge activities as well as being used in literacy activities such as building/spelling words, creating sentences and building comprehension skills and knowledge. 

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