COMMONWEALTH
OF VIRGINIA
DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION
P.O.
BOX 2120
RICHMOND,
VIRGINIA 23218-2120
SUPTS.
MEMO NO. 210
INFORMATIONAL
|
TO: |
Division
Superintendents |
|
FROM: |
Jo
Lynne DeMary Superintendent
of Public Instruction |
|
SUBJECT: |
Technical
Assistance Opportunities for United States History to 1877, United States
History: 1877 to the Present,
and Civics and Economics |
The
Virginia Department of Education is pleased to inform you of a series of
technical assistance opportunities related to fifth-, sixth-, seventh-, and
eighth-grade history and social science courses.
1. The Virginia Department of
Education is sponsoring four regional one-day teacher academies November
9, 11, 16, and 18, 2004, for teachers of United States History to 1877 and
United States History: 1877 to the Present. Each academy will provide
presentations in instructional strategies designed to assist teachers as they
prepare their students for the course assessment. Attachment A to this memorandum provides
a schedule of sites and a registration form. For further information, please contact
Betsy Barton (bbarton@mail.vak12ed.edu), history and social science specialist,
Office of Elementary Instructional Services, at (804)
225-3454.
2. The Virginia Department of
Education is sponsoring two regional one-day instructional leadership
symposiums for division personnel with leadership responsibilities in
history and social science instruction.
The purpose of these symposiums will be to make available technical
assistance related to United States History to 1877, United States History: 1877 to the Present, and Civics and
Economics. Attachment B to this memorandum provides a schedule of sites and a
registration form. These symposiums
are scheduled for Roanoke on November 30, 2004, and Richmond on December 2,
2004. For further information,
please contact Beverly Thurston (bthursto@mail.vak12ed.edu), history
and social science and international education coordinator, Office of Middle
Instructional Services, at (804) 225-2893.
3. The History and Social Science
Enhanced Scope and Sequence is available in Word and .pdf formats on the
Department of Education’s Web site at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/EnhancedSandS/. This resource is intended to help
teachers align their classroom instruction with the History and Social Science
Standards of Learning that were adopted by the Board of Education in March
2001.
4. United States
History Connects, an interactive online course for Virginia teachers, will
be offered during fall and spring semesters each year. This class supports the Standards of
Learning for teaching United States History to 1877 and United States
History: 1877 to the Present. The class is free for Virginia teachers
who wish to earn up to 45 license renewal points, or it may be taken for three
graduate credits through Old Dominion University. Registration information is available at
http://historyconnects.pwnet.org/.
5. A resource CD-ROM in Word
and .pdf formats will be produced and disseminated to all teachers of United
States History to 1877, United States History: 1877 to the Present, and Civics
and Economics during December 2004.
This resources catalog will contain copies of all Virginia Department of
Education documents pertinent to the targeted History and Social Science
Standards of Learning. It will
include the standards, the History and Social Science Enhanced Scope and
Sequence, blueprints, and key informational memorandums.
6. A resource Web site, entitled
United States History:
Connecting the Past to the Present, is currently being designed
to support the Standards of Learning for teaching United States History to 1877
and United States History: 1877 to
the Present. The Web site will
include content information for students and teachers, lesson plans, video
clips, ready resources for the classroom, pictures, primary documents, Internet
links, graphics, and maps. This Web
site will be available in Spring 2005.
7. A five–day Summer Academy
for teachers of United States History to 1877, United States History: 1877 to the Present, and Civics and
Economics will be sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education in
2005. This core content academy is
tentatively scheduled at James Madison University. The focus of the academy will be to
provide professional development opportunities to teachers in the appropriate
content areas. More information
will be available in early 2005.
If
you need further information about any of these professional development
opportunities or teaching tools, please contact Beverly Thurston (bthursto@mail.vak12ed.edu), history
and social science and international education coordinator, Office of Middle
Instructional Services, at (804) 225-2893 or Betsy Barton (bbarton@mail.vak12ed.edu), history
and social science specialist, Office of Elementary Instructional Services, at
(804) 225-3454.
JLD/yba
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/suptsmemos/2004/inf210a.doc
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/suptsmemos/2004/inf210b.doc