EngageNY is a great resource for teachers looking to implement the Common Core Standards in their classrooms.

Submitted 8 years ago

Community Review for EngageNY

Nicole L.
Nicole L.
My Rating
Pedagogy
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My Take

EngageNY is a comprehensive Common Core Resource. It has videos of real teachers implementing the Common Core Standards effectively in their classrooms using best practices and discussing their pedagogy. The videos are so well done that my department is discussing bringing them into our weekly staff training.

However, the best part of EngageNY are the learning modules. There is an entire aligned Common Core curriculum for ELA and Math for grades K-12. Obviously, I haven't even scratched the surface of this resource, but everything I've used has been stellar. The lessons in the 7th grade ELA modules are solid, comprehensive, clear, include a variety of texts and text types, and have clear instructions for scaffolding. They are relevant and engaging for the students.

I have never been happy with any commercially available curriculum I've seen, but these lessons are the lessons I'd make if I had hours and hours to research and develop curriculum. This is a resource that the more I use it, the more I love it. Best of all, it's FREE!

How I Use It

My first introduction to EngageNY was links to teaching videos sent to me by my Assistant Superintendent. I watched teaching demonstrations that showed the Common Core in action. The videos are well done and inspiring, and introduce strategies that can be applied in the classroom.

What I am using it for now is curriculum. My school hasn't yet adopted an commercial Common Core curriculum, as there are not any available yet that we feel meet the needs of our students and address the standards in meaningful way. As I am exploring and experimenting, I've found EngageNY invaluable.

My students find the lessons intriguing and relevant. The standards are introduced and reinforced in a logical way. The texts range in type and difficulty. The scaffolding built into the lessons is amazing, and the themes are interwoven throughout the modules.

I am just beginning teaching the first module I am implementing. So far, my students are enjoying reading historical fiction about working conditions in the industrial revolution, and will later be introduced to figures in the labor movement such as Cesar Chavez and this will be tied to workers rights issues happening around the world today.

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Andrea A.
Andrea A.
November 15, 2014

Great resource for teachers looking for Common Core ELA and Math curriculum

I think this website has high quality curricular materials for all grades in both math and ELA. I like that the math lessons help students to achieve deep conceptual knowledge by asking them to complete selected problems that have been designed in a sequential, thoughtful order. I also like how the lessons provide detailed instructions or recommendations and there are professional development videos (math studio talk) demonstrating instruction for Common Core standards. Lessons are available in Word and PDF formats and are free to use for educational purposes. I am currently looking into integrating their lessons for the Listening and Learning Strand during the Read Aloud block in my instructional day. The Listening and Learning Strand consists of a series of read‐alouds organized by topics (called domains), many of which are informational in nature. The goal of the Listening and Learning Strand is for students to acquire language competence through listening, specifically building a rich vocabulary, and broad knowledge in history and science by being exposed to carefully selected, sequenced, and coherent read‐alouds.
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Stephanie E.
Stephanie E. K-12 Science Instructional Specialist Davison, MI
October 9, 2014

Excellent grade level specific lesson plans and professional development videos.

I love most of the lessons and professional development videos available on this site. The plans intentionally embed the mathematical practices in a very specific way in each lesson. It has been an excellent training tool for teachers just learning strategies for teaching to the Common Core. It definitely pushes the students' thinking and helps them to make sense of math. The downside is that since it is such a shift from the traditional way of teaching math it is difficult for many parents to understand without adequate explanation. If teachers followed every lesson it would also require them to make numerous copies.
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