Supporting Students & Parents

As we get closer to the Common Core implementation date of 2014, districts, administrators and teachers are finding themselves challenged by the task of moving from well-established state standards to the new standards, which will almost certainly require unanticipated change in the way teachers teach and students learn.  Which can also lead to unanticipated change for parents.  It will be just as important to get parents involved, to help them understand what the changes are and why they are occurring. But, what do parents need to know about the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)? Building an understanding of the CCSS and how they will affect teaching and assessing mathematics and English language arts is a great place to start. Describing and sharing the benefits of preparing students for the 21st century and what parents can do to prepare for the CCSS will go along way as we implement the Common Core.  
Below I have listed 2 resources from the Council of the Great City Schools  which provide parent roadmaps in English/Language Arts and mathematics to assist K-8 parents in navigating the Common Core State Standards.  
K-8 English Language Arts http://www.cgcs.org/Domain/36
K-8 mathematics http://www.cgcs.org/Page/244