As Kristin mentioned, the intro does it's job! :) The rest of the book will be about keeping a focus on a common curriculum, sound lessons, and authentic literacy. Chapter 1 discusses the importance of keeping these things simple, clear, and a priority.
After having read this book once and seeing the implementation we have made, I think it truly comes down to motivation and the "'will and persistence' to implement what we already know...applied with fierce devotion..." (p. 9). We all must admit that there are times throughout the year where our focus gets blurred and priorities get muddled, but I think with the leadership team we have now we can forge through this even when things become tough. We have to hold each other accountable.
So, we need to start off with all teachers applying curriculum, lessons, and literacy consistently and reasonably well. Schmoker mentions that we may keep practicing this, but they should all three be monitored and assessed by our teams. They should be our most urgent need - "the ongoing focus of every team meeting, every PD session...every monitoring and reporting effort" (p. 11).
What we teach: The curriculum he refers to means about half of the standards - these should be "power" or the most essential of the standards. Our district has already defined these for us, so this is a good thing.
How we teach: This is our lesson design - already in place - CHECK! So, the hardest part for us here is HOW and WHEN we release to the next part of the lesson. ALL students have to be ready to move on, and if they are not, something else or a plan must be in place. I think this is where we need work. I think of how hard this is for science and social studies now that they have less time, but I also think we can be creative with how this is used in WIN.
Authentic Literacy: It's the "spine" that holds it all together! We have a nice start on this, but I think the new reading teachers need to really get a handle on how to use their materials to differentiate and the content areas will always need help making this work for them, not being more work for them. We can make it happen - we have the materials, it is just about how we use them and manage them best.
Another thought I have after reading this a second time is about how we can let everyone know "what is essential" but also clarify and reinforce our priorities in help the other newer teachers "ignore the rest" that they are being bombarded with. (This is in reference to mid-page 15.) There are still things and ways that teachers think they must do or teach, even if it isn't priority. We have to ensure them that it is okay not to.
For this team, I think it is important to look at page 18 where Schmoker talks about leaders. We must be on the same page, be clear and have the same focus. If we do not, we do not look like a cohesive team. We also must monitor what we want to be done - how and what we teach as well as literacy.
