Skip to main content

Curriculum Standards

Janet’s work with our district was very well received. Both veteran and new teachers greatly appreciated the opportunity to dive into our state’s mathematics standards and learn how to prioritize them for consistency across our schools. In an engaging and supportive manner, she provided worthwhile professional learning to all our teachers PK to High School.

—Sean Feeny, Port Washington Union Free District, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment

Curriculum Mapping & Curriculum Design

Janet Hale's curriculum design work for The Dewey Schools has been transformative. Her expertise in creating engaging and effective educational frameworks has significantly enhanced our students' learning experiences. Her contributions have been invaluable in shaping a dynamic and robust curriculum that meets our diverse needs as an international school community.

—Laurie Whiston, The Dewey Schools, English Program Director

Curriculum Mapping & Curriculum Design

Janet led a multi-year curriculum mapping project designed specifically for our student population. As a low-performing school with high teacher turnover, curriculum unit guides for Mathematics and ELA became essential for ensuring learning and teaching cohesiveness. Janet was instrumental in listening to our concerns and interweaving our school’s founding principles surrounding culturally responsive teaching into each unit. She guided our administrative and teacher teams through the process of developing unit guides that identify key content, skills, and anchor texts aligned to our state standards and social justice outcomes.

—Stacey Howard, Z.E.C.A. School of the Arts and Technology, Founder and CEO

Curriculum EDiting

Many thanks go to Janet Hale, a bestselling author, educational consultant, curriculum expert, colleague, and friend. Her careful evaluation, honest critique, and helpful advice have made my book, TrustED: The Bridge to School Improvement, a more thoughtful and engaging read.

—Toby Travis, Author

Curriculum EDiting

I have hired Janet multiple times as an educational consultant for our best-selling line of workbooks. Janet ensured that the content in these workbooks aligned perfectly with curriculum standards. She meticulously revised and edited lessons and activities, significantly enhancing the quality of the workbooks. Her expertise and attention to detail gave me complete confidence in the content and its impact on children's education. Janet is great to work with and I highly recommend her for your educational publication needs!

—Courtney Acampora, Senior Editor, Silver Dolphin and Studio Fun

Curriculum EDiting

When I embarked on a bold plan of writing a series of children's books for our organization, I truly didn't know what I didn't know! Janet has been consistently beyond patient in ensuring I understand the do’s and don'ts involved in good storytelling, formatting, and editing, which has enabled us to produce age-appropriate and fun books that convey our purpose and intended message.

—Kevin Schwieger, Luke5Adventures, Founder and President

    Making curriculum decisions related to students' learning needs is on every administrator's and teacher's mind—both addressing prioritizing standards-based learning and the need for innovation. To discuss your needs and concerns, contact Janet to schedule a free virtual meeting.

    5 Special Education Aspects in the Every Student Succeeds Act

    Written by curriculumdeci on . Posted in Janet Hale Blog.

    Special Education Day on December 2nd marks the 41st anniversary of the passage of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

    I have had the pleasure of working with this special-to-my-heart population since I was 12 years old! I taught swimming lessons to mentally challenged children on the military base where I lived in Korea, as well as taught English to Korean blind children in an orphanage near Seoul on weekends.

    In honor of students with special needs, and the educators who are passionate about their educational and personal lives, let’s take a quick look at how the new federal education legislation, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), affects five aspects related to special education students.

     

    K-12 Education Funding

    The ESSA allows for more flexibility in types of Curriculum Design for students with special needs. It provides (and wants) more state and localized control over how budgets are allocated based on each student’s specific learning needs.

     

    Education Standards

    While parents and guardians of children with special needs can opt their children out of statewide academic assessments, if permitted by state law, the number of severely cognitively impaired students using specialized assessments aligned to alternative education standards cannot exceed 1% of all students within the state. It will be interesting to see how this restriction will affect curriculum decisions made at for the state educational agency (SEA) and local education agency (LEA) levels.

     

    Differentiated Instruction

    According to the ESSA, key decisions about each special-needs student’s assessment, education, and social-emotional requirements are best made through the continued use of a multidisciplinary individualized education program (IEP) team. Specialized Instructional Support Personnel (SISPs) will still assist students with significant cognitive disabilities but can also be used for early intervention. Given my Special Education degree and experience through the years, having IEPs in place that are truly personalized to each student’s capabilities is a powerful tool to personalize learning relative to content, instruction, and assessment accommodations.

     

    Technology Integration

    And speaking of assessment accommodations, schools must continue to provide special-needs students with access to personalized accommodations, including the use assistive instructional technology. It is important to note, that technology integration must also be considers, as with general education, to be used to enhance a students’ learning experience. Students with special needs equally enjoy interactions that are only capable through technology integration, such as virtual “live” interactions (e.g., Skype, Google Hangout) and VR (virtual reality) experiences

    Privacy and Student Information

    Select data regarding student development must still be detailed to ensure students, particularly students with special education needs, obtain the support they need. Thankfully, privacy is still paramount.

    For more information on specific provisions of the new legislation, please visit U.S. Department of Education web site and the National Education Association’s ESSA information page.

    If you need to make curriculum decisions related to regular or special education learning or teaching, contact me to assist you in your decision-making process.

    logo