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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.

    National Groundhog Day: In 3 Steps – How K-12 Education Leaders can use Their Past Mistakes to Their Advantage

    Written by curriculumdeci on . Posted in Janet Hale Blog.

    Same goal, different day? You can achieve the success you’re seeking. Here’s how you can use past mistakes to your advantage.

    Making mistakes is not inherently bad. In fact, if you are not making mistakes, then there is a good chance you are not growing. Calculated risk-taking demands comfort with both success and failure—and is a part of developing a Growth Mindset.

    Mistakes are a natural outcome of trying something new. Adults become more risk-averse with age. Proper facilitation of leadership development naturally requires growth, and if mistakes are a natural part of growth, then learning how to positively deal with what you can learn from your mistakes is essential to meaningful leadership development.

    You might know what is not working, but you might still be struggling to pinpoint exactly what is preventing you from reaching your goal. Bad habits are most often the result of simply repeating the same mistakes. Good or bad – habits rule actions when under stress.

    Foresight, objective analysis and judgment, and sensitivity to others’ perceptions are key competencies of effective leaders. Unfortunately, one’s mind abandons these competencies and reverts to fight-or-flight responses when overly taxed – and what teacher or administrator do you know who does not live this reality every day! Therefore, to identify bad habits you must first recognize the mistakes you (or those you lead) keep repeating by taking these three steps:

     

    1. ACKNOWLEDGE – Identify or clarify what you’ve been avoiding.

    Actually, trying and risking failure is more troubling for some than not trying at all. Not trying is a way of keeping the hope alive that you can achieve your goal if you did actually try.

    What are you (or those you lead) getting out of repeating this mistake? We don’t do things randomly. You’re getting something out of your bad habit. Unconscious feelings and motivations influence your actions. How can you get that same reward differently? Focus on figuring out how to replace the bad habit with a good habit that serves a similar reward.

     

    2. ACCEPT – Abandon perfection.

    Growth requires that your leadership development be continuous. Learning is a journey, not a destination. Therefore, thoughtfully consider (and accept)…

    • What worked for you to achieve success in the past may no longer be effective (or your proven strategy or solution may no longer be the optimal solution).
    • The reality that there are aspects beyond your control. There will always be external factors that can hinder your success but that is true for everyone.
    • Your weaknesses. We all have them! Focus on enhancing your strengths, and finding a colleague who can help you with your weaknesses. If your success toward a particular goal involves a particular weakness – reach out for help. Explore options for job coaching or staff development. Collaborating with someone who has skill sets that aid your weakness, is oftentimes a win-win because his or her weakness will be your strength!

     

    3. ACT – Take action by gaining outside perspectives and assistance.

    Leveraging others’ creativity or learning how they have dealt with similar problems can be advantageous, as long as you do not relinquish responsibility. For example, getting a personal trainer is a great idea, but it is not the personal trainer’s responsibility to get you in shape – you still have to own the process.

    Through this reflective practice remember to – Be kind to yourself. Be patient. Be persistent.

    Use your own creativity to innovate new solutions, new habits. Select three of the best solutions and make a plan to try them out over time. Testing different solutions will not only help you to develop a habit of creativity and innovation, but also will help you feel more comfortable with success – and failure.

     

    Given today is Groundhog Day, it is not a day where you – once again – want to feel like it is going to be the same old day…the same old way.

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