6302 56 Street

lober, AJberta hG 1Z9

Phone: (403) 223-3547
Fox: (403) 223-2999
Horizon School Division No. 67 wwwhozonabca

Evaluation of Teaching Performance

May Evaluation

Teacher: Kaitlyn Smith

School: Vauxhall Elementary School
Evaluator: Dale Cummings, Principal
Date: May 9, 2016

Kaitlyn is currently on a 1.0 probationary contract teaching in a grade 1/2 split

class with 7 grade one and 11 grade two students. Kaitlyn has had a stellar first
year at VES. Since her mid-year report further observations have proven that she
still continues to progress and grow. For a new teacher she demonstrates a high
level of competence in the six performance areas related to the Horjzon School
Division Policy GCN “Summative Evaluation of Professional Staff’ and the
Teaching Quality Standard. I am also very proud that she is Horizon’s nominee for
the Edwin Parr award as the outstanding new teacher as she is well deserving of
that.

Accommodation for Context and Learning Needs

For a new teacher this is one of the areas that Kaitlyn has been most impressive.
Kaitlyn meets any classroom challenges head on and is able to figure out ways to
make any situation work for her students. The grade 1/2 split is a good example of
this. By working diligent to incorporate the LA Daily Five and Math Daily 3
structures you would not know that it is a split class. Because of this she has really
been able to differentiate for all of her students, setting up programs that meet
their needs according to their goals and only introducing certain activities when
they are ready to be successful. She also knows when to challenge her students to
step up to the plate and go beyond what they thought possible. She works at
accommodating the various abilities and talents of her students and adapts
teaching approaches to meet their needs. Kaitlyn has demonstrated an ability to
analyze variables and apply strategies to meet the individual needs of students.
She knows there are many approaches to learning and has shown skill at providing
differentiated instruction to accommodate diverse learning styles. Kaitlyn has a
class that is largely Low German Mennonite and has come to realize the
challenges that this can present especially in the context of at home reading
programs. She strives to make this work the best it can for her students. She also
has one boy that is often very late coming to school. This is a cultural fact that we
probably cannot change that much and Kaitlyn has come to grips with that. She
will work with him when he is here, trying to help him feel loved at school and
have some success.

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Planning and Preparation

Kaitlyn continues to demonstrate effective planning skills. Her monthly plans

detail the learning outcomes and list what learning outcome her focus lesson will
cover. Her daily plans are always up to date and pay attention to more detail such
as the specific learning outcome to be covered in each round and more detail for
the focus lesson. Her plans are guided by learning outcomes and instruction in
which she makes activities challenging, engaging and grounded in learner
outcomes. She is still putting in long hours to ensure she has everything ready to
go each day. She makes a concentrated effort to address the learning needs of her
students in her planning. The students she will be conferencing with on that day
are always listed in her day plans. She always plans for her CSA, assigning her to
work with different students each day on tasks that are specific to their learning
needs.

Kaitlyn has gained a very strong grasp of the subject areas and the methodologies
needed to help students learn. She provides effective structures for learning, uses
effective questioning techniques, communicates very effectively with students and
displays personal characteristics that promote positive, caring relationships.

Classroom Organization and Management

Kaitlyn’ s enthusiasm for learning and teaching is evident every day in her
classroom and has a very positive impact on her students. This, along with her
management strategies, classroom routines and organizational skills has enabled
her students to grow and learn at a tremendous level. Kaitlyn has achieved a high
level of competence in creating an organized, interactive, caring, and engaging
classroom that is conducive to learning. She has utilized the Daily 5 and 3
structures to maintain an atmosphere of independence, accountability and work
stamina. The training she has done with her students has provided them the
maximum opportunity to practice reading, writing and math. It has also increased
the time for her to spend one on one or in small groups with her students on a
regular basis. If this begins to lag she has quick reminders and does retraining as
needed. She realizes that classroom instruction time is precious and every minute
must be preserved to give students as many opportunities for learning and
practicing as possible. Materials for students to use are easily accessible allowing
students to get to work right away and to make quick transitions.

Instruction:

Kaitlyn delivers quality and varied lessons. Besides her ongoing review in math
with calendar time that covers and builds on many concepts she ensures that
activities are tied to current everyday things that make the work relevant for
students. She also makes learning fun through games such as word work battleship
and rainbow writing, or making stained glass art projects from wax paper. Science
experiments with mixing hot and cold water intrigue the interest of her students or

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by having them become travel agents and build brochures highlighting the
communities they have been studying in Social Studies are other ways she has her
class engaged.
Kaitlyn tries to utilize technology into her classroom on a regular basis. Her smart
board is always on to enhance her lessons. Besides the programs for listen to read
she also uses a variety of apps that allow students to practice and reinforce skills.
As the “Feature class” at our last assembly her students were showcased reciting a
spring poem in a video that Kaitlyn produced.

Student Evaluation:

Kaitlyn has really worked at perfecting her use of a Pensieve for tracking student
progress in LA and Math. She uses an electronic version that allows her to input
student conference notes as they are happening. This helps her to differentiate for
each student working with them to set personal learning goals. Kaitlyn’s second
round of report cards went much better as she has gained more knowledge of just
what her students should be producing and are capable of at this level. Her
confidence in assessment has grown. She is becoming proficient at benchmarking
with Fountas and Pinnell, planning for intervention groups and doing running
records to monitor progress. A side from working on core subject evaluation,
Kaitlyn has also developed rubrics for other subjects. On display in her classroom
is an Art Rubric that explains in pictures and words what a 1 to 5 might be. She
will be able to easily adapt all of her evaluation to match next year’s report cards
and their 1-4 scale. Kaitlyn prepares and plans appropriate evaluation activities
and she assesses the results for the benefits of students. Although a lot of work she
understands the need for creating ISP’s and in completing ELL benchmark level
forms. The majority of her class is ELL and that makes for a lot of forms to
complete. Kaitlyn’s positive demeanor and desire to learn and get better will make
adjusting to the new report card format very easy for her. She is a problem solver
and that will help her to overcome any of the hurdles the new evaluation might
cause.

Personal and Professional Attributes

Kaitlyn realizes the importance of promoting the school within the community.
She has been an active participant in all school functions; Back to School BBQ,
Bingo and Cake Auction, Gala to name a few. She coached our tier 3 boys’
volleyball team and on our fitness Friday’ s always sets a positive example by
jogging the course, and encouraging students to pick up the pace. When we
needed someone to fill in for our Weliness Champion and attend a meeting in her
place she jumped in with both feet. All of these are examples of where Kaitlyn is a
team player and does her part in carrying out the many activities that are important
to a schools climate and culture. Her latest was involving her class in “Homeroom
Wars” dressed as the Smith Happy Monsters. Many events and activities come
outside the realm of the instructional day. Involvement in these, not only in a
secondary role but also in a leadership capacity helping to create and maintain a
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culture of climate, school pride and family is an important role we accept as
teachers.

Kaitlyn sees the importance of professional growth attending several pertinent

workshops this year that directly related to our school goals and her classroom
structure. She is a team player and is a willing participant in our professional
learning team meetings showing more and more confidence in knowing that her
ideas can help others and her questions are always welcome. She really uses her
mentor to help solve problems and rarely has had to ask administration for
support. She is a problem solver.

Although Kaitlyn does not live in Vauxhall she does see the necessity to try to be
involved in community events. Beside school related activities, Kaitlyn judged the
local 4-H speeches and has joined the ladies golf league. When I announced at our
school council meeting that she was the Edwin Parr nominee they applauded and
parents with children in her class reaffirmed others that their children love her.

Summary

In conclusion, I would like to say that Kaitlyn has demonstrated that she can
connect with and challenge students and that she is always growing in terms of her
own learning. As a new teacher she demonstrates skills of a seasoned veteran.
From by observations I believe she has demonstrated a high level of skill in the six
performance areas and is meeting the teacher quality standard. At this time, I
believe, as the evaluator, that Kaitlyn’s teaching is the quality expected of teachers
in Horizon. She would be a welcome addition to any school.

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Dale Cummings, DateV
Principal
Vauxhall Elementary School

—-- Kc( /Q %cj,

Kaitlyn Smith Date:
Vauxhall Elementary School
(Acknowledge receipt of report)

Teacher Comments:

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