This semester I had the opportunity to attend a professional development day centered around the WASC accreditation process and Sonday 2 training. The day began with the accreditation process where the school divided into individual groups to work on their section. The school began this process at the beginning of the year and is a work in progress. I worked with the assessment team to identify supporting data to how each grade level measured achievement. I found that it is hard to have or get all teachers on the same page when it comes to assessment. Even if all teachers are using the same assessment the grading may vary due to the grading system (ME, MP, DP, WB). It was enlightening to see the variations throughout K-6 grade. I am grateful to be a part of this process since all elementary schools are going through or have been through it.

            Also, I got trained in Sonday 2 as used for an RtI program for the school. Sonday 2 is used for upper elementary though Sonday 1 can be used depending on the severity of the student’s comprehension. It is a great program that I think can benefit all students in their fluency and spelling. The Sonday kits come with all the supplies needed to get the program started within the classroom and each lesson takes around 30 minutes to complete. What I liked was that the lesson can be broken up if needed. As a future teacher, I was worried about the time and how to fit it into the day’s schedule. With this program it allows leeway for teachers.

            In conclusion, this professional development day was a great opportunity. I was able to take part and learn more about the WASC accreditation process and learn how to use a potential RtI program for language arts. I look forward to more PD days where I am able to grow as a teacher.