KidsRSU

Measurement Topics

Measurement topics are the standards for learning.  They are the curriculum framework that guides teachers in their instruction and lesson planning.  The measurement topics are the standards that all students must achieve. 
Examples of learning standards are found in the Maine Learning Results, a document that lists all the learning standards that teachers in Maine are expected to teach at each grade level.  The Maine Learning Results standards have been used in Maine since 1997.  www.maine.gov/education/lres/pei/
Last year, the Maine legislature adopted the Common Core State Standards to replace the Maine Learning Results in English Language Arts and Mathematics by 2014.  www.corestandards.org

Both the Common Core and the Maine Learning Results include so many standards that it is impossible for our students to achieve all of them in the thirteen years of schooling, grades K-12.  The Measurement Topics were developed to identify the most important standards that all students must know and be able to do in order to achieve graduation and adequate preparation for the future.

Learning Targets

Learning targets are the skills, knowledge, and reasoning processes required for learners to achieve proficiency of each measurement topic.  Student learning and teacher instruction are focused on the learning targets.  Students will show evidence of proficiency of each learning target by completing assessments for each learning target.  The student receives a score of 3 for the Measurement Topic when a student reaches proficiency on all the learning targets in that step of the Measurement Topic.
(See Measurement Topic Key)

The Measurement Topics and Learning Targets were created by groups of teachers from six different school districts. They carefully selected the most important learning standards to group together to create the Measurement Topics that all students are expected to learn.  The teachers worked together over several days in the winter and spring of 2011 to create Measurement Topics in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. During fall 2011, Measurement Topics for Art, Music, World Languages, Physical Education, and Health were created by teachers in RSU2.
(See example of Measurement Topic and Learning Targets)