Departments
- English Language Arts
- Mathematics
- Fine & Performing Arts
- Foreign Languages
- Science, Engineering, and Technology
- Social Studies
- Wellness
English Language Arts
English Language Arts
Students Who are College and Career Ready in Reading, Writing, Speaking, Listening, and Language
All students engage in reading, writing, speaking, listening and language throughout their school careers. They comprehend and evaluate complex texts across a range of types and disciplines, reading purposefully and listening attentively to gain both general knowledge and discipline-specific expertise. They can construct effective arguments and convey intricate or multifaceted information. Likewise, students are able independently to discern a speaker’s key points, request clarification, and ask relevant questions. They build on others’ ideas, articulate their own ideas, and confirm they have been understood.
Students appreciate that the twenty-first-century classroom and workplace are settings in which people from often widely divergent cultures and who represent diverse experiences and perspectives must learn and work together. Students actively seek to understand other perspectives and cultures through reading and listening, and they are able to communicate effectively with people of varied backgrounds. They evaluate other points of view critically and constructively. Through reading great classic and contemporary works of literature representative of a variety of periods, cultures, and worldviews, students can vicariously inhabit worlds and have experiences much different than their own.
Excerpt from MA DESE Curriculum Framework for Language and Literacy, 2011, http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/ela/0311.pdf
Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics curriculum in grades Kindergarten to twelve affords students an opportunity to study the concepts and skills mathematics. At the elementary level, students study Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Number and Operations in Base Ten, Number and Operations—Fractions, Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Measurement and Data, and Geometry. At the middle school level, student learn about Ratios and Proportional Relationships, The Number System, Expressions and Equations, Geometry, and Statistics and Probability. Most eighth grade students study a formal Algebra course. At the high school, offerings expand and students can choose a pathway to study. Courses include Geometry, Algebra II, Statistics and Probability, Calculus, and many AP offerings.
These content areas are guided by the six guiding principles and eight standards of practice noted below:
Six Guiding Principles for Mathematical Programs
- Guiding Principle 1: Learning
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- Mathematical ideas should be explored in ways that stimulate curiosity, create enjoyment of mathematics, and develop depth of understanding.
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- Guiding Principle 2: Teaching
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- An effective mathematics program is based on a carefully designed set of content standards that are clear and specific, focused, and articulated over time as a coherent sequence.
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- Guiding Principle 3: Technology
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- Technology is an essential tool that should be used strategically in mathematics education
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- Guiding Principle 4: Equity
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- All students should have a high quality mathematics program that prepares them for college and a career.
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- Guiding Principle 5: Literacy Across the Content Areas
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- An effective mathematics program builds upon and develops students’ literacy skills and knowledge.
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- Guiding Principle 6: Assessment
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- Assessment of student learning in mathematics should take many forms to inform instruction and learning.
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Eight Standards for Mathematical Practice
- Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
- Reason abstractly and quantitatively.
- Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
- Model with mathematics.
- Use appropriate tools strategically.
- Attend to precision.
- Look for and make use of structure.
- Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.
Fine & Performing Arts
Fine & Performing Arts
Twitter: @DSFPArts
Frameworks
http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/arts/1099.pdf
http://nationalartsstandards.org/ (New National Standards, not yet adopted by MA)
Foreign Languages
Foreign Language
The Massachusetts Foreign Languages Curriculum Framework applies to the study of modern and classical languages.
When we embark on the study of a language not our own, we are initiating a learning adventure which, over and above the invaluable acquisition of another language, can confer upon us multiple educational benefits, capable of exerting a profound influence on our perceptions of the world around us and of permanently enriching and enlarging our appreciation and understanding of ourselves and of others.
Language learning is never just about words. Language is the medium in which human beings think and by which they express what they have thought. The study of language—any language— is therefore the study of everything that pertains to human nature, as humans understand it.
Guiding Principles
I. All students should become proficient in at least one language in addition to English by the time they graduate from high school. Students who select modern languages should be able to speak, read, write, and understand the foreign language they study; students who select a classical language should be able to read and understand the foreign language they study.
II. Language acquisition is a lifelong process. Foreign language programs should begin in elementary school, since language acquisition is more easily accomplished at a young age, and continue beyond grade twelve.
III. Effective foreign language programs integrate the study of language with the study of culture, which includes daily life, history, literature, visual and performing arts, mathematics, and science. In this way, foreign language programs create natural links to all other disciplines.
IV. Assessment of student learning is an integral component of effective foreign language instruction.
(excerpt from MA DESE Foreign Language Framework http://www.doe.mass.
Science, Engineering, and Technology
Science, Technology & Engineering
Science and Technology/Engineering Standards
http://www.doe.mass.edu/stem/
Our world has never been so complex, and scientific and technological reasoning have never been so necessary to make sense of it all. It is self-evident that science, technology, and engineering (STE) are central to the lives of all Massachusetts citizens when they analyze current events, make informed decisions about healthcare, or decide to support public development of community infrastructure.
By the end of grade 12, all students must have an appreciation for the wonder of science, possess sufficient knowledge of science and engineering to engage in public discussions on related issues, and be careful consumers of scientific and technological information and products in their everyday lives. All students, regardless of their future education plan and career path, must have an engaging, relevant, rigorous, and coherent pre-K–12 STE education to be prepared for citizenship, continuing education, and careers.
Excerpt from MA DESE website:
http://www.doe.mass.
K-12 Science and Technology/Engineering and Computer Science Curriculum Review, January 2017
Social Studies
Social Studies
The Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework presents the academic content, concepts, and skills in history, geography, economics, and government in an integrated way that supports the teaching of a coherent historical Students will acquire both a greater appreciation and understanding of the important political, economic, and social issues facing the United States and the world. Students are challenged to communicate effectively as they work to understand important societal and individual issues. Critical thinking skills are taught through debating, problem solving, group decision making, and the writing of essays and research papers. In addition, cooperative learning experiences teach students to work successfully with others. The Social Studies Department is committed to helping students understand their rights and responsibilities as citizens and respect and appreciate the diversity of the world’s people.
Wellness
Wellness
Dover, Sherborn and Dover-Sherborn Regional Schools Wellness Implementation Guidelines April 2016
The Dover, Sherborn, and Dover-Sherborn Regional Schools are committed to providing a school environment that enhances the learning and development of lifelong wellness practices. It is, therefore, the school's goal to promote the physical, emotional, and social wellness of students and staff through coordinated Wellness Implementation Guidelines. This includes providing a healthy environment, counseling and guidance services, school nursing services, nutritious school meals and other activities that promote and assess sound nutrition and healthy eating behaviors, K-12 wellness curricula programming, and other opportunities for physical activity. It is the intent of these guidelines to foster independence in students by addressing and supporting school nutrition, health, social and emotional wellness and physical fitness.
The Schools promote physical, social, and emotional health and wellness for students and staff by following current federal, state, and local statutes and regulations governing wellness. The Schools' Wellness Committee (comprised of faculty, staff, community members, school administration, and members of the school committees) provides oversight of the policy and regulations, and is the means for assessing and promoting a healthy environment for the Schools. The Administration is responsible for the implementation of the standards for wellness, nutrition, and physical fitness.
The Physical Education and Wellness Departments, along with guidance counselors and school nurses, provide the foundation for ensuring that all students have access to instruction in physical education and wellness. The Schools require students to be enrolled in physical and health education providing students with information about lifelong wellness including physical activities and nutrition awareness.