The Collaboration Tool

Here it is, what you've all been waiting for...Post number 2! Okay, so maybe you haven't been waiting for it, but it's here.

This month I am featuring something that any classroom teacher can use in their daily lesson planning as well as full unit and curriculum production. Though it is geared toward  Language teachers, every teacher should really have the language of their domain in mind.  It's called the Collaboration Tool. This tool was created by people who have spent some time in the classroom (teachers!) and know what the language needs of the students are. That's right, finally we have something that was not just created by bureaucrats and politics, but by the people who bleed and sweat with us in their own classrooms everyday!

The Collaboration Tool is honestly one of the coolest (professional I know...) and most useful tools I have in my personal professional tool kit that I actually just used this past week while looking at the opinion writing lessons that I started today. If you are not a language teacher (you're lying to yourself because if you are a teacher you teach language to some degree--feel free to comment on that thought below!) you can still easily use this tool to help you think through the lessons or unit that you are working on.

When you click on the link below expect to feel a bit overwhelmed. There is a great deal of information on the one page tool. Never fear! I plan to break this baby down in at least 2 posts.

The first thing that you need to know is that the tool was created to make a formula. MACRO language functions cover ALL language in just 4 easy functions (hence macro-they cover everything), therefore they are included in unit planning no matter what. Now if you are writing lesson plans you will be using the micro functions far more often because you are using smaller steps to get to the bigger picture at the end or the macro functions. (i.e. you state an opinion or claim to begin to argue-see CT)

If you are just getting to know the tool look in the lower right of the screen and you should see some formulas that are color coded to match each column, you should also know that Macro + micro + key academic practice is the most commonly used because of its specificity.

Now, here's the really interesting thing in the tool; there are links right in the tool!  Go right on ahead and click around some of that and I will have another post that goes more in depth with what those are and how to use them.

Here is the link for the Collaboration Tool which can be found on the DESE website:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/ell/curriculum.html

The Collaboration Tool is about half way down the page. Feel free to explore that page as well, but I have a feeling the Collaboration Tool will be enough to blow your mind!

This is a hugely confusing document, if you have any questions please comment below and I will answer them the best that I can.