Academic Instruction
Weekly Lesson Plans
More Time on Task
Roots PCS teachers spend approximately 20% more time in school than most other DC public school teachers.
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The elementary school day is from 8:00 am-4:00 pm and the Prek3 and PreK4 schedule is from 7:00 am - 6:00 pm., allowing for increased time on task and after school daycare.
Standards-Based Instruction
Roots PCS uses the Common Core to ensure high quality instruction.
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Grade-level teams and support team members collaborate regularly to map Roots PCS curriculum, benchmark it against standards, and drive instructional decision-making in a rigorous, meaningful way.
Research-Based Curricula
Roots RPSC adopts resources that have proven success with similar populations of scholars.
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Nightly Homework: Regular homework is essential to mastering content and developing strong study habits.
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Students receive developmentally appropriate homework on a nightly basis to reinforce skills and develop study skills
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Homework is checked on a daily basis and families are kept apprised of scholar success through phone calls and written logs.
Enrichment
Our enrichment program ensures that scholars enjoy a variety of specials activities which contribute to scholar success both inside and outside of the classroom.
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Dr.Boyd’s Monthly Hands- on Science
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Weekly African Drumming and Dancing classes
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Weekly DC Hand-Dancing classes
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Weeky Jump Rope classes
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Kiswahili/Spanish/French (Introductory classes)
Continuous Assessment
Regular analysis of and reflection on scholar progress is central to Roots PCS's culture and to achieving our mission.
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The Principal leads assessment implementation and data collection efforts to ensure data-drive instruction;
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All students will take four interim assessments in Reading, Writing and Math each year to gauge progress towards grade-level standards;
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Student - specific plans are created following analysis of Interim data;
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All scholars take the ELA and Math Benchmarks for K-2, Common Core for Grades3-5). These tests comply with our student achievement goals, and gives the school an end-of-year snapshot of scholar mastery of grade-level standards;
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Students in grades 3-5 participate in the PARCC English Language Arts and Mathematics exams, and in the DC Science Assessment and the Health and Physical Education Assessment (HPEA);
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Students' reading fluency and comprehension levels are consistently monitored with DIBELS.​