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Boones Mill Elementary School

School Information

School Name:  Boones Mill Elementary School
School Address:   265 Taylors Road
                         Boones Mill, VA 24065
School Phone:  (540) 334-4000
School Fax:  (540) 334-4001
Principal:  Bernice Cobbs
Principal E-Mail:  bernice.cobbs@frco.k12.va.us

Demographics

Number of Students:  444
Number eligible for Free and Reduced Lunch:   28%
Percent of Limited English Proficient:  <1%
Percent of Special Education:  13%
Racial/Ethnic Percentages:

  • White  (94%)
  • Black  (4%)
  • Hispanic  (1%)
  • Asian/Pacific Island  (1%)
  • Other  (1%)

Present Student Achievement Data in at least 3 points to demonstrate trends – for example, 3 consecutive years or the first, third, and fifth years. The data report should always include the most recent school year and should always offer a basis of comparison (for example, state scores, national scores, similar SES schools)

Boones Mill Elementary School Student Achievement Data
*NOTE: First Year of PLC Implementation 2000-2001

Grade 3
Percent of Students Passing State Assessments (Boones Mill/Virginia)
1999-2000
*2000-2001
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-2004
2004-2005
2005-2006
English
85/61
91/65
95/72
93/72
92/71
82/76
95/84
Math
87/71
97/77
98/80
99/83
100/83
98/87
98/90
Science
91/73
92/74
98/78
96/82
99/85
98/89
100/90
History
79/65
95/72
91/76
93/82
91/87
97/89
95/NA

Grade 5
Percent of Students Passing State Assessments (Boones Mill/Virginia)
1999-2000
*2000-2001
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-2004
2004-2005
2005-2006
English
80/68
85/73
93/78
100/82
98/85
97/85
99/87
Writing
87/81
88/84
86/84
95/85
96/85
94/91
90/86
Math
82/63
82/67
82/71
94/74
95/78
97/80
97/83
Science
78/64
94/75
97/76
95/79
98/84
93/81
92/85
History
NA/51
72/63
97/72
92/79
95/86
91/85
91/NA
Comp/Tech
92/85
99/82
100/86
NA/NA
No VA assessment in Comp/Tech

Grade 4
Stanford 9 Percentile Scores                     VA Assessment
(Boones Mill/Virginia)

1999-2000
*2000-2001
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-2004
2004-2005
2005-2006
Reading
66/56
62/54
74/59
73/61
no state/national test
94/86
Math
60/56
55/58
74/68
86/73
no state/national test
95/77
Language
64/61
66/63
74/67
76/71
no state/national test
NA/NA
Partial
64/57
60/57
74/64
78/67
no state/national test
NA/NA

Please feel free to comment on any aspect of the data that you feel is particularly significant.

Within the first year of implementing PLC practices (2000-2001), student achievement across the school as measured by local, district, state and national indicators began to rise. When you follow a group of students on the comparison chart from one year to the next, it is evident that their learning gains are sustained, regardless of the assessment. (For example, look at the trends in data for the 2000-2001 Grade 3 students as they entered 4 th Grade and took the Stanford 9 assessment at the beginning of their fourth grade year (2001-2002). As fifth graders in 2002-2003, this group of students continued to demonstrate high levels of learning on the 5 th grade state assessments.)

Please present any additional information that indicates your efforts to build a professional learning community have had a positive impact upon students and/or teachers.

Because of the increased levels of learning for students and staff, the Boones Mill School community has been featured in several professional publications and two different Video Journal Series on high performing elementary schools. The school also hosts visitors who come to watch the learning community at work. Many of the staff members also share their practices at district, state and national conferences and they engage in interactive video conferences with educators across the continent.

Please elaborate upon strategies you have found to be effective in any of the following areas:

  1. Monitoring student learning on a timely basis.
    Grade level teams give frequent formative common assessments to identify:
    1. the students who need additional time and support to learn
    2. the students who have already learned it
    3. the instructional strategies that generated the highest levels of learning
    The teams also use the data from division level benchmark assessments each quarter to both monitor student learning and to compare the level of rigor/student performance on their locally developed common assessments to those of the district.
  2. Creating systems of intervention to provide students with additional time and support for learning
    Each Grade level team establishes:
    • A list of Essential student learning outcomes for each subject
    • Common Pacing Guides they all agree to follow
    • Common, formative assessments to monitor each student’s learning
    • Common standard of proficiency on each formative assessment
    • A designated block of time for intervention/enrichment - no new direct instruction takes place during this grade-level designated time

      After a common, formative assessment is given to the students, the team works together to analyze the data to determine which students need more time and more support to learn the essential skills and which students will benefit from enrichment/extension of the essential skills

      During each team’s designated block of time (approx. 30 minutes each day) the students across the grade level are assigned to flexible learning groups.

      Classroom teachers are assisted with the intervention/enrichment lessons by a support team including three ”floating tutors,” a member of the special education staff, other school resource staff, parent and community volunteers, and university and high school interns.
  3. Building the capacity of teachers to work as members of high performing collaborative teams who focus the efforts of their team on improved learning for students.

    All members of the Boones Mill faculty are members of grade level teams. Each team meets at least one hour every week, during the instructional day to focus on student learning. In addition to the weekly team meeting, the teachers also having common planning time and common duty free lunch each day which enables them to work together more often, if they choose to do so. Each grade level team:
    1. establishes norms,
    2. works together interdependently to achieve SMART goals,
    3. engages in a year-long action research project linked to one of the teams’ SMART goals,
    4. collectively monitors and responds to the learning needs of each student assigned to the grade level.

 List any Awards and Recognition Garnered by Your School

Governor’s Award of Excellence: 2000-2001; 2001-2002; 2002-2003; 2003-2004; 2004-2005; 2005-2006

No Child Left Behind Department of Education’s Blue Ribbon Award, 2004

For more information on Boones Mill Elementary School, read:

  • Getting Started: Reculturing Schools to Become Learning Communities (Eaker, DuFour & DuFour, Solution Tree, 2002)
  • Whatever It Takes: How Professional Learning Communities Respond When Kids Don’t Learn (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, Kahanek, Solution Tree, 2004.)
  • Results Now: How We Can Achieve Unprecedented Improvements in Teaching and Learning (Mike Schmoker, ASCD 2006)

View: Video Journal of Education www.teachstream.com

  • Leadership in the Age of Standards and High Stakes
  • Elementary Principals as Leaders of Learning

Visit: http://www.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/2004/applications/va-boones-mill.doc