Teacher clarity leads to student clarity. This course teaches the “what, why, and how” of translating complex Essential Standards or unit learning expectations into clear, age-appropriate Student Learning Targets and Success Criteria that all your learners can understand.

Applicable to all grades and content areas, Student Learning Targets and aligned Success Criteria are foundational elements of quality instruction that serve as focal points for daily lessons, learning activities, and formative and summative assessments, that can be easily added into school- or district-adopted curricula or teacher-designed units of study.

OVERVIEW OF MODULE 1: FROM ESSENTIAL STANDARDS TO STUDENT LEARNING TARGETS

Choose an Essential Standard or learning expectation from one of your own curricular units of study, “unwrap” it to pinpoint what students need to know and be able to do, and then create a matching Student Learning Target. The lessons in Module 1 show you exactly how to do this with illustrated examples across the grades and content areas—along with a few valuable extras, including how you can co-create these two “timeless essentials” with the assistance of A.I. as a “thought partner”!

Lesson 1: Clarity First: The Starting Point for Powerful Teaching and Learning

Discover how teacher clarity plays a critical role in determining student clarity, how John Hattie’s updated research supports clarity’s impact on instruction and student learning, and how “unwrapping” Essential Standards “opens the gift of clarity”.

Lesson 2: What Are We Learning—and Why Does It Matter?

Retain the rigor of “unwrapped” Essential Standards when writing Student Learning Targets so that nothing is “lost in translation” and students understand both what they are learning and why.

Lesson 3: Effective Learning Targets: Translate Standards Without Losing Meaning

Learn to create Student Learning Targets that translate complex Essential Standards into age-appropriate language while preserving their original rigor and with no reference to context.

Lesson 4: Crafting Student Learning Targets for Multiple Essential Standards

Learn how to synthesize multiple “unwrapped” Essential Standards into fewer Student Learning Targets that capture the essence of multiple learning goals.

Lesson 5: Using Learning Targets Effectively: Practical Applications for Daily Instruction

Learn practical applications for using Student Learning Targets to make clear connections to daily lessons, selecting different sentence starters, co-creating learning targets with students, plus additional classroom implementation tips.

Lesson 6: A.I. as “Thought Partner” for Co-Creating Student Learning Targets

Use A.I. as a supportive “thought partner” for generating Student Learning Targets to compare to educator-created ones for accuracy, clarity, and alignment to the “unwrapped” Essential Standards.

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OVERVIEW OF MODULE 2: ALIGN SUCCESS CRITERIA TO STUDENT LEARNING TARGETS

Together with Student Learning Targets that communicate to students what they are to learn, Success Criteria show students how they will demonstrate that they have learned it. Success Criteria make clear for learners exactly what they need to write, say, and/or do as valid evidence that they have successfully “hit the bullseye” of the Student Learning Targets.

In Module 2, you will examine both your “unwrapped” Essential Standards and related Student Learning Targets to create aligned Success Criteria, first on your own, and then later with the assistance of A.I. as your supportive “thought partner”!

Lesson 7: From Guesswork to Clarity: Why Success Criteria Matter

See how and why clearly worded Success Criteria, directly aligned to Student Learning Targets, can demystify learning expectations for students and empower them to take ownership of their progress—an outcome supported by the remarkable research on Success Criteria.

Lesson 8: Crafting Clarity: Success Criteria for Single Student Learning Targets

Learn how to write clear, measurable performance descriptors directly aligned to Student Learning Targets that are derived from single “unwrapped” Essential Standards.

Lesson 9: Keeping the Focus on Learning: Success Criteria for Lessons and for Units

Learn how to write Success Criteria for daily lessons—keeping the focus on transferable skills, not on the context—and for multiple “unwrapped” Essential Standards in a multi-week unit.

Lesson 10: Co-Creating Success Criteria with Students to Increase Their Engagement

Learn why and how to involve students in co-creating Success Criteria, a practice that engages students in becoming active participants and achieving their personal learning goals.

Lesson 11: Using Success Criteria Effectively: Practical Applications for Daily Instruction

Learn effective ways for using Success Criteria to make clear connections to Student Learning Targets, sharply focus daily instruction, and meet the diverse learning needs of all students.

Lesson 12: A.I. as a “Thought Partner”: Co-Creating Aligned Success Criteria

See how to use A.I. as a supportive “thought partner” for generating Success Criteria to compare to educator-created Success Criteria for accuracy, clarity, and alignment to the “unwrapped” Essential Standards.