New Website from Scholastic Demystifies the Common Core State Standards for Educators and Parents

'Common Sense for the Common Core' Site Provides Recommended Nonfiction and Literature, Instructional Programs for Schools and Links to Free Resources for Teachers & Parents

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Scholastic Inc.

Jan 16, 2013, 11:06 ET

NEW YORK, Jan. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- With the implementation of the Common Core State Standards foremost on educators' minds in 46 states, Scholastic, the global children's publishing, education and media company, today announced the launch of a new "Common Sense for the Common Core" website which gives teachers, school leaders and parents help in understanding and unpacking the new standards, as well as instructional and professional development programs to implement the CCSS.

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Built in consultation with Common Core experts, including Carol Jago and Francie Alexander, the new website provides answers to some of the most urgent questions about the standards, and points parents and teachers toward resources to help them understand what is changing and what is not.

The new Common Core site is the latest addition to Scholastic.com, the popular website for teachers with more than 6 million unique visitors each month.

"Scholastic has more than 92 years of experience providing advice and tools to educators and parents so they can help children become lifelong readers and get ready for college and careers," said Suzanne McCabe, Editor-at-Large at Scholastic. "Parents and teachers have asked Scholastic for everything from nonfiction booklists to sample lesson plans, and the new Common Sense for the Common Core site delivers it."

The "Common Sense for the Common Core" website provides:

Nonfiction and Literature Booklists – Sortable lists of literature and nonfiction books for grades K-12, curated by librarians and reading experts, help teachers go beyond the "exemplar texts" in Appendix B of the Common Core standards and find great examples of complex texts arranged according to theme and genre – from nonfiction themes like animals or the solar system, to genres of literature like historical fiction, poetry and drama.
Instructional Programs & PD – The site includes detailed information about instructional programs and materials offered by Scholastic which meet the Common Core, professional development for educators, and school improvement services to help districts implement the standards.
Free Resources – Teachers and parents can find tips on how to craft effective evidence-based questions, watch videos of experts, download sample lesson plans for using "paired texts" or on teaching multiplication, and click on links to other free information.
Frequently Asked Questions – The website provides answers to FAQs, including "Do we need to use the exemplar texts cited in the CCSS?" and "How do we evaluate the complexity of the texts we select?"
Glossary of Common Core Terms – A printable CCSS Glossary defines 25 key terms to help you better understand the standards and join the conversation.
Tips for Parents – A special section for parents provides tips and links to resources to help support the Common Core at home.
Ways to Connect – The site gives advice for finding the Common Core conversations on Twitter and links to news and commentary from the On Our Minds @ Scholastic blog and to Scholastic social media channels where teachers and parents can connect, share ideas and talk with each other.