Professional Development
Curriculum Writing for New Jersey Schools
We know that the implementation of the 2020 New Jersey standards are right around the corner! Partner with Atlas and FariaPD to get a head start on your curriculum writing and be confident that you are providing strong and supportive leadership and guidance to teachers during these unique times.
Goals of the Curriculum Writing Sessions and Packages
Support school leadership in getting organized for curriculum writing and review
Provide basic curriculum writing skills and context to curriculum writers as a refresher course
Prepare teachers for curriculum writing responsibilities within their school and/or department
We’ve made it easy for you to select the package that best supports your needs, see below for details. Each session is 2 hours, and you can choose a package of 3, 5, or 8 sessions. Determine the dates and times that work best for your team - whether it is throughout the academic year or over the summer. Each package includes a planning and debrief call, Q & A after each virtual session and free seats to an upcoming virtual event. Check out our website for all the details.
3 Virtual Sessions $3,100
5 Virtual Sessions $5,000
8 Virtual Sessions $7,800
3 virtual professional development sessions (2 hours each)
2 consultative hours
5 virtual professional development sessions (2 hours each)
4 consultative hours
8 virtual professional development sessions (2 hours each)
6 consultative hours
PD Services included in each Package:
The specified number of 2-hour professional development sessions
Use the consultative hours to connect one-on-one with a PD facilitator to ideate, or discuss other curriculum specific needs
One facilitator with a maximum of 40 participants per session
Sample Packages
3 Session Packages
Target Audience: Leadership
Target Audience: English language development teachers
Best suited for a small group leadership team and/or curriculum leaders who are novice Atlas users or a new team who want a refresher on the basics of Atlas
Focused on supporting curriculum writers tasked at improving the instruction for EL students
5 Session Packages
Target Audience: Supervisors and/or curriculum leaders
Target Audience: New curriculum
Focused on experienced curriculum writers needing support for curriculum review
Customized for new curriculum writers who need support to build their capacity
8 Session Package
Target Audience: Curriculum writers
Best suited for a group of writers with varying needs, the 8 session package allows leaders to be strategic in the professional learning they offer their new and experienced curriculum writers
Want to tailor your package yourself? Great, please see our full list of sessions below!
Full List of NJ/QSAC Focused PD Sessions
Leadership Sessions
Session Title
Session Description
Leadership Planning
Review updated standards for August 2022 implementation
As a team, review the current curriculum and outline goals for your ongoing curriculum work, including timeline and needed PD support
Template and Dashboard Development
Review and update your unit template to meet your current needs and reflect QSAC requirements
Walk through how to set up your dashboard for easy access to reports for QSAC
Curriculum Basics for Teachers in Atlas Navigation Training technical training included in Premium Support
Review the process and purpose of curriculum mapping
Explore the key features and navigation tools in Atlas
Atlas Refresher for Administrators and Leaders System Admin Training technical training included in Premium Support
Walkthrough the key features of Atlas specific to your role
Explore various courses in Atlas
Preview reports to support QSAC review and curricular conversations at individual schools
Curriculum Writing
Session Title
Session Description
Foundations of Unit Planning: Unitizing Standards within a Course
Briefly review the purpose of curriculum mapping and unit planning
Review steps in building new units
Explore strategies to unitize learning targets within a course
NJSLS Standards Review of 1-2 courses
Briefly overview the updates and changes to NJSLS in 1-2 courses
Walk through how standards are organized and how to read and use standards to plan instruction
Overview of a Backward Design Framework
Review the key components of a backward design framework
Discuss each stage of your unit plan and explore the process of backwards planning
Unpack Standards: Content and Skills
Walkthrough strategies for unpacking standards into clear learning goals
Identify what students should know and be able to do by the end of the unit
Develop Enduring Understandings and Essential Questions
Identify the overarching purpose and focus of a unit
Develop enduring understandings and essential questions that guide student learning
Assess Learning: Formative and Summative Assessments
Differentiate between characteristics of formative and summative assessments and how they inform instruction
Learn how to develop, add, and track assessments in Atlas
Assess Learning: Develop Quality Summative Assessments
Explore ways to meaningfully assess understanding of unit goals
Review elements of quality assessments, including sample rubrics and success criteria
The Lesson Portal: Create Lessons Aligned to Unit Plans
Discuss how lesson planning connects to the bigger picture of unit planning and overall curriculum development
Explore how to develop lessons aligned to the unit plan
Walkthrough the lesson planner in Atlas
Using Reports in Atlas to Review Curriculum Reports technical training included in Premium Support
Learn how to utilize reports in Atlas to support your role in curriculum work
Walk away with several reports saved for future use
Curriculum Review
Session Title
Session Description
Overview of a 5 Step Curriculum Review Cycle
Explore and discuss the 5 steps of a review cycle with examples
Consider additional needs to ensure the ongoing use of the curriculum review cycles to update and strengthen the written curriculum
Course Review
A guided review of one course for elements of quality, including completeness and alignment to standards
Quality Unit Review
Discuss the elements of a high quality unit plan
Review unit(s) using a sample rubric and/or Atlas reports
Standards & Learning Goals for Language Development
Align units with content & language standards and provide language goals for multiple English proficiency levels
Outline unit learning goals that support culturally and linguistically diverse students
Create Assessments for Multilingual Learners
Determine how students can demonstrate understanding of both the content and language goals, using multiple language domains
Analyze the unit assessment(s) for alignment to content & language goals
Develop Learning Plans for Multilingual Learners
Develop integrated lesson targets aligned to the unit plan
Outline instructional strategies and approaches to support content learning and language acquisition
Planning for Differentiation
Review key elements of differentiated instruction
Explore differentiated instruction strategies and add specific strategies to current units
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