Drill and Thrill, Fun with Fluency Jesse Smith Associate - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Drill and Thrill, Fun with Fluency

Jesse Smith Associate Superintendent of Quality Control The Roger Bacon Academy

RBA Charter Schools

Leland, NC Rural K-8 950+ Students 66 acre Campus 12 years in operation Whiteville, NC Rural K-7 750+ Students 147 acre Campus 5 years in operation Wilmington, NC K-2 Projected 100+ Students Campus TBD Recommended for Approval

=FASTAR= Fluent Academic Skills Tournament for Arithmetic and Reading

• FASTAR was created by Baker Mitchell, founder of The Roger Bacon

Academy, in 2004.

• Race events held for students in grades K-5; middle school students also

participate volunteers

• The program has grown from about 50 students participating to over 400

across two campuses.

• FASTAR is a fun, academic tournament that allows all students of varying

ability levels to race to the finish and be rewarded for a job well done!

Race Events Grades Participating

Charter Day 140 Kindergarten Teach Well 220 1st & 2nd Booster Club 350 3rd & 4th Bacon 400 5th

FASTAR Promotional Video

The focus of FASTAR is speed and accuracy!

Speed

• In a Nascar race, speed is miles per hour driven.
• In FASTAR, racers focus on the speed of

– words per minute read – numbers per minute added – digits per minute printed – letters per minute printed

The focus of FASTAR is speed and accuracy!

Accuracy

• In a Nascar race, drivers must complete their course

without losing control.

• In FASTAR, racers must complete their course without

making errors.

– reading words incorrectly or without articulation – adding numbers incorrectly – writing digits incorrectly – writing letters incorrectly

Speed + Accuracy = Fluency

• Speed and accuracy indicate that a skill has become nearly

automatic, or “fluent.”

• Fluent skills can be done “without thinking.”
• Benefits of fluency in a skill are:

– longer retention – increased endurance – increased comprehension – stronger foundation for complex skills – shorter homework times

Fluency Example

Suppose a homework assignment in history is to read a chapter that is 2,000 words long.

– The student reading 50 words per minute needs 40 minutes to complete the assignment. – The student reading 200 words per minute needs only 10 minutes to complete the assignment.

• This student may also comprehend more and will not be as tired.

Fluency in all subjects will decrease homework time!

Benefits of FASTAR

Everyone is a winner in FASTAR!

• Builds Confidence

– Racers see their academic improvement in one minute timings and practice races.

• Builds Excitement

– Racers get excited about academic skills.

• Builds Endurance

– Racers practice hard to meet their goal.

Registration Process – Crew Chiefs

• Crew chiefs have a month window to learn about the program

through information sessions and online resources before registering their racer

FASTAR registration fee is $15 and includes:

• Crew Chief Resources
• Racer practice materials

Upon qualification, each racer will receive:

• Certificate of Qualification
• FASTAR t-shirt
• Race Day Lunch

2011-12 T-shirt Design

Registration Process – Behind the Scenes

• Each campus has a Registration Coordinator that accepts

forms and compiles racer information into a master spreadsheet

• Racers are organized by grade to determine total number in

each race category

• Sponsors are acquired – monetary and food donations
• T-shirt design is finalized and orders placed
• Packets containing Crew Chief resources and racer tools

made for each registrant

Practice Packet Contents

• Crew Chief resources including:

– “Achieving Fast Recall in Math Facts” – “Learning to Read Fluently” – Frequently Asked Questions – FASTAR Terminology

• Racer tools including:

– One-minute math and reading passages – Stop watch – Progress Chart (ticket to qualify)

Practice Packet Contents

FASTAR Tune-Ups

• Racers have the option to practice in an official FASTAR

garage on campus to “tune up” their skills.

• Four Tune-Ups are held once a week after school leading up to

the event day.

• Tune-Ups are optional, but strongly recommended.
• Operated by volunteer school staff
• An adult or older sibling must accompany each racer as Crew

Chief.

• Racers receive their practice packet including stopwatch on the

day of the first tune-up.

FASTAR Tune-Ups

At each Tune-Up, racers will:

• complete one-minute timings in reading and math,
• chart one-minute timings,
• practice mock races,
• receive additional practice materials,
• fuel up with snacks,
• experience the excitement that race day will bring!

Qualifying for FASTAR

• As in Nascar, FASTAR racers must also qualify to race by

demonstrating their reading and math skills.

• Qualifying requirements for each race will vary by difficulty level,

length, and skill.

• A qualifying event will be held the week prior to race day for all

racers.

• Each racer will complete one-minute math and reading timings in
• rder to qualify.
• Racers must meet the qualifying requirements and turn in completed

progress chart showing practice

• The fastest qualifier will receive a trophy!

Qualifying Expectations

*Students who do not meet the qualifying requirements but show improvement

• n their progress chart will be allowed to compete.

Practice & Race Day Procedures

Practice Procedure:

Fixed Time (1 minute) Go for most “Distance”

1. “Go” – Start the timer 2. Read passage or answer math problems for 1 minute 3. “Stop” – Stop the clock 4. Count words read or problems completed 5. Put dot on the practice chart

Race Procedure:

Fixed Distance (varies by race) Go for least “Time”

1. “Go” – Start the timer 2. Read all words and problems in race booklet without stopping between skills 3. Raise hand when finished 4. “Stop” – Stop the clock when student raises hand

Shortest time completing booklet wins.

Race Course Details

Race Course Contents

Prepare Race Day Layout

• Scores obtained from each racer during qualifying are used to

predict the time it will take racers to complete the race course packet

• These predictions allow for organizing the field in relative
• rder with the fastest qualifying racers in the last row to race

together

• The pole position is the racer in Lane 1, Row 1 and receives a

special trophy for being the fastest qualifier

Race Day Field Layout

Calculation Prediction Example

• Johnny reads 100 wpm at qualifying event
• He is in 2nd grade and the race course packet will contain a

story with 150 words total

• To calculate the time it will take Johnny to complete the

reading section:

[(150wpm)(60sec.)]/(100wpm) = 90 seconds

• Math is calculated in the same manner and the sum of both

will provide a prediction of the time it will take Johnny to complete the entire race course packet

The Race Event

• FASTAR is an outdoor event held during Spring
• Racers line-up in rows and compete in “heats”
• Racers participate in designated race for their grade level
• Classmates and parents come out to cheer on the sidelines
• Lunch is provided for all racers and can be purchased by

parents

• Awards ceremony held at the end of the day to recognize all

racers with a medal

• Award Pole Position and 1st-5th place winners of each race

Event Schedule

Race Day Crew

• To make race day a success the following positions are needed:

– Race Coordinator: Organizes all aspects of race day – Race Marshall: Announces the races – Pit Crew: Middle school volunteers that listen and time each racer – Judges: Score each racer’s packet and determine winners – Parent Volunteers: Prepare the course, decorate, help with lunch – Registration Coordinator: Helps organize lunch details day of race

FASTAR Race Day Video

Calculating Racer Scores

Race Event Wrap Up

• Each racer is sent a results card that shows the winning

racer’s time, their personal race course total time, and if they finished in the top 10

• Thank you letters are sent to all sponsors
• An event summary is written by the Race Coordinator

containing race event details and ideas for improvement

The Roger Bacon Academy

Jesse Smith jessesmith@rogerbacon.net 3610 Thaddeus Lott Lane Leland NC 28451 910-655-3600 www.rogerbacon.net