Focusing on Language and Academic Instructional Renewal (FLAIR)

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Increase cognitive growth and academic achievement for all students, including linguistically diverse students, through an intensive language-across-the-curriculum program that is created by means of sustained and intensive campus-based professional development.

This professional development model helps people in the school community work together to transform every classroom into a powerful learning environment, where students and teachers are encouraged to think creatively, explore their interests and achieve at high levels.

What is FLAIR?

• A professional development program created to transform the way we teach all learners, including those who are linguistically diverse.
• Adapts itself to the reading materials already on the campus while encouraging teachers to explore the rich diversity of children’s literature available to them.
• Values students and teachers encourages them to think for themselves as they teach and learn.
• Instructional approaches modeled in FLAIR training and technical assistance activities stress all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), not just reading.
• Helps your school create integrated language arts programs that use a balanced literacy approach and that build on the strengths of diverse learners.
• Uses your school’s philosophy to create your own vision and work collaboratively to reach your goals.

The FLAIR Philosophy

• Considers the student to be the center of the curriculum. It values the heritage and the capacities that students bring with them.
• Empowers the classroom teacher. The model recognizes the tremendous capacities all teachers have acquired through their years of experience. It also builds on their leadership capacities.
• Capitalizes on the campus leaders, mobilizing the principal, teachers, librarians, support staff and parents as a force to tailor-make an instructional program that is research-based and results in better achievement for all students. Together they create a vision for where they want to go and accept no excuses for failure.

With FLAIR, IDRA gives you a process for redesigning and re-energizing your language program that is more responsive to the characteristics of diverse learners in your school or district. FLAIR promotes:

• Student data-based decision-making using state and local standards for mastering on-level reading comprehension objectives
• Integrating literacy skills in content-area teaching
• Supporting continuous vertical and horizontal communication among teachers in the school
• Empowering teachers by equipping them with certain knowledge and resources to make better classroom and instructional decisions
• Using reflection and action as two critical instructional practices of successful reading programs
• Learning new ways to assess program effectivenes

IDRA Support

FLAIR provides a variety of ways to work with your school, including pre-classroom observations, research-based instructional strategies, lesson demonstrations, and online coaching and mentoring.

IDRA provides technical assistance and training that includes:

• Classroom demonstrations and observations
• Coaching for success
• Nurturing of innovations
• Guidance for finding funding options
• Building on existing strengths

FLAIR Will Address Your Specific Needs

Cross-cutting themes that will be incorporated into each training session include:

• "Classroom Strategies that Work: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement"
• "Tricks of the Trade: Effective Strategies for Cooperative Learning"
• "Coaching, Mentoring and Team Building Skills"
• "Enriching a Child’s Literacy Environment"
• "Integrating Technology for Meaningful Learning"
• "Fostering a Positive Relationship with Parents"

An example of a model plan that IDRA could use with your district is in the box below.