ISBN 1-932166-72-6

©2009, Achieve3000
ISBN 1-932166-72-6
All rights reserved. No part of this handbook may be reproduced or used in any form or by any
means—graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, and information
storage and retrieval systems—without the prior written permission of Achieve3000.
Requests for permission should be directed to:
Achieve3000
1091 River Avenue, Building #1
Lakewood, NJ 08701
Telephone: 732-367-5505
E-mail: [email protected]
Achieve3000®, KidBiz3000®, and TeenBiz3000® are trademarks and registered trademarks of Achieve3000, Inc. All other
brands and product names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holders.
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Achieve3000 is the leader in differentiated instruction solutions. Our philosophy is simple: Teaching students one-onone, at their level, is one of the most effective ways to help them reach and then exceed grade level. Read more about our
proven effective literacy solutions at www.achieve3000.com.
Please record your user name and password here:
Welcome to Achieve3000 !
®
Our differentiated literacy solutions, KidBiz3000® (grades 2–5) and TeenBiz3000® (grades 6–12), are
scientifically proven to increase reading comprehension, vocabulary, and writing proficiency and are
dramatically impacting high-stakes test scores for students across the nation.
Initial and ongoing student assessment enables KidBiz/TeenBiz to reach students, one-on-one, at their
reading level. All students in your class read the same nonfiction reading content, but the passages and
activities are precisely matched to each student’s individual reading levels. This unique approach extends
your reach by enabling you to teach grade-appropriate content that is customized to meet each one of
your student’s reading needs.
This Quick Reference Guide will give you quick access to KidBiz/TeenBiz help topics whether you’re in
the classroom or at home. They provide an overview of the most commonly used areas of KidBiz/TeenBiz.
More detailed explanations can be found in our online help that can be accessed by clicking Help from your
Teacher’s Edition of KidBiz/TeenBiz.
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Teacher Tips
There are several places where you can go for help with KidBiz/TeenBiz:
a. Quick Reference Guide – Use this as your first option. It provides brief answers to the most
frequently asked questions. Turn the page for specific information about using this guide.
b. Online Help – Access our comprehensive help manual from your Teacher’s Edition. Simply log
in and click Help at the top of the screen.
c. Teacher Resource Center – Use this section of the Teacher’s Edition to find additional
reading material, research, and resources to use in your classroom. On the next page, you’ll find
specific information about what is included in the Teacher Resource Center.
d. Contact Customer Support – Still need help? Contact Achieve3000 Customer Support by
visiting www.achieve3000.com/support or by calling 877-235-2525.
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Finding What You Need
Use the color-coded tabs at the bottom of each page to quickly access information in this
Quick Reference Guide.
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Introduction Five-Step Literacy Routine
Class Setup
LevelSet •
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Planning Tools
Developing Customized Content
Communication Tools
Monitoring Tools
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Teacher Tips
In the Teacher Resource Center in your Teacher’s Edition, you can find extensive materials to
help you get the most out of Achieve3000 Solutions. The Teacher Resource Center is searchable by
keyword, using the Search section in the Teacher’s Edition. Materials include:
1. Classroom Materials – Materials to set up your classroom and motivate students to use
KidBiz/TeenBiz, including Lesson Plans complete with Graphic Organizers, Five-Step cards, Login
cards, Raffle Tickets, Stock Market Connection materials, and more.
2. Home Connection – Materials to help your students’ parents/guardians use their own Home
Edition accounts.
3. Informational Materials – Calendar, information about LevelSet and new features, Quick
Reference Guide.
4. Research – Scientific research and effectiveness of Achieve3000 Solutions, published
background research.
5. Workshop Materials – Reference materials for Professional Development Workshops,
including Participant Guides and PowerPoints.
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Five-Step Literacy Routine
Achieve3000 sends your students a new story each day. This non-fiction passage comes with a series
of pre- and post-reading activities. Reading comprehension, writing, and vocabulary are all reinforced
repeatedly through this Five-Step Literacy Routine. Step 1. Set a Schema – Your students read and reply to a daily e-mail that sets the stage for the story they
are about to read. The e-mail can be accessed from the Inbox in the Mail section and includes a link to the
daily article.
Step 2. Read for information – Your students read an appropriately leveled non-fiction article that can be
accessed from the link in the daily e-mail.
Step 3. Demonstrate mastery – After reading the article, your students answer questions that monitor
comprehension and vocabulary mastery. To launch the daily activity, just click Activity at the top of the
article, beneath the article title.
Step 4. Construct meaning – Your students write a response to an open-ended question. To access the
thought question, click Thought Question at the top of the article, beneath the title.
Step 5. Form an opinion – Your students participate in a poll about the article which allows them to form
opinions and share them with other students. To vote in the poll, click Poll at the top of the article, beneath
the title.
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Teacher Tips
Achieve3000 includes a variety of materials to enhance the Five-Step Literacy Routine. A complete list of resources
can be found on the Teacher Planning Tools page in this guide. Some of the most valuable resources are:
1. Curriculum Key – You can access a Curriculum Key for every article posted on KidBiz/TeenBiz. This key has
valuable information about the key concepts, vocabulary words, and skills covered by the daily article. It also
includes pre-reading activities, cross-curricular extension activities, and comprehension lesson plans that help
reinforce the day’s article.You’ll see a link to the Curriculum Key at the top of every News article on
KidBiz/TeenBiz.
2. Advance planning e-mail – Check your e-mail each weekend for a preview of the articles for the coming
week. Accessible from your Inbox, this message includes an outline of topics, skills, and standards that will be
covered in these articles. This tool is easy to use and allows you to plan lessons ahead of time.
3. Standards Alignment – All Achieve3000 content is aligned to your state’s standards. Click the Standards icon
at the top of any article to see the standards alignment for the passage, Activity, and Thought Question. Use the
Print for Planbook option for a complete list of standards you can include in your lesson plan.
4. Lesson Plans – Achieve3000 has developed a bank of lesson plans to help you directly teach fluency, vocabulary,
and the reading comprehension strategies identified by Reading Next as having a significant impact on literacy
performance. These lesson plans can be found in the Teacher Resources Center, under Classroom Materials.
5. Teacher Resource Center – Additional extension ideas are available in the Teacher Resources Center.
See the “Maximizing the Effectiveness of Achieve3000 Solution” document (Classroom Materials/
Implementation Materials).
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Setting up your classes
You need to set up your classes and students before you can start using the program. To create your
classes and students:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Create New Class.
2. Fill in the required information fields and click Next.
(If your class is a Dual Language class, be sure to select Spanish/English in the Dual Language
dropdown. This will automatically create a Dual Language version of the class you are setting up.)
3. Click Create Permanent Logins.
4. Click Add to add members to your class.
5. Follow the directions on screen to add existing students or create new students for your class.
a. Use the Browse option to search through all the students in your school. Select a student
name and click Add to Class to add the student to your class.
b. Use the Search option to search for a specific student. Type as much information as you can into
the fields of the Search. Click Find User to pull a list of all students who match your criteria.
c. Click Create New Users to add a new student to the system.
6. Click Return to Class List. When you are satisfied with your list of students, click Next.
7. Review your list of students and click Finish.
8.To create another class, click Set Up Another Class. Otherwise, click Close to return to the Admin menu.
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Teacher Tips
1. Temporary logins – Use the Create Temporary Login option if you don’t know the exact number
of students in your class or if you’re unsure of their names.You will be given a generic username and
password for all the students in your class. They will be prompted to set up their own login names and
passwords the first time they log in.
2. Transferring schools – A student name highlighted in yellow in the Browse and Search options
indicates that the student is currently associated to a different school.You can transfer the student to
your school by clicking Add to Class.
3. Searching for student names – Before you create new students, be sure to verify that they don’t
already exist in the system. Use the Search option to find the student and only create a new user if there
are no results for your search; otherwise you might create a duplicate login that could result in false data
as well as possible financial loss for your school/district if they’re paying on a per-student basis.
4. Clicking Finish before exiting – Make sure to click Finish at the end of the process before closing your
window. If you skip this step, your new class and students won’t be created.
5. Student settings – After creating your new class, there are several student settings that are available
for you to view and edit.You can change your students’ passwords, language settings, access to games,
and more. To learn more about these options, see Editing Student Settings on pages 13 and 15 of this guide.
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Adding a new student to your class
You can add students to your existing class by using the Add users to my class option. This is helpful for students
transferring to your class in middle of the year. To add a new student to your class:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Add users to my
class.
2. If prompted, select a class.
3. Click Add to add members to your class.
4. Follow the directions on screen to add existing students or create new students for your class.
a. Use the Browse option to search through all the students in your school. Select a student name
and click Add to Class to add the student to your class.
b. Use the Search option to search for a specific student. Type as much information as you can into
the fields of the Search. Click Find User to pull a list of all students who match your criteria.
c. Click Create New Users to add a new student to the system.
5. Click Return to Class List. When you are satisfied with your list of students, click Next.
6. Review your list of students and click Finish.
7. Click Close to return to the Admin menu.
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Teacher Tips
1. Searching for student names – Before you create new students, be sure to verify that they haven’t
already been created. Use the Search option to find the student, and only create a new user if there are
no results for your search; otherwise, you might create a duplicate login that could result in false data as
well as possible financial loss for your school/district if they’re paying on a per-student basis.
2. Clicking Finish before exiting – Make sure to click Finish at the end of the process, before closing
your window. If you skip this step, the student won’t be added to your class.
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Removing a student from your class
If a student transfers out of your class or stops using KidBiz/TeenBiz, you should remove him from your class
list. This ensures that your class records are up-to-date and reports run by school and district administrators
only include relevant data. To remove a student from your class:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Remove Users.
2. If prompted, select a class.
3. Select the checkbox next to the names of the students you want to remove.
4. Click Remove from Class to remove them from your class or Permanently Delete to completely
remove them from the program. See the Teacher Tips for help regarding which option to choose.
5. Click Back to menu to return to the Admin menu.
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Teacher Tips
1. Permanently Delete – Before permanently deleting a student from your class, be sure that you want
to completely remove the student from the program. If you just want to remove the student from your
class, use the Remove from class option instead.
2. Remove from class – Use the Remove from Class option to remove the selected student from your
class. If the student is associated to any other classes, he will still belong to those classes even after you
remove him from your class.
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Retrieving and Changing Student Usernames and Passwords
You can change a student’s password to ensure confidentiality or to make it easier for your student to
remember.You can also print out a list of all the usernames and passwords of the students in your classes.
To retrieve or change passwords:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Edit student or
teacher information.
2. If prompted, select a class.
3. You can change your students’ usernames and passwords in one of two ways:
a. To change the password for one user, position the cursor in the Password column to the
right of the user whose password you want to change. Retype the password and click Save
Changes at the bottom of the screen. Click OK to confirm changes.
b. To give all your students the same password, position the cursor in the Password field on
the last row on the screen. Retype the password and click Save Changes at the bottom of the
screen. Click OK to confirm changes.
4. To change a student’s username, click on the username to go to the student information page.
Edit the username in the Login Name field and click Submit at the bottom of the screen.
5. Click Back to menu to return to the Admin menu.
6. Use the Print class list option under User Administration to print a list of all your students’
usernames and passwords.
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Teacher Tips
1. Student passwords – Make sure that your students don’t share their passwords with each other. If a
student uses someone else’s credentials to log in and complete activities, it will generate inaccurate data
and erroneous reports.
2. Duplicate login names – Because our system relies on unique usernames and passwords, you may
have several students who have a number (e.g., “.1”) appended to their username. This means that there
is already a student using the program with the same username, and a number is added at the end to
avoid duplicates.
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Changing Student Permissions and
Other Settings
You can change your students’ e-mail permissions, games, and sound settings to fit your classroom rules and
preferences. See the tips on the next page for more information about the various settings. To change e-mail
permissions and other settings:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Edit student or
teacher information.
2. If prompted, select a class.
3. You can change various settings for either individual students or your class as a whole:
a. To change the e-mail permissions for an individual student, change the permissions option in the
Peer-to-Peer E-mail column to the right of the desired student.To change the permissions for
all of your students, make the desired changes on the last row on the screen.Then click Save
Changes. See the Teacher Tips for more information on the e-mail permissions available.
b. To make games available for an individual student during school hours, select the checkbox in
the Games column to the right of the desired student.To make games available to all of your
students during school hours, select the checkbox in the Games column on the last row on the
screen.Then click Save Changes.
c. To make the sound option available for an individual student, select the checkbox in the Sound
column to the right of the desired student.To make sound available for all your students, select
the checkbox in the Sound column on the last row on the screen.Then click Save Changes.
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Teacher Tips
1. Games – By default, games are only available outside of school hours; however, you can turn
games on during the day for either individual students or your entire class. Many teachers find it
useful to offer the games as a reward to students for finishing their work or for scoring well.
2. Peer-to-peer e-mails – You can fully restrict your students’ peer-to-peer e-mail privileges
so they can e-mail only teachers, administrators, and KidBiz/TeenBiz; or you can prevent your
students from sending images and attachments to their peers. (Note that while Achieve3000 filters
all e-mail text to ensure appropriate use, images and attachments are not filtered. The default
setting does not allow images or attachments.) No matter which option you choose, be sure that
your students understand that the e-mails they send are not private and that they must follow
appropriate use guidelines.
3. E-mail filter – Achieve3000 filters all e-mails that your students send (note that images and
attachments are not filtered). We still recommend that you look through the e-mail report
periodically to make sure your students are using the e-mail appropriately. Access this report
under Student Work in the Admin section, by clicking E-mail Messages.
4. Sound Settings – The article read-aloud is only available for students on a reading level of 3 or
below. The dictionary read-aloud is available for students on all reading levels.
5. Reading Connections – Reading Connections functionality is available by default for all students,
but can be turned off at the class level. To remove Reading Connections for your class, go to the
Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, click User Administration, and click Edit class information.
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Changing Language Settings
All students have access to the four language options: English, Spanish, Spanish/English, and
Haitian-Creole/English.
• The English option targets reading comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency for English-speaking
students.
• The Spanish option is suitable for Spanish-speaking students.
• The Spanish/English and Haitian-Creole/English options are for ELL students who are learning
English but still need some support in their native language.
See the tips on the next page for more information about the four language options. To change language
settings:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Edit student or
teacher information.
2. If prompted, select a class.
3. Click the username to go to the student info page. Change the Language field towards the
bottom of the screen to English, Full Spanish, Spanish Support, or Haitian-Creole Support.
4. Click Submit at the bottom of the screen. Click OK to confirm changes.
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Teacher Tips
There are four language options available to all students:
a. English – This is the standard version for English speaking students. By default, all students are
created as English students.
b. Spanish – This option is for Spanish speaking students working on improving their Spanish
literacy skills. Everything on the site is in Spanish, including the daily articles and activities. These
are, as usual, mapped to the individual student’s reading and Lexile level.
c. Primary Language Support – Available in Spanish and Haitian-Creole. This is a mostly
English version with additional support in students’ native language. Students using this version
will receive the daily articles and activities in English with a short summary in their native
language. In addition, the various controls and icons on the site can be translated into the native
language by rolling over them with the mouse. This version is best used for ELL students who
are fluent in Spanish or in Haitian-Creole.
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LevelSet Assessment
Your students will start their KidBiz/TeenBiz experience with LevelSet, an online reading placement test.
When they finish the test, your students will receive a Lexile score based on their performance. These
scores are applied immediately to each student’s profile so that the articles they receive are precisely
matched to their individual reading levels.
LevelSet displays automatically the first time your students log in at school. It adapts based on their
responses and includes 10 to 60 questions. Most students will complete the assessment within one 40minute period. If they don’t complete the assessment within that time, they’ll be prompted to continue
their test the next time they log in.Your students won’t be able to access the program during school hours
until they finish taking LevelSet.
You can access more information about LevelSet and Lexile numbers from the Teacher Resources section
in your KidBiz/TeenBiz Teacher’s Edition.
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Teacher Tips
1. Before the test – Research shows that when teachers pay careful attention to test conditions,
students do better on their tests. Be sure the test environment is quiet so that your students
can focus. Consider providing a nutritious snack before the test to boost student productivity.
2. Pausing in middle – If a student doesn’t complete LevelSet within the time frame available to
him, he’ll be prompted with it again the next time he logs in during school hours. It will continue
from after the last question he completed.
3. After school – Your students will be able to log in to KidBiz/TeenBiz from home, even if they
haven’t yet completed LevelSet. Until they complete LevelSet, all content will appear at grade
level. If you want to allow them to take the test after school hours, contact Customer Support
at www.achieve3000.com/support.
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After LevelSet: Accessing LevelSet scores
Follow these steps to review your students’ Lexile placement scores. It is important that the scores match
what you know about each student’s reading ability. To view your students’ scores:
1. In the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, click Performance Reports.
2. Click How has Lexile performance changed over time (Summative LevelSet)?
3. Use the drop down boxes to customize your report and click View Report.
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Teacher Tips
1. Possibly Invalid Administrations – To include possible invalid administrations in your report,
click the checkbox next to Include students with a score of 1L in the Which students should we
include? category.
2. Nonfiction vs. Fiction – Scores based on non-fictional materials are generally lower than scores
based on fiction. Because the questions on the assessment are non-fictional, your students’ results
may be slightly lower than what you expect them to be.
3. Incorrect Scoring – If you feel that a student’s score is incorrect, you can do one of three things:
a. Wait for the system to automatically adjust your student’s score.
b. Re-administer the LevelSet test. See “Re-administering LevelSet” on page 27 for instructions.
c. Manually adjust your student’s reading level. See “Adjusting students’ reading levels” on
page 25 for instructions.
4. Post LevelSet Study – In an effort to make further improvements to your students’ experiences
with our solutions, we will be looking carefully at their multiple choice activity scores in the
weeks following the test. To help us make these improvements, we’re going to make some minor
adjustments to the reading level of the first four activities that your students will receive after the
LevelSet. For one assignment the content will be a little below their level, and for another it will be
a bit above. After that, all content will continue to be delivered at your students’ new Lexile level
as determined by the LevelSet test. Although this will not disrupt your students’ use of KidBiz/
TeenBiz, you may opt out of this project by visiting www.achieve3000.com/research_optout.
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Accessing Activity Scores
Follow these steps to review your students’ multiple choice activity scores. It is important to review these
scores periodically to make sure that your students are performing at the correct level. To review the
activity scores:
1. From the Admin section in your Teacher’s Edition, click Student Work.
2. To the right of News, click Multiple Choice, and use the drop down boxes to customize the
report as you like.
3. Click View Report.
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Teacher Tips
1. Monitoring Student Scores – The scores on the first 4–5 activities that your students
complete should be between 65% and 90%. Although some fluctuation is normal, consistently
lower or higher scores may indicate that that your students are not placed at the correct
reading level.
2. Automatic Adjustment – The system monitors student performance on an ongoing basis.
If a student’s performance indicates that the LevelSet administration was invalid—either by
consistently too high or too low activity scores—his reading level will be automatically adjusted to
a more suitable level.
3. Incorrect Scoring – If you feel that a student’s score is incorrect, and the system didn’t adjust
the score automatically, you can do one of two things:
a. Re-administer the LevelSet test. See “Re-administering LevelSet” on page 27 for instructions.
b. Manually adjust your student’s reading level. See “Adjusting students’ reading levels” on
page 25 for instructions.
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Adjusting students’ reading levels
If your students scored lower than expected on LevelSet, or if their multiple choice activity scores are
consistently too low or too high, you can manually change their reading levels. To change reading levels:
1. From the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, under User Administration, click Edit student
or teacher information.
2. If prompted, select a class. Adjust the reading level in the Read column to the right of the name
of the desired student.
3. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the screen. Click OK to confirm.
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Teacher Tips
1. Automatic Adjustment – The system monitors student performance on an ongoing basis.
If a student’s performance indicates that the LevelSet administration was invalid—either by
consistently high or consistently low activity scores—his reading level will automatically be
adjusted to a more suitable level.
2. Nonfiction vs. Fiction – Keep in mind that the results are based on non-fiction materials that
will cause most students to score slightly lower than when reading fictional materials. If you
change a student’s reading level, make sure it is set to a level appropriate for informational texts.
3. Monitoring Student Scores – It is important to continue monitoring your students’ activity
scores after you change their reading levels. The scores on the first 4–5 activities that your
students complete should be between 65% and 90%. Although some fluctuation is normal,
consistently lower or higher scores may indicate that your students are not placed at the
correct reading level.
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Re-administer LevelSet
If you need to re-administer LevelSet, follow these steps. Remember to use caution before re-administering
a test! Re-administering the test will erase the scores on the most recent test that your students have
taken and will present it to them again.
1. From the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, under Assessment Tools, click Re-administer
LevelSet.
2. Check the box to the left of the student name who should re-take the test.
3. Click Re-administer LevelSet at the bottom of the screen. The test will be administered the next
time the student logs in.
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Teacher Tips
1. Re-administer vs. Schedule – Use caution before re-administering a test! Re-administering
the test will erase the scores on the most recent test that your students have taken and will
present it to them again. To schedule the next test for your class instead, contact Customer
Support at www.achieve3000.com/support.
2. Automatic Adjustment – Keep in mind that the system monitors student performance on an
ongoing basis. If a student’s performance indicates that the LevelSet administration was invalid—
either by consistently too high or too low activity scores—his reading level will automatically be
adjusted to a more suitable level.Your student’s score may be corrected without his having to
re-take the test.
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Previewing Content
Check your Inbox each weekend for a preview of the articles for the coming week. This can help you plan
your lessons and strategies in advance. To view the weekly e-mail:
1. Click Mailbox to access your Inbox.
2. Open the e-mail titled Content Preview. The e-mail includes a list of 5-step literacy lessons
that will be covered in the coming week. It also includes links to additional lessons that you can
assign.
3. Click the title of the article in the News Section/Title column to see the full article preview.You
will be able to access the Activity and Thought Question.You can also access the Curriculum
Key which is helpful for lesson planning.
4. Click the links in the Preview column to view additional assignments that are available.
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Teacher Tips
1. Dual content – If you teach both KidBiz and TeenBiz users, you’ll receive two Content Preview
e-mails each week.You will need to read both e-mails in order to preview all the content as the
topics may be different for the different grade levels.
2. Additional articles – If you are looking for materials about a specific topic, or if the week’s
topics don’t fit with your curriculum, use the Search to find additional articles that you can
assign. Read more about the Search on page 35 of this guide.
3. Lesson plans covering comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary can be found in the Teacher
Resources Center, under Classroom Materials.
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Enriching the Five-Step Literacy Routine
Take advantage of research-based strategies now in place to help improve reading comprehension.
To preview activity questions before you read:
1. Access the article that you want to read.
2. Click Print at the top of the article to print the entire sequence of Article, Activity, Thought
Question, Poll, and Math activity.
3. Click Standards to view the standards that are aligned to the article.
4. Click Answer Key from the activity to see a list of the activity questions and answers.
To make connections as you read:
1. Access the article that you want to read.
2. After each paragraph, click Reading Connections and summarize or generate questions.
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Teacher Tips
1. Limited computer access – Using the print preview to print the sequence of article/activity/
MC/TQ/Poll/Math will allow you to have students work offline if computer access is limited.
2. Print for planbook – Use this option to print the list of standards for your lesson plan.
3. Answer key – Use the activity answer key to assist students with the activity questions. Note
that student answer choices are randomized and may not appear in the same order as the
answers on the key. Read the text of the correct answer choice as you monitor student work.
4. Reading Connections – View and grade student Reading Connections by going to the Student
Work Section of Admin. Go to the News dropdown and select Reading Connections.
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Curriculum Key
Use the Curriculum Key to find additional information to enhance your lessons. It includes key concepts
and words, extension activities, lesson plans, and more. To view the Curriculum Key:
1. Click Curriculum Key at the top of the article you are reading. The curriculum key will open up
on screen.
2. The Keywords are a list of vocabulary words covered in the daily article. Students should
understand these words before starting to read the article.
3. Key Concepts are basic concepts covered in the article, regardless of the reading level of the
article. All students reading the article cover the same concepts.
4. The Curriculum Key lists several Cross-Curricular Extensions to allow you to integrate this
news story into other areas of the curriculum. These include areas such as writing, geography,
art, and many other subjects.
5. Under Comprehension Materials, you can view a detailed lesson plan and graphic organizer for
this article.
6. A daily Pre-Reading Activity is available to help you set the stage for the article.
7. Use the Related Links to go to additional places where you can find out more about the news
story in the article.
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Teacher Tips
1. Pre-teaching keywords – Going over the required keywords before your students start
reading the article will ensure that they get the maximum benefit out of their reading
experience.
2. Keywords – Required keywords are words that all students reading the article will need to
understand. Recommended words should be used at your discretion for students at higher
ability levels.
3. Graphic Organizers – Use the graphic organizers to aid your students in writing a summary
of the article. This will improve their understanding of what they read and help them have a
clearer picture of the story.
4. Pre-Reading Activities – Each day, one Pre-reading Activity is available in the Curriculum
Key. In addition, a link to a collection of pre-reading activities designed to help English Language
Learners is available each day. Pre-reading activities, organized by skill, can also be found in the
Teacher Resource Center under Classroom Materials.
34
Search
Use the Search to look through all the articles in the Achieve3000 library.You can search by keywords,
standards, or subject. To use the Search feature:
1. Click Search at the top of your screen.
2. To search by keyword, type any relevant words into the text box.
3.You can also select a Content Area, Topic, or Subtopic(s) to further refine your search.
4.You can specify if you would like to search through KidBiz articles, TeenBiz articles, or both.
5. Click Advanced Options to search by category, standard, or by a specific date.
6. There is a short summary of the article under the article title.You can preview a complete
article by clicking the magnifying glass next to the title of the article.
7. Assign the article to your students from the Search by clicking Assign.
8. Click the title of the article to be taken to the main article page.
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Teacher Tips
1. Reading level appropriate – The articles that you assign to your students will be
automatically delivered to each student at his individual reading-level, regardless of the level that
you were reading.
2. Student Search – Your students also have the ability to search through articles by keyword
and/or category.You can encourage them to use this feature to find additional articles that
interest them.
3. Send On – By default, the articles you assign are sent out immediately. However, you can
specify which date you want the article to go out on by changing the Send On field on the
Write E-mail page.
4. Dual Content – Students using KidBiz generally receive different content than the students
in TeenBiz.You can search through both archives by changing the drop down list in the Search
to KidBiz and TeenBiz. Keep in mind that the content may not be age-appropriate if you assign
KidBiz articles to older students or vice versa.
36
Unit Building
Unit building presents a unique way to customize units of study around particular subjects or themes.
Using this feature, you can plan your curriculum months in advance, create special projects, or organize
assignments for your classes.
Three simple steps
37
Teacher Tips
1. Units vs. Search – While both Units and the Search allow you to search for and assign articles,
the Search feature is most helpful for assigning individual articles to your students. Units can be
used to link multiple articles together into one unit of study. This will help your students follow
the theme of the unit and better understand the topic involved.
2. Adding Content – You can continue editing and modifying your unit even after it’s complete.
You have the option of adding new articles, deleting existing articles, and changing the e-mail
messages up until your unit’s end date.
38
Unit Building
You can customize units of study around particular subjects or themes by pulling from the articles in the
Achieve3000 archive and assigning them to your students. To create a unit:
1. From the Units section at the top of the Teacher’s Edition, click Create Unit.
2. Create a frame for your unit by filling in the fields on the Create page. The Unit Name, Content
Area, and the Unit Start and Unit End dates are required fields. Click Next when you are done.
3. Click Add Content to be taken to the Search to find articles for your unit.
4. When you find an appropriate article, click Add to Unit.
5. Write an e-mail that will be sent to your students together with the article. Change the dates in
the Delivery Date field to specify the date the article should be sent out. Click Save when you
are done.
6.You can add more articles to your unit by clicking Add Content again. When you are satisfied with
your unit, click Next.
7. Select the names of the students to whom you want to send the unit.You can select multiple
users by holding down the CTRL key and selecting the students’ names.
8. Click Finish to save your unit.
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Teacher Tips
1. Keywords – Insert keywords related to your unit. In the future, Achieve3000 may allow you to
search for units created by other teachers. Keywords will allow teachers to easily find and share
units.
2. Themes and Standards – You can create units organized around particular themes (such as
Ancient Egypt, the Solar System, or World Peace) or around specific standards that you would
like your students to master.
3. Delivery Date – The delivery date for the articles in your unit must be between your unit’s
start and end dates.
4. Grade Range – If you choose a grade range for your unit on the Create page, the Members
page will only display students from the grade selected.
5. Preview – You can preview your complete unit by clicking Quick View.
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Sending an e-mail message
You can send and receive e-mails from other teachers and students who are using Achieve3000. To send an
e-mail:
1. From the homepage, click Mailbox.
2. Select Write E-mail. Choose the e-mail recipients from the list in the To box.You can select
multiple users by holding down the CTRL key and clicking on each name. To send the e-mail to
your entire class at once, select All Teachers and Students.
3. Choose the date that your e-mail should be sent. By default, the Send On will display today’s
date.
4. Write a subject and message for your e-mail.
5. Add an attachment to your e-mail by clicking Browse next to the Attach File option.
5. Click Send to send the e-mail to the selected recipients. Click Save Draft to save your e-mail as a
draft for later.
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Teacher Tips
1. Assign articles – You can use e-mails to assign additional articles to your students
or tell them about their homework. In addition, you can use your e-mails for personal
communication—students may feel more comfortable discussing private issues via e-mail.
2. E-mail restrictions – You have the option of restricting your students’ e-mail access.You can
choose to remove their ability to send e-mail to students or restrict images and attachments. If
you choose to allow full e-mail access, be sure that your students understand that their e-mails
are not private and may be viewed at any time by teachers and administrators. See “Changing
student e-mail permissions” on page 15 for more information.
3. E-mail filter – Achieve3000 has an e-mail filter in place that blocks students from sending
inappropriate messages; however, the filter doesn’t block e-mails sent from a teacher’s account.
If an inappropriate message is sent from your mailbox, you will receive a notification e-mail to
ensure that it was sent with your permission.
42
Creating e-mail groups
You can create e-mail groups containing multiple students. These groups will appear as one of your
recipients when you write an e-mail. This is useful when you divide your class into groups for a project or
reading groups. To create an e-mail group:
1. From your homepage, click Mailbox.
2. Select E-mail Groups.
3. To create a new group, select New Group.
4. Fill in a group name and select members for your group.
5. When you are satisfied with your group, click Create Group.
6. To delete a group, click the checkbox to the left of the group name and select Delete.
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Teacher Tips
1. Student Groups – Encourage your students to create e-mail groups to hold their various
recipients. It is an important skill to learn that will ultimately assist them in using real e-mails.
2. E-mail Groups – Create your groups based on how you will be assigning work.You can create
groups based on ability, special projects, or other flexible group arrangements.You can always
change the members of your e-mail group to keep it up-to-date.
44
Parent/Guardian Logins
Achieve3000 offers a Home Edition so that parents/guardians can team up with educators to guarantee
every student’s success. This edition includes access to the daily articles, reports on student’s progress, and
the ability to e-mail students and teachers.
Parents/guardians can login daily and:
1. Review and complete the Five-Step Literacy Routine.
2. Communicate with teachers and their children via the Mailbox link.
3.View weekly Conversation Guides and Reports emails.
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Teacher Tips
A study undertaken by the University of New Hampshire shows that students do much better in school
when their parents/guardians are actively involved in their education.
Researchers Karen Smith Conway and Andrew Houtenville used information from more than 10,000
eighth-graders, their parents/guardians, teachers, and school administrators from around the country.
They looked into how frequently parents/guardians discussed activities or events of interest to the child
or things the child studied in class. They also reviewed how often parents/guardians discussed selecting
courses or programs, attended a school meeting, and volunteered at school.
Conway said parents/guardians being involved is consistently associated with higher levels of achievement.
She said the study found that schools would need to increase spending by more than $1,000 per child to
achieve the same results gained with parental involvement.
Visit www.achieve3000.com/support to request more information about parent/guardian set-up.
46
Home Communications
You can send welcome letters home to your students’ parents/guardians, explaining about KidBiz/TeenBiz
and encouraging them to have their children participate after school hours, too. To print the welcome
letters:
1. From the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, click Home Communications.
2. Click Welcome Letter.
3. Select the class and users for whom you want the letter printed and click View Report.
4. Click Send to Printer to print the welcome letters for your students to take home.
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Teacher Tips
1. Welcome Letter – You can print the welcome letters for all the students in your class by
selecting All Users. Alternatively, you can print the letter for only one student by selecting the
student’s name from the drop down list.
2. Language – The welcome letter will be printed for your students based on their default
language. Students using the Spanish version of the program will have welcome letters in
Spanish, and students using the English version will receive letters in English. Students using the
Spanish/English version will have welcome letters in Spanish, because it is assumed that Spanish
is the language spoken at home.
48
Accessing and scoring student work
It is recommended that you view your students’ activities and submissions periodically to ensure that
they’re working at the correct reading level. To view your students’ work:
1. From the Admin section of the Teacher’s Edition, click Student Work.
2. To view MC activity scores:
a. Select Multiple Choice to the right of News and Click View Report.
b. A list of Multiple Choice reading activities will appear. Click on the name of an activity to view the full MC Scorecard.
3. To view and score Thought Question responses:
a. Select Thought Question to the right of News and click View Report.
b.A list of Thought Question submissions will appear. Click on the name of the submission that you want to score.
c. Enter a grade and comment for the activity.To e-mail the comment to your student, make sure the “E-mail
Comment” checkbox is selected.
d. Click Save and Close to save your work.
4. To view and score Reading Connections:
a. Select Reading Connections to the right of News and click View Report.
b. A list of Reading Connections submissions will appear. Click on the name of the submission that you want to score.
c. Enter a grade and comment for the activity.To e-mail the comment to your student, make sure the “E-mail
Comment” checkbox is selected.
d. Click Save and Close to save your work.
5. To view the other reports:
a. Select the section on which you would like to run the report (e.g.,Writing, Units).
b. To the right of the section name, there is a drop down list. From that list, select the type of activity you would
like to view (e.g., Multiple Choice,Written Responses).
c. Customize your report as desired and click View Report.
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Teacher Tips
1. MC Activities – Make sure your students click through to the end of their MC assignments.
Only completed MC activities are included in the reports.
2. Thought Questions – In order for Thought Questions to be submitted, students must click
Submit. If they leave without clicking Submit or Finish Later, their work will be lost.
3. Scoring Thought Questions and Reading Connections – Students will take these more
seriously if you establish a schedule for scoring them. If you have significant comments on
student writing, they can resubmit their work after you score it.
4. Authentic Assessment Portfolio – The portfolio shows you a summary of the MC activities,
Thought Questions, and e-mails that your student completed during the specified date range.
It also includes the number of activities, submissions, and e-mails your student submitted in the
past year.
5. View Work for all Classes – If students belong to multiple classes on the program, they must
select a class when they login. To view work students are completing for all classes, use the
“Which work should we include?” filter and select Work completed for all classes.
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Monitoring program usage
You can monitor your students’ usage of the program by clicking Usage Reports in the Admin section. The
following reports are available for your review:
Which of my students are using the program?
How are my students spending their time?
How has usage changed over time?
How are my students progressing towards Achieve3000’s 40-activity usage goal?
Which of my students are using the program after school?
How are my students spending their time after school?
51
Teacher Tips
1. Help – For more information regarding these reports, access our comprehensive help manual
from your Teacher’s Edition. Simply login and click Help at the top of the screen. Alternatively,
you can contact Achieve3000 Customer Support by visiting www.achieve3000.com/support or
by calling 877-235-2525.
2. 40-Activity Usage Goal - Research shows that students should complete a minimum of 40
multiple choice activities in order to make significant academic gains. For more information
about this report, see “40-Activity Usage Goal” on page 55 of this guide.
3. Weekly usage report - Each week, a copy of the “How are my students spending their time?”
report is sent to your Mailbox. It will show you which sections of the program your students
have used in the past week.
4. View Work for all Classes – If students belong to multiple classes on the program, they must
select a class when they login. To view work students are completing for all classes, use the
“Which work should we include?” filter and select Work completed for all classes.
5. Parent/Guardian usage report – If parents/guardians of your students have usernames and
passwords, you’ll see an additional report titled “Which of my parents/guardians are using the
program?” under Usage Reports.
52
Monitoring student performance
Click Performance Reports in the Admin section to view your students’ performance in the program. The
following reports are available:
How are my students likely to perform on the [high-stakes state test] assessment?
How are my students performing on multiple choice news activities?
How has Lexile performance changed over time (Summative LevelSet)?
How has reading performance changed over time (Multiple Choice Formative)?
How are my students performing on standards?
How are my students performing on standards (NCLB subgroups)?
53
Teacher Tips
1. How are my students…MC news activities – Shows students’ average score on MC News
activities. A score of 65% - 90% is recommended for optimal gains; below 65% or above 90% may
indicate that the student is not placed at the correct reading level.
2. Multiple choice formative – Provides a timeline of students’ work, including total MC activities
per month, average score per month, and reading level for these activities. This is helpful if you
would like to see all students whose reading levels have changed in the course of using the
program.
3. Summative LS – This report shows the LevelSet scores for all students who have taken the
assessment. For more information about this report, see “Accessing LevelSet scores” on page 21
of this guide.
4. Monitoring Reports – It is recommended that you establish a schedule for monitoring reports.
Reviewing the reports periodically will help you track your students’ progress over the course of
the year.
5. NCLB subgroups – This report shows how your students are performing on state standards. It
divides your students based on the “No Child Left Behind” subgroups.
6. View Work for all Classes – If students belong to multiple classes on the program, they must
select a class when they login. To view work students are completing for all classes, use the “Which
work should we include?” filter and select Work completed for all classes.
7. How are my students likely to perform… – This report forecasts students’ performance
on your state assessment, based on their performance on LevelSet. The report identifies which
students need further intervention.
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40-Activity Usage Goal
Research shows that students should complete a minimum of 40 multiple choice activities in order to
make significant academic gains. It is recommended that they complete at least two multiple choice reading
activities per week for maximum gains. To track your students’ progress towards this goal:
1. From the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, under Usage Reports, click How are my
students progressing towards Achieve3000’s 40-activity usage goal?
2. Use the drop down boxes to customize your report.
3. Click View Report.
55
Teacher Tips
1. Limiting the report –You can narrow the report to include only students who have
completed more than 40 reading activities, or only students who have completed less than 40
reading activities. Change the drop down list under “How should we limit this report?” to select
the desired students.
56
Assigning Prescriptive Work
(Standards Report)
All Achieve3000’s articles and activities are mapped to your state standards.You can run a report to
determine how your students are performing and use the report to assign additional work for specific
students and standards. To view this report:
1. From the Admin section of your Teacher’s Edition, under Performance Reports, click How are my
students performing on standards?
2. Use the drop down boxes to customize your report. Select the standards that you would like to
view.
3. Click View Report.
4. A list of standards appears.Your students will be grouped into performance categories by
standard.
5. To assign additional practice for a specific standard, click Assign:
a. A new window opens that includes additional activities for each student.
b. Select the activities you would like each student to complete.
c. If desired, modify the e-mail that will be sent with the assignment. Click Assign Activities when
you are done.
d. The selected students will receive an e-mail with a link to the reading-level-appropriate
versions of the assignments.
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Teacher Tips
1. Selecting a standard – You must select a standard in order to run the report.You can run this
report for “All Standards” or drill down to the lower-level standards.
2. Demonstrating mastery – A student demonstrates mastery of a standard when he achieves
a score between 80% and 100% on activity questions aligned to that standard.
3. No items completed – A student is listed in the No Items Completed column if he has not
completed any items towards the listed standard.
4. English Language Learner Standards – If you run this report for ELL standards, the
columns are customized based on your state’s ELL performance levels. For each standard, you
can click the link to see the specific descriptors for each level.
58
System Requirements
All You Need is a Browser – Achieve3000’s solutions are accessed through the Internet via a Web browser.
Your IT department will not need to implement or maintain the solutions; and there is no hardware,
software, or network equipment to purchase. To improve your online experience, we require the following
minimum specifications:
Operating System
IBM and compatible PC
Macintosh
Pocket PC*
Requirements
Windows 2000 or higher Mozilla Firefox 2.0
or higher, Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher,
Adobe Flash Player 7 or higher
Operating System 10.x Safari 2.0.x or higher,
Mozilla Firefox 2.0 or higher, Adobe Flash
Player 7 or higher
Pocket Internet Explorer 2000 or higher
*Due to the nature of the technology, some
features are not fully supported on Pocket
PC.
59
Additional Notes
• All Web browsers must have cookies enabled.
• Popup blockers, if installed, must be disabled or an exception must be created for Achieve3000’s
•
•
•
URL’s.
Due to the dynamic nature of Achieve3000’s content, networks that use caching/proxy servers
should have a bypass rule for Achieve3000’s Websites.
While any connection speed is acceptable, the solutions will perform at optimum speeds with a
faster Internet connection.
The following are the only valid URLs for our Websites:
www.achieve3000.com • www.kidbiz3000.com • www.teenbiz3000.com
www.spark3000.com • www.achieve3000summer.com • www.email3000.com
www.kidbiz3000.biz • www.teenbiz3000.biz • www.kidbiz3000.net
Locations that use a Web filtering device or service should be sure to specify these as allowed addresses.
Furthermore, it is advised that access to Websites through filters should not be allowed based on keyword
alone. Strict rules specifying exact URLs to Websites are recommended to avoid accidental navigation to
sites not owned by Achieve3000.
60
Contacting Achieve3000
Achieve3000 is committed to making our
programs work in your classroom. Please feel
free to contact us if you have any questions. For
optimal response time, please contact the appropriate department.
For information about…
By phone:
By Web:
Technical Support
877-235-2525
www.achieve3000.com/support
Professional Development
888-968-6822 ext 103
[email protected]
Implementation Materials
888-968-6822 ext 103
[email protected]
Editorial Policies or Content
888-968-6822 ext 120
[email protected]
Sales
800-838-8771
[email protected]
Daily Content
888-486-3317
Submitting Suggestions
[email protected]
My school’s staff development consultant is:
name
e-mail address
Phone Number
Read & respond to the e-mail.
Read the article of the day.
Do the activity questions.
Answer the thought question.
Vote in the poll.
Use these suggestions to maximize your students’ literacy development during each of the
five steps. Additional extension ideas are available on the daily Curriculum Keys and in the
Teacher Resources section of the Teacher’s Edition.
Conduct a class discussion allowing students to contribute their thoughts in response to the e-mail question. Encourage responses that help students access prior knowledge.*
Circulate around the room and have students summarize* or generate questions*
about the passage. When everyone has finished reading, summarize the article as a class.
Teach good test-taking strategies. Show students how to use “process of elimination”
to find the best answer. Encourage students to reread the passage to find the answers.
Discuss the meaning of the prompt before students begin writing.
Help students make the reading/writing connection.
Ask students to justify their votes. They should be able to support
their judgment with reason.
* Proven effective reading comprehension strategy.