TeachTown enCORE is an adapted, comprehensive, core curriculum for students with moderate to severe disabilities. It includes leveled, differentiated content across English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies and includes content to fill all instructional time in these areas. enCORE incorporates traditional lesson plans as well as technology-based instruction to provide equity and accessibility to all students.
enCORE can be accessed by teachers, administrators, and students through a web browser on a desktop, laptop, or Chromebook or via an iPad app.
To log in on a desktop, laptop, or Chromebook, go to www.teachtown.com/login and enter your username and password.
To use an iPad app, download the appropriate app from the Apple App Store and log in using your username and password.
Yes. Student licenses allow students to complete lessons tied to the curriculum independently and allow data on these lessons to be collected automatically. Without student licenses, teachers can still use lesson plans, printable materials, and teacher-led technology-based lessons with all students in the classroom.
enCORE can be accessed through a Chromebook, desktop, or laptop computer through the TeachTown website (www.teachtown.com). It can also be used on an iPad through the appropriate app (see above). The enCORE app is only available with an iPad and not with a phone.
The primary learning domains included in enCORE are English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies.
enCORE provides a flexible instructional design that supports how you teach. The Elementary enCORE program comprises 36 Units across grades K-5. Although you can select your starting unit, Teachtown suggests starting with units 1 for K-2 and 19 for grades 3-5. The Middle School enCORE program comprises 27 units for grades 6-8. Again, you can select your starting unit for your entire class or choose a unit specific to student grade levels, starting with Unit 37 for 6th grade, Unit 46 for 7th grade, and unit 55 for 8th grade. For High School, TeachTown recommends starting in Unit 64 for 9th and 10th-grade students and Unit 82 for 11th and 12th-grade students.
In Elementary school, each enCORE unit should be implemented for approximately 6 weeks. In Middle School and High School, each enCORE unit should be implemented for 4 weeks. This allows for concepts to be presented to fulfill mandated instructional time and to ensure concepts are presented appropriately and frequently for mastery. There is flexibility within these timelines to adjust based on student performance. This timeline will depend on how instruction is delivered and how students are mastering the concepts presented. If students are demonstrating mastery of skills more quickly, it is ok to move through the content at a faster pace. Conversely, if students are not mastering something, you can spend more time on it. To maintain the pace for small or whole groups of students, it is recommended you move to the next unit after the majority of your students have mastered or have shown steady progress toward mastery. For students who have not mastered the concepts, continue to reteach the lessons as necessary and provide ample opportunities for the students to work independently on the technology lessons assigned to them. Technology-based lessons will automatically give opportunities to reach mastery and maintenance of concepts.
You can add groups by going into your enCORE dashboard. When you first log in, you will see two tabs. One will say My Students, and one will say, My Groups. Under My Groups, you can navigate to the + button to create, name, and add students to a group.
If the facilitator adds IEP goals, the system recognizes that these are important as they are being added in addition to the programs automatically selected by the system. Rest assured that all IEP goals (or facilitator-added items) will be addressed first. The student will have access to the added goals before accessing anything else. So remember, if you add many IEP goals (or facilitator-added items), your student will have to complete those before accessing the computer-selected items. It is essential to balance the student’s time between IEP goals and computer-selected items.
New routines can be challenging! We often find that initial sessions are sometimes met with challenging behavior, but students often enjoy working in the program once they start using it. Initially, starting with shorter session durations allows students to learn to use the program and access reinforcement. Once students begin to be successful, you can increase the session length slowly. This allows you to meet students where they are and build their stamina over time. You can adjust each student’s session time by going to the Manage button (bottom left of the Home tab) and selecting Manage My Students. Here you will be provided three options. The second option will be to manage your student’s session length.
It is also recommended to pair the new program with fun and access to reinforcing items simply for engaging with the program or being cooperative with the initial steps. Make it easy! Make it fun!
In order to pair the TeachTown student-led learning opportunities with positive reinforcement, reinforcement is provided within enCORE in the form of engagement-based rewards. Students will receive various activity rewards as they interact with the student dashboard lessons. Facilitators can select the frequency and duration of these rewards by going to the student dashboard and selecting ‘current student’, and then ‘select rewards’. Here you can enable or disable specific rewards by checking or unchecking the boxes next to each reward. Any unchecked reward choices will never be presented to the student. You can also completely disable rewards on this page or increase or decrease their frequency and duration. If you choose to disable rewards in the program, please be sure to reinforce your student in some other way.
On an iPad, you can set up guided access. Guided Access will lock your student into the app until you turn off guided access with a password.