IDS PD: Notice & Wonder 25-26 SY

Quality & Continuous Improvement PD

IDS: Professional Development– Thursday, February 5, 2026

Notice & Wonder Protocol

Foundation Reminders for Quality & Improvement Efforts

Lead with Positive Intent Assume goodwill in all interactions.

Be Fully Present & Stay Curious Stay engaged & approach challenges with inquiry and openness.

Commit to Meaningful Action Follow through with purpose and accountability.

Speak from Evidence Ground ideas and feedback in data and observation.

Collaborate with Intention Work together thoughtfully and strategically.

Today’s Goal(s):

1. Ground Our Work (Quick Review): ACE Habits of Mind & Data Literacy - How these frameworks support thoughtful, evidence-based decision-making. 2. Practice Collaborative Inquiry (Notice & Wonder Protocol): Use a structured inquiry approach to examine data without jumping to conclusions, surface meaningful questions, and identify instructional improvement opportunities. *Why This Matters*: Build shared understanding and strengthen instructional decisions across NSS PA.

ACE Habits of Mind Interactive Recall

Let's recall... ACE Habits!- Which habit did you use most in your classroom recently? - Which habit do you want to strengthen?

Let's recall... Data Literacy!

• Where have you used data most recently in your role? (ex: student work, progress monitoring, behavior data, attendance, IEP goals)

• Which part of data literacy felt strongest for you?

• Collecting & Organizing = Student work, assessments, observations

• Analyzing & Interpreting = What is the data telling us? What patterns do we notice?

• Communicating & Presenting = Instructional moves, supports, next 'action' steps

• Which part do you want to strengthen next?

Introducing Noticing and Wondering

Step 1: Look at data or "notice" things

1. Questions to Ask:
1. Who? (Which students or groups are represented?)
2. How many? (How often is something happening?)
3. Which has more or less? (Where are there differences?)
2. Examples:
1. I notice most reading intervention referrals are in Grades K–4.
2. I notice some IEP progress notes are missing specific details.
3. Why This Matters:
1. Gets everyone into the conversation
2. Helps us catch important small details
3. Should be done before jumping to conclusions about why

• This visual shows how we move from data to action! We start with all available data, then intentionally select what we’re looking at.
• Next, we paraphrase what we see and name patterns before we jump to explanations.
• As we move up the ladder, our assumptions, context, and values start to influence how we interpret the data. Those interpretations drive our decisions and actions!

• The Notice & Wonder protocol helps us slow down... on the lower rungs, so we act on evidence, not assumptions.

The Ladder of Inference

Ladder of Inference Classroom Example:

Scenario: You notice that Jordan has not turned in the last two math assignments. 1. Observations- Jordan has two missing math assignments in the gradebook. 2. Selected Data- You focus on the missing work, but don’t check participation in class. 3. Meanings- “This probably means Jordan isn’t trying.” 4. Assumptions- Jordan doesn’t care about math and is falling behind because of a lack of effort. 5. Conclusions- Jordan is unmotivated and won’t improve without strict consequences. 6. Beliefs- Students like Jordan need more discipline, not extra help. 7. Actions- You call home to give a warning and remove free-choice time as a consequence. But… if you slowed down the ladder: You might check in with Jordan first and learn that he’s been staying with a relative who doesn’t have internet access, and he didn’t know there was a paper version of the assignment. This changes your meaning, assumption, and action — instead of a consequence, you offer the paper copy and extra time to complete it.

What do you notice?

Examples:

• I notice the yellow section is the largest.
• I notice the blue, red, and orange sections are about the same size.
• I notice the “Cure cancer” section is the same size as the “Work” section.
• I notice there are no numbers or percentages on this chart.

Example Together

What do you notice about this graph?

What do you notice?

Remember: Try not to 'infer'...#FACTS

Comparing Apples to Apples

What do you notice about this table?

Did everyone notice the same things? How does slowing down to notice help the process?

• Should you have conclusions yet?
• Are you making meaning of the data yet?

• Has anyone looked at a graph and made the wrong assumption right away?

Step 2: Start to dig deeper- "wonder"

1. Questions to Ask:
1. Why might results be different? Why might they be the same?
2. What could have caused these results?
3. Would this pattern look the same in another class, grade, or subject?
4. I wonder why Kindergarten students showed the most growth in ELA?
5. I wonder if similar growth happened in another class that tried the same independent work strategies?

1. Why This Matters:
1. Helps us notice trends, outliers, and surprises
2. Encourages making connections without bias or jumping to conclusions
3. Focuses on curiosity, not blame

Join in... the 'Wonder' mindset!

Wondering as a group helps you see different perspectives, includes different background knowledge of each person in the group, and additional expertise!

1. What do you notice?

2. What do you wonder?

1. What do you notice?

2. What do you wonder?

1. What do you notice?

2. What do you wonder?

POV: Most watched YouTube views between January 2016 and April 2017.

Take aways from "noticing" and "wondering"?

Noticing and wondering leads to digging into data sources and examining our practices! Only once we have looked closer are we ready to action plan...

THANK YOU!Questions?Survey Time...

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