At Mineola Middle School, we believe in celebrating growth, achievement, and self-reflection—values that are deeply embedded in our daily routines. Our playbooks serve as more than just agenda books; they provide students with school information, space to plan their schedules, and a clear view of their academic progress. By supporting weekly planning, goal setting, and progress monitoring, playbooks help students develop essential executive functioning skills that help to build important habits such as time management and organization, fostering independence and self-directed learning.

In 5th and 6th grade, the playbooks include skills-based scales aligned to NYS standards while in 7th grade, they house content specific Scoreboards aligned to subject area standards. 

The Middle School scales build on the foundation created at Jackson Avenue School, based on the research by Robert Marzano. These learning progressions highlight various levels. The Knowledge level represents the background knowledge, processes, strategies and vocabulary that learners must first master. The Application level represents the target content and standards for each scale. Finally, at the Transfer level, learners demonstrate their ability to transfer the knowledge and skills acquired in previous levels. This level is not a requirement. Printed in the playbooks beneath the scales, there are designated areas for goal-setting and self-reflection that align to our learner language, the 5G’s of Learning.

Scoreboards at Mineola Middle School bridge our competency-based model with a traditional grading system, offering students a clear and motivating path to success. As learners engage in Knowledge and Application level tasks, they earn points toward their overall grade, allowing them to take ownership of their progress. To support the development of essential habits, Scoreboards also include a Learner Engagement category—encouraging students to self-assess, receive feedback, and reflect on their learner behaviors demonstrated while engaging in each subject area.