Instead our teachers needed materials that provided the appropriate scaffolds and language supports. As a principal, it was humbling because I thought I was doing everything "right" by adopting HQIM and providing PD. Turns out there is more to leading than buying books and PD.

I found myself doing everything our PD providers said not to do - rewriting lessons, changing the tasks, because it was what our students needed. At that point I realized that our teachers didn't need more time "internalizing lessons."

If you've taught the curriculum, you've likely seen the challenges and flaws. It wasn't until several years after adopting our curriculum (and providing lots of PD) I was in the classroom and taught it (over the course of weeks and months) that I saw some of the challenges.