My summer externship with NC DPI has been one that will definitely impact my classroom practice for many reasons. The four-week English Language Arts unit that I am developing integrates a study of Colonial Life and the Revolutionary War, which I will teach in my classroom this year. That’s definitely the most direct way that it will impact me and my students, but there are much more subtle pieces that will drive other areas of my instruction during this year and beyond.
I will look at pre-made curriculum in a new way. I am all about saving time and not re-inventing the wheel. I am not one who insists on creating everything myself for my students, but I do insist on quality. The transition to Common Core State Standards has requried so many instructional shifts in the classroom, and many traditional literature units are not “making the grade” when it comes to standards based teaching. We are all guilty of having favorite books to teach or characters to share with our students, but occasionally, these favorites become the foundation for our teaching, rather than a vehicle. The tools we learned to apply for evaluating curriculum have given me new insight into how I will judge what is best for my students.
I will teach this evaluation format and criteria to my co-workers. If I have learned a more focused way to look at curriculum, it is my responsibility to share it with my colleagues. As professionals, it is essential that we are all up to date with the best ways to know the content and pedagogy of who and what we teach. I will also design my own teaching and learning units differently, knowing this evaluative criteria. Writing my Revolutionary War/Informational Text unit has been a totally different experience than previous curriculum writing that I’ve done… and that’s a lot!
I am writing my lessons through the evaluative lens, which is making me hyper critical of my work. I’m also one who traditionally hesitates to write lessons without having a particular group of students in mind. It’s amazing how, using this criteria, I am more confident in my teaching of the standards, even without a particular set of students in mind. Finally, back to my NCCAT take away, my externship has led to relationship building. This, I am completely convinced, will be the element that most impacts my teaching and leadership in the future. The ability to hash out ideas with colleagues and get curriculum feedback from professionals at NC DPI can only make me better at what I do!
photo credit: Lori Greig via photopin cc
Getting to hear about all these projects makes me want to go back to school!
Amneris
Will you be at the Summer Institute in Durham? I’d love to hear more about your project and possibly pick your brain a bit about how you are planning to share your new ideas with your colleagues.