Step-by-step guide for planning Units of study
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Step 1: Gather, Review, and Discuss
Step 2: Identify Essential Questions and Big Ideas What essential ideas or “enduring understandings” will students learn and remember forever? |
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Step 3: Identify Key Concepts, Strategies, and Skills. How will you assess this learning?
What do you want your students to know and be able to do by the end of the unit? Make a list.
Then identify ways in which you will assess whether or not your students have mastered these
skills and concepts at the end of the unit.
Step 4: Brainstorm Possible Focus Lessons and Gather Short Text for the Lessons
Step 5: Build a Trajectory—Sequence the Focus Lessons in a Logical Order
Step 6: TEACH THE UNIT Remember to always adapt your plans based on students’ learning needs. Document what worked and what didn’t work, and talk with colleagues about this. Revise as needed.
See Sample Unit Calendars showing how the school year could be organized into units of study for Readers’ Workshop and Sample Unit Trajectories with the “planned” focus lessons for the sample unit.
What do you want your students to know and be able to do by the end of the unit? Make a list.
Then identify ways in which you will assess whether or not your students have mastered these
skills and concepts at the end of the unit.
Step 4: Brainstorm Possible Focus Lessons and Gather Short Text for the Lessons
- Write each focus lesson idea on a Post-It note and put these on a table or white board where everyone can see them. Don’t worry about sequence of the lessons yet—just brain storm!
- Sort the focus lesson ideas when you see obvious categories (e.g., lessons about genre characteristics; reading strategy lessons; lessons about responding to text).
- Jot down ideas for short text pieces (e.g., picture books, poems, articles, excerpts from longer books, etc. that you might use in your focus lessons) and anchor chart ideas as you generate lesson ideas.
Step 5: Build a Trajectory—Sequence the Focus Lessons in a Logical Order
Step 6: TEACH THE UNIT Remember to always adapt your plans based on students’ learning needs. Document what worked and what didn’t work, and talk with colleagues about this. Revise as needed.
See Sample Unit Calendars showing how the school year could be organized into units of study for Readers’ Workshop and Sample Unit Trajectories with the “planned” focus lessons for the sample unit.
