Curriculum Connections: Chapter 5

This is the chapter that I see having the most immediate effect on my day-to-day work. I have yet to work at a school that has implemented curriculum mapping, but it appears to be the real deal. Yes, we have pacing charts, but those are district-imposed and often have little relationship with what is actual being taught (or, indeed, in what can be accomplished in a real academic year).

A curriculum map is a visual representation of what needs to be taught during a year. It is calendar-based and each month has its own column. In a sense, it is rather simplistic and holds only the content, the skills, and the assessments for each unit that will be taught during a given month. What is taught is driven by the state standards for that content area.

What it does not have within it are lesson plans and activities. Those are developed outside the curriculum map. An analogy would be a regular road map. Yes, it shows you how to get from Kansas City to Los Angeles, but it does not show you where to stop for gas and to sleep for the night.

Curriculum maps can look different bases on the particular subject and the needs of the school site. A curriculum map for a school that has block scheduling could look very different than one that has traditional scheduling.

Certainly there are numerous benefits for stakeholders in the process including:

• Benefits for teachers. It gives the teacher a visual representation that shows when and where thing should be taught. Sharing the maps between grade levels gives other teachers a solid connection to what is being taught around them and eliminates duplication of content.
• Benefits for new teacher. The maps give new teachers a scope and sequence to follow for that all-important first year. It also gives the new teacher enough information to be able to ask the right questions.
• Benefits for librarians. It gives us the necessary information to understand what should be taught at each grade level. It also shows us what is being taught at the school and can be used as a tool to advocate for increased funding to support instruction.
• Benefits for students & parents. It illustrates that there is a real plan for the year and gives parents the opportunity to support instruction (by knowing what is coming next).

Once you have your curriculum maps, you need to begin to write the units that go within the map. This is a six part process which includes:

1. Standards. This is where all instruction begins. You have to know the expected outcome before you know what to teach.
2. Brainstorming. Begin to consider different sorts of activities.
3. Essential questions. What should students be able to answer?
4. Assessment. How will students show that they have reached the expected outcome from the standard.
5. Activities. In this step you will choose from your brainstorming in (2) based on what you have determined in your other steps.
6. Post-unit reflection. This is the time where grade-level partners get together and determine what was effective and what was not and to make preliminary plans for the next time.

NOTE: Often when you begin to develop curriculum maps, there is much angst amongst the staff because you are asking them, often, to give up things that they have taught for many years, but which are not part of their curriculum. Do not think that teachers will give up without a fight.

Curriculum mapping can be a short-term process over several hours or it can take an entire year. Either can be an acceptable time-frame depending on the desired outcomes. The first step in creating curriculum maps has nothing to do with creating maps. First you need to establish an environment where teachers are honest about what they really teach and, more importantly, what they don't teach. The maps should be a true reflection of the classroom's curriculum.


Related Articles
Dickinson, G. (2007, Winter2007). Curriculum mapping; A stepbystep guide for creating curriculum year overviews. Education Libraries, 30(2), 40-41. Retrieved August 1, 2009, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts with Full Text database.

Loertscher, D., & Rosenfeld, E. (2007, April). CURRICULUM MAPPING FOR DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION, K-8. Teacher Librarian, 34(4), 47-49. Retrieved August 1, 2009, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts with Full Text database.