RM-S&S

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media type="file" key="Scope and Sequence.mp3" width="240" height="20" Listen up! = . =

= Read = = Me! = = =

WHEN I'M A TEACHER...the district will just TELL me what to teach and how to do it, right?
= ** WRONG! ** =

Scope and sequence is simply the WHAT and WHEN of student knowledge, understanding, and skills to be attained. It IS a big deal--it guides our instruction. Determined primarily by the national legislature, it is revised and adopted by state legislature who then receive input from school districts and in return provide them some flexibility in adoption. As a result, each school district makes available to their stakeholders (students, teachers, administrators, parents, and community members) the content subjects to be taught and at what grade level and in what sequence.

ABOUT SCOPE AND SEQUENCE: Scope and sequence is usually prescribed in a matrix / chart with embedded or attached documents providing more detail. Scope and sequence documents are intended to serve as general  guides to help teachers and curriculum developers align their curricula and instruction to support the National, State and District Standards of Learning. Scope and sequence guides are NOT intended to prescribe how  curriculum should be developed or how  instruction should be delivered. Instead, it provides examples showing how teachers and school districts MIGHT present to students in a logical and effective manner information that has been aligned with the Standards of Learning. Teachers who use the documents should correlate the content identified in the guides with available instructional resources and develop lesson plans to support instruction.

IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS YOU NEED TO WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND:
 * WORD || DEFINITION || EXAMPLE ||  ||
 * Course || Often referred to in a secondary environment as "class." A course is usually a semester in length and is designed to give the student an overview (or survey) of an area of study. || <span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">9th grade Biology

<span style="color: #ec9c4b; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">British Literature

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">7th grade American History

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3rd grade Math ||  || --Evolution --DNA --Embryology
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Unit || <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Topics of study that, together constitute a course. A unit is usually taught in 10-15 lessons (but can be much longer or shorter). It is written to include the skills and content that must be learned in order for a student to have "mastered" understanding at their grade level. It should be written by designing a "storyboard". || 9th grade Biology:

British Literature: --Time Eras --Dickens --Shakespeare

7th grade American History --Civil War --Reconstruction --Industrial Revolution

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3rd grade Math <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">--Long division <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">--Fractions <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">--Story problems ||  ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Storyboard || <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Just like making a Hollywood movie, this is a panel-by-panel layout used to begin sequencing and identifying topics and teaching strategies that need to be included in the unit. Very fluid (done in pencil, as this is a PLANNING document). Used for the purpose of brainstorming to ensure that you are able to cover all the concepts and ideas you need to cover to complete the unit. ||  ||   ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Lesson Plan || <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Day-to-day description of the time spent with students in obtaining the skills and concepts outlined in the unit. This includes specific objectives, timing of the lesson, description of teaching and a description of the assessment. ||  ||   ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Assessment || <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This is an evaulation of the student learning. It does NOT need to be a formal pencil-paper test. It should be authentic (it asks the students to use the material learned in a real-world situation). ||  ||   ||