Constitution Day 09/13/2009
Does your school have a coherent plan for implementing Constitution Day? In 2005, the United States Department of Education implemented Constitution Day and Citizenship Day based on legislation passed by Congress in December 2004 stating, “Educational institutions receiving Federal funding are required to hold an educational program pertaining to the United States Constitution on September 17th of each year” (118 Stat. 2809, 3344-45, Section III). An aligned approach to teaching students about the Constitution will enable and empower students. While social studies is taught in kindergarten-twelfth grade, the United States Constitution is not the central focus of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study at each grade level. An aligned K-12 method of implementing Constitution Day will give students more opportunities to study the United States Constitution and concepts such as citizenship. If school systems do not articulate a systematic plan, Constitution Day will become an annual day where students complete word find(s), worksheets, design mobiles (i.e., 3 branches of government), create acrostics to words such as freedom, play Bingo, watch videos and participate in other educational activities which will be repeated from one year to the next. Constitution Day will become more relevant to students when teachers begin working collaboratively to identify what is being taught, what knowledge is worth understanding and how connections can be made across the K-12 social studies experiences and across disciplines. The resources in this Constitution Day Teacher's Guide will assist teachers and administrators in developing a plan for Constitution Day 2009 and beyond. Additional Resources: Constitution Day: From Isolated Activities to Meaningful Experiences A Teacher's Guide for Planning and Implementing Constitution Day (Attached) Constitution Day Resource Guide Developed by Steven M. Weber and the NC Civic Education Consortium Constitution Day Presentation (Attached) Presented at the North Carolina Council for the Social Studies Conference (2008) - Feel free to use with your school staff. 
Unpacking Standards 08/24/2009
Robyn Jackson (2009) recently shared the importance of unpacking standards. She wrote, if teachers are going to use standards to guide planning, assessments, and teaching, we need to understand what each standard asks students to know or do (p. 58). This article shares research on unpacking standards, provides a process for school districts to follow, and shares next steps after teachers have unpacked the standards. Does your school district begin each year with teachers meeting to discuss and unpack the state standards or does each teacher work as an independent contractor making decisions which impact student understanding in the privacy of their own classroom? Ainsworth (2003) wrote, “Unwrapped standards provide clarity as to what students must know and be able to do. When teachers take the time to analyze each standard and identify its essential concepts and skills, the result is more effective instructional planning, assessment, and student learning”(p. 1). Several school districts have attempted to align the curriculum through curriculum mapping, aligning teacher created lessons or activities, developing common formative assessments, or other strategies. Experience has led me to believe that attempting to align the curriculum prior to unpacking state standards leads to frustration and gaps in the written curriculum. The Benefits of Unpacking the Standards are outlined below (Weber, 2008). | AuthorSteven Weber is the Director of Secondary Instruction for Orange County Schools in Hillsborough, NC. Weber has served as a classroom teacher, assistant principal, and state department of education consultant in Arkansas and North Carolina. He consults school systems in aligning their curriculum and in unpacking curriculum standards.  ArchivesMarch 2010 CategoriesAll | ||||
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