K-12 Curriculum Development

A good activity for teacher teams is called "If We Can, Should We?"

See Examples Below:

If we can build a guaranteed and viable curriculum, should we?

If we can meet as a vertical team once per month, should we?

If we can raise student achievement through curriculum alignment, should we?

If we can gain greater clarity about 'what' to teach by unpacking the standards, should we?

If we can help more students through differentiated instruction, should we?

If we can help students develop critical thinking skills through writing essential questions, should we?

If we can improve curriculum development and instruction through data analysis, should we?

If we can develop a rigorous curriculum through teacher collaboration, should we continue to work in isolation?

The goal is to have teacher teams develop the questions, rather than having a list of questions for the teacher teams to answer.  There are multiple variations that teacher teams can use with this activity.  While the questions may sound like someone is challenging the group or individual members of the group, the intent of the activity is to help teachers begin a conversation which has the potential to improve teaching and learning.  When we begin to realize that our collective efforts can drastically improve each student's future, it is worth the time and effort to have this initial conversation.

A good follow-up activity is to begin developing SMART Goals.  SMART Goals will help teacher teams stay focused and will require a commitment to action.