Interdisciplinary Curriculum Units

When planning interdisciplinary curriculum units, teachers should consider the following questions:

How valuable is the organizing central idea for students to think about and assimilate into their way of looking at the world? (big picture-rich)
How important to those subjects are the concepts that teachers have identified within mathematics and science? (content-rich)
To what degree might the students learn the concepts better than if they had been taught separately? (connections-rich)
To what degree does the curriculum contribute to broader outcomes--that is, the learner's overall approach to knowledge and his or her development as a person? (creative and critical thinking-rich)
How much time is available for curriculum development?
How much time is available for communication among teachers during common planning or teaching time, among grade levels, and between schools?
In what ways can scheduling support interdisciplinary learning?
What expertise exists within the district?
What materials are available?
What budget is available to support curriculum development, staffing, and materials acquisition?
How does the interdisciplinary curriculum reflect the philosophical orientation of the community, district, school, and majority of teachers?
How do teachers and administrators prefer to have curriculum organized? How compatible is that with the Problem Solving and Critical Thinking in Mathematics (PSCTM) model?
What support from key individuals or groups is needed? How will staff members respond to change and innovation? How will public relations be built and maintained?
How is the school board involved/informed about the curriculum process?
What personal concerns do you have about your involvement in interdisciplinary curriculum design and implementation?

Source: "Problem Solving and Critical Thinking in Mathematics" by Claudette Rasmussen and Cathy Cook, June 1990.

The following articles from Best Practice 5 provide interdisciplinary approaches to curriculum units: