Model V (Oak Template)
The overall task of designing science activities, units and curriculum can appear to be an overwhelming task in the beginning. Many decisions need to be made about content, strategies, management, and assessment. It may seem like all the pieces will never come together. With thoughtful reflection and careful planning, the science program can help student learning become robust and complete.
The Oak Template can assist in making thoughtful decisions about what students are to learn, what opportunities will best promote that learning, how to effectively manage the learning environment, and how to determine what students have learned. The Oak Template assists in planning in detail activities, units, and grade-level curriculum in such a way that the science program is purposeful and not just a collection of isolated, unrelated incidents.
This template allows teachers to select from among lists of standards, unifying concepts, teaching and learning strategies, classroom management techniques, and assessment methods. It also allows tracking decisions back and forth through the activity, unit, and curriculum levels.
Note: The following table provides an overview of the topics presented in the
model. To bypass this table, viewers may proceed directly to the text-only
information for Model V.
| Identification | Scope, Sequence, and Alignment | Strategies | Background | Preparation | Procedures | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit Name | Topic | Teaching and Learning | Guiding Questions | Learning Environment | Steps | Student Assessment |
| Learning Experience Name | Concept | Inclusion | Materials | Data processing | Teacher Assessment | |
| Purpose | Learning Skills | Connections | Safety Considerations | Learning Experience Assessment | ||
| Grade Level | Big Ideas and Unifying Concepts | Extensions | Management of materials and space | |||
| Length | District Standards, Objectives, Outcomes, Benchmarks | Resources | ||||
| State Standards, Objectives, Outcomes, Benchmarks | ||||||
| National Standards | ||||||
| Sequence Justification |
A. Unit Name:
B. Learning Experience Name:
Guiding Question: How does the purpose of your Learning Experience reflect major concepts, unifying themes or important skills?
C. Purpose:
D. Grade Level(s): [ ]K [ ]1 [ ]2 [ ]3 [ ]4 [ ]5 [ ]6
E. Length:
II. Scope Sequence, and Alignment
A. Topic:
B. Concept(s):
C. Learning Skills:
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided for students to fill in any enabling learning skills that they are missing?
Guiding Question: What learning skills can be included in this Learning Experience to encourage thinking at a higher level?
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided for helping students learn and practice these skills?
D. Big Ideas and Unifying Concepts:
Guiding Question: What is the bigger picture into which this Learning Experience fits?
E. District Standards, Objectives, Outcomes, Benchmarks
Guiding Question: How does this Learning Experience address BOTH the content and the cognitive level of the standards, objectives, outcomes and/or benchmarks you have identified?
F. State Standards, Objectives, Outcomes, Benchmarks
G. National Standards
H. Sequence Justification
Guiding Question: Why are you doing this Learning Experience at this point in the unit or curriculum? How did you come to this decision?
Guiding Question: What evidence do you have that the Learning Experience is developmentally appropriate?
A. Teaching and Learning [Record strategies for each area selected.]
Guiding Question: How do your teaching/learning strategies for this Learning Experience meet the needs of your students?
B. Inclusion [Record strategies for each area selected.]
Guiding Question: How have you identified special needs students in your class?
Guiding Question: What strategies are you using to ensure that special needs students are included as active participants in this Learning Experience?
C. Connections (Record strategies for each area.)
Guiding Question: How have you used connections among the science disciplines and across other subject areas to increase the authenticity of this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How will the technology you have selected increase the effectiveness of this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How have you used connections to the world outside of the classroom to increase the authenticity of this Learning Experience?
D. Extensions (Record strategies for each area.)
Guiding Question: What engaging opportunities have you provided for students who need additional experiences to learn the concepts and skills in this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: What active opportunities have you provided for students who wish to pursue the concepts and skills in this Learning Experience further?
Guiding Question: For which concepts or information related to this Learning Experience do you need more background?
Guiding Question: How do you plan to identify which common misconceptions related to the topic of this Learning Experience are held by your students?
Guiding Question: Once you have identified misconceptions, how will you adjust your plans to address those misconceptions?
Guiding Question: How will you identify necessary prior knowledge and skills that students are lacking or weak in?
Guiding Question: What opportunities will you provide for students who need to strengthen necessary prior knowledge and skills?
A. Learning Environment
Guiding Question: Where are all the learning environments in which this Learning Experience could be effectively conducted?
Guiding Question: How will you adapt this Learning Experience if the first choice learning environment is not available?
B. Materials
Guiding Question: What resources (funds, time, expertise) are available to assist you in the advanced preparation for this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How far in advance do you need to start the preparation for this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How can you obtain the necessary supplies/equipment?
Guiding Question: If supplies or materials are not available, how can you adapt the Learning Experience to use available supplies or materials?
C. Safety Considerations
Guiding Question: What personal safety equipment will be necessary for this Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: What chemical disposal procedures will be necessary?
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided for your students to learn and practice appropriate safety procedures prior to this Learning Experience?
D. Management of Materials and Space
Guiding Question: What arrangements will you use to efficiently distribute and collect supplies and materials?
Guiding Question: What is the safest and most effective arrangement of your learning space for this Learning Experience?
E. Resources
Guiding Question: What resources are being used in designing this Learning Experience?
A. Steps
Guiding Question: How does the "Invitation" engage students?
Guiding Question: How does the "Invitation" identify students' misconceptions?
Guiding Question: How does the "Exploration" encourage confronting misconceptions?
Guiding Question: How does the "Exploration" address the major concepts of the Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How does the "Exploration" encourage students to construct their own knowledge?
Guiding Question: How does the "Explanation" encourage resolution of the conflict between misconceptions and new knowledge?
Guiding Question: How does the "Explanation" address the major concepts of the Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: How does the "Explanation" encourage students to construct their own knowledge?
Guiding Question: How does the "Application" allow students to demonstrate their conceptual change?
B. Data Processing
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided for students to collect meaningful information/data as a way to test a prediction or hypothesis?
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided prior to this Learning Experience for students to develop the skills needed to collect and analyze the required data?
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided prior to this Learning Experience for students to practice selecting and using appropriate methods to communicate results?
Guiding Question: What questions will you ask students during the Learning Experience in order to help the students reach the specific learning goals?
A. Student Assessment
Guiding Question: How will you communicate your level of expectations to your students?
Guiding Question: How have you ensured that there will be on-going, multiple, varied opportunities for students to "show what they know" as well as identify areas that need strengthening?
Guiding Question: How will you involve students in creating assessments and standards for "good work"?
Guiding Question: What opportunities have you provided to assist your students in becoming more effective at assessing their own learning?
Guiding Question: How will you ensure that the assessments for the Learning Experience are aligned with the goals and objectives of the Learning Experience?
B. Teacher Assessment
Guiding Question: [Pre-Learning Experience] What criteria will you use to assess yourself?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] How do you feel about your role in the Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] How might you have more effectively implemented the Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: [Pre-Learning Experience] What target behaviors would you want a peer observer to look for?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What information and insights did you gain from a peer observer?
C. Learning Experience Assessment
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What evidence do you have that the content fit the developmental level of the students?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What evidence do you have that the students were engaged in the Learning Experience?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What evidence do you have of how successful the students were at meeting your purpose?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What questions did students ask which could guide you to restructure and/or extend the Learning Experience next time?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What changes in the content might make the Learning Experience more effective?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] How could you make the Learning Experience more efficient?
Guiding Question: [Post-Learning Experience] What changes in the process might make the Learning Experience more effective?