Planning Learning Sequences - Activities, Lessons, Units

Select or decide what the students are to learn and think of it as a big idea. Sources: the students, local curriculum guides, National standards, state standards, National Council Teachers Mathematics, Project 2061, Science for All Americans, .
Unpack or identify how the big idea can be understood and communicated along with the supporting information related to the topic ( facts, concepts, generalizations) and the value of the information for the student. One way this can be done is with a web, chart, or outline. Write concise powerful definitions for what students will need to know and the relationship of the facts, concepts, and generalizations.
Electrical circuit map/outline example
Probability map/web example
Relative position and motion
Consider the students developmental level, present understanding, supporting information, processes that can or need to be used to understand the big idea and how it is integrated into other ideas - within the subject, other subjects, real life, or an integrated curriculum.
Choose an instructional model indirect, cooperative, inquiry, or direct.
Identify opportunities or activities for students learn and apply the big idea (invention). Remember you will need sufficient activities to develop each concept and generalization as developmentally appropriate (scope).
Decide on an order for the activities (sequence). Consider a good sequence will create disequilibration (cognitive dissonance) in a manner that encourages students' investigation through wonderment and provide greater understanding.
Determine focus questions to motivate students’ investigations and desire to learn.
Select questions or an activity to collect diagnostic information (exploration).
Use the diagnostic information to check the planned scope and sequence of the activities. Choose additional activities as necessary.
Prepare procedures and instructions. Decide how to communicate procedures to students. If you plan to give students written procedures and instructions, write them. If you plan to give them orally, make an outline of the procedure and instructions. If you want students to generate their own procedure, write questions or outline a procedure to follow to do so. Be careful the instructions only direct students to collection information and not tell or hint at the outcome. When students predict, acknowledge their predictions but not the accuracy of the prediction.
Identify how the information related to the big idea will be bridged for better understanding.
Review the activities to see if they progressively increase the complexity of opportunities for students to develop their depth and breadth of understanding of the big idea and generalize their understanding with activities that provide for authentic generative assessment.

Final review of teacher plan considerations:

What is the value of the information for the student? Personal and community need?

On what will students focus their attention? (questions, procedures, observations, and interpretations)

Are there sufficient activities for all findings to come from student observation or student verified information?

Are there opportunities for several or all students to summarize their understandings in their own words orally and in written form (facts, concepts, generalizations, bridges).

Is there a way to bridge information to understanding?

When the fact, concept, or generalization is apparent will the appropriate vocabulary be introduced?

Do the activities provide students opportunities to explore and identify limitations and other complexities of the concepts and generalizations. This can be done when students explore the affects of variable changes related to the concept or generalization.

Do the questions and activities include diagnostic, formative, summative, and generative assessment for each concept and generalization?

Will students use each concept and generalization in different ways and communicate those ways?

How will students record their observations and other information? Young children should draw their observations and as they learn to write they can label and write descriptions. Older students can be given written questions to focus their attention on variables and how to manipulate them and increase their depth of understanding.