Units of Study

by Becky McKay, Johnnie Tankersley, and Susan Wilheit

Many have asked, and we would like to share the genesis of the lessons seen at the recent Cornerstone Winter conference.  One unit is showcased here to demonstrate how literacy and science might be tied together. 

Discussion concerning the development of units of study for the recent Cornerstone Winter Conference demonstration classrooms began last October. Cornerstone staff and Muscogee County coaches decided that water and the impact of the Chattahoochee River in Muscogee County would focus the “use of the environment as third teacher.” In May, resources and ideas were gathered for a two-day workshop for coaches, principals, and demonstration teams.  Three elements were identified: inquiry, use of science notebooks, and use of community.  Those resources drove the creation of the units. The coaches met November 1 to decide on Georgia State standards to be addressed and to write the essential questions for each of the lessons for a unit based on water and the river. They planned field trips and tapped into community resources. Demonstration teams in each school wrote lesson plans from these resources. On November 29, the demonstration teachers from all four schools began drafting the units. Each teacher revised the units to fit the individual schools, classrooms, and students.

Included here are the first-grade unit plans on the ecosystem written as delivered by Susan Wilheit from Downtown Elementary School. Careful scrutiny of Susan’s unit reveals a focus on the three big ideas directing the conference: inquiry, science notebooks, and use of community resources.  By placing this unit against the standard for rigor (in Teaching What Matters Most: Standards and Strategies for Raising Student Achievement by Strong, Silver, and Perini), teachers gain a deeper understanding of rigor and a literacy block that uses science as the content. This unit of study might just make the Cornerstone definition of literacy a reality!

        “To read, to write, to think critically, to reason, to analyze and evaluate information, to communicate effectively in a variety of forms, and to inquire systematically into any important matter.”

Please see the short PowerPoint on rigor and thought with the rubrics to make your decision!

Units of Study Document
Units of Study Presentation (PowerPoint) (PDF)