Standard 2:

Both Task 2, Evidence 1 and Task 2, Evidence 3 demonstrate how the content is organized into coherent, well-sequenced learning programs (descriptor 2.2). Evidence 1 involves a review of previously learned content, a pre-test, sharing the lesson’s goals, a collaborative learning activity exploring and negotiating new content, guided practice, and ends with independent practice. Evidence 3 involves previewing new content, sharing the lesson’s goals, pre-teaching vocabulary, collaborative language practice, a shared reading activity, a review and formative assessment of the new content, then independent practice. 

Further meeting descriptor 2.2, this unit was planned using the Understanding by Design (UbD) approach, which has 3 stages. Task 1, Evidence 1 – Unit Plan demonstrates that teachers begin Stage 1 of planning by determining the conceptual understandings, transferrable skills, learning goals, and essential questions of the unit. In Stage 2, teachers plan the tasks that will provide evidence for meeting the leaning goals in Stage 1. Stage 3 is the most specific stage where teachers detail each lesson. This is backwards planning approach also aligns with descriptor 3.1 as it ensures lessons are planned after learning goals are set, making the content of the lesson more effective for reaching those goals. Students are also more engaged with their learning process because their goals are front and center. 

The structure of the unit is based around the Talk for Writing (T4W) program and the Oxford Read and Discover books used in our English curriculum. Specifically, regarding descriptor 2.2, the Talk for Writing program provides a structure that can be flexibly applied to academic content. The structure is defined in 3 stages: imitation, innovation, and invention. After introducing the unit and exploring models of opinion writing, I planned six lessons for imitation, two lessons for innovation, and two lessons for invention, as can be seen in Task 1, Evidence 1. The first stage of this writing program is the longest to allow teachers maximum modeling and scaffolding time before students reach the independent assessment task. The independent assessment task stage is invention. These stages are described in more detail throughout Task 1, Evidence 2 – T4W Guide.