I remember when I received my first textbooks. No, not the ones in college, but the textbooks from the middle school library where I taught my first year. I was elated and terrified. Yes, I had learned how to lesson plan from my credentialing program, but here was a textbook with no manual as to how to make it work from day-to-day and hour-to-hour with thirty plus students.
Nearly twelve years later, I realized that one of my favorite parts of my job is still to create curriculum. Through patience, practice, and collaborating with other excellent educators, I learned how to create engaging curriculum. Sometimes I create curriculum from scratch, other times I adapt from others, and occasionally directly from the textbook. Along the way there have been ups and downs. There have been lessons that exceeded my expectations and others that left me wondering what was I thinking. Yet, my quest for engaging students into a topic or skill, keeps me coming back to the drawing board to make it better next time. I hope that this post and others may inspire you to love curriculum development and give you some tips along the way.
The last four years the educational landscape has changed dramatically in two areas. One is the Common Core Standards. Bemoaned by some, adored by others, either way a teacher feels about it, they are here; and for most of us, they are here to stay. The other area that is transforming education and our students is technology. I am a newbie in this area, but I am learning quickly and I would enjoy sharing how technology can impact your curriculum, as it transforms my own.
Time to create.
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