Unit Plans
As a teacher librarian I am available to co-teach with teachers from every department. Together we can build units that go beyond traditional learning and connect students to richer, more authentic learning experiences. With my experience in research and knowledge of ways to integrate emerging technologies into lessons, I can be a valuable resources for both co-teaching and professional development. Below find a sampling of inquiry and design units co-taught by the classroom teacher and the teacher librarian.
Students read current poems with environmental themes, research the issues discussed in the poetry, and come up with a list of important local environmental issues in their own community. They will present their learning in the form of poem to be read at a Listening Lunch. These will also be recorded and published on the class’s website. They will record a reading of the poem and create a lyrics video to show to the school community during their event, (or they can choose to read it live at the event) where they present findings and invite students and the school community to join in a campaign to support their chosen environmental issue.
"Curriculum Consultants" This unit will ask students to use the design thinking process to propose a new way to study the Japanese Internment Camps that incorporates primary sources and the lived experience of imprisoned Japanese Americans during World War II. As a whole group, the class will discuss the problem of learning about historical events by reading only one second-hand view of the events. The class will compare propaganda used during World War II to social media trends they see today to understand bias and the power of persuasion. Next student groups will study literature, photos and artwork, mixed media, and interviews and letters produced by Japanese Americans who lived in the internment camps. Finally, they will come together as a group to discuss the stories they learned through the works they studied, decide on which of the pieces are vital to building empathy and understanding of the experience, and curate a list of resources to read view and listen to in order to truly understand the experiences of Japanese Americans. The resources they put together will be used to create a presentation shared during a listening lunch or elective flex period~ in conjunction with an interactive exhibit that will be displayed in the Innovation Center throughout AAPI celebration month. Through ideating, prototyping, and testing their ideas – students will gain first hand experience about what it takes to design presentations that are meaningful, authentic and rooted in real-life human experiences.
In this unit, students learn to take positions on current justice issues based on reliable research and sound judgement rather than what they hear from friends and the media. They present their learning in a persuasive writing piece that takes into account current research, their audience, and their purpose. In listening to others who research similar topics, they will build empathy for opinions that differ from their own and understand how people form those opinions. The assignments have them using online databases available through the public library to select a current social issue, do research on the facts behind the issue, and present their learning both in writing and in a presentation to the greater community.
Students watch the intro video to gain a base level of knowledge about the concerns that are arising surrounding the "fast fashion industry." Through research and collaboration the students will gain enough knowledge about to create a podcast episode featuring a panel of (student) experts discussing the impacts the fast fashion industry is having on our planet. Finally, they will be asked to take one step towards changing the industry (perhaps a school-wide series of posters with surprising facts and figures to bring awareness? Perhaps create a social media campaign? Maybe write an op-ed to the local newspaper or to their legislators to propose policy changes that can support sustainability and and fair working conditions?).