Reading Response to Chapters 3-5

As I read through the assigned chapters, I couldn't help but compare what I was reading about to what I had attempted to do when writing my Learning Experiences last semester. I found myself wishing that I had had this book to refer to what I was working on that assignment. For me, I would never have thought to work "backward" through the planning process. As I read chapter three, I began to think that maybe what the authors are considering backward is actually forward and what I have been doing is backward. That thought stems from the realization that the Backward Design Process makes much more sense, to me, in the grand scheme of things.

I feel that I have had some practice in scanning and clustering standards, because I literally cut apart the standards and regrouped them while I was working on my Learning Experiences. However, I do no think that I actually integrated them very well. I did nothing but link together activities that dealt with the same topic. Each individual lesson did not truly combine multiple disciplines. For example, few if any of my lessons made obvious connections between math and science. I look forward to gaining more experience clustering the standards when preparing a unit.

I am always concerned with what kind of assessment I am going to use. I think that is one of the hardest parts of writing a lesson. When I began to really look at the chart on page 78 of the textbook, I realized that I struggle with deciding on a single type of assessment because every student has different needs. Even now, as I continue to think about the chart, I am wondering what some of the logical ways to combine the assessment strategies my be. I would rather combine strategies than have to limit my students on one type of assessment or feel as though I should create a different assessment for each student. Maybe I could use peer evaluations, journals, and a scoring rubric to determine a single grade--use several types of assessment before I assign a grade.

I am convinced that by using the KNOW/DO/Be bridge model, I will be able to better the lessons that I write. I think that setting forth what I want my students to know and be able to do, before I start planning anything else, will enable me to create meaningful lesson for my students.