Effective Unit/Long range Planning

How to plan a unit effectively:
I saw this cute picture and I want to relate it to planning. Students today each have a toolbox that they fill each day with the things they learn. I thought the backpack was a good visual for the 'toolbox'. We as teachers want to teach students to think for themselves, infer, question, use their schema, highlight important information, visualize and find out what the questions is really asking them. This is an example of a well-rounded math student that is ready to take on the world!

Source: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Good-Mathematicians-Poster-Girl-956315

Source: http://eberopolis.blogspot.ca/2012/09/writing-in-math.html

As well, we want to teach our students to persevere and do the 'hard math' as they say. We don't want to give them the answers but guide their thinking and empower them to figure it out by themselves!

Unit Planning: Things you need to consider

• Planning a unit involves determining the Big Ideas (curriculum expectations) you want your students to know by the end of the unit. Maybe have a discussion at the beginning of the unit and set the learning goal for that unit. Students and teacher can co-construct generic success criteria for the unit.  Example from http://democlassroomsharing.blogspot.ca/2011/03/three-part-lesson-money.html:
  
• Getting some information about your students prior learning on the topic. You can ask them to tell you or show you what they know (using a KWL chart). Or do a diagnostic quiz/test.
• Determine the Instructional strategies you want to use: i.e. use of manipulatives, gallery walk, BANSHO, 3 part math lesson, do your lessons flow from one concept to the next? Do your lessons build on previously learned concepts/ideas? Find some open-ended questions that could potentially get the students thinking about the math concept being taught.
• Assessment tools/strategies: Checklists, rubrics, self-assessments, peer assessments
• Cross-curricular connections: How will your lessons tie into other areas of the curriculum?

Long Range planning:  Looking at the big picture is important when preparing a long-range plan. When I taught Grade 3, we had to be very organized with our long range plans because we had to have the students ready for EQAO in May. Therefore all units had to be taught by then in order for students to succeed. When you do a successful Long-Range plan, you can see the whole picture and this better enables you as the teacher to help your students succeed!

This is an example of Long range planning:

Long Range Plans

Grade 3 

		Math
Sep	1	Data collection & graphing (DMP)
	2
	3
	4
Oct	1	Number Sense Place Value (NN)
	2
	3
	4
Nov	1	Patterning (PA)
	2
	3
	4	Addition and Subtraction (NN)
Dec	1
	2
	3
	4
Jan	1
	2	Add/Sub cont’d
	3	2D and 3D Shapes (GEO)
	4
Feb	1
	2	Time, Mass (MEA)
	3
	4

Mar	1	Fractions (NN)
	2
	3
	4	Multiplication and Division (NN)
Apr	1
	2
	3	Distance, Perimeter, Area (MEA)
	4
May	1
	2
	3	Equality (DMP)
	4
Jun	1	Probability (DMP)
	2
	3