Unpacking the Curriculum Directions: Use the template to unpack the intended Learning Outcomes related to the Virginia

Standard(s) of Learning (SOL) you selected. Include the grade, content area, and applicable SOL number. Intended Learning Outcome
Underline the content and bold the word(s) that provides an indication of the cognitive level(s)

Content
List the explicit, implied, and conditional content (p. 58-59) Explicit The life needs of plants and animals are food, water, and air. Implied Students need to have a basic understanding of living as opposed to non-living things. Students also should also be able to distinguish a plant from an animal. Students should understand the basic properties of food, water, and air. Conditional Not applicable.

Cognitive Level on Blooms Taxonomy

Provide the cognitive level(s) in terms of Blooms Taxonomy (p. 61)

Describe the life needs of animals and plants. The life needs are food, water, and air. (Science K.6)

Knowledge

Predict what will happen to animals and plants if life needs are not met (Science K.6)

Explicit What will happen to animals and plant needs are not met Implied Students need to have an understanding of cause and effect. Students should be able to make and explain a prediction in relation to life needs. Students should recognize that when life needs are not met, living things will not be able to perform basic life functions and will eventually die. Conditional Not applicable.

Evaluation

Describe some simple changes animals and plants undergo during the life cycle. For animals this may include changes in color, body covering, and overall size. For plants this may include size, presence of leaves and branches, and ability to produce flowers and fruits (Science K.6)

Explicit Animals and plants undergo changes during the life cycle. Animals may change in color, body covering, and size during their life cycle. Plants may change in size, presence of leaves and branches, and ability to produce flowers and fruits. Implied Students should understand the meaning of change. Students should have a

Comprehension

vocabulary for describing basic features and parts of animals and plants. Students should understand the meaning of a life cycle. Conditional Not applicable.

Compare and contrast young plants and animals with their parents, using pictures and/or live organisms. (Science K.6)

Explicit Young plants and animals Implied Students should know what it means to compare and contrast, and should have concepts of same and different. Students should understand that living things come from other living things. Students should understand Conditional Using pictures and or live organisms.

Analysis

Identify simple patterns in natural objects e.g veins in a leaf, spiral patterns in cones, shapes and colors of common seeds. (Science K.8)

Explicit Simple patterns in natural objects Implied Students should know the meaning of pattern. Students should be able to identify a vein and recognize cones and seeds. Student need should have a vocabulary for discussing shapes and colors. Students should know the meaning of spiral. Conditional 6 veins in a leaf, spiral patterns in cones, shapes and colors of common seeds.

Comprehension

Describe how animals and plants change as they grow (Science K.8)

Explicit How animals and plants change as they grow Implied Students should know the meaning of grow and change. Students should have a basic understanding of how animals and plants progress through lifecycles. Conditional Not applicable.

Comprehension

Describe how things change naturally. This includes seasonal changes, the growth in seeds and common plants, common animals, including the butterfly, and the weather. (Science K.9)

Explicit How things grow naturally Implied Students should understand the difference between natural and human-caused changes. Students should know the butterfly life cycle and a typical plant life cycle. Students should have a vocabulary for discussing

Comprehension

weather. Students should know the basic characteristics seasons, and should be able to distinguish daily weather changes from seasonal changes. Conditional , seasonal changes, the growth in seeds and common plants, common animals, including the butterfly, and the weather Explicit Examples of fast changes and slow changes like the kinds of familiar changes that occur over weeks, months, or seasons. Implied Students need basic calendar concepts including days, weeks, months, and seasons. Students need to know the meaning of change and should understand concepts of same and different. Conditional Students are not responsible for long-term changes. Explicit how people cause things to change, e Implied Students should have a basic understanding of concepts of cause and effect. Conditional e.g. demolition of buildings, construction of buildings, cutting down trees, planting trees, and building highways

Identify examples of fast changes and slow changes. Slow changes should be the kinds of familiar changes that occur over weeks, months, or seasons. Students are not responsible for long-term changes (Science K.9)

Comprehension

Describe how people cause things to change e.g., demolition of buildings, construction of buildings, cutting down trees, planting trees, and building highways. (Science K.9)

Comprehension

NOTE: page numbers reference pages Teacher-Made Assessment: How to Connect Curriculum, Instruction, and Student Learning (2008) for reference

What are the larger curricular aims of the subject area in which these objectives are taught? (Remember to consult the aims and goals of the curriculum from the Virginia Standards of Learning documents.) The learning objectives linked to Standard K.6 are meant to introduce students to basic life science concepts, which are developed throughout middle school and high school to provide the foundations for high school Biology. In first grade, students will expand on these learning objectives to identify more specific needs, parts, and characteristics of plants and animals. Scientific investigation skills should also be interwoven into teaching these standards. Standard K.8 focuses on identifying patterns and change in daily life and expands on social studies calendar skills and mathematical concepts of patterns. Standard K.9 which focuses on student understanding of measuring and describing human-made and natural change over time and builds on mathematical concepts of measurement. All of these standards are meant to be accomplished through scientific investigations and thereby are closely intertwined with the development scientific process skills and scientific logic.

What insights or cautions would you share with another teacher in your subject-area regarding the unpacking of these particular objectives? Note that this is not a discussion on what a teacher might consider in teaching the unit but rather the discussion should focus on the process of unpacking. While the individual learning outcomes listed in the curriculum framework provide greater detail regarding the actual content to be covered in order to meet Science SOLs K.6, K.8, and K.9, teachers should be careful not to neglect the broader SOLs when unpacking the subordinate items. The broad SOLs all begin with the phrasing The student will investigate and understand. This phrase provides cues as to how to teach the content in each of these SOLs, and implies that teachers should integrate and reinforce science standard K.1, which addresses investigative skills, in conjunctions with each of these SOLs. Additionally, teachers should note that these standards are largely ambiguous about what plants and animals the students should know, mentioning only butterflies in specific, and specifying only that students should be introduced to common plants and animals. As these are very broad categories, and common is relative according to the local natural environment, these standards teachers leave a lot of room for interpretation in regards to the animals and plants they introduce to the students.