Teaching is a lot like taking a road trip. You have to do a ton of planning and packing, you have to know where you want to end up before you start driving, you have to determine which route is the best one to take for your students, and there is ALWAYS someone who needs to use the bathroom.
Recently our family went on a long road trip. I packed for almost two weeks leading up to our departure to make sure we had tons of snacks, activities for the kids, and everything we would need for our trip. We mapped out several routes before choosing the one that worked best for us and driving nearly 3000 miles. In order to plan our route, we had to know our DESTINATION. We had to BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND. I can’t even imagine getting into the car with three kids and driving without any direction or idea of where we were going and how long it would take.
When I began teaching middle school science, I realized I needed to plan for the year– not just plan week by week, but really map out where we would be going with our curriculum for the year. I needed a road map to ensure we would hit all of our standards along the way and make it to our destination prepared. I wanted to make sure that I knew what I needed to highlight for my students to ensure we all made it to our destination together ( and we didn’t leave anyone along the side of the road along the way).
I sat down with a list of our state standards and my school’s curriculum planning guide and mapped out the order things needed to be taught. I created a checklist of each standard to use so I could keep track of our progress throughout the year. I began the year taking inventory of what students already had a grasp on, what misconceptions they had, and what we needed to work on. In my state, 8th grade brings the Science STAAR Test. I wanted to make sure I was teaching all of the standards and that my students would perform well on the test at the end of the year. I knew that if I did my job as a navigator, we could all make it to the end of the year successfully together.
As you prepare for the new school year, I encourage you to map out your curriculum and consider the different routes you can take to get all of your students to your destination. Use a preassessment tool to figure out what skills students have and what they need and then use what you gain from your data to help direct your route this year.
I wish you safe travels! May you find the path that best fits the needs of your students, may you feel confident in navigating the way, may your students all make it to your destination and hopefully not have to make too many bathroom stops along the way!
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