Our Curricular Approach - Why Themes?

Summers-Knoll uses school-wide themes as a way to integrate content areas in a way that makes sense to children. We have been tweaking this over the years, hoping to make the process really come alive and to give themes the time to make them deeper and more meaningful. This year, we are starting the first three of six rotating large ideas - identity, systems, and innovation. As usual, we end the year reflecting on all we have learned. 

Identity is a wonderful and natural place to start the year, as it involves self-examination, getting-to-know-you activities, setting goals, and (of course) recognizing that we are all alike and different. We will celebrate our commonalities, and glory in the ways we are unique. 

The big ideas I hope to explore in the next several months are:

* How do people "see" themselves?
* What shapes identity?
* Is identity constant, or does it change?

This is also a natural time to introduce the TRIBES curriculum, which you will learn about soon in a future post.

I hope it is clear that we hope to foster process learning and active involvement for ALL students with diverse learning styles. Thematic units involve activities designed to cross several areas of curriculum, and build on students’ prior knowledge and interests. Plus, it is a way for us to build relationships between all of the classrooms, as there are usually several opportunities throughout the year to gather meaningfully in larger groups.

Other benefits:

Learning in-depth factual information
Becoming physically involved with learning
Learning process skills
Learning "how to learn"
Integrating learning in a holistic way
Promoting group cohesiveness
Addressing individual needs
Motivating children and teachers
(Kostelnik, M.J., Soderman, A. K., & Whiren, A. P., 2004)

Why Themes? and Our First Theme of the Year

Summers-Knoll uses school-wide bi-monthly themes as a way to integrate content areas in a way that makes sense to children. We hope to foster process learning and active involvement for ALL students with diverse learning styles. Thematic units involve activities designed to cross several areas of curriculum, and build on students’ prior knowledge and interests. Plus, it is a way for us to build relationships between all of the classrooms, as there are usually one or two opportunities each month to gather meaningfully in larger groups.

Other benefits:

Learning in-depth factual information
Becoming physically involved with learning
Learning process skills
Learning "how to learn"
Integrating learning in a holistic way
Promoting group cohesiveness
Addressing individual needs
Motivating children and teachers
(Kostelnik, M.J., Soderman, A. K., & Whiren, A. P., 2004)

You can see the 2013/14 themes for the year listed on your right. While in the past, we have changed themes every month or so, this year we are trying a bi-monthly rotation. We hope that this will give both teachers and students time to really delve into the subject area, and explore it more deeply. 

The first theme for the 13/14 school year is EXPLORERS OF THE WORLD. We will continue what the children have been working on all summer, as part of our shared-learning experience using the book "How to be an Explorer of the World" -  by using our curiosity and keen observation skills. 

In our class, we will also use the explorations of the Lewis and Clark to become our own Corps of Discovery. Taking cues from our research material (informational texts, picture books, chapter books, and DVDs), we will learn about mapping, latitude and longitude, native american life in the early 1800's (perhaps by making our own moccasins or playing games the indian children did), etc. Science activities may include making compasses, preserving plants, and making fruit leather.  

The Thematic Approach

Summers-Knoll uses school-wide monthly themes as a way to integrate content areas in a way that makes sense to children. We hope to foster process learning and active involvement for ALL students with diverse learning styles. Thematic units involve activities designed to cross several areas of curriculum, and build on students’ prior knowledge and interests. Plus, it is a way for us to build relationships between all of the classrooms, as there are usually one or two opportunities each month to gather meaningfully in larger groups.

Other benefits:

Learning in-depth factual information
Becoming physically involved with learning
Learning process skills
Learning "how to learn"
Integrating learning in a holistic way
Promoting group cohesiveness
Addressing individual needs
Motivating children and teachers
(Kostelnik, M.J., Soderman, A. K., & Whiren, A. P., 2004)

You can see the 2012/13 themes for the year listed on your right.

Our first theme of the 2012-2013 school year is Farm to Table. This will be revisited in the spring.

You can imagine all of the great learning opportunities from this first theme. Of course, we will travel to the Farmers Market to learn about where our local food comes from first hand. We will research how various foods found at the supermarket end up on the shelves. And - my favorite - will we definitely be cooking and celebrating the harvest. 

If you have any questions about using a thematic approach to teaching, please don’t hesitate to ask!

Welcome to our classroom blog!

Welcome to the 2007-2008 school year at Summers-Knoll! I am most excited to be your child's teacher and am looking forward to a wonderful year of learning.

Our curriculum will again be based around monthly integrated themes. We try very hard to give the children a well-rounded educational experience, and our themes reflect a good mix of language arts, social studies, and science.

We will begin our year by studying Art and Artists, with some emphasis on the art of early man up through the Renaissance, although more modern art will be studied as well. Children will get many chances to create art in the styles of some of the great masters. Hopefully, the students will begin to emcompass a greater sense of history and art appreciation.

Other themes this year:

October - Native Americans
November - Physical Science/Force and Motion
December - Author Studies
January - Ancient Egypt
February - Simple Machines/Invention Convention
March - Asia
April - Genre Studies
May - Life Science/Soil