Build Your Own Curriculum Algebra CG Analysis

We put our curriculum on a website called Build Your Own Curriculum. This website provides a template for us to answer questions about our units of study. These questions include the TEK ! what do we want our students to learn! how will we "now our students have learned the material! how is the material bein# presented! what will we do if the students do not learn the material! and what will we do if the students already "now the material. We separate our units by every nine wee"s then by topic. $ have chosen to analy%e the topic we are wrappin# up this wee"! which is &olynomials. We are currently revisin# this curriculum as we ma"e chan#es each day with the lessons. This format of curriculum is very useful! especially for new teachers! because it #ives teachers an idea of what is comin# up! and it provides them with all of the resources that are used within the unit. Our team leader has also uploaded day'by'day lesson plans that we use to #uide our instruction.
Lesson Topic: _________Polynomials__ Length of lesson: ____17 Days______ "ontent Standard#s$:
Grade Level TEK A.1.A - S A.1.C - S A.1.E - R A.2.D - R A.4.A - R A.4.B - S A.11.A - S

Grade level:_____9_______ es!lts

Stage 1 Desired

Next Grade Level TEKS: 2A.1.B 2A.2.A 2A.10 2A.11 %nderstanding #s$&goals Students will learn proper usage o exponents w!en adding" su#tra$ting" dividing" and %ultipl&ing %ono%ials and pol&no%ials. Students will appl& laws o exponents in geo%etri$ pro#le%s. Students will re$ogni'e independent and dependent values in t!e ive representations. Students will understand t!e relations!ip #etween independent 'ssential (!estion#s$:

and dependent varia#les. T!e (nderstandings)goals $a%e ro% t!e *w!at do we want our students to learn+ se$tion. St!dent o)*ectives #o!tcomes$: Students will #e a#le to: Add" su#tra$t" %ultipl&" and divide %ono%ials and pol&no%ials using t!e laws o exponents in di erent situations ,eter%ine independent and dependent varia#les in a variet& o situations. T!ese o#-e$tives were not spe$i i$all& stated" #ut t!e& $an #e derived ro% t!e (nderstandings)goals

Stage + ,ssessment 'vidence Performance Tas-#s$: .ther 'vidence: .ui''es Tests /!e$0 dail& wor0 Assess%ents Tea$!er 1#servation 2eer tutor notes)$o%%ents 3o%ewor0 assign%ents Exit slips T!ese were listed under t!e *!ow will we 0now t!e& !ave learned t!e s0ill+ se$tion. Stage / Learning Plan Learning ,ctivities: Adding 2ol&no%ials using Alge#ra Tiles Topi$ 4 2 51 Adding and Su#tra$ting 2ol&no%ials A4251 Topi$ 4 2 5 2 6ultipl&ing 6ono%ials A 4 25 2 Tas0 1.2.7 Exploring ,ependent and 8ndependent 2i'a'' w)s 5 3orse Breeding)6ultipl&ing Exponents Topi$ 4 9 5 1 ,ividing 6ono%ials A49 51 Tas0 1.1: T!at;s !ow it loo0s Topi$ 4 2 5 9 2owers o 6ono%ials A4259 6at!o 5 6utlipl&ing 6ono%ials .ui' over 6ultipl&ing and ,epends State%ent Adding and %ultipl&ing %ono%ials 41" 42" 49" < 47 Test 5 Adding and 6ultipl&ing 6ono%ials

Notes5 =ero and Negative Exponents .ui' 5 6ultipl&ing 6ono%ials Topi$ 4 2 5 7 6ultipl& 2ol&no%ials A4257 .ui' 5 6ultipl&ing 6ono%ials Topi$ 4 2 5 : 6ultipl&ing 6ono%ials and 2ol&no%ials A425: ,istri#uting 6ono%ials .ui' 5 6ultipl&ing Bino%ials Topi$ 4 2 5 > 2ol&no%ials in Geo%etri$ ?or% A425> .ui' 5 ,ividing 6ono%ials .ui' 5 Area and 2eri%eter o @e$tangles Test @eview: 2ol&no%ials (nit A Area and 2eri%eter @eview too Test: 2ol&no%ials (nit A ter Test: 6ultipl&ing 2ol&no%ials Bsate$ wsC De also $reated di$e ga%es Bt!at assessed di erent operations and t&pes o pro#le%sC t!at we used as a review or t!e unit test. T!is review wor0ed prett& well #e$ause it allowed us ti%e to re5tea$! and tutor. 8t also gave t!e students opportunities to $!e$0 t!eir own understanding #& tutoring ea$! ot!er.

Effectiveness The Build Your Own Curriculum website is very user friendly for new teachers to use in their classrooms. $t is or#ani%ed in a way that helps teachers "now where they want to accomplish throu#h each unit. $t also allows the #roup who is writin# the curriculum to ma"e notes for the ne(t year about what to chan#e. $t also allows a space for resources and materials to be uploaded so that new teachers can easily access the recommended materials easily. The only problem that $ see in the curriculum itself is that it is hi#hly wor"sheet driven.

There are not any opportunities for students to create a product usin# the s"ills that they have learned throu#hout the unit. We are wor"in# as a team to fi( this and allow students more opportunities to discover the s"ills needed and create products rather than doin# wor"sheets all the time. This curriculum is also in dan#er of not assessin# for understandin#. $f it is not used correctly it could be used to assess "nowled#e instead of understandin#. Recommendations One of my recommendations is that we should steer away from usin# as many wor"sheets and allow opportunities for students to discover the s"ills needed and to create products from their learnin# throu#hout the unit. We should allow them opportunities to learn by doin#. This would also allow us to use authentic assessment to assess whether or not the students truly understand the ob)ectives instead of usin# a paper*pencil method to assess for "nowled#e. + recommendation would be to create more hands on activities and pro)ects. $ would also recommend discussin# what the essential questions would be and decide how we want students to answer those questions! then use that as our #uide to teachin# and assessin# the bi# ideas*understandin#s*#oals.