Chapters International

Overview:

Designing a high-quality curriculum is one of the most important steps in promoting student thinking, differentiating instruction and ensuring that learning continuously improves. Learn how to design Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction for literacy and other process-driven disciplines, such world languages, visual arts and music.

Participants in this workshop will explore questions such as:

How can I help my students become autonomous learners who question, problem solve, and think critically, creatively, conceptually, and reflectively?
How can I help students meet academic standards without sacrificing their motivation for learning?
What is deep understanding, and how can I design curriculum for higher order thinking and deeper understanding?
How can I move student learning beyond strategies and skills to conceptual understanding?

Agenda:

Day 1

9:00 A.M. - 10:30 A.M.
Keeping up with a changing world

Coverage centered (2 dimensional) vs. idea-centered (3 dimensional) curriculum / instruction.
Review of the Structure of Knowledge: Teaching for deep understanding and transfer-- Where should we ultimately target our teaching?
Introduction to the Structure of Process: How does the Structure of Process meet and reflect the unique needs of process-driven subjects, and how does it relate to the Structure of Knowledge?

Steps of Unit Design Process

Step 1: There is More to a Unit Title than Meets the Eye
- How to select an appropriate unit title
- The pros and cons of how you organize units of study

Step 2: The conceptual lens
- The power of a conceptual lens

10:30 A.M. - 11:00 A.M. Break
11:00 A.M. - 12:30 P.M.

Observing a Concept-Based classroom
Step 3 & 4: Designing a Unit Web for Process-driven subjects
- The Process Strands which reflect the aims of a process discipline
- The rationale for the strands
- Building the web with micro-concepts related to each strand

12:30 P.M. - 1:30 P.M. Lunch
1:30 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.

Table Talk: Reflections and the biggest "take away" from the morning
Continue work on Step 4
Step 5: Writing Clear and Powerful Generalizations
- Balancing process and content generalizations
- Cross checking generalizations and criteria
Step 6: Introduction to Guiding Questions
Set up for tomorrow's work

Day 2

9:00 A.M.- 10:30 A.M.

Jigsaw Lois A. Lanning's book - Designing Concept-based Curriculum for English Language Arts ©2013
Synthesis

10:30 A.M. -11:00 A.M. -- Break
11:00 A.M. -12:30 P.M.
Unit writing continued....

Step 6: Writing 3 kinds of Teacher (Guiding) Questions to move student thinking to the conceptual level
Steps 7 & 8: Critical Content Knowledge (KNOW) and Skills (able to DO)
Critique and revise unit writing up to steps completed using Unit Evaluation Check-List

12:30 P.M. -1:30 P.M. --- Lunch
1:30 P.M. - 4:00 P.M.
Unit writing continued...

Step 9: Performance Assessment and scoring guide
Performances of Deep Understanding vs. Activities
- The What / Why / How Formula
- Writing a scoring guide/rubric
Rolling out suggested Learning Experiences (Explored in depth during Day 3)
Writing the Unit Overview
Questions / Answers / Reflections and Sharing

Lois A. Lanning

Lois A. Lanning, Ph.D., is an author and independent education consultant. She presents and works with districts at the international, national and state levels in the areas of literacy and Concept-Based Curriculum design.

Her upcoming 2018 book, co-authored with Tiffanee Brown, is titled, Moving Literacy Beyond Skills to Understanding and Transfer: Designing Concept-Based ELA Lessons, Corwin Press Publisher. In addition to writing professional articles and teacher resources, Lois is the author of the bestselling book, Four Powerful Strategies for Struggling Readers Grades 3-8: Small Group Instruction that Improves Comprehension, a joint publication between Corwin Press and the International Reading Association, c. 2009, Designing a Concept-based Curriculum for English Language Arts: Meeting the Common Core with Intellectual Integrity, K-12. Corwin Press, c. 2013, a chapter in The Best of Corwin: Differentiated Instruction in Literacy, Math, and Science, Leslie Laud, Editor, c. 2011, Corwin Press, Transitioning to Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction, co-authored with longtime colleague and friend, H.L. Erickson, Corwin Press, c. 2014, and Concept-Based Curriculum & Instruction for the Thinking Classroom 2 nd edition, (2017), co-authored with H. Lynn Erickson and Rachel French.

Lois was a classroom teacher, K-12 reading consultant, special education teacher, elementary school principal, district curriculum director, adjunct professor, and finally, an assistant superintendent of schools for the last 12 years of her career in public schools.

Lois is the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions. Her hobbies include reading, biking, hiking, and traveling. Lois currently lives in West Hartford, Connecticut with her husband. She has two children, and two grandsons, Christopher and Ryan, whom she absolutely adores.

Venue:
Hong Kong

8:30 am to 3:30 pm
Registration at 8.30 am
on the 9th November 2019.