For many subjects, we've been given a grid that links competencies and content in perfect little boxes to tick.
"Develop and apply mental math strategies..." could go with, say, "multiplication and division facts to 100." Very nice for us A-types who like boxes to tick.
Science has presented an interesting problem for me. Every single one of the curriculuar competencies relates to the scientific process- from questioning, predicting, and designing experiments, to analyzing results and communicating conclusions.
Love it. I'm all about the scientific process. However...
the curriculum doesn't specifically say anything about learning the content. When do we actually teach them information?
My confusion was thinking that the competencies were supposed to be the only way to learn the content. Which was frustrating when I have things like excretory, endocrine and reproductive systems on the docket. Question, predict and design an experiment? I can think of a few but not to teach our entire content! It doesn't help that the Grade 6 textbook - a fabulous resource- is now completely dead to us.
I also can't help feeling that I am using that old, linear way of thinking- and seeing myself, or the textbook as the main learning tools.
I sent out a desperate plea for help to our brand new Science Helping Teacher, Craig, about this and he helped me clarify it in my mind. I knew I can't be the only one who is asking these questions, so I thought I'd share his advice, and my ways of making sense of it all.
Students will Know the Content by Doing the Curricular
Competencies in order to Understand
the Big Ideas.
He suggested trying to hit the competencies over the year; some topics lend themselves more to certain parts of the competencies. Ie- Focus on planning and predicting for Chemistry, Applying and Innovating for Space etc.
This was a very helpful insight for me:
Curricular Competencies get emphasized much more deeply than they have in the past because they have been neglected. But they do not replace the learning of information. They only change some of the way that information is learned. Rather than just telling them stuff, hands-on learning is the starting point for exploration. But there will always be a place for us to “teach” (in the old-fashioned sense) information.
Phew! Ok- I don't have to throw out everything I've ever done or the methods that I've taught.
So here's my summary of all this brain spewing I've been doing:
Content is what they should (could) know
Curricular competencies are what they should do- but not exclusively. The competencies don't have to be the only way we should be learning it. (Again, it was the grid concept that was throwing me off.)
Time to start shift that lens and start planning!
UPDATE: Aug 2017
After teaching the it for a year, I've come to a bit of a different way of thinking. What if... the curricular competencies are really the focus? The content is the suggested way you can meet those, but not the 'must complete.'
I killed myself trying to fit in 4 body systems, chemistry (a small and random piece, I might add), space, Science Fair and Newton's laws this year. And I was already integrating all my Language Arts into Science- which was my main focus for my 2 days I teach. I still had the old way of thinking, that I had to cover it all. This way of thinking is a lot more freeing.
After teaching the it for a year, I've come to a bit of a different way of thinking. What if... the curricular competencies are really the focus? The content is the suggested way you can meet those, but not the 'must complete.'
I killed myself trying to fit in 4 body systems, chemistry (a small and random piece, I might add), space, Science Fair and Newton's laws this year. And I was already integrating all my Language Arts into Science- which was my main focus for my 2 days I teach. I still had the old way of thinking, that I had to cover it all. This way of thinking is a lot more freeing.
