Rockets, Ice Cream, and Student Understandings
This tidbit came from the session on Supervising Teachers Using DI and UbD with Everett Kline and Deb Burns . . .
A kindergarten teacher was very excited about a unit she created and delivered to her students on the universe. She told her supervisor about how she started the unit by bringing her students out to the playground to watch the janitor shoot off a rocket. "The kids loved it!" she beamed.
Her principal asked her, "Why did you begin the unit with that activity?"
"Because the kids loved it!"
The principal replied, "Yes, you told me that. But why did you do that activity?"
She said, again, "Because the kids loved it!"
The principal replied, "Well, I suggest you use ice cream then, because all your kids love it, even the ones who don't like rockets!"
The kindergarten teacher was angry, of course, but she did come back to her principal to learn about how to design units with all activities aligned to the desired results.
The activity with the rocket was engaging, but it wasn't effective if it didn't support the student understandings the teacher intended for her unit.
Related Resources
Understanding by Design, Expanded 2nd Edition
How do you know when students understand something? Can you design learning experiences that make it much more likely that students understand content and apply it in meaningful ways? This book will help you answer these questions and create more rigorous and engaging curriculums.
Professional Development Online
Understanding by Design: An Introduction
This seven-lesson course introduces teachers in all grades and subjects to the Understanding by Design program for curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
Have More Questions About UbD?
Have an Understanding by Design expert come to you. The ASCD Faculty are a group of expert trainers and consultants from the field of education ready to design workshops, keynote speeches, consultations, or conferences for your district.
A kindergarten teacher was very excited about a unit she created and delivered to her students on the universe. She told her supervisor about how she started the unit by bringing her students out to the playground to watch the janitor shoot off a rocket. "The kids loved it!" she beamed.
Her principal asked her, "Why did you begin the unit with that activity?"
"Because the kids loved it!"
The principal replied, "Yes, you told me that. But why did you do that activity?"
She said, again, "Because the kids loved it!"
The principal replied, "Well, I suggest you use ice cream then, because all your kids love it, even the ones who don't like rockets!"
The kindergarten teacher was angry, of course, but she did come back to her principal to learn about how to design units with all activities aligned to the desired results.
The activity with the rocket was engaging, but it wasn't effective if it didn't support the student understandings the teacher intended for her unit.
Related Resources
Understanding by Design, Expanded 2nd Edition
How do you know when students understand something? Can you design learning experiences that make it much more likely that students understand content and apply it in meaningful ways? This book will help you answer these questions and create more rigorous and engaging curriculums.
Professional Development Online
Understanding by Design: An Introduction
This seven-lesson course introduces teachers in all grades and subjects to the Understanding by Design program for curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
Have More Questions About UbD?
Have an Understanding by Design expert come to you. The ASCD Faculty are a group of expert trainers and consultants from the field of education ready to design workshops, keynote speeches, consultations, or conferences for your district.
Learn more about next year's conference, visit our 2006 summer conference page, where you can register today.
Explore Differentiated Instruction resources and Understanding by Design resources.
posted by ASCD at 7:36 AM
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