Have you ever wondered how you can meet the timelines using thematic units? Can using thematic or literacy units be helpful when there are so many time issues during one school day.
As educators we are always finding there is just not enough time in a day. Do you ever feel like you are running a race to get everything in? Do you wonder how much time can you spend on a topic and still feel your students are meeting grade level expectations?
That is why thematic units are so beneficial, it is like one stop shopping! Time is just one component of thematic units, but it is a biggy. Here are some ideas that may help you with the timelines using thematic units.
The Driving Force
Let’s just agree, there is never enough time! We unfortunately cannot change the amount of time we have each day. So that’s where our planning comes into play!
Once you have chosen a thematic unit your standards and objectives that you want to teach and practice with your students will be the driving force on how much time you can spend on that theme.
Thematic Unit Timelines
There is no set number of days or weeks that you must teach a thematic or literacy-based unit. Some educators plan different thematic units for each week. Others plan their themes on a two-to-nine-week schedule.
If you have decided that you are going to cover may cross-curricular subject areas and skills with this theme then, of course, you will need a longer period time to teach your lessons. Mapping out your plans for each curricular area regarding your theme will help in knowing how much time should be allotted.
Butterfly Thematic Unit Example
Thematic units can begin with topics that are mandated for a certain grade level. An example of this is in a life science unit and the study of an animal’s life. The butterfly’s life cycle is the main focus of this science topic, so the butterfly thematic unit was developed.
The life science unit itself, was a 15-week unit, however the butterfly themed part of the unit was about 9 weeks. So that is how long the study of this theme would be.
The timeline for each of the science units regarding the butterfly unit was already set. The next thing is preparing the lessons and materials that would be appropriate for your students in the other curricular areas.
Timeline Considerations
There are other facets that must be explored after deciding how much time you have to spend on a specific thematic unit. These will be based on your standards and what you want your students to learn during this unit of study. Here are a few components to consider:
- Environment to complete unit of study
- Materials needs to complete unit
- Curricular centers based on theme
- Activities based on thematic unit
- Thematic unit literature
- Discussion & Questions Points
- Assessments used based on thematic unit
Grab your Free, Butterfly Student Booklet!
In summary, timelines using thematic units are based on the standards and objectives of your students. There is never enough time in a day, however thematic units are designed to help educators manage that time more wisely.
Timelines are just one component of thematic or literature-based units of study. There is no set time that you must teach a thematic unit, it all depends on what you as the educator want to teach. Once you know the standards and what you want to cover, it is you that decides how much time you need to accomplish the task.
Find some more reading activities and assessments in my store, The Teaching Scene by Maureen.
To read more topics check out my blog, “Seven Effective First Grade Assessment Tools”
