Element 1: Lay the Foundation
Purpose: Applying curriculum mapping within a district or school begins with an understanding of the fundamentals. These include being knowledgeable about the basic concepts, defining a vision for the initiative, and creating a leadership structure to support it. Element 1 outlines these tasks and offers resources for the teacher to gain such an understanding.
Activity 1: Understand Curriculum Mapping Concepts
Activity 2: Create a Shared Vision for Curriculum Mapping
Activity 3: Define the Leadership Structure to Support Mapping
Task 1: Create Diary Maps
Guideline: Diary maps provide teachers with a record of what they taught during a given period of time. The mapping process enables teachers to reflect on what they taught and how it was taught. As noted by Janet Hale, "a diary map represents what really happened." Preparing diary maps is a first step toward implementing curriculum mapping as an instructional tool.
Bloom's Taxonomy
This document provides links to websites offering resources on Bloom's Taxonomy.
Building Academic Vocabulary
This link is to the Oklahoma State Department of Education's academic vocabulary initiative. As noted at its website, "This manual is designed to help school districts or individual schools systematically enhance the academic vocabulary of their students to better prepare them to learn new content in mathematics, science, language arts, and social studies."
Creating Quality Curriculum Maps
Janet Hale's CurriculumMapping101.com website provides resources aimed at writing quality maps. At the site, click on Creating Quality Maps With Design in Mind Reminder Guides. A generic template for a diary map can be accessed through this link. It focuses "on the most common elements included in a curriculum map: Unit Name, Content, Skills, Assessments, Resources intra-aligned to Standards." The template can can serve as a visual reference when creating diary maps.
Curriculum Map Samples
This is a link to sample curriculum maps available at Janet Hale's Curriculum Mapping101 website. Sample diary and consensus maps are provided in generic form as well as for specific mapping systems. As noted at the site, "each document is meant to be read with a focus on wording, format, and intra-alignment with curriculum design in mind."
Curriculum Mapping: Writing Quality Maps
In this archived PowerPoint presentation Janet Hale, a national curriculum mapping consultant and trainer, reviews the importance of writing quality maps.
Video: Launch the Process
In this video, provided by Curriculum Designers, Inc., Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs explains her thoughts on launching the mapping process. This video runs 3 minutes and 20 seconds.
Element 2: Launch the Process
Purpose: Wiktionary dictionary defines launch as "to set going; to give a start to (something); to put in operation." Curriculum mapping is an ongoing process. The process involves creating maps that drive instruction, reviewing and improving those maps over time, and learning how to master mapping strategies. Element 2 outlines these tasks and offers resources for district and school leaders and teachers to launch curriculum mapping.
Activity 1: Using Curriculum Maps to Drive Instruction
Activity 2: Undertake a Review Process to Improve Instruction
Activity 3: Learn How to Master Mapping Strategies
Element 3: Sustain and Integrate the Mapping Process
Purpose: Curriculum mapping is an ongoing process as teachers review and update the respective maps regularly. The process of updating their maps enables teachers to think about how they can improve and update their instructional approaches. The Element 3 tasks address incorporating assessment results into the mapping process.
Activity 1: Conduct Ongoing Strategic Monitoring
Activity 2: Unpack Assessment Data
Element 4: Advanced Mapping Tasks
Purpose: Curriculum mapping is an ongoing process as teachers review and update the respective maps regularly . The process of updating their maps enables teachers to think about how they can improve and update their instructional approaches. The Element 4 tasks address applying new instructional techniques and integrating technology with curriculum.
Activity 1: Update Maps with 21st Century Techniques
