Curriculum Mapping is a procedure for collecting and maintaining a database of the operational curriculum in a school and/or district. It provides the basis for an authentic examination of the said database (Heidi Hayes Jacobs, 1997).
To help you learn more about curriculum mapping, Chalk has partnered with Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs to bring you 3 informative on-demand webinars on the planning process. Watch these informational webinars here!
When mapping, it is important to create a consistent format that outlines the overall plan. A standard template can help you in these 7 ways:
- Builds consistency in instruction.
- It creates a formal streamlined process of mapping.
- Reduces time spent on mapping and speeds up the process.
- Creates alignment between teachers, grade levels, subject matters, and overall school.
- Easily review areas of instruction and find gaps.
- It helps you focus on what’s most important within your instruction.
- It makes it easy and flexible for all educators to use.
Sample Curriculum Template
This is one example of a curriculum template and how a map can be laid out.
As you can see this is a basic UBD template, that can expand to outline the important areas within a unit. A curriculum map can be robust and include long descriptions, content, resources, plans that influence instruction.
If you are working on a curriculum map, learn more here on how to map a curriculum map with your team.
Here is a quick outline of the sample map above and potentially what you can include within these categories.
Unit Overview or Description
A unit description can have a basic outline of what is going to be covered, when, and how. It’s important to include information you deem relevant to the unit and can properly explain what will be taught in a unit.
Standards Expectations
Standards are important to a curriculum map as they showcase the skillsets that students need to master and outlines proper goals for teachers in every subject. It’s important to layout standards in an easy format so that teachers can understand which standard to cover in their instruction. Often standards are attached to units, lesson plans, and assessments to ensure that they are being covered.
Assessments
It is important to link assessments to curriculum maps as they support learning goals and ensure consistency within your instruction. Breaking assessments down by units helps target areas of improvement and helps educators to gauge students’ progress in subject matters.
Resources
Reflections
Educators need to constantly improve their practices and involve student inputs to guide future instruction. Being able to gather, record, and analyze lesson delivery and the impact can help educators form better practices. Also, administrators can record their best practices within this section to help their teams succeed.
Here are 3 more samples that you can download and learn how to layout an effective curriculum map. We hope that these templates help you standardized your curriculum process.
See our resources on How to Create A Curriculum Map [Infographic], Self Assessment: Am I Ready to Refine My Curriculum Mapping Process, and Curriculum Map Review Process [Infographic] to continue learning about effective curriculum maps.
Join millions of institutions in streamlining your curriculum process on Chalk today. Learn more about how to map your digital curriculum using our Curriculum Solution.