Unit Planning

It seems so surreal that we are SIX weeks into the semester! With classes rolling by and assignments becoming complete, there is still a lot of planning to do. Planning will help the  classroom run smoothly. One of our assignments in AEE 412 is to create the unit plans for the units we are teaching. The one I created for peer review was on Embryology. Here are a couple points I learned while creating my unit plan. 

1. The main goal of the unit has to be clear. I thought long and hard about this unit. I began with the end in mind. I portrayed the goal of the unit clearly throughout the plan. The goal of my unit is that students learn the reproductive system of a chicken, parts of an egg, and the stages of embryonic development. They will keep accurate records in AET of the hatching process and create a financial goal. 
2. Peer feedback was important to me. I had received the feedback within a reasonable time period. They had good feedback. I adjusted unit plan with the feedback in mind. 
3. I edited my unit goals to not contradict with the unit rationale. Earlier that week, we learned to write objectives. I rewrote my objectives. There was some contradiction in the order I had placed my classes. I looked from a student perspective onto the plan and decided switch teaching the parts of an egg after how to candle an egg. I noticed that students would need to know the parts of an egg before they were to candle it. The last change I made was in the assessment section. I did not fully identify how I was assessing the students. I added in point values for each assignment as well as how I was assessing them. 

This was the first unit plan I had created, so I knew it was going to look rough. I learned that it is super important to write a plan with the end in mind. The feedback was really important in creating this plan. Without them, I would not have pointed out some mistakes. Thankfully, they were only minor changes that were simple to fix.
Erin Yoest