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Indicator 55 – Cross-disciplinary Instruction

Planning

Preparing Instruction

Indicator 55 – Cross-disciplinary Instruction

UETS 6 – The teacher plans instruction to support students in meeting rigorous learning goals by drawing upon knowledge of content areas, Utah Core Standards, instructional best practices, and the community context.

Effective teachers understand how cross-disciplinary instruction can transform the learning environment and accommodate students with diverse learning styles. Interdisciplinary/Cross-curricular teaching involves a conscious effort to apply knowledge, principles, and/or values to more than one academic discipline simultaneously.

IDEAS/SUGGESTIONS:

  1. Be prepared to show an example of a cross-disciplinary activity. Some activities demonstrate the transfer of knowledge from one content area to another while others will purposefully engage learners in the application of content knowledge by infusing other subjects into daily lessons. Examples of each type are shown below:
    • Minimally Effective examples
      •  Drawing a poster to demonstrate their understanding of the water cycle
      • Reading from a newspaper or an informational text to practice reading strategies
      • Referring to shapes in an art lesson
    • Effective examples
      • Teaching about the splitting of an atom in science class by integrating historical content related to World War II and the atomic bomb
      • Integrating health concepts to help students develop a personal fitness plan
      • Teaching about the historical time period involved in a novel being read in a language arts class
      • Integrating math and writing through a student project in producing a movie about how to divide fractions
      • Teaching measurement skills to complete a sewing project
      • Using graphing math skills to complete a science project
      • Debating about an environmental issue in a debate class
  1. Be prepared to show collaboration with colleagues to influence cross-disciplinary instruction by using a multi-disciplinary approach. Examples might include:
    • Two or more teachers of different subject areas who agree to address the same theme with a common project
    • Two teachers collaborate on a teaching timeline to simultaneously address content. The history teacher is teaching about the Salem Witch Trials at the same time as the English teacher is teaching The Crucible by Arthur Miller
    • Use of a team-teaching approach across disciplines or grade levels

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