| | I will be using a single subject approach with integration of cross-curricular skills through a project approach for curriculum planning that will allow the lessons to address the needs of the individuals in my class while building a strong foundation in core subjects. “Systematic planning of a single subject ensures specific knowledge and skills will not be lost” while the project approach provides opportunities for differentiation and incorporation of the children’s interests (Krogh & Groark, 2013, Approaches to Curriculum Development, para. 2). Project learning also “allows for individual and group work” as well as “team planning and collaboration” (Krogh & Groark, 2013, Approaches to Curriculum Development, para. 12). By initially focusing on a single subject “with integration taking place later,” the students will be given the benefits of both the single subject approach and an integrated curriculum (Krogh & Groark, 2013, Approaches to Curriculum Development, para. 3). This integration could be accomplished through the use of class projects based on the interests and needs of the children in the class, including skills and subjects across the curriculum. Noting that several of the children in the class need some help in developing their social skills and fine motor skills, these would be two areas of focus for development through integration and the project approach. Johnny and Caleb could use some practice in fine motor skills, and Jane has an IEP with goals for improving her fine motor skills. On the other hand, Maya, Kayla, and Jack are at or beyond the expected development in their fine motor skills. Therefore, I would pair students who are strong in their fine motor skills with students who are weaker in this area to work on a project together for peer-to-peer modeling of these skills. Also, this project would allow for socialization in small and large groups, at which time students such as Johnny, Maya, Kayla, and Jack, who struggle in certain areas socially could work in groups that include some of the students with stronger social skills such as Jane and Caleb. In addition, the students who need some support in language development like Jane whose IEP includes language goals and Maya who is an ESL student could be given opportunities to learn new words and ways of communicating through dramatic play and emphasis on vocabulary during the single subject focus of the lessons. For example, when planning a lesson focused on reading comprehension, using the book “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” prior to reading the book as a group with the class, we would review and post vocabulary words with pictorial descriptions as well as listing the words in Maya’s first language in order to assist Maya and Jane with their language development. We would also develop a plan for presenting a play based on this book, and the students would be paired as noted above to decorate the props needed for the play, utilizing their fine motor skills in cutting and pasting tissue paper onto the cutouts that will be used in the play while also integrating art and dramatic play into the lesson plan. We would continue to read this book and review the vocabulary words as a group as we practice for the final play and prepare the props. There would be plenty of time for discussion in the large group reading time as well as socialization in pairs and small groups as we work on the props and the presentation of the play, which will also provide opportunities for working on social skills, communication, and language development. While the main focus of this lesson is reading comprehension through the understanding of the sequence, setting, characters, and storyline, we will also be integrating social skills, fine motor skills, and language development through the integration of a project into this lesson, which will address the specific developmental needs of the children in the class and reinforce the learning in the core component of reading comprehension. The single subject approach with integration allows for the building of a strong base in the components of the core subject area while also providing opportunities to address the specific needs of the individual students in the development of skills and knowledge across the board. References: Krogh, S. L., & Groark, C. J. (2013). A bridge to the classroom and early care: A capstone. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUECE430.13.1. Kim  Respond
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