Understanding Curriculum and the Learner

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I believe that effective teaching begins with understanding who students are, where they come from, and how they experience the world. Curriculum is not something that exists apart from learners. It takes meaning through their identities, cultures, interests, and communities. In this section, I highlight artefacts that show how I design learning by centering students’ lived experiences, local context, and diverse ways of knowing. The artefacts in this section reflect my commitment to responsive teaching that connects curriculum to real lives and real places.

Artefact 1: Grade 2 Make Your Own Animal Science Unit

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This artefact represents my Grade 2 science unit in which students designed their own animals based on what they learned about animal needs, habitats, and adaptations. The unit took place during my practicum placement and was taught over a series of lessons that explored how animals survive in different environments. Students learned about food, shelter, movement, and protection before creating an original animal that could live in a specific habitat. How it happened was through a combination of class discussions, videos, drawing, writing, and hands-on activities that allowed students to explore real animals and then apply their knowledge creatively. The players involved were the Grade 2 students, my mentor teacher, and myself as the teacher candidate. The most significant part of this experience was seeing how engaged students became when they were able to connect science content to something they genuinely loved, which was animals and imaginative creation. As a goodbye gift, I also made Pokémon style cards for each student featuring their invented animal. I created these because I knew how much the class loved Pokémon and collecting cards, and I wanted their science learning to feel personal and meaningful even after I left.

Artefact 2: Madeline Hunter Lesson Plan for “Classroom Bingo”

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This artefact represents the Madeline Hunter lesson plan I created and taught for a Social Studies activity called “Classroom Bingo.” The lesson focused on helping students learn about their classroom community by identifying classmates with different experiences, interests, and roles. Students moved around the room asking questions and filling in their bingo cards based on what they discovered about one another. This lesson took place during my practicum while I was teaching in a Grade 2 classroom. The players involved were my students and myself as the teacher. The most significant part of this experience was seeing how engaged the students were when learning about their classroom community through interaction rather than worksheets.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1anjwPJ0CMqoOMSZhnj_ILFk3ZICHiuPLnDqupci3TBo/edit?usp=sharing