A few years ago I listened to a curriculum coordinator give an example of what not to do in the age of NCLB accountability. The story was that a teacher had been able to engage an otherwise unmotivated learner by connecting with his interest in lobstering. The student was "hooked" and excitedly researched everything he could find about lobsters. With this information, he made an incredible presentation, using a variety of tools while developing a rich set of skills in doing so. The point of the coordinator was that despite the impressive amount of learning that had taken place, this was not the content that needed to be covered according to the curriculum . . . and so the teacher was wrong in encouraging it.What do you think?
What should curriculum contain?
Guide to Lobstering in Maine
Maine Lobster Industry
Maine Lobster
Lobster Institute
Wikipedia: American Lobster
Gulf of Maine: All about Lobsters
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I think a lobster dissection is really important, especially to Maine kids. We are used to seeing lobsters cooked but seeing them uncooked not only helps identify the parts of a typical crustacean but probably helps kids understand that their food (or a lot of their food) was at one point alive... and that's kind of profound!
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