Running head: KNOWLEDGE CURRICULUM

Content Knowledge in Interdisciplinary Curriculum

Elisabeth Moore
Regent University

In partial fulfillment of UED 495 Field Experience ePortfolio, Fall 2016

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Introduction
Having knowledge of content in the curriculum is a key part of teaching. An integrated
curriculum is beneficial to both teachers and students in many ways. Because teachers are
required to teach a large amount of information in a short amount of time, I believe the best
teachers are able to integrate more than one skill and subject in to one lesson.

Rationale
The first article I chose was a story I used in a lesson plan where I integrated a language
arts standard with a math standard. In language arts, the students were learning about the concept
of visualizing. In math, the students were reviewing the concept of comparing numbers. For the
lesson, I read the story which told about a wolf who would always eat the larger plate of
pancakes in the village. This was to get the students used to the idea of using a wolfs mouth to
describe the greater than and less than symbols. Before reading this story, I told the students that
because there were no pictures, they would need to use their visualizing skills. The author used
several sensory words such as aroma and wandered which not only built vocabulary, but also
helped the students visualize. Throughout reading the story, I would pause and ask the students to
visualize what was occurring in the story. I chose this article because I believe that the story lent
itself perfectly to the concept of visualizing as well as comparing numbers and also demonstrated
how easily and efficiently it can be to create lessons that use an integrated curriculum.
The second article that I chose was a picture of a graph I had the students make during
guided reading. In science, the students were learning about the different states of matter. I chose
a book for our guided reading group which was about matter. After the students read the book, I
had them make a chart of solid liquid and gas and asked them to use the book as a source

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to write down all of the things they knew or had just learned about solids, liquids, and gases. I
chose this picture as my article because it showed how easily and flawlessly more than one
subject can be combined in one lesson. In this particular lesson, The students were able to read
and write about a topic they were learning in science. The lesson was able to focus on reading
comprehension, writing, and science as well as graphing to make their learning visible.

Reflection on Theory and Practice

Integrating many subjects together in to one coherent lesson is a strategy that many
accomplished teachers use. An integrated curriculum is described as teaching the same skills and
ideas in more than one subject (Rutherford p.48). Integrating multiple subjects is beneficial for
both students as well as teachers.
One way in which teachers can help their students learn is by showing them how what
they are learning is meaningful to the outside world. Using an integrated curriculum helps
learning become more meaningful and relevant to what happens outside of school (Bigler, Doyle,
Drosinos p.40). I have learned that when students realize what they are learning is meaningful
and useful outside of the school setting, they are more willing to learn and are able to retain the
information more efficiently. In using skills that have been learned outside of a certain subject or
class, students realize the value and importance of learning and applying those skills to other
areas of their life. The job of the teacher is not to simply teach the subject, but to show the
students the value of the subject (Wiggins, McTighe p.46). By implementing an integrated
curriculum in the classroom, it maximizes the learning experience for the students while saving

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the teacher time and energy. Not only that, but integrated curriculum allows skills to be re-taught
in different subject areas to solidify the concepts (Rutherford, p.48).
An integrated curriculum is vital to preparing students to apply their learning to other
areas of their life. Although it may call for some creativity on the teachers part, it is truly
beneficial for both student learning and teacher effectiveness. Using an integrated curriculum
helps build well rounded students who are able to apply their learning to every area of their life.

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Resources
Bigler, P., Doyle, S. A., & Drosinos, K. (2014). Teaching is Tough!: A practical guide to
classroom success. Quicksburg, VA: Apple Ridge.

Rutherford, P. (2008). Instruction for All Students (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Just ASK
Publications.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by Design (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Pearson.