Running Head: CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES

Content Knowledge and Interdisciplinary Studies

Emily Brannock

Regent University

In partial fulfillment of UED496 Field Experience ePortfolio, Spring 2018

CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND INTERDISIPLINARY STUDIES

Introduction

To be a teacher, one must be knowledgeable; regardless of simply remembering it or

learning the content the night prior. There are many things a teacher is expected to do in a

typical school day. By combining different subjects into one lesson (interdisciplinary), the

student benefits from double doses of subject study. Clark and Lott (2017) stated that by

teaching two different subjects together, “students can be provided with authentic learning

opportunities and experiences needed to develop strong educational skills” (p. 702).

This paper contains two different artifacts which will display my competency in my

knowledge and understanding of the content and the subject of interdisciplinary studies.

Rationale for Selection of Artifacts

The first artifact submitted is one of my earlier lesson plans created for a second grade

classroom. The students were beginning the weather unit in science (2.6) and I combined

reading and science together. I read the students a book called Once Around the Sun, which was

a book about the sun revolving around the Earth and the weather that is created because of it. I

tied in language arts in this lesson not only through reading the book but by discussing main idea

and details (ELA 2.8 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts.

g) Identify the main idea). We created a main idea anchor chart where we discussed what the

story was mainly about and added details which were toppings to the main idea. The visual that

was used was a pizza for main idea and pizza toppings (pepperoni, spinach, cheese, sauce) for

the details. This lesson was very relative to the second graders and they enjoyed seeing the

seasons change and completing the lesson with the pizza main idea anchor chart.

The second artifact submitted is a lesson that was completed recently with the first grade

students. There were many subjects integrated into one lesson; reading, writing, science and
CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND INTERDISIPLINARY STUDIES

technology. Students were discussing plants in science (1.4 The student will investigate and

understand that plants have basic life needs and functional parts and can be classified according

to certain characteristics), this school does not have cut time for science therefore, teachers must

incorporate science in reading and writing. This lesson continued through the week with small

changes to keep the students on their toes. First, students were introduced to the unit through a

brain pop video as well as a book called, The Dandelion Seed (ELA 1.7.1 Identify a purpose for

reading). Students then used their computers to research about the different parts of a plant on

the website Pebble Go (1.14 The student will use available technology for reading and writing).

During their writing portion of the lesson (Writing: 1.13 The student will write to communicate

ideas for a variety of purposes), students completed a graphic organizer and eventually wrote a

four to five sentence paragraph on what they would do if they were a dandelion seed. At the end

of the week after students had read and researched about each part of the plant, they completed a

diagram of their own plant and labeled it. I enjoyed this lesson and the students seemed to truly

enjoy it as well. The students stayed engaged and were excited to learn about plants.

Reflection on Theory and Practice

These two artifacts are just the beginning of the examples of my content knowledge and

understanding of interdisciplinary studies. I especially enjoy these sorts of lessons because I feel

there is more “meat” to the lesson. I personally love reading and plan to incorporate a lot more

reading in my classroom than most teachers I have seen.

A quote from the author of Content Area Reading: Literacy and Learning Across the

Curriculum states, "Adolescents entering the adult world in the 21st century will read and write

more than at any other time in human history. They will need advanced levels of literacy to

perform their jobs, run their households, act as citizens, and conduct their personal lives” (Alber,
CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND INTERDISIPLINARY STUDIES

2014). This quote alone speaks to the importance of literacy being combined in the classroom

with other subject matters. Another author states that there are benefits to integrating language

arts with other subject areas which include, “engaging context, giving a multifaceted view of

subject areas, and spending an increased amount of time on key subject areas” (Larson &

Rumsey, 2017, p. 595). Regardless of the subject we teacher, I truly believe that we should be

teaching reading to all students in all subject areas. Another researched quote states, “Science

instruction in the early grades helps strengthen students’ positive perceptions about the types of

individuals who pursue scientific careers (Clark & Lott, 2017, p. 702). There are multiple

reasons why teachers should combine different subjects and be knowledgeable of the content;

above are only a few. I look forward to applying what I have learned through college and in the

schools to my future career.

References
CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND INTERDISIPLINARY STUDIES

Alber, R. (2014). How Important is Teaching Literacy in All Content Areas? Edutopia. Retrieved

from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/literacy-instruction-across-curriculum-importance

Clark, S. & Lott, K. (2017). Integrating Science Inquiry and Literacy Instruction for Young

Children. The Reading Teacher, 5, 589-596.

Larson, L. & Rumsey, C. (2017). Bringing Stories to Life: Integrating Literature and Math

Manipulative. The Reading Teacher, 70, 701-710.