Can you help me teach an 8-week unit in 4 weeks?

Question

I am student teaching in the third grade. The classroom teacher wants me to teach the life sciences unit. She wants me to use their brand new science books/resources. According to these resources, though, the life sciences unit is 8 weeks. The classroom teacher wants me to do it in four.

I need to use the tests and other assessments that came with the program, and the district does not allow science homework. The teacher says to just teach what's on the assessments...but it's ALL on the assessments.

Can you give some pointers on how I can teach this unit?

Answer 1

Give the kids pre-tests as well as after tests for each unit.

Two benefits -

1) Hopefully will generate motivation in students to do better.

2) Will give you and the kids info on what they need to work on.  You could go light on concepts most seem to have and emphasize the ones every has wrong.

Answer 2

Perhaps you have to focus on the basics.

Don’t waste time going into the little details.

Shorten the question period to a limited number of questions.

Create a lesson plan and test it in the first few days to see if you are in track.

Not easy but you can do it.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Ask yourself these questions:

What is the ESSENTIAL material to cover?

What material may they already know that you just need to review?

What resources will be most effective in teaching the essential material? (honestly, I find a lot of textbook resources suck. They are sort of there for teachers that have no clue what they are doing.)

What activities do the students need to do to understand the material in a given time frame?

How will you frame lessons? Whole, partner, group, solo work?