Throughout the second year, students spent a lot of the instructional time completing assigned homework readings during class.ĭuring year two, pacing was a regular topic of conversation at departmental meetings. I also thought I could ensure that students read, and understood, every page of our texts if I read them aloud. They hadn’t received that much homework before, and the rigor of the curriculum itself was a big change for my students. Initially, it seemed logical to have students complete the reading homework in class. The students’ lack of familiarity with the curriculum led the department to continue to read entire texts in class, often as read alouds, and it consumed too much of the 90-minute instructional block. In my second year of implementation, my students were experiencing Wit & Wisdom for the first time-they hadn’t participated in the pilot in Grade 7. For many reasons, that still didn’t seem like enough time to get through an entire Wit & Wisdom lesson. In year two, the district restructured our schedule and provided language arts classes with 90-minute blocks.
It was impossible to teach the full lesson in a class period, and our pacing suffered.
Why was I choosing not to assign the reading homework?ĭuring the first year of implementation, 45 minutes were dedicated to teaching Wit & Wisdom. But one concern remained: assigning homework. Although I found the curriculum impressive, I had concerns about using the curriculum in my Grade 8 classroom.ĭuring the first year, which was a pilot for the Grade 8 teachers, I resolved many initial concerns as I learned how to use the preparation protocols to unpack each module, Focusing Question arc, and lesson. I relished the thoughtful organization and consistency of each lesson and the stunning artwork in each module. I remember flipping through the Wit & Wisdom® Teacher Edition for the first time six years ago.
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