Reference
Louis C. Dangelo, Grades 7 – 12, Social Studies, Geibel Catholic Junior – Senior High School
An Analysis of the Unit Entitled: Chinese Dynasties Part 1: Shang through Tang Dynasties
When examining any unit of curriculum, particularly in the Social Studies which often include vast amounts of factual information, three questions about the critical attributes of the unit come to mind. First, is the scope of the unit both comprehensive yet manageable? Second, is the sequence in a logical order? Third, are the content related activities within the unit designed in a manner to evoke meaningful student responses across multiple domains and learning styles?
Using these questions as a guide, I was delighted to find, first of all, that the scope of the unit was quite comprehensive, covering a period of over 2,500 years of the Chinese Dynasties from 1600 B.C.E. to 907 C.E. At the same time, the scope was rendered to be quite manageable, due to the varieties of presentation methods and materials. The sequence within the scope was also very logical for much the same reason. The true gems within this unit came through the answers to my third analysis question about content related activities. The student activities are delightfully varied across domains and learning styles, enabling students to have meaningful experiences which foster concept retention, no matter what strengths each student may possess. Some of the student activities that stood out to me were such tasks as; skits based on legalist quotation, designing your own taotie, timeline creation, and time capsule creation. These activities across the learning spectrum provide age appropriate experiences from grades 5 through 12 which will keep the learners effectively engaged.
Using my three questions as a guide, I have come to the conclusion that this unit is of very high quality, and is designed to maximize effective instruction in a manner which is interesting and which holds the potential for personal relevance to every student.
