These units were written during the Summer Curriculum Writing Institute* (SCWI) at Trinity University beginning in 2005 and are added to at the close of the Institute each year. They use the Understanding by Design framework developed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe. Note that earlier units use the UbD original template, while many newer units utilize the 2.0 version. We hope units are useful to teachers developing curriculum globally. If you have any questions about this site, contact Dr. Laura Allen, SCWI Coordinator, at lallen@trinity.edu.
For more information, please see Connecting the Continuum: A University-based Induction Program to Improve Teacher Quality.*SCWI is an induction support program that invites graduates of Trinity University’s MAT program back to campus for one week each summer to write curriculum for their own classrooms. Participants are paid a stipend for attending and travel and receive 30 CPE hours.
These works are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Submissions from 2011
A Closer Look at Trees, Mattina Van Coppenolle
Ecology, Daisy Wang and Yipsel Ramos
Where’s My Home? The Case of the Lost Digit – Place Value, Jennifer Yu
Submissions from 2010
Romanticism: Past and Present [10th grade], Amy Anderson
Días inolvidables (Cápitulo 1-1) [9th-12th grade], Carol Arnold
Clothing Creativity and Cost [9th-12th grade], Jonelle Bailey
Getting to Know Me (MySpace/Glogster) [9th-12th grade], Jonelle Bailey
Artists as Storytellers: Designing a personal comic book [6th-8th grade], Elizabeth Bendele
Who are you? Who, who! Who, who! [7th grade], Kara Brown and Jean Yang
“What’s your Problem?” Research Project [12th grade], Sherry Brown
Ancient Egypt [6th grade], Jeanine Capitani
Citizenship [2nd grade], Christy Custer
Out of Chaos Came the Middle Ages [4th grade], Laura Eberle and Hannah Rinn
Cultura y Idioma (Culture and Language) [7th-9th grade], Merida Elizondo
Julius Caesar: The Power of Persuasion [10th grade], Devon Erlich
You are Unique /Tú eres único [9th-12th grade], Jennifer Falcon and Jodi Ingersoll
Bond…Chemical Bond [10th-11th grade], Katie Fitch
In the Space Between Action and Reaction Individuals Have Choice: Romeo and Juliet and the Consequences of Choice [8th-9th grade], Monica Gonzalez and Tina Harper
Cultural Anxiety and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Lauren Lee
Loss in Joyce’s Dubliners [11th-12th grade], Lauren Lee
“Who’s Coming to Dinner?” – Understanding the Middle East Culture [6th grade], Bethany Lorge and Linda O'Connor
Independent First Grade Writers, WHAT? It can happen. Beginning Writing Workshop [1st grade], Megan Nitcholas and Audrey Tan
Slavery – A Problem of the Past? [7th grade], Becky Orsini and Nick Thomason
What’s the Story? [9th grade], Alice Rasmussen
In Defense of the Indefensible [9th grade], Patricia Rogers and Sarah Berce
Why is Africa Underdeveloped? [9th grade], Robert Stafford
Getting to Know Me [9th grade], Carrie Susong
Ecology – Energy Flow, Environments, and Habitats [7th grade], Alex Wallender
Exploring Personal Responses to Reading: A WWII Book Study [4th grade], Jennifer Wray
Submissions from 2009
Para mantener la salud [9th-11th grade], Maria S. Allen
Photographic Eye: Capturing the Moment through Personal Narrative [8th-9th grade], Amy Anderson
Heroísmo y los medios de comunicación (Capítulo 5A &5B) [9th-11th grade], Carol Arnold
Our Learning Community [9th-12th grade], Carol Arnold
Art & Technology [6th-8th grade], Elizabeth A. Bendele
Proportional Relationships [7th grade], Sabrina Bennett and Courtney Bryand
Rhetoric in the Real World [11th grade], Sarah Berce
Patricia Polacco Author Study [2nd grade], Catherine Brackett
What section do I go to in Barnes and Noble? [7th grade], Carol Cagnoni
Why Government?...Why Our Government? [12th grade], Samuel DeJohn
Gases, Liquids, and Solids [9th-12th grade], Dustin Demoin
If You Aren't Part of the Solution, You're Part of the Precipitate! [10th-12th grade], Dustin Demoin
What's the Matter...Do Things Keep Changing? [10th-12th grade], Dustin Demoin
U.S. Imperialism and Expansion at the Turn of the 19th Century [11th grade], Carly Dodd
Reflexive Writing and Literature [7th grade], Kara Dougherty
Vamos de Compras [8th-10th grade], Merida Elizondo
Africa [9th grade], Kate Empson
A Lesson Before Dying [12th grade], Devon Erlich
The Nature of Narratives [10th grade], Devon Erlich
Exploring Media [6th grade], Kathleen Fenske
Making Writing Personal [6th grade], Kathleen Fenske
Viva la Mexico [1st grade], Beth Fitts
Supply and Demand [12th grade], Matthew Shane Fitts
Success and Adversity Through Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone [7th grade], Sarah Gamboa
MEdia Forms in Use [7th grade], Salena Gonzales
Ideas Trait: The Foundations of Writing [3rd grade], Carolys Gordillo
Simple & Compound Machines [7th grade], Roxanne Hammonds
Foundations of Forensics: The Role of Debate Throughout History [9th-12th grade], Lori Ingersoll
Bits and Pieces -- Working with Fractions [6th-8th grade], Kathleen Kilday
Reading Music-ABC’s, 123’s, Do Re Mi’s [6th grade], Jessica Koppe
Think Inside the Box: Using Tables to Understand Number Patterns [4th grade], Kristen Lesher and Carrie Susong
The Play Is a Mirror: Looking at Human Nature in Romeo and Juliet [9th grade], Melissa Manny
Sarah Plain and Tall Book Study [3rd grade], Karen Morrison
Using Fred Gipson's Old Yeller to Practice Essential Reading Skills [4th grade], Kathryn Morrow
Proyecto Desarrollo: Café Saludable [9th-11th grade], Susanna Pierce
Personal and Group Identity [9th grade], Alice Rasmussen
Math and Me [9th grade], McKinley Rich
Rules, What Rules ? (Linear Equations, y=,x/y Tables, Graphing) [8th grade], Catherine Risinger
Earth Sun Moon Phenomena: Seasons, Lunar Cycle, Tides [7th-8th grade], Theodore Risinger
Getting the Message [7th grade], Vanessa Sanchez
Seedfolks: Individual and Community [7th grade], Vanessa Sanchez
Rational Numbers [7th grade], Courtney Spickelmier
“Happily Ever After?” A Fairy Tale Unit [1st grade], Audrey Tan
Tacky the Penguin: "What's the Problem?" [1st grade], Audrey Tan
¿Qué ropa compraste? (Realidades Tema 2: Un Evento Especial) [9th-12th grade], Daris Z. Valdez
Breaking Bread: Finding Peace in the Middle East [9th grade], Jessica Waltman
Writing Free Verse Poetry [3rd grade], Annie Houston Winter
Submissions from 2008
Water Cycle [2nd grade], Anna Bley
What is a "good" reader? - Part 2: Word Patterns [1st grade], Elizabeth Cambray
Walk This Way (Force and Motion) [6th grade], Anne Cowell
Heredity and the Environment [8th grade], Dustin Demoin
I Didn’t Know that was Poetry [8th grade], Kara Dougherty
Whose fault is history? [7th grade], Kate Empson
What is Poetry? [6th grade], Kathleen Fenske
Heroism, Voice and Hamlet [12th grade], Lauren Gaffney
Exploring Cause and Effect through Change [7th grade], Sarah Gamboa
Surface Area and Volume [10th grade], Maeve Goetz
Compare and Contrast Your Way to Better Judgment [7th grade], Salena Gonzales
Discovery Through Nonfiction [6th grade], Allison Grant
Cells [6th grade], Roxanne Hammonds
Advocacy and You [6th-8th grade], Kathleen Kilday
Economics [3rd grade], Jennifer Mahler
All That Glitters is not Gold (Gilded Age) [11th grade], Caesie McHenry
Hero’s Journey, The Alchemist [9th grade], Kristen Morgan
Inherited Traits Versus Learned Behaviors [4th grade], Kathryn Morrow
Ratios and Proportions [6th grade], Lisa Murphy
Goal Setting- Obtaining Your Best [7th-8th grades], Erin Phillips
Fahrenheit 451 [9th grade], Alice Rasmussen
Discovering Our World [6th grade], Vanessa Sanchez
Conjugation [8th grade], Leigh Sheppard
Intro to Spanish I [8th grade], Leigh Sheppard