I just finished up two end-of-year curriculum assignments (yeah, I know, I am cutting it pretty close to the end of semester deadline -- sorry Val) and have spent the spring semester working on a new model of GED class from the brand new GED material. So, it seems like I have been writing curriculum nonstop since January because, well, I have.
Writing a curriculum is like very much like writing creative non-fiction. There are certain rules you must abide by (assigned competencies, criteria and objectives deposited in a state online vault called WIDS), but there is also a certain freedom and creativity as you write individual lesson plans. A good lesson, like a good story, requires plot elements familiar to any high school student (exposition, pace, dramatic tension and such). The lesson should have a recognized pattern throughout the semester so students know what to expect from class to class, but the course should also take occasional unexpected turns just to keep things interesting.
And, unlike straight-up writing, curriculum writers have to factor in how the course will be delivered: face-to-face, online or blended (a little more than both), or video-conference (a little less than both). But like any good story, a good lesson needs to have a defined beginning, middle and end that blends into the 15-week term that has its own beginning, middle and end.
Good curriculum, like a good story, has movement, information, flow, humor, improvisation, and expression within the strategic rules of the WIDS outline. It is a narrative, but much much more. A good curriculum builds an academically-tested scaffolding that holds up resources within the classroom, explores resources outside of it, and is willing to roll to the side to showcase the abilities and talent of the students. As a curriculum writer, your goal is to create a consistent, yet evolving collaborative story through which learning emerges.
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