Curriculum design is a multi-level process that begins with establishing goals for what students should learn over multiple years. These goals inform the creation of yearly, unit, and lesson plans that organize the content and skills taught at each level. An effective curriculum guide includes a philosophy statement, specific learning goals, a scope and sequence of objectives by grade, an outline of content by unit, a yearly schedule, and an assessment plan. The guide should align all parts and ensure content matches standards in a developmentally appropriate progression.

1. THE PROCESS OF
DESIGNING THE
CURRICULUM
Curriculum design is a process of thinking
through how you want to organize what you want
students to learn:
 Whereas lesson plans are what the teacher plans to do for the
day and unit plans are what the teacher wants to do over
several lessons or weeks, curriculum plans should be what the
teacher wants students to learn over years. Sometimes teachers
do yearly plans for a grade level that describe what students in
a particular grade will learn over a year’s time.

2. LEVELS OF PLANNING
Curriculum: A plan for grades : 0-11 or Levels
Yearly Plan: A plan for a grade level over a year’s
time that describes the distribution of units over
the year.
Unit Plan: A plan for a series of lessons in the
same content area.
Lesson Plan: A plan for a lesson.
Planning should begin with decisions about the
curriculum

3. PARTS OF A GOOD
CURRICULUM GUIDE
1. A statement of philosophy that describes the
purpose of your program and the rationale for
including your program in the school curriculum.
2. The specifi c goals of your program drawn from
your philosophy and your understanding of your
students that describe the skills, knowledge, and
dispositions you want your students to have when
they leave your program.
3. A sequence of performance
Indicators/objectives/outcomes by grade level that
take the learner from where they are at the beginning
of your program to the specific goals you have
established for the end of your program.

4. PARTS OF A GOOD
CURRICULUM GUIDE
4. A content framework that organizes your program
objectives by content area into units or themes and
describes what will be taught in each grade.
5. A yearly block plan for a grade level that describes
what content area will be taught and when throughout
the school year.
6. An assessment plan that will be used to determine
if the program goals have been achieved

5. BE AWARE OF…
Context: Real life inside outside the
classroom, type of school, and type of SS
National standards: Laws and polices
International standards: CEFW

6. A GOOD CURRICULUM
PLANNING:
Are the parts of the guide aligned with each
other?
 Is the content aligned with the standards?
 Is the content specific enough to provide direct
help for unit planning?
 Is the sequence progressive and developmentally
appropriate over the years?
 Are assessment materials provided that assess the
goals and objectives of the curriculum?