Sample of a First Grade Curriculum Map

Content
Exploration and Literacy Centers
Week 1: (August)
Welcome: teacher, class rules, classroom map, school map, new friends Treasure hunt using classroom map, students’names and photos, map of school (library, restrooms, etc.)
Week 2: (September)
Personal Hygiene: bathing, hand washing, wearing clean clothes, dental health, germs Hand washing kit from board of health, model of teeth, toothbrush, floss, graph number of teeth lost, empty product containers for personal hygiene, hygiene charts (personal graph, hand washing chart, tooth map)
Week 3: (September)
Nutrition: eating a variety of foods, food pyramid, fruits and vegetables, grains, meats and dairy, malnutrition Plastic food, food pyramid, bags illustrated with food groups for sorting, lunch food group tally, empty food containers, labels, menus, grocery ads, recipes, cookbooks, books about growing food, preparing food
Week 4: (September)
Physical Activity: daily exertion, locomotor, manipulative skills, movement, social skills Daily personal fitness charts, stethoscope, metronome (to hear number of heart beats per minute), game instructions, locomotor word cards, books about sports, Olympics, fitness
Week 5: (September)
Helpful and Harmful Substances: marginal foods, harmful substances, choosing health Pictures of helpful, harmful, and marginal substances to sort and categorize, ads, books about health
Week 6: (October)
Safety: identification of hazards at home and school, safety tips Safety signs, helmet, seatbelt, poison sign, safety books
Week 7: (October)
Plants: observation and drawing of parts of plants, leaves, leaf points, leaves per stem, leaf veins, leaf textures, changes in plants Laminated leaf cards (sort by vein structure, leaf points, leaf shape, number of leaves, color of leaves), books about plants, leaves
Week 8: (October)
Seeds: seeds’travel mechanisms, seed poems, classification of seeds, edible seeds, seed cycle (planting seeds, water, germination, growth) Seed collection, seed packets, seed catalogues, various stages of seeds sprouting, books about seeds, labels off edible seed packages, word cards
Week 9: (October)
Trees: growth, tree rings, kinds of trees, kinds of leaves, field guide to trees on school yard, uses of trees Tree rings, field guides, bark rubbings, leaf and seed hunt (find match in school yard), pictures and objects indicating uses for trees, word cards, books about trees
Week 10: (October)
Physical Features of Home, School and Community: clipboard walk, making representations, mapping of school yard and neighborhood Blank schoolyard map, clipboards, neighborhood logos, photos of places in neighborhood, pictures of common household appliances and furniture, maps, books about home, school, community and mapping
Week 11: (November)
Democratic Processes: rules, taking turns, listening to others, sharing ideas, voting Activity nomination forms for optional class activities, ballot of potential class activities, class rule poster, books about voting, taking turns, sharing
Week 12: (November)
Families: changes over time, contributions of family members, behaviors that influence relationships Pictures of people of various ages involved in various activities, family pictures, family member cards, books about families
Week 13: (November)
Changes Over Time: self, class, school, neighborhood Personal baby stories, kindergarten memories, old school yearbooks and pictures, books about growth and change
Week 14: (November)
Tasks at Home and School: increasing abilities, helping at home, tasks at school Responsibilities chart for home and school, pictures of home tasks and of school tasks, books about helping others, learning new skills
Week 15: (December)
Consequences of Choices: how choices affect self, peers, and family, predicting consequences for choices Blank cause and effect books, blank prediction books pictures of choices and consequences for match up game (can take photos of students to use for game)
Week 16: (December)
Cultural Traditions: traditions, music, dance, artwork, poems, stories, foods, festivals, activities, places on globe Multicultural stories, books, foods, festivals, activities, find locations on globe for cultural origin, maps, globe, cards for labels, travel agency brochures
Week 17: (December)
Cultural Traditions: classroom cultures, sharing traditions, making representations of traditions Cultural vocabulary cards, blank books, pictures of shared traditions, multicultural books, maps, globes, recipes, game instructions, charts about countries, travel agency brochures, tickets
Week 18: (January)
Technology in Home, School, and Community: computers, TV, radio, technology then and now, technology of the future? Items to promote technological awareness (phone, radio, toothbrush, VCR, can openers), use of computers (for writing, math, and drawing), newspaper ads, technical manuals, old appliances to take apart, paper to draw inside and out
Week 19: (January)
Self-Expression: recognition and expression of feelings, oral descriptions, art, writing, movement, songs Art center, writing center, dramatic play center (pantomime, movement facial expression), blank cards for student to make identification signs for artwork, books with art, dance, drama, readers’ theater
Week 20: (January)
Communication: phones, letter writing and delivery, e-mail, newspapers (printing) Toy phone, creative drama post office, class newspaper, e-mailing to classmate, junk mail, stamps, stationary, newspapers, class news
Week 21: (January)
Communication with Technology: amount of time to send messages, methods, amount of information, number of people involved, advantages and disadvantages of each form Comparing phone call, letter writing, newspapers, and e-mailing (length of time, number people, cost), comparing advantages and disadvantages (time, breakdowns, know-how, personal/impersonal), books about technology, inventors, history
Week 22: (January)
Motion: locomotor, nonlocomotor, movement vocabulary, exploring motion, how many ways can we move? (balls, cars, ramps, spinners, direction of pendulum, measure distance) Tops, pendulums, race cars, ramps, measuring cubes, balls, spinners, vocabulary direction cards, books about motion
Week 23: (February)
Friendship: initiating friendships, maintaining friendships, behaviors in friends, sharing interests and cultures, identifying and analyzing positive and negative Classmates' name graph, formats for student friend books, camera, books about friends
Week 24: (February)
Friendship: different kinds of friends, how-to books, favorite activities with friends, attributes of real friends Classmates' name graph, friend books, camera, How to Lose All Your Friends by Janet Carlson, format for studentgenerated friend books
Week 25: (February)
National and State Symbols:patriotic traditions, pledge, flags, great Americans, methods of group decision making Flags, eagle, coins, Statue of Liberty, great Americans’pictures, memorials, beehive, books about national symbols, leaders, patriotism, national anthem, patriotic songs
Week 26: (February)
Water: solid and liquid states, melting, evaporation, condensation, floating and sinking, effects of temperature on water Ice, hotplate, float and sink tub, make things that float, things that sink, cards to label, books about water
Week 27: (March)
Water: exploring water, dissolving things in water, exploring effects of water dropped on a variety of surfaces (foil, paper towel, plastic wrap, etc.) Eye-dropper, pieces of tin foil, paper towel, wax paper, cups of water to explore dissolving, stir sticks, dissolvable and non-dissolvable substances cards to label, books about water, recipes for beverages, beverage containers
Week 28: (March)
Water: swimming, floating and sinking, motion of objects in water, waves, tornado tubes, and jet propulsion Tornado tube, jet propulsion (inflated balloon), waves, splashes, siphons, clear plastic tubing, hose clamps, books about water, octopus, waves, boats
Week 29: (March)
Water: plants need water, people need water, receiving water, moving water from place to place, precipitation Sandbox, watering can, clear plastic tubing, hose clamps, potted plant, carnation, celery stalk, colored water, books about dams, rivers, waterfalls, precipitation
Week 30: (March)
Water: measuring, funnels, basters, cups, spoon, bottles, how many cups to fill containers, siphons, water wheel Water trough, containers to fill (cups, spoons, bottles), siphons, water wheel, funnels
Week 31: (March)
Globe: land and water, oceans 70% of earth, continents, rivers, lakes Globe, balloon, paper-mache, relief maps, paint
Week 32: (April)
Representations: size and distance perspective, classroom, school, playground, home Binoculars, magnifiers, paper to draw person that is far away, one that is close, books with close-ups
Week 33: (April)
Map Skills: cardinal directions, compass rose, mountains, rivers, lakes Maps, compass rose, paper to make community map, use logos from phonebook enlarged for kids to help place on map
Week 34: (April)
Seeds: growth, baby plants, adult plants, seed journal, predictions (What plant will this seed become?) Seed dispersion by different mechanisms, seed sorting, hammer, nutcracker, pliers, magnifier, burrs, velcro, seed packets, seed catalogs, plant books
Week 35: (April)
Growth of Plants: what plants need to grow, malnutrition in plants, parts of plants Seed soaking, seed growth journal, seed catalogs, seed packets, mature plant pictures, matching activity
Week 36: (May)
Investigating Plants: predicting which seed will sprout most quickly, turn seed baggie upside down, kinds of soil, kinds of liquids, other experiments, seed growth direction Paper to describe possible student investigations, activities, questions, necessary materials list, plant resource books, gardening books
Week 37: (May)
Uses of Plants: food (farming), paper, shelter, clothing (fibers), construction (furniture, etc.) Pictures of plants’uses (food, shelter, clothing, furniture), fabric made from plants (scraps of linen, cotton, burlap, rope) books about plants’uses
Week 38: (May)
Plant Variations: size, edible/non-edible, above ground, below ground, color, texture, comparison of real flower with silk flower Plant pictures to sort, real flowers, silk flowers (how do they compare by seeing, smelling, touching), plant books, field guides (trees, wild flowers, etc.)
Week 39: (May)
Reporting Student Investigations: Report investigations
Week 40: (June)
Memories of First Grade: favorite activities, books, people Memories of first grade