Tips and Strategies for Teaching Interdisciplinary Units That Will Actively Engage Middle School Students

1. Tips and Strategies for Teaching
Interdisciplinary Units That Will Actively
Engage Middle School Students

3. Along with the adoption of the new Common
Core Standards, comes the need for more cross-
curricular literacy activities. Students need to
feel a connection and a purpose for all of the
different disciplines. However, any given class,
on any given day, will have a wide range of ability
levels and each one of those students deserve a
rigorous curriculum that is meaningful and
tailored to fit their needs.

4.  Does:  Does Not:
 Consider each student’s  Expect every student to
strengths and weaknesses. perform at the same level.
 Use formative and  Give every student the
summative assessments in same assignment with
designing lessons every lesson.
 Connect the different  Segregate the different
subjects together as much subject areas.
as possible  Always do heterogeneous
 Provide a rigorous grouping where the higher
curriculum with each unit students serve as a tutor.
of study.

5.  Using EBSCO articles that are already lexiled
that pertain to your different topics of study.
 Utilizing researched-based programs like
Teen Biz to incorporate non-fiction,
informational text into your topics of study.
 Select historical fiction topics that have
novels at a wide range of lexile levels.

6.  Vocabulary Stations
 Primary Document Interpretation Stations
 Math Stations
 Assessment stations (TeenBiz 3000, USA test
prep, etc)
 Technology Stations (iPads, web quests,
movie making, etc.)
 Experimental Stations

7.  Visual Thesaurus or Graph Words.com (free)
 Wordle
 Create Crossword puzzle using vocabulary terms and
definitions.
 Flow chart with pictures
 Bubble map
 Representations
 Interactive Word Wall
 Vocabulary Work Mats with pictures, synonyms, antonyms,
etc.

8.  TeenBiz 3000 lexiled based articles and activities
 EBSCO (lexiled based articles that may be
selected according to interest or theme)
 Graphic Organizers
 Thought Questions
 Illustrations with brief explanations
 Multiple Choice Comprehension Questions that
can be either computer-based and or teacher
generated.
 Student created mini-lessons based on readings

9.  Battle Hymn of the Republic
 Letters from slaves
 Gettysburg address
 US Constitution

10.  www.graphwords.com
 www.visualthesaurus.com
 www.achieve3000.com
 www.lexile.com
 www.gilderlehrman.com
 www.ebsco.com
 www.discoverypuzzlemaker.com
 www.spellingcity.com
 www.wordle.net