Understanding by Design:
Beginning the Journey
Donnell E. Gregory and
Donna Herold,
Presenters
Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development
*Who Are We?

Part I: In your professional role, do
you consider yourself to be primarily
(1) a teacher? (2) a school-based
administrator? (3) a central office
administrator or supervisor? (4) a
college or university representative?
(5) a Board of Education member? (6)
a student? (7) Other?
*Who Are We?

Part II: As you start this workshop, how would you rate
your knowledge and comfort level with Understanding by
Design (UbD):
Total Newcomer: I really don’t know anything about UbD.
I’m brand new to it.
Beginner: I have a basic knowledge of its ideas, but I’ve
never written a unit using it.
Intermediate: I’ve written at least one UbD unit, but I’d like
to gain more knowledge and experience with it.
Advanced: I already have a lot of experience with UbD, and
I’m here to fine-tune my understanding of it and to
support my team, school, and/or district.
*Our Agenda at a Glance


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Introductions and Agenda Setting
What Is Understanding? (Including the Research
and Learning Theory Underlying UbD and the Six
Facets of Understanding)
The Backward-Design Process: Why Should We
Design Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction
with the “End in Mind”?
Stage One: Desired Results (Including Enduring
Understandings and Essential Questions)
Stage Two: Assessment Evidence
Stage Three: Teaching-Learning Sequence and
Activities
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Essential Questions for
This Workshop





What does it mean to understand? How does understanding
differ from knowing or being able to do something?
How can we support our students to understand what they are
learning with depth and rigor?
How can we design curriculum, assessment, instruction, and
professional development to promote understanding, rather than
knowledge-recall learning?
How can we help all learners move from initial acquisition and
integration of new knowledge and skills toward growing levels of
constructed meaning and conceptual transfer?
How can we maximize students’ understanding by addressing
their varying readiness levels, interests, and learning profiles?
Established Goals
for this Institute
By the end of this workshop, you should be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Explain the research principles and learning theory
underlying Understanding by Design (UbD).
Describe and facilitate six ways your students can
demonstrate understanding, rather than just
knowledge-recall learning.
Apply the principles of backward design to your
professional role(s) involving student achievement.
Collaborate with your peers to develop an action plan
for using UbD principles and strategies in schools,
districts, and/or other learning organizations.
Our Guarantee to You…
By the end of this institute, you will have:
1.
2.
3.
At least 10 professional development activities you
can use to promote staff understanding of researchbased strategies related to teaching for
understanding.
A minimum of 7 handouts you can use to share key
institute ideas and strategies with others.
At least 7 reflective questions you can explore with
other staff as part of a study group or inquiry team
investigating ways to increase student
understanding and achievement.
As a Starting Point…



THINK: What are your personal
objectives for this workshop?
PAIR: As a table group, determine one
to two objectives that you all share.
SHARE: Next, appoint a table presenter
who will (1) introduce table members
and (2) present your group’s
objectives for the workshop.
Reviewing Units That Use the
Backward-Design Process (I)


To understand the backward-design
process, it is useful to examine actual units
that make use of it.
Review the examples of “before-backward
design” units on pages 6-7 and 10. What is
flawed or problematic about the “before”
versions of “Westward Movement and
Pioneer Life” and “Geometry”?
Reviewing Units That Use the
Backward-Design Process (II)



Next, examine the “after” versions of each
unit on pages 8-9 and 11.
How does the “after” version of each unit
reflect the principles of the backwarddesign process?
How do the revised units eliminate the
problem of activity-based, coverage
approaches to curriculum design?
Workbook tour

Template section = blank templates and completed units pp.30-51

Coding system = circles with letters to correspond with Q=Questions,
U=Understandings, T=performance task, etc.

Tabbing system to show where you are (use post it notes)

Worksheets and examples to help with each of the 3 stages

Frequently asked questions for each stage

Helpful pages:
 Design questions – pg. 14
 Design standards-pg. 24,
 6 facets – pg. 155
 Roadmap – pg. 275
What Is
Understanding?
What does it mean to
understand? Why is this the
great essential question for
educators today?
As you start this workshop…
How do you define the
term “understanding”?
 What’s so important about
understanding?
 Why should we be
concerned with it?

You’ve got to go
below the surface...
b
To Uncover
Really ‘Big Ideas, and Deeper
Understanding ’
*Video Clip:
“Understanding by Design”


In this clip, educators and authors
McTighe and Wiggins discuss their
views on UbD and its long-range goals.
As you begin this journey, what are
your initial reactions to the ideas
presented by the authors of UbD?
*According to Grant
Wiggins and Jay McTighe:
“Understanding by Design is not
a prescriptive program, nor is it
a philosophy of education…It is
a way of thinking more
purposefully and carefully about
the nature of any design that
has understanding as its goal…”
Transfer defined and justified

What is ‘transfer of learning’?


‘Transfer of learning’ is the use of knowledge and skills
(acquired in an earlier context) in a new context. It
occurs when a person’s learning in one situation
influences that person’s learning and performance in
other situations.
When transfer of learning occurs, it is in the form of
meanings, expectations, generalizations, concepts, or
insights that are developed in one learning situation
being employed in others

Bigge & Shermis, 1992.
21
*According to
Grant Wiggins:
Learning goals can be thought of as being
composed of three interrelated elements:



Acquisition of new information and skill
(apprehension)
Make meaning of that content
(comprehension); and
Transfer of one’s learning to novel and
important situations, issues, and problems
(application).
Transfer = gradual release of
responsibility

Consider in primary language arts




I do, you watch
I do, you help
You do, I help
You do, I watch
23
Research on transfer
and misunderstanding

The research is sobering:


Transfer of learning is widely considered to be a
fundamental goal of education. When students cannot
perform tasks only slightly different from those learned
in class, or when they fail to appropriately apply their
classroom learning in settings outside of school, then
education is deemed to have failed.
Unfortunately, achieving significant transfer of learning
has proven to be a difficult chore. Dating back to the
beginning of [last] century, the research literature on
transfer is replete with reports of failure.

McKeough et al Teaching for Transfer
24
Commonly-cited deficits by
educators

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Inability to analyze/interpret texts and events; students end
up just retelling
Inability to see how today’s problem in math requires the
same skills we have been working on, though the content or
wording of the problem is different
Inability to use the new foreign language in a simulated
situation that calls for what was just taught
Failure to use the writing process if not prompted to do so
Not answering the test question asked; failure to stop and
consider: what does this question/task/problem demand?
What have you experienced? Given what you teach,
when do students typically fail to transfer?
25
NAEP 8th-grade test item,
constructed response

How many buses does the
army need to transport
1,128 soldiers if each bus
holds 36 soldiers?
26
Answer from 30% :
“31,
remainder 12”!!
Remainder
12 bus
27
*Suggestions for FollowUp and Related Resources

Use one or more of the following print
resources to introduce UbD to your
staff: (a) P. 272 (“Self-Assessment for
UbD”); (b) Pp. 273-274 (“Participant
Self-Assessment, Part 1 and 2”); and
(c) P. 275 (“The UbD Workshop
Roadmap”).
*Action Planning



Think: Based on this section of our
institute, what is a specific action step
you might take when you return to your
school or district?
Pair: Share your action step with another
participant.
Share: Share each of your action steps
with your entire table group.
…So How Are We Doing?


What do student achievement data
tell us about levels of student
understanding?
What can these data reveal about
curriculum design, development,
and implementation in public
education today?
Place Your Bets!



How much do you think you know about
student understanding as reflected in
current educational trends?
IMAGINE that you have $100.00 to start.
Decide if each of the following statements
is true or false. Depending upon how
certain you are, bet the full amount you
have or a part of it.
Place Your Bets ONE…

TRUE OR FALSE?
United States students are
generally showing significant
gains in understanding,
based upon standardized test
performance.
False! (I)


During the past 25 years, no major
gains have occurred in higher-order
thinking performance on the National
Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP).
NAEP: Only 6% of students are
competent in Algebra, and 15% in U.S.
History, despite most students having
passed courses by those titles.
False! (II)

Third International Mathematics and Science
Study (TIMSS) and James Stigler’s UCLA
Meta-Study of Teacher Behaviors (“The
Teaching Gap” and “The Learning Gap”):
a. U.S. students outperformed students in
only six countries out of the 46 tested.
b. Unlike high-performing countries, U.S.
schools tend to emphasize practice and
skill development, not thinking, inventing,
and problem solving.
*Place Your Bets TWO…

TRUE OR FALSE?
United States students are
taking more advanced courses
and graduating with higher
grade point averages despite
decreases in NAEP and other
standardized test scores.
*True! (I)
1.
“Test Scores at Odds with Rising High
School Grades”: The Washington Post,
February 23, 2007
2.
“High school students are performing
worse overall on some national tests than
they did in the previous decade, even
though they are receiving significantly
higher grades and taking what seem to be
more rigorous courses, according to
government data released recently.”
*True! (II)
3.
“The mismatch between stronger transcripts
and weak test scores on the National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP),
often called the nation’s report card,
resonated in the Washington area and
elsewhere. Some seized upon the findings as
evidence of grade inflation and the dumbingdown of courses. The findings also prompted
renewed calls for tough national standards
and the expansion of the federal No Child
Left Behind law.”
*True! (III)
5.
6.
“About 35 percent of 12th-graders tested in
2005 scored proficient or better in reading—
the lowest percentage since the test was
launched in 1992, the new data showed.”
“Less than a quarter of seniors scored at least
proficient on a new version of the math
test…In addition, a previous report found that
18 percent of seniors in 2005 scored at least
proficient in science, down from 21 percent in
1996.”
*True! (IV)
7.
8.
“At the same time, the average high school
grade-point average rose from 2.68 in 1990
to 2.98 in 2005, according to a study of
transcripts from graduating seniors. The
study also found that the percentage of
graduating seniors who completed a
standard or mid-level course of study rose
from 35 to 58 percent in that time.”
“Meanwhile, the percentage who took the
highest-level curriculum doubled, to 10
percent.”
Place Your Bets THREE…

TRUE OR FALSE?
Generally, curriculum in the
United States tends to
emphasize critical and
creative thinking rather than
knowledge-recall learning…
False!



In the U.S., schools tend to emphasize
coverage of material with many topic
segments, rather than a limited set taught in
depth.
The U.S. curriculum tends to be a “mile-wide,
inch-deep.”
U.S. education tends to emphasize subjects
and content rather than the learner as the
center of the learning process.
Place Your Bets FOUR…

TRUE OR FALSE?
According to Robert Marzano,
author of What Works in Schools,
American teachers generally have
sufficient time to address the
standards for which they are
responsible.
False!

Robert Marzano (McRel): “If
teachers are expected to get
students to learn all of the [K-12]
standards identified by their
district, on average we need to
expand students’ time in school by
a minimum of 6,000 hours.”
Place Your Bets FIVE…

TRUE OR FALSE?
One of the most effective ways to
boost and maintain standardized test
scores is to ensure that you cover
every standard in your curriculum in
case it is on the test.
False! (I)

TIMSS, Stigler, Marzano, and
others report a test preparation
paradox:
We seem to feel the obligation to
“cover” and “touch on” lots of things in
case they are “on the test.” Results
confirm, however, that superficial
coverage of material causes poorer,
not better, test results.
False! (II)

“What an extensive research literature
now documents is that an ordinary degree
of understanding is routinely missing in
many, perhaps most students. If, when the
circumstances of testing are slightly
altered, the sought-after competence can
no longer be documented, then
understanding—in any reasonable sense of
the term—has simply not been achieved.”
Howard Gardner, The Unschooled Mind
*Suggestions for FollowUp and Related Resources

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Engage staff members in a discussion of 21st Century
“basics”: What are the life skills and habits of mind our
graduates should exit with?
Use the training activities in this section to introduce the six
facets of understanding to your staff: How well do your
students demonstrate proficiency in these six cognitive
behaviors?
Collaborate with other educators to create a philosophy of
learning for your school or district.
Analyze achievement data from your grade level, content
area, school, and/or district to investigate areas of alignment
with research-based conclusions (e.g., TIMSS, NAEP, Stigler’s
“Teaching and Learning Gap”).
Use the resources on P. 253 (“Thinking About Understanding
and Design” and P. 254 (“Thinking About Understanding”) to
frame a faculty meeting discussion.
Backward Design at a Glance
(P. 12)



Stage One: Identify Desired Results:
a. Long-Range Goals (Power Standards)
b. Enduring Understandings & Essential Questions
c. Enabling Knowledge Objectives
Stage Two: Assess Desired Results:
a. Use a Photo Album, Not Snapshot, Approach
b. Integrate Tests, Quizzes, Reflections and Self-Evaluations
with Academic Prompts and Projects
Stage Three: Design Teaching and Learning Activities to
Promote Desired Results:
a. W.H.E.R.E.T.O. Design Principles
b. Organizing Learning So That Students Move Toward
Independent Application and Deep Understanding Using
Research-Based Strategies
*Stage 1—Desired Results
“Design Questions”

Established Goals: What content standards, course, or program

Enduring Understandings: What specific understandings about the

Essential Questions: What questions must be continually addressed to

Know: What knowledge (e.g., facts, concepts, generalizations, rules,

Do: What key skills and procedures will students acquire as a result of this
objectives, etc., will be emphasized? What are the desired long-term
accomplishments?
content and work of the unit are desired? What big ideas enable such
connections and transfer? What misunderstandings are predictable?
ensure in-depth understanding? What thought-provoking questions link
this unit to other units and to student lives?
principles) questions will students be able to answer as a result of this
unit?
unit?
*Stage 2—Assessment Evidence
“Design Questions”

Performance Tasks: Through what authentic

Other Evidence: Through what other evidence
performance task(s) will students demonstrate
transfer and meaning-making of the desired
results? By what criteria will performance be
judged to be valid evidence of the desired
learnings?
(e.g., quizzes, tests, academic prompts,
observations, homework, journals, etc.) will
students demonstrate achievement of the
desired results?
*Stage 3—Learning Plan
“Design Questions”
Learning Activities:



What acquisition of knowledge and skill is required
if the goals for the unit are to be met and if the
understandings are to be achieved?
What meaning-making (inferences, connections,
judgments) and challenges to thinking must the
activities require if learners are to really understand
on their own?
What practice and feedback will learners need to
achieve the transfer goals of the unit, as reflected
in the performance tasks?
UbD Instructional
Design Standards (P. 24)



Before we explore each of the stages of the
backward-design process in detail, take
some time to consider the “UbD Design
Standards” on Page 24.
To what extent are these standards aligned
with current practices and programs in
your school or district?
In your opinion, which of these standards
need greater emphasis?
*Video Clip:
“Square Area”



Observe this lesson conducted by Kay
Toliver.
How does Ms. Toliver’s classroom
reflect UbD design standards?
Available through ARCO and PBS Video,
GOOGLE: “ARCO Kay Toliver” for a
complete catalog of her series.
*Suggestions for FollowUp and Related Resources



Introduce the “Prairie Days/Westward Movement”
pre/post comparison activity as a way to introduce
backward design to staff (pp. 6-11).
Use the “Characteristics of the Best Learning
Designs” on P. 267 to build consensus with other
staff members about what constitutes effective
instructional design.
Extend your discussion of design standards by
introducing the “UbD Design Standards” on P. 24.
What we typically do:
Identify content
Without checking for
alignment
Brainstorm activities & methods
Without checking for
alignment
Come up with an assessment
55
55
3 Stages of
(“Backward”) Design
1. Identify desired results
2. Determine acceptable evidence
3. Plan learning experiences
& instruction
56
3 Stages (with an
understanding focus)
1. What should students come
away understanding?
2. What is evidence of that
understanding?
3. What activities will develop the
understandings?
57
Stage One
Desired Results:
What Do We Want All Students to
Understand, Know, and
Be Able to Do?
*Creating Your Own
UbD Unit

Select a potential unit topic derived
from either a content area you
currently teach or a professional
development topic/issue for which you
are responsible. (NOTE: A UbD
instructional unit can last between one
to four-five weeks.)

Decide if you intend to work
independently or if you wish to work
with one or two partners.
Identifying Big Ideas in Your Unit



Identify the big ideas related to the topic of
your unit.
Be sure to check your standards, as big ideas
could be explicit or implicit in the state
standards.
Using curricular priorities worksheet on page
19, determine and outline what is most
important, important, and least important
about your content, skills, and processes or
concepts.
60
Stage 1: Establishing Priorities
around “Big Ideas”
worth being
familiar with
”nice to know”
40 days
important to
know & do
foundational
knowledge & skill
40 months
“big ideas”
worth
exploring and
understanding
in depth
40 years
Big ideas
See pages 78-79
61
61
Understandings and Essential
Questions involve “Big Ideas”

Is it a Big Idea? Does it –




have lasting value/transfer to other inquiries?
serve as a key concept for making important facts,
skills, and actions more connected, coherent,
meaningful, and useful?
summarize key findings/expert insights in a subject or
discipline?
require “uncoverage” (since it is an abstract
or often-misunderstood idea)?
62
Some “Big Ideas” by type







concepts: migration, function, equity, text
themes: “Good triumphing over evil”
debates: “Nature vs. nurture” “offense vs.
defense”
perspective: “youth” as wise - or immature
paradox: freedom involves responsibility, no
force acting on a body moving at constant
velocity
theory: form follows function; you are what you
eat
principle: the “invisible hand” free markets are
self-regulating (in economics), less is more
(design, arts)
63
Some questions for identifying
truly “big ideas”






Does it have many layers and nuances, not obvious to
the naïve or inexperienced person?
Do you have to dig deep to really understand its
meanings and implications even if you have a surface
grasp of it?
Is it (therefore) prone to misunderstanding as well as
disagreement?
Are you likely to change your mind about its meaning
and importance over a lifetime?
Does it yield optimal depth and breadth of insight into
the subject?
Does it reflect the core ideas as judged by experts?
64
Some Examples from
History Standards
Historical interpretation
 Contributions of individuals and
groups, legacies of civilizations
 Continuity and change
 Conflict and cooperation
 Chronological thinking
 Use of artifacts and documents

65
Some “Big Idea” Examples
of Geography
Earth as our habitat
 Physical and human landscapes
 Human role in changing the
earth’s surface
 Interrelationships between
people and the environment
 Geography as destiny

66
Some “Big Idea” Examples
for Science
Science as Inquiry
 Measurement
 Diversity
 Cycles and
 Models and systems
 Interactions
 Energy
 Living Things
Ethics and Environment


67
Some big idea examples for
Language Arts
Fluency
 Communication
 Vocabulary/Conceptual Development
 Reading to learn
 Literary Interpretation, Response and
Analysis
 Writing vs Writing Process
 Form and structure

68
Some “Big Idea” Examples
for Math
Number Theory
 Operations
 Patterns
 Geometric expression and
measurement
 Modeling
 Problem solving
 Data Probability, and Statistics
 Algebraic expressions

69
Some examples from
The Arts
MUSIC
Variety/Types
 Harmony
 Rhythm
 Composition
 Improvisation
 Compose
 Arrange
 Interpret
 Tone

VISUAL ARTS
Style
Perspective
Contrast
Color
Proportion
Unity/Harmony
Interpretation
Use of space
Balance
70
*Unpacking Standards


In light of the need for standards to be
“unpacked,” how can we build consensus
about what all students should understand
(not just know and do) so that they can see
the universal issues, patterns, and
significance of what they are studying?
How can we support students to make
meaning, acquire, and transfer what they
learn (and move back and forth among these
three elements)?
Unpacking Standards



Understanding by Design suggests that standards
must be “unpacked,” with educators building
consensus about their levels of power or
significance.
In effect, some standards are more significant
than others, particularly where understanding is
concerned.
According to UbD, unpacking standards requires
the delineation of four interrelated components as
part of Stage One design:
The Four Major Components of
Stage One Design (pp. 60-61)

Established Goals: “Power standards,” i.e., those content

Enduring Understandings: Statements of understanding based

Essential Questions: Open-ended, interpretive questions that

Enabling Knowledge Objectives (Knowledge-K and Skills-S):
standards considered important enough to require “unpacking”
for student understanding.
upon the “big ideas” of your established goals.
can be used to trigger and promote student inquiry into the
enduring understandings derived from your established goals.
Performance objectives that articulate what students should
know (declarative knowledge/information) and be able to do
(procedural knowledge) in order to achieve the designated
understandings derived from your established goals/power
standards.
Welcome Back!
Unpacking Standards Template
21stcenturyschoolteacher.com




Sideways Method:
 Examples p. 2-5
 Template p. 6
Inside Out Method:
 Examples p. 7-10
 Template p. 11
Matrix:
 Examples p. 12-16
 Template p. 17
Top Down:
 Examples p. 18-20
 Template p. 21
Memorize these numbers:
17766024365911
Think of . . The
. Declaration of
Independence
Minutes / Hours /
Days / Years
Emergencies!
Memorize these numbers:
1776-60-24-365-911
The Understanding by
Design Three-Circle Audit
1. Standards need to be interpreted and
“unpacked.”
2. Staff members need to determine:
a. Outer Circle: What is worth being
familiar with?
b. Middle Circle: What should all
students know and be able to do?
c. Center Circle: What are the enduring
understandings students should
explore and acquire?
For Example…
For a group of tenth-grade World History
students, how would you rank each of these:



The day and year the Magna Carta was
signed…
The historical significance of the Magna
Carta…
The enduring influence of significant political
documents throughout the history of world
civilization…
Reflection Activity (1)
To what extent do you agree
or disagree with the
following statement?
“Standards have to be
interpreted and ‘unpacked’
by educators. They can’t just
be ‘pasted on the board.’”
*If Your Unit Focuses on
Curriculum Content…



Consider designing the unit as a
“module” within a grading period.
UbD units can last between one to
four-five weeks (not an entire grading
period).
Select a content focus that is highly
significant, requires deep
understanding, and/or often presents
a challenge to many students.
*Beginning Your Unit:
Selecting Your “Established Goals”

Wiggins and McTighe use the term
“Established Goals” to represent what
Doug Reeves calls “Power standards,”
i.e., those content standards
considered important enough to
require “unpacking” for student
understanding.
*Beginning Your Unit:
Some Questions to Help You Establish
Priorities via Your “Established Goals”
Based upon my overall purpose(s) in designing this unit:



About which aspects of my content do I want learners
to construct deeper meaning and overcome
misconceptions and misunderstandings?
About which aspects of my content do I want learners
to develop a capacity for independent transfer via
authentic performance tasks?
About which aspects of my content do I want learners
to investigate big ideas and open-ended questions in
which professionals in the content area are
interested?
*Beginning Your Unit:
Some Questions to Help You Select
Your “Established Goals”






What about this topic truly matters in the
“real world”?
What justifies teaching this?
What about this topic really excites learners?
What can learners do with this?
What important things couldn’t you do if you
didn’t learn this?
Which aspects of your topic present significant
challenges?
*Entry Points for Your
Unit Design Process
Consider the “entry-point” options on P. 276:






Established goals/content standards
An important topic or content issue, problem,
or theme
A highly significant skill(s) or process(es)
A significant test
A key text or resource(s)
A favorite activity or familiar unit that needs
“revisiting” and “revamping”
To What Extent Do Your Desired
Results Address Understanding?

Big Ideas: interdependence, heroism, patterns and

Enduring Understandings: All great writing is

Essential Questions: Is war inevitable? How can
systems, investigation
rewriting. Science can help us reveal the structural
patterns and processes that shape and define our
physical universe.
we determine what an author means? To what extent
is mathematics a language?—How can we learn to
“speak” it with fluency and mastery?
*Video Clip:
“Welcome to Mathematics”



Observe this first-day-of-school lesson taught
by Kay Toliver.
How does Ms. Toliver use enduring
understandings and essential questions to
unify and guide students’ understanding of
mathematics and its significance in our
world?
Available through ARCO and PBS Video,
GOOGLE: “ARCO Kay Toliver” for a complete
catalog of her series.
Introducing
Enduring Understandings:
A Concept-Attainment Activity (P. 107)


Examine the examples on P. 107 to
determine the common characteristics
of effectively framed enduring
understandings.
Apply your list to #’s 11-16 to
determine if each example is or is not
a statement of enduring
understanding.
Enduring Understandings
(P. 115)
1.
Statements or declarations of understandings
comprised of two or more big ideas.
2.
Framed as universal generalizations—the “moral”
or essence of the curriculum story.
3. Help students to “uncover” significant aspects of
the curriculum that are not obvious or may be
counterintuitive or easily misunderstood.
4.
Formed by completing the statement: Students will
understand THAT:……
Sample Enduring
Understandings
1. Numbers are abstract concepts that enable us to represent
concrete quantities, sequences, and rates.
2. Democratic governments struggle to balance the rights of
individuals with the common good.
3. The form in which authors write shapes how they address both
their audience and their purpose(s).
4. Scientists use observation and statistical analysis to uncover
and analyze patterns in nature.
5. As technologies change, our views of nature and our world shift
and redefine themselves.
6. Dance is a language through which the choreographer and
dancer use shape, space, timing, and energy to communicate to
their audience.
Overarching vs.Topical
Understandings (P. 114)



Enduring understandings vary according to
their scope and level of generalization.
An overarching understanding can
apply to multiple points during a student’s
education; the most overarching can also
apply to multiple content areas.
A topical understanding is unit or timespecific and generally applies to a specific
unit within the student’s course of study.
Examples of Overarching and
Topical Enduring Understandings
Topical
Overarching


Mathematics allows us to
see patterns that might
have remained unseen.
When technologies
change, art forms
frequently follow suit.


Statistical analysis and
graphic displays reveal
patterns in seemingly
random data.
When photography
emerged, Impressionists
rejected realism in favor
of conveying impressions
of reflected light upon
the human eye.
Samples Understandings in
History
Overarching (for year or program

SWUT civilizations leave legacies to help us understand
our past and create our present.
Topical (Unit on Greek Civilization)


SWUT that the Greek contribution to the arts including
architecture continue to influence artists and architects
throughout western civilization.
SWUT that the Greek form of a republican government
became a factor in creating democracies throughout the
world.
95
Environmental Education
Understandings



Overarching
Students will understand that (SWUT) plants
and animals make adaptations to their
environments in order to survive.
Topical
SWUT Plants adapt to environments based on
available energy.
SWUT plant life cycles are influenced by their
environments.
96
Environmental Education
Understandings
Overarching

SWUT we have a responsibility to use appropriately
and to protect our natural resources.
Topical



SWUT the ecosystem of rainforests promote the
ongoing development of many plants.
Water quality and quantity influences living
organisms and human health.
Appropriate procedures and processes for collecting
and testing water samples can aid in devising
policies to clean up water pollution.
97
An “Algorithm” for Creating Enduring
Understandings (pp. 120-121)
1. Determine your “Power Standards.”
2. Identify the “big ideas” in those standards.
3. Find patterns and connections between
two or more of these big ideas you wish to
emphasize in your unit or course of study.
4. Use the “Students will understand that…”
stem to formulate your first-draft version.
5. Revise your initial version to make it
student-friendly and age-appropriate.
Introducing Essential Questions:
A Concept-Attainment Activity (P. 88)


Examine the examples on P. 88 to
determine the common characteristics
of effectively framed essential
questions.
Apply your list to #’s 13-18 to
determine if each example is or is not
an essential question.
Essential Questions…(P. 91)






Are interpretive, i.e., have no single “right
answer.”
Provoke and sustain student inquiry, while
focusing learning and final performances.
Address conceptual or philosophical
foundations of a discipline/ content area.
Raise other important questions.
Naturally and appropriately occur.
Stimulate vital, ongoing rethinking of big
ideas, assumptions, and prior lessons.
Sample Essential
Questions (pp. 93-103)
1. In what ways does art reflect culture as well as shape it?
2. To what extent can a fictional story be “true”?
3. Why study history? What can we learn from the past?
4. Why do societies and civilizations change as technologies
change?
5. How does language shape our perceptions?
6. How would our world be different if we didn’t have fractions?
7.How do the structures of biologically important molecules
account for their functions?
Overarching vs.Topical
Essential Questions (P. 92)



Essential questions vary according to their
scope and level of generalization.
An overarching essential question can
apply to multiple points during a student’s
education; the most overarching can also
apply to multiple content areas.
A topical essential question is unit or timespecific and generally applies to a specific
unit within the student’s course of study.
Examples of Overarching and
Topical Essential Questions
Overarching


How do effective
writers hook and
hold their readers?
How do organisms
survive in harsh or
changing
environments?
Topical


How do great
mystery writers hook
and hold their
readers?
How do animals and
plants survive in the
desert?
Entrance Card



One new learning from yesterday
One question from yesterday
One hope for today
What we typically do:
Identify content
Without checking for
alignment
Brainstorm activities & methods
Without checking for
alignment
Come up with an assessment
105
105
3 Stages of
(“Backward”) Design
1. Identify desired results
2. Determine acceptable evidence
3. Plan learning experiences
& instruction
106
3 Stages (with an
understanding focus)
1. What should students come
away understanding?
2. What is evidence of that
understanding?
3. What activities will develop the
understandings?
107
An Algorithm for Creating
Essential Questions
1.Determine the “big ideas” in your enduring
understandings.
2.Decide which of the big ideas you wish your
students to explore and debate.
3.Use “how, why,” or to what extent” to
reframe your big ideas as questions:
 How=process
 Why=cause and effect
 To what extent=matters of degree or kind
Enabling Knowledge
Objectives
Now that you’ve established what you want
students to understand (via enduring
understandings and essential questions),
you’ll need to determine:


What should students know in order to
achieve these understandings and complete
the unit successfully?
What should students be able to do in order
to achieve these understandings and
complete the unit successfully?
How Can We Tell When
Students Are Understanding?
Explanation
 Interpretation
 Application

Analysis of
Perspectives
 Empathy
 SelfKnowledge

The Six Facets of
Understanding (P. 155)



Explanation: Backing up
claims and assertions
with evidence.
Interpretation: Drawing
inferences and
generating something
new from them.
Application: Using
knowledge and skills in
a new or unanticipated
setting or situation.



Perspective: Analyzing
differing points of view
about a topic or issue.
Empathy: Demonstrating
the ability to walk in
another’s shoes.
Self-Knowledge:
Assessing and evaluating
one’s own thinking and
learning: revising,
rethinking, revisiting,
refining.
Experiencing the
Six Facets



Select a partner.
Take turns responding to the
following prompts, each of which asks
you to use one of the six facets of
understanding.
As you answer each question, how are
you using each facet? What
similarities and patterns can you
identify?
Explanation
Agree or Disagree?
“Those who fail to learn from
the past are condemned to
repeat it…”
Explain your response by
providing evidence to support
your opinion.
Interpretation
Brainstorm five (5) or
more ways that
teaching is like a
popcorn popper…
Application
Wiggins and McTighe assert that
understanding is qualitatively
different from knowing or being able
to do something. Apply this assertion
to your own life by describing an
experience when you moved from
knowing or being able to do
something to understanding it…
Perspective
Compare the idea of “back
to the basics” as it might
have been presented in the
1950’s to the “basics” of
education in the 21st
Century.
Empathy
Imagine that you are a
student in a school in which
you currently work.
Describe what you see, feel,
and think as you go through
your day…
Self-Knowledge
How have your views on
the teaching-learning
process changed since
you first entered the
profession of education?
A Reflection Checkpoint
With which of the following “facets of
understanding” do your students
generally perform well? With which do
they have trouble? Why?
a. Explanation
b. Interpretation
c. Application
d.
e.
f.
Perspective
Empathy
Self-Knowledge
Resources for Using the Six
Facets of Understanding

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
As you introduce Understanding by
Design to your school or district, you may
wish to use the following resources
related to the six facets of
understanding:
P. 155=Operational Definitions
P. 156=Questioning for Understanding
Pp. 157-160=Performance Task Ideas
P. 161=Performance Verbs
Pp. 162-166=Performance Task Ideas
The Structure of
Knowledge (pp. 65-68)
Declarative (Know)






Facts
Concepts
Generalizations
Theories
Rules
Principles
Procedural (Do)



Skills
Procedures
Processes
Declarative Knowledge
(Know)






Facts: 1776; Annapolis is the capital of Maryland; Lyndon
Johnson succeeded John F. Kennedy.
Concepts: interdependence; scientific method; equivalent
fractions; grammar and usage
Generalizations: Tragic heroes frequently suffer because of a
failure to recognize an internal character defect; Technology
changes frequently produce social and cultural changes.
Theories: Einstein’s Theory of Relativity; Natural Selection
Rules: The Pythagorean Theorem; rules for pronouncing
sound-symbol combinations in English
Principles: Newton’s Laws; the Commutative Principle
Procedural Knowledge
(Do)



Skill: Focus a microscope; Decode the
meaning of a word using a context cue.
Procedure: Prepare and analyze a slide
specimen; Summarize the main idea of a
paragraph or passage.
Process: Collect a variety of leaf specimens
and compare their structures using a
microscope; Trace the development of an
author’s theme in a work of literature.
To What Extent Do Your Desired Results
Contain Objectives That Emphasize the
Six Facets of Understanding? (P. 161)

The Six Facets: explain, interpret, apply,
analyze perspectives, express empathy,
demonstrate self-knowledge and metacognitive awareness

Know: facts, concepts, generalizations,
rules and principles

Do: skills, procedures, processes
For Example…
Students will be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Explain the significance of the following facts about
the American Civil War.
Interpret the meaning of and apply the following
concepts to the analysis of cause and effect patterns
in labs focusing on chemical and physical changes in
matter.
Analyze and explain the origins of conflicting
perspectives about the Kennedy assassination.
Express empathy for the characters by participating
in a role-play or simulation of events from the novel.
Knowledge and Skills






Create a list of knowledge and skills for the EU’s, EQ’s you have listed in
the Goals section.
Enter these on Stage 1 under know and be able to do in your template
Examine the performance indicators or sub-standards in your state
standards documents for the most important (not necessarily all) “know
and do” statements
Content knowledge will usually be constructed with nouns and be related
to specific processes, procedures, principles, formulas, facts etc.
Skills will generally begin with a verb and be focused on what you want
students “to do” or “how to”. Many skills are listed in performance
indicators
It is important that knowledge and skills are aligned with the other
components in order to assess and to design specific lessons later in
Stages 2 and 3.
126
Enabling Knowledge Objectives
Students will be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Explain…by…
Apply…by…
Interpret…by…
Analyze perspectives…by…
Express empathy…by…
Demonstrate self-knowledge…by…
Examining Sample Stage
One Unit Designs



Examine the sample Stage 1 design on pages 5253 of the workbook. How are the principles for
designing Stage One desired results used here?
Compare the Stage 1 design from pages 54-44 to
the sample one-page designs on pages 32-35 and
the two-page designs on pages 38-45. Which of
the various designs do you prefer? Why?
Which design principles from Stage 1 would you
include in your school or district’s mandated
lesson or unit design policies? Why?
*Reviewing Your
Stage One Design
(P. 126, “Design Checklist-Stage 1)






Ensure alignment among your established goals, EUs,
EQs, and K-S objectives.
Avoid too many enduring understandings (e.g., 1-3
max) and essential questions (e.g., 2-5 max).
Balance thematic and competency-based
understandings and questions.
Revise understandings that are truisms, facts,
superficial, or excessively global and unfocused.
Revise essential questions that are factual, too skillsfocused, teacherly, narrow, or irrelevant outside of
class.
Be sure that your K-S objectives are clearly related to
your established goals and related EUs and EQs.
*Resources for Stage One
Desired Results Design

As you introduce Understanding by Design to your
school or district, you may wish to use the following
resources related to Stage One (Desired Results):
1.
Pp. 120-125 (“Unpacking Goals”)
2.
P. 126 (“Design Checklist”—Stage 1)
3.
Pp. 127-130 (“Stage 1 Draft Designs for Review”)
4.
Pp. 131-133 (“Frequently Asked Questions About
Stage 1”)
*Action Planning



Think: Based on this section of our
institute, what is a specific action step
you might take when you return to your
school or district?
Pair: Share your action step with another
participant.
Share: Share each of your action steps
with your entire table group.
Stage Two
Determining Assessment
Evidence:
How will we diagnose, monitor, and
evaluate students’ achievement of
Stage One desired results?
Addressing These Trends
Through Student Engagement…


In your opinion, what does it mean
for students to be “engaged” in
learning?
Is there a time you can remember
when, as a student, you were actively
engaged in the learning process?
Recognizing the limits
of testing
134
“Evaluation is a complex, multi-faceted
process. Different tests provide different
information, and no single test can give a
complete picture of a student’s academic
development.
-- from CTB/McGraw-Hill
Terra Nova Test Manual
134
*Stage 2—Assessment Evidence
“Design Questions”

Performance Tasks: Through what authentic

Other Evidence: Through what other evidence
performance task(s) will students demonstrate
transfer and meaning-making of the desired
results? By what criteria will performance be
judged to be valid evidence of the desired
learnings?
(e.g., quizzes, tests, academic prompts,
observations, homework, journals, etc.) will
students demonstrate achievement of the
desired results?
Assessing Understanding:
Some Starting Points…



Assessment and instruction are inextricably
linked.
The nature of your desired result(s) will
determine the type(s) of assessment task
you use to monitor student achievement.
When assessing for understanding, more
than selected-response test items (truefalse, fill in the blank, multiple choice) are
required.
Curricular Priorities and
Assessment Methods (P. 141)
Traditional quizzes

and tests (selected response)…….
Quizzes and tests

(constructed response)…….
Performance tasks and projects…

Performance tasks and projects

(complex, open-ended, authentic)……...
Assessing Your
Assessments… (P. 142)




Do you select the appropriate assessment
tool or process to assess each desired result?
Do you use a range of assessment tools,
rather than just tests and quizzes?
Do you strive for a photo album, not a
snapshot, of student performance data?
Does your photo album provide a full portrait
of what your students know, do, and
understand relative to your desired results?
Assessing Your
Assessments (P. 142)
Do you make use of…




Tests and quizzes that include constructedresponse items?
Reflective assessments (reflective journals,
think logs, peer response groups,
interviews)?
Academic prompts with a FAT-P (audience,
format, topic, purpose) clearly stated?
Culminating performance assessment tasks
and projects?
A Self-Reflection Activity (P. 143)
1.
Complete the questionnaire on
page 143, “Sources of Assessment
Evidence: Self-Assessment.”
2.
Compare your responses to those of
one or more participants at your
table. On which areas do you agree
there is a high level of use? In which
areas do you agree there is a need for
improvement or expanded emphasis?
*Beginning Your
Stage Two Design




Ensure that all Stage One desired results are assessed
in a balanced way (esp. your EUs and EQs).
Avoid assessments that are too focused on discrete
content and do not do justice to the big ideas of your
unit.
Be sure that transfer tasks are framed as true
performance tasks (e.g., authentic context, purpose,
audience, etc.).
Provide key information on criteria for evaluation:
“look-for’s,” rubrics, scoring guides.
Sample Reflective
Assessment Activities
1. Reflective Journal Entries: How well do you understand this
passage? What are the main ideas from this lesson? What
did this material mean to you?
2. Think Logs: How would you describe the process of
classification? How has your approach to problem-solving
changed during this unit?
3. Self-Evaluations: Based upon our evaluation criteria, what
grade would you give yourself? Why?
4. Peer Response Group Activities: What can you praise about
the work? What questions can you pose? What suggestions
can you make for polishing the product?
5. Interviews: Tell me about your perceptions of this project.
What do you consider to be your strengths and areas in
need of improvement?
The Academic Prompt



A structured performance task that elicits the
student’s creation of a controlled
performance or product.
These performances and products should
align with criteria expressed in a scoring
guide or rubric.
Successful prompts articulate a format,
audience, topic/content focus, and purpose.
A Sample Academic
Prompt with a FAT-P
Think about a time when you were
surprised (topic). Write a letter
(format) to a friend (audience) in
which you describe that experience.
Use a logical narrative sequence with
concrete sensory details to help your
friend understand what this event
was like and how you experienced it
(purpose).
Activity
Pages 168-169
Choose performance task
example and locate the
FAT-P elements.
Distinguishing Between an Academic
Prompt and a Culminating Performance
Task and Project (pp. 168-169)

In designing performance tasks, we need to ask ourselves: What is
the level of independent transfer students are expected to
demonstrate?


If students are still in the area of “guided practice,” an academic
prompt may be more appropriate; if students are expected to
demonstrate independent transfer and a high level of conceptual
understanding, a culminating project or authentic performance task
(cornerstone performance) may be most appropriate.
Review the “Performance Task Samples” on pages 168-169 of the
workbook. In your opinion, which ones are academic prompts
(because they are highly teacher-guided and mediated) and which
ones are closer to independent projects or cornerstone
performances (because they require extended student time,
independent transfer, and a high degree of conceptual application)?
Elements of an Effective Performance
Task and Culminating Project






G=real-world goals
R=real-world role(s)
A=real-world audience
S=real-world situation
P=real-world products and
performances
S=standards for acceptable
performance
A Sample G.R.A.S.P.S.
You are a member of a team of scientists
investigating deforestation of the Amazon rain
forest. You are responsible for gathering scientific
data (including such visual evidence as photographs)
and producing a scientific report in which you
summarize current conditions, possible future trends,
and their implications for both the Amazon itself and
its broader influence on our planet. Your report, which
you will present to a United Nations subcommittee, should include detailed and fullysupported recommendations for an action plan
which are clear and complete.
Follow-Up Activity
Use the G.R.A.S.P.S.
design elements to create
a powerful culminating
performance task or
project for a unit you
teach.
Assessing
Performance Tasks
Modified Holistic
Scoring Rubrics
 Analytic-Trait Rubrics
 Analytic Scoring Guides

Modified Holistic
Scoring Rubric (P. 182)
3=All data are accurately represented on the graph. All parts of
the graph are correctly labeled. The graph contains a title that
clearly tells what the data show. The graph is very neat and easy
to read.
2=Data are accurately represented on the graph or the graph
contains only minor errors. All parts of the graph are correctly
labeled or the graph contains minor inaccuracies. The graph
contains a title that generally tells what the data show. The
graph is generally neat and readable.
1=The data are inaccurately represented, contain major errors
or are missing. Only some parts of the graph are correctly
labeled, or labels are missing. The title does not reflect what the
data show, or the title is missing. The graph is sloppy and
difficult to read.
The Analytic-Trait Rubric
(P. 188)
Traits
Scale
Understanding
Weights:
65 percent
Performance or Performance
Quality
35 percent
4
Shows a sophisticated
understanding of relevant
ideas and processes…
The performance or product is
highly effective…
3
Shows a solid understanding of
the relevant ideas and
processes…
The performance or product is
effective…
2
Shows a somewhat naïve or
limited understanding of
relevant ideas or processes…
The performance or product is
somewhat effective…
1
Shows little apparent
understanding of the relevant
ideas and processes…
The performance or product is
ineffective.
Analytic Scoring Guide
50%=Content: Clearly-presented thesis statement with fullydeveloped supporting ideas and balanced evidence to make
a compelling and convincing argument.
25%=Organization: Consistent support of thesis statement
with all ideas and supporting evidence aligned with the
controlling ideas of the composition. Consistent attention to
the use of transitional expressions and other techniques to
ensure coherence and clarity.
25%=Editing: Elimination of major grammar and usage
errors with clear attention to correct syntax and sentence
variety.
Examining Sample Stage
Two Unit Designs



Examine the sample Stage 2 design on pages 5455 of the workbook. How are the principles of
balanced assessment design used here?
Compare the Stage 2 design from pages 54-44 to
the sample one-page designs on pages 32-35 and
the two-page designs on pages 38-45. Which of
the various designs do you prefer? Why?
Which design principles from Stage 2 would you
include in your school or district’s mandated
lesson or unit design policies? Why?
*Reviewing Your
Stage Two Design
(Design Checklist—Stage 2, P. 207)




Ensure that all Stage One desired results are
assessed in a balanced way (esp. your EUs and
EQs).
Avoid assessments that are too focused on
discrete content and do not do justice to the big
ideas of your unit.
Be sure that transfer tasks are framed as true
performance tasks (e.g., authentic context,
purpose, audience, etc.).
Provide key information on criteria for
evaluation: “look-for’s,” rubrics, scoring guides.
Resources for Stage Two
Assessment Design

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
As you introduce Understanding by Design to your school or
district, you may wish to use the following resources related to
Stage Two (assessment design):
Pp. 168-169=Performance Task Samples
P. 172=G.R.A.S.P.S. Design Template
Pp. 173-179=G.R.A.S.P.S. Resources
P. 180=Self-Test Assessment Ideas
Pp. 181-196=Scoring Tools Resources
Pp. 197-207=Performance Task Ideas
P. 233=Three Types of Classroom Assessments
P. 234=Informal Checks for Understanding
Pp. 235-236=Assessing and Addressing Misunderstandings
*Action Planning



Think: Based on this section of our
institute, what is a specific action step
you might take when you return to your
school or district?
Pair: Share your action step with another
participant.
Share: Share each of your action steps
with your entire table group.
Stage Three
Designing TeachingLearning Activities:
How can we promote student achievement of
Stage One desired results as confirmed by their
performance on Stage Two assessments?
A Stage Three
Essential Question
How can schools and districts
promote instructional
practices that reinforce the
engagement, achievement,
and understanding of all
learners?
*Stage 3—Learning Plan
“Design Questions”
Learning Activities:



What acquisition of knowledge and skill is required
if the goals for the unit are to be met and if the
understandings are to be achieved?
What meaning-making (inferences, connections,
judgments) and challenges to thinking must the
activities require if learners are to really understand
on their own?
What practice and feedback will learners need to
achieve the transfer goals of the unit, as reflected
in the performance tasks?
*Examples in Action (1):
Learning to Tie Your Shoes

Student is taught how to tie their shoes (A).

Students practice tying their shoes (A).



Students draw or speak the steps for tying
shoes (M).
Students discuss the pro’s and con’s of
laces vs. Velcro and different methods of
tying (M).
Students teach others how to tie their shoes
(T).
*Examples in Action (2):
Learning Newton’s Laws of Motion




Students are given four demonstrations of physical events
(pendulum, shooter of pellets, care slowing down, sling)
and asked to explain them in terms of Newtonian principles
and the question: “Why does that move the way it does?”
(M).
Students are asked to generalize from laboratory data (M).
Students read and discuss the textbook’s presentation of
the three laws of Newton and take a quiz on their reading
(A).
Students build a working roller coaster based on their
learning about forces, vectors, and Newton’s laws (T).
*Examples in Action (3):
Analyzing Hamlet




Teacher lectures on the life of Shakespeare, the Globe Theatre,
and the relationship of Hamlet to Shakespeare’s career,
stopping for classroom discussion and student questions (A).
Students participate in a Socratic seminar on Hamlet (M).
Students identify real-life persons who resemble Hamlet,
providing evidence to explain their choices (M).
“What’s the diagnosis?”—Students assume the role of
psychologist, analyzing Hamlet’s motivation and behavior
patterns (T).
What Can We Observe in a Classroom
That Promotes Student Understanding?
(pp. 268-269)


As we begin to explore the design of
teaching and learning activities that
promote student understanding (Stage 3),
consider the “Observable Indicators of
Teaching for Understanding” identified on
pages 268-269.
In your opinion, how often are these
indicators present in classrooms with which
you are familiar? Which ones would you
like to see more of? Why?
*Key Suggestions for Effective
Stage Three Design (P. 267)








Align the learning experiences with your Stage 1 Desired Results,
emphasizing understanding of big ideas.
Include your diagnostic, formative, and summative assessment tasks as
part of your teaching-learning design sequence.
Make the purpose/rationale for each learning experience/activity clear.
Be sure that EUs and EQs are central to your unit and revisited throughout
it.
Build student learning toward transfer and personal meaning-making;
avoid too much teacher-centered direct instruction that does not lead to
these two priorities.
Make the unit a “whole” of learning experiences which logically flow and
coherently build and come together; avoid a grab-bag of isolated activities
and lessons that merely “cover” discrete content goals.
Emphasize student meaning-making and/or transfer; avoid too much
emphasis upon content coverage or acquisition.
Consider areas of your unit where differentiation of content, process, and
products can occur to accommodate varying student readiness levels,
interests, and learning profiles.
An Introduction to
W.H.E.R.E.T.O. (P. 212)


UbD suggests that when designing
instructional activities (Stage 3),
educators make use of a set of design
principles called W.H.E.R.E.T.O.
These design principles form a kind of
“blueprint” for designing teaching
and learning activities that promote
deep understanding and transfer.
Designing Instructional Activities
to Promote Understanding




W=Where are we going? Why are we going
there? In what ways will we be evaluated?
H=How will you hook and engage my interest?
E=How will you equip me for success?
R=How will you help me revise, rethink,
refine, and revisit what I am learning?

E=How will I self-evaluate and self-express?
T=How will you tailor your instruction to meet

O=How will you organize your teaching to

my individual needs and strengths?
maximize understanding for all students?
*Video Clip:
“W.H.E.R.E.T.O. in Action”



Observe these classrooms in action.
How does each of them reflect the
W.H.E.R.E.T.O. design principles?
Available through ASCD DVD, Moving
Forward with Understanding by
Design.
“W” Essential Questions
(pp. 215-216)




Articulation of Goals: Where are we going in this unit or
course? What are our goals and standards? What resources and
learning experiences will help us achieve them?
Communication of Expectations: What is expected of
students? What are the key assignments and assessments?
How will students demonstrate understanding? What criteria
and performance standards will be used for assessment?
Establishment of Relevance and Value: Why is this worth
learning? How will this benefit students now and in the future?
Diagnosis: From where are students coming? What prior
knowledge, interests, learning styles, and talents do they bring?
What misconceptions may exist that must be addressed?
The “H” Concept

At the beginning of key juncture
points in your teaching/unit, “hook”
students’ imagination and
motivation by engaging them in
thought-provoking, interactive, and
intriguing learning activities that
anticipate or foreshadow key unit
content.
FOR EXAMPLE, at the beginning of a
life science or biology unit
on the human body:









Babies are born with 300 bones. Adults have 206.
A sneeze can travel more than 100 miles per hour.
Every person has a unique tongue print.
A fingernail or toenail takes about six months to grow from base to
tip.
The heart circulates the body’s blood supply about 1,000 times each
day.
The average human scalp has 100,000 hairs.
If put end to end, all the blood vessels in the body would stretch
62,000 miles (or 2.5 times around the Earth).
If a man never trimmed his beard, it would, on average, grow to
nearly 30 feet.
Every square inch of your body has about 3.2 million bacteria on it.
(“The Inside Story,” The Washington Post, P. C12, May 7, 2007)
FOR EXAMPLE, at the beginning of a
history unit on the
American presidency:













Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860; John F. Kennedy was elected President in
1960.
Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both had wives who lost children while living in the White House.
Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.
Lincoln’s secretary was named Kennedy, Kennedy’s Lincoln.
Both were assassinated by Southerners and were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1839; Lee Harvey Oswald, Kennedy’s
assassin, was born in 1939.
Both assassins were known by their three names; both names are composed of fifteen letters.
Lincoln was shot at the theatre named “Ford” and Kennedy was shot in a car called “Lincoln”
made by “Ford.”
Lincoln was shot in a theatre and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse; Kennedy was shot
from a warehouse and his assassin ran and hid in a theatre.
Booth and Oswald were both assassinated before their trials.
A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe, Maryland; A week before Kennedy was shot,
he was with Marilyn Monroe.
FOR EXAMPLE, ask students what
they conclude about the following
unusual information…:









Take your height and divide by eight. That is how tall your head is.
No piece of paper can be folded in half more than seven times.
The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley’s gum.
Earth is the only planet not named after a pagan god.
A Boeing 747’s wingspan is longer than the Wright brothers’ first
flight.
Three percent of pet owners give Valentine’s Day gifts to their pets.
Thirty-one percent of employees skip lunch entirely.
According to research, Los Angeles highways are so congested that
the average commuter sits in traffic for 82 hours a year.
The 1912 Olympics was the last Olympics that gave out gold
medals made entirely out of gold.
What can you conclude
about the following…?









Falling is the most common nightmare.
Americans consume five tons of aspirin a day.
Most men part their hair to the left for no apparent reason.
Sixty-seven percent of Americans think they are overweight.
Americans throw away 27 percent of their food each year.
Twenty-five percent of all people snoop in friends’ medicine
cabinets.
People typically spend a year of their lives looking for things they
have lost.
One out of every 10 children sleepwalks.
Thirty-six percent of people choose pizza for the one food they
would eat if they could only eat one food.
“H” Strategies
(P. 217)











Odd facts, anomalies, counterintuitive examples
Provocative entry questions
Mysteries and engaging anecdotes or stories
Challenges
Student-friendly problems and issues
Experiments and predictions of outcomes
Role-plays and simulations activities
Sharing personal experiences
Allowing students choices and options
Establishing emotional connections
Humor
“E” Essential Questions
(pp. 218-219)

Experiential and Inductive Learning:What
experiential or inductive learning will help students to
explore the big ideas and essential questions?

Direct Instruction: What information or skills need
to be taught explicitly to equip students for successful
achievement of desired results?

Homework and Other Out-of-Class Experiences:
What homework and other out-of-class experiences
are needed to equip students to achieve desired
results and complete expected performances?
“R” Essential Questions
(pp. 221-222)

Rethink:What big ideas do we want students to
rethink? How will your design challenge students to
revisit important ideas?

Revise or Refine: What skills need to be practiced or
rehearsed? How might student products and
performances be improved?

Reflect: How will you encourage students to reflect
on their learning experiences and growing
understanding? How will you help them to become
more meta-cognitive?
Sample “E” Questions
(P. 223)











What do you really understand about …….?
What questions and uncertainties do you still have?
What was most and least effective in ….?
How could you improve …..?
How would you describe your strengths and needs in…?
What would you do differently next time?
What grade or score do you deserve? Why?
How does what you’ve learned connect to other
learnings?
How have you changed your thinking?
How does what you’ve learned related to your present
and future?
What follow-up work is needed?
“T” Essential Questions
(P. 224)

Content: How will you accommodate different knowledge and
skill levels? How will you address a variety of learning
modalities and preferences? How will you use a range of
resource materials?

Process: How will you vary individual and group work? How
will you accommodate different learning style preferences and
readiness levels?

Product: To what extent will you allow students choices in
products for activities and assignments? How will you allow
students choices for demonstrating significant understandings?
“O” Essential Questions
(P. 225)

Conceptual Organization Along a Developmental
Continuum: How will you help students to move from initial
concrete experience toward growing levels of conceptual
understanding and independent application?

Coverage: What aspects of your unit or program are most
appropriately and effectively addressed in linear, teacherdirected, or didactic fashion?

“Uncoverage”: What is most appropriately and effectively
“uncovered” in an inductive, inquiry-oriented experiential
manner?
Applying Stage 3
1. How is W.H.E.R.E.T.O. the
“blueprint” for Stage Three
learning activities?
2. How would you explain each
of the W.H.E.R.E.T.O.
elements to a colleague with
whom you work?
Examining Sample Stage
Three Unit Designs



Examine the sample Stage 3 design on Page 56 of
the workbook. How are the W.H.E.R.E.T.O. design
elements used here?
Compare the Stage 3 design from Page 56 to the
sequential, calendar-based design on Page 57.
Which of the two designs do you prefer? Why?
Which design principles from Stage 3 would you
include in your school or district’s mandated
lesson or unit design policies? Why?
*Reviewing Your
Stage Three Design
(Design Checklist—Stage 3, P. 238)








Align the learning experiences with your Stage 1 Desired Results,
emphasizing understanding of big ideas.
Make the purpose/rationale for each learning experience/activity clear.
Be sure that EUs and EQs are central to your unit and revisited throughout
it.
Build student learning toward transfer and personal meaning-making;
avoid too much teacher-centered direct instruction that does not lead to
these two priorities.
Make the unit a “whole” of learning experiences which logically flow and
coherently build and come together; avoid a grab-bag of isolated activities
and lessons that merely “cover” discrete content goals.
Emphasize student meaning-making and/or transfer; avoid too much
emphasis upon content coverage or acquisition.
Include your diagnostic, formative, and summative assessment tasks as
part of your teaching-learning design sequence.
Consider areas of your unit where differentiation of content, process, and
products can occur to accommodate varying student readiness levels,
interests, and learning profiles.
Resources for Stage Three Design of
Teaching-Learning Activities

1.
2.
3.
As you introduce Understanding by Design to
your school or district, you may wish to use
the following resources related to Stage
Three (design of teaching-learning
activities):
P. 237=The Logic of Design vs. the Sequence
of Teaching
P. 238=Design Checklist—Stage 3
Pp. 239-240=Frequently Asked Questions
About Stage 3
*Action Planning



Think: Based on this section of our
institute, what is a specific action step
you might take when you return to your
school or district?
Pair: Share your action step with another
participant.
Share: Share each of your action steps
with your entire table group.
So Far, We’ve
Explored…





Changes in our society necessitating the need to
emphasize student engagement.
The need to emphasize student understanding,
not just knowledge-recall learning.
The power of a core and conceptually-organized
curriculum built upon high expectations for all
students.
The necessity of differentiating assessment and
instruction.
The power of using research-based instructional
practices to promote student engagement.
Contact Information
Donnell E. Gregory:
 Email: Dgregory@dgregoryassociates.com
 Phone: 937.673.8025
Donna Herold:
 Email: donnaher@spokaneschools.org
 509.979.2521
 http://www.21stcenturyschoolteacher.com
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