Actually, Scott, it is a perfectly acceptable and legitimate way to teach. So, let's say you want to cover American folktales (for instance) as part of social studies. You can integrate a story about Johnny Appleseed or Paul Bunyan into your reading lessons. If your science unit is about plant growth, you can use charts and measuring as part of your math lesson.
Truly, integrated lessons work exceptionally well because the material has a foundation and application, instead of being taught in a vacuum. What is required is a teacher with the creativity and flexibility (not to mention administrative empowerment) to build their lessons this way. Unfortunately, because of the standardization of curriculum to the lowest common denominator and state tests, this kind of teaching excellence just isn't seen very much in public schools.
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Truly, integrated lessons work exceptionally well because the material has a foundation and application, instead of being taught in a vacuum. What is required is a teacher with the creativity and flexibility (not to mention administrative empowerment) to build their lessons this way. Unfortunately, because of the standardization of curriculum to the lowest common denominator and state tests, this kind of teaching excellence just isn't seen very much in public schools.
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