Ela Albert Edward
Ela Albert Edward
Ela Albert Edward
UbD
STAGE 1 DESIRED RESULTS
Unit Title: Our Most Excellent Mountain Adventure: Hiking Mt. Albert Edward
This Unit is a place-based unit in which my Grade 7 Outdoor Ed. students will learn about and then
discover for themselves Strathcona Park, and Mt. Albert Edward specifically.
The ELA component takes up the Big Idea: "Exploring stories and other texts helps us understand
ourselves and make connections to others and to the world." Students will produce a Project a
"Trip Dossier" that includes their planning for the hike, activities to be completed during the hike,
and post-hike reflections.
Specifically, students will learn to anticipate their requirements based on reading trip reports and
stories about the mountains, they will perform mathematical calculations (to determine their caloric
needs, the number of kms traveled, the speed at which they traveled, elevation gain, slope, heart rate
etc.), they will learn about the alpine ecosystem and identify plants, creatures, and geological
formations, and they will produce their own trip reports, including a journal and a representation of
their choosing.
Through these activities, they will develop and understand their connection to their local environment.
Rationale Why are you doing this and why is it relevant to your students
This is a unit for an Outdoor Education class with a focus on ELA and Math (as well as curricular
connections to PE and Science). This unit will cover students' preparation for our 3-day hike up Mt
Albert Edward, activities during the trip, and post-trip reflection and debrief. The Math/ELA/Science
activities will be directly relevant to the students' planning and experience of the mountain: Students
will learn about their local geography, they will read about mountain survival, they will experience an
adventure, they will take responsibility for their own preparation, and they will reflect about their own
experience.
I have prepared this unit with my upcoming spring practicum class in mind (Gr. 7 Outdoor Ed/ French
Immersion).
ELA: ELA:
Use writing and design processes to plan, Presentation techniques
develop, and create engaging and meaningful
literary and informational texts for a variety of Metacognitive strategies
Source: Understanding by Design, Unit Design Planning Template (Wiggins/McTighe 2005) 1
Design Topic ____________________________ Subject(s) ______________________ Grade(s) _______ Designer(s) ___________________________
Math: Math:
Model mathematics in contextualized experiences Operations with decimals (addition, subtraction,
multiplication, division, and order of operations)
Visualize to explore mathematical concepts
Operations with integers (addition, subtraction,
multiplication, division, and order of operations)
Financial literacy
Graphing
Science: Science:
Experience and interpret the local environment Survival needs
PE: PE:
Apply methods of monitoring and adjusting Ways to monitor and adjust physical exertion
exertion levels in physical activity levels
Investigate and analyze influences on eating Effects of different types of physical activity on
habits the body
Key Criteria:
1) Completion
2) Accuracy (Math)
3) Understanding of real world applications: realistic responses, personal responsibility in the mountains
4) Evidence of engagement in journals and reflections
5) Clarity of expression
Guide Books:
Island Alpine (2014), Philip Stone
Hiking Trails 3 (2012), Richard Blier
Fiction:
Hatchet (1987), Gary Paulsen
Poetry:
David (1942), Earl Birney
Non-Fiction:
Beyond Nootka (1996), Lindsay Elms
Touching the Void (1988), Joe Simpson
Visual Media:
Images of alpine eco-systems
Touching the Void (2003), film