Running head: Design a Thematic Unit

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

Roxana Shirazi
American College of Education

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

Objectives/Outcomes, Grade Level, Language Level, and Theme

Objectives/Outcomes: Content Area 1
Students should be able to discuss numerous
subjects pertaining to the physical aspects of
the human body such as obesity.

Grade Level of Students Served:

University/Erasmus

Objectives/Outcomes: Content Area 2

Students should be able to formulate and
articulate opinions regarding cerebral
physicality such as beauty.

Language Level of Students Served:

Advanced

Unit Theme: The human body

Brainstorm Associations
Theme: The human body
Content Area 1: The Body

Content Area 2: What is Beauty?

Ideas
Body parts vocabulary, functions of body parts
such as hearing or seeing, obesity and food,
fast food culture, Heart Attack Grill restaurant
in America, fast food versus slow food, is fast
food prevalent in Turkey? What types of fast
food do you like? Being healthy is beautiful?

Ideas
Adjectives, synonyms, and antonyms for
attractive, Miss Universe and beauty pageants,
Toddlers and Tiaras reality show, The Swan
reality TV show, Pinks Stupd Girl, Idioms,
Barbie, open-ended conversation questions:
what do you find attractive? Relationship
vocabulary, how to ask marital status or
relation to another person, and types of
cosmetc surgery,

Write Guiding Questions

Guiding Questions

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

1. Can students articulate their opinion?

2. Can students formulate a new point of view?

3. Are students utilizing the correct vocabulary within applicable contexts?

4. Are students properly intoning and stressing individual words so that they sound fluent?

Develop Activities
Module 1
Remembering
/ Knowledge

Understanding/
Comprehensio
n

Applying/
Application

Analyzing/
Analysis

Evaluating/
Evaluation

Creating/
Synthesis

Memorize the
body parts

Identify the
function of
each body part.

Illustrate oral
instruction.

Distinguish
between the
different
body parts.

Select the
correct body
part

Draw the
figure as
orally
described.

Explain what
was shown in
the video.

Write the
answer to the
comprehensio
n questions.

Compare
and contrast
Turkish vs.
American
fast food
eating habits

Argue the
merits and
drawbacks
of fast food.

Write about
your own
fast food
experience.

Discuss the
difference
between
surgery to lose
weight and
cosmetic
surgeries

Choose which
surgery is
right and
which is
wrong.

Examine the
use of
surgery for
both weight
loss and
beauty.

Defend your
decision of
which
surgery is
right and
which is
wrong.

Write about
the
relationship
between
food, health,
and beauty.

Recall
vocabulary
words from
the video

Recall various
body parts.

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

Module 2
Remembering
/ Knowledge

Understanding/
Comprehensio
n

Applying/
Application

Analyzing/
Analysis

Evaluating/
Evaluation

Creating/
Synthesis

Describe
terms for
familiar,
professional,
and romantic
relationships.

Discuss your
role in different
types of
relationships.

Write about
the various
relationships
that people in
your group
are currently
engaged in.

Compare
your
relationships
with that of
fellow
classmates.

Argue the
importance
of various
types of
relationships.

Write about
the
meaningful
relationships
in your life.

Define the
term beautiful
using
synonyms and
antonyms.

Discuss global
notions of
beauty.

Interpret the
commonalitie
s of the beauty
pageants
contestants.

Criticize the
message that
beauty
pageants are
sending to
viewers.

Defend the
existence or
abolishment
of beauty
pageants.

Develop
your own
beauty
pageant.

Recall
mainstream
concepts of
beauty.

Describe the
type of man or
woman you
find attractive.

Employ the
music video
to formulate
or reinforce
an opinion.

Compare
your idea of
beauty with
those of
fellow
classmates.

Argue for or
against
beauty
obtained
through
cosmetic
surgery.

Write your
opinion
regarding
constructed
beauty.

Developing Activities: Cooperative Learning

Various vocabularies pertaining to relatonships wll be taught. We wll talk about terms
for family members, romantc relationships, and appropriate terms for work colleagues. Students
will be randomly assigned to groups of four. They will be handed a worksheets prompting them
to ask about familial, romantic, and professional relationships of each person n the group. They

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

will be required to construct sentences and questions. After the allotted time has expired, they
will share ther findings.
Developing Activities: Whole Language
Students will be given an introduction to the song Stupid Girl by the American singer,
Pink. They will be told that the song is a critique of Western definitions of beauty. Two versions
of the same music video will be shown. The first will be without lyrics so that the emphasis will
be on the audio and visual components. Durng the second verson, they wll read the lyrics. I
will elicit speaking by asking the students about their first impression of the music vdeo and the
message it conveys. After our classroom discussion, each student will be asked to write their
opinions about constructed beauty and Western notions of beauty.
Developing Activities: Language Experience
Following a video and discusson about the infamous fast food restaurant, Heart Attack
Grill, students wll be asked to write and speak about ther own fast food experiences. A series of
questions will be posed revolvng around their Turkish culture. For example, what fast food
restaurants are in Turkey? Do you consider dner a fast food? Why or why not? What is your
favorite foreign fast food chain? Is Turksh slow food better than foregn fast food? Explan
your response.

Design a Thematic, Interdisciplinary Unit: Part 1

References
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camps in which Syrian refugees stay: Conditional analysis. International Journal of
Social Sciences & Education, 4, 668-681.
Miller, J., Windle, J.A., & Yazdanpanah, L.K. (2014). Planning lessons for refugee-background
students: Challenges and strategies. International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning, 9,
38-48.
Perry, K.H. & Hart, S.J. (2012). Im just kind of winging it: Preparing and supporting educators
of adult refugee learners. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 56, 110-122.
doi:10.1002/JAAL.00112