Develop Your Weekly Units

Designing weekly units involves structuring content and activities to guide students through focused learning experiences that align with course learning outcomes. A well-designed unit should include clear objectives, engaging content, meaningful activities, and opportunities for assessment and reflection. Below is a guide called BOPPPS that outlines the essential components of a weekly unit.
As a recommended practice, break your lessons up into small chunks of lecture and learning activities to engage students in the lesson(s).

1. Bridge-In
   A Bridge-In captures students’ attention and connects prior knowledge to new learning, setting the stage for engagement. This can be achieved through a thought-provoking question, a real-world scenario, a short story, or an interactive activity that sparks curiosity and relevance.
2. Learning Objectives
   Clearly define what students will achieve by the end of the unit.
   • Objectives should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
   • Use action verbs from Bloom’s Taxonomy (e.g., analyze, create, evaluate).

   Example:
   By the end of this unit, students will be able to evaluate the ethical implications of adopting alien-inspired technologies in human industries.

3. Pre-Test
   Assess students’ prior knowledge or readiness for the week’s content.
   • Use short quizzes, polls, discussions, or reflective questions to gauge your students’ understanding of the topic that week.
4. Instructional Materials
   Provide the core knowledge or skills students need to meet the learning objectives using a variety of resources to support student learning. You can use lectures paired with PowerPoint slide decks, a series of videos, demonstrations, or other teaching techniques to teach content to students.
   • Materials should be relevant, accessible, and diverse to accommodate various learner needs.
   • Examples include textbooks, articles, videos, and OERs.

   Examples:

   • Readings: “Stellar Innovations: Theoretical Foundations and Applications of Alien Technologies” (textbook).
   • Video: Beyond the Stars: Innovations from Alien Worlds.
5. Learning Activities
   Engage students actively with the content through hands-on or reflective activities.
   • Activities should align with the learning objectives and help students apply what they have learned.
   • Include individual and collaborative tasks to cater to different learning preferences.

   Examples:

   • Group discussion on the ethical dilemmas of alien technology.
   • Role-playing exercise to propose guidelines for integrating alien systems.
6. Post-Test
   Evaluate what students have learned and identify areas needing reinforcement.
   • Use quizzes, short-answer questions, applied tasks, or discussions.
7. Summary
   Conclude the unit with a recap of key points and a reflection activity.
   • Summarize the week’s content and connect it to upcoming topics.
   • Encourage students to reflect on their learning experience.