Instructional Strategies

Cross-Curricular Lesson Planning Template and Example

Published August 17, 2025 · Updated July 13, 2026

Short answer

Cross-curricular teaching works when the connection strengthens learning in each discipline. Start with one shared question, name what each subject contributes, align standards and evidence, and schedule enough time for planning and student work. A broad theme by itself is not an instructional plan.

Alignment before theme

Begin with the disciplinary learning, not a decorative theme. Ask: What will students learn in subject A? What will they learn in subject B? Where does the work genuinely intersect? What evidence will show each objective? If one subject becomes a poster or a vocabulary list without its own learning goal, redesign the task.

One-page planning template

Shared question or problem:
Subject A objective and standard:
Subject B objective and standard:
What each discipline contributes:
Prerequisite knowledge/language:
Materials and access supports:
Teacher coordination meeting:
Student task and checkpoints:
Evidence for Subject A:
Evidence for Subject B:
Assessment criteria:
Time required and fallback:
How the team will revise:

Complete two-subject example: science and language arts

Question: How can a written explanation help another person understand a local water-quality observation?

Science objective: Students will use recorded observations to identify a pattern and state one evidence-based explanation.

Language arts objective: Students will write an organized explanation with a claim, relevant evidence, and a clear connection between them.

Sequence: Science class collects or reviews a shared observation set (30 minutes); students model how to distinguish observation from inference (15 minutes); language arts class studies one model explanation (15 minutes); pairs draft and revise (30 minutes); each student submits an explanation and an evidence table (20 minutes).

Assessment: Science criteria score the accuracy of the pattern and evidence. Language arts criteria score organization, clarity, and the claim-evidence connection. The shared topic does not erase the two disciplinary criteria.

Fallback: If data collection is not possible, use a prepared observation set and keep the same reasoning objective.

Time and coordination plan

Planning step	Realistic time	Output
Find the genuine overlap	15 minutes	One shared question and two disciplinary objectives.
Agree on sequence and materials	20 minutes	Who teaches what, when, and with which access supports.
Align evidence	10 minutes	Separate criteria for each subject plus any shared criteria.
After-lesson review	15 minutes	One change for the next cycle based on student work.

Coordinate with another teacher

Bring the actual standards or curriculum expectations, not only a theme.
Agree on vocabulary, materials, student grouping, and where directions will live.
Decide how students will receive feedback from both teachers.
Plan for absences, schedule changes, language access, disability access, and a non-digital route.
Set one short review meeting after student work is available.

Assessment plan

Use a shared question but collect evidence that belongs to each discipline. A project can include a science observation table, a mathematical calculation, a historical source analysis, a design prototype, an oral explanation, or a written argument. State which evidence is assessed by which teacher and how students may access or express it.

Common risks

Starting with a broad theme and adding subject labels later.
Letting one subject carry the intellectual work while another supplies decoration.
Underestimating coordination time and material preparation.
Using one rubric that hides the different quality criteria of each discipline.
Claiming automatic gains in test performance or long-term success without direct evidence.

Sources and further reading

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