An alternative is suggested to conventional and propositional ways of thinking about curriculum matters. Curriculum theory is conventionally presented as statements of propositional knowledge even though the significance of tacit, non-propositional knowledge has been recognized in philosophy. It is suggested that attention be paid to how teachers think about the curriculum and its components, particularly how teachers "construct" curriculum content in professional practice. The argument presented is that the ways teachers have named and framed issues about curriculum content are important. It is demonstrated that this form of the teachers' curriculum knowledge is quite different from ideas about the propositional nature of a teacher's subject matter knowledge . Focusing on metaphor, the paper begins with a review of recent explorations into metaphor and the curriculum. It is shown that this work can be extended by examining the metaphorical language that teachers use in talking about their work. Several examples are given showing that the metaphorical language provides insights into how the teachers have named and framed issues about curriculum content. It is assumed that the metaphors represent something of the teachers' practical curriculum knowledge. (JD)