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Henry David Thoreau's Philosophy
Students research and report on the life and times of Henry David Thoreau. In this Thoreau research instructional activity, students visit the given website and freewrite about Thoreau's life and home. Students work in groups to research...
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"Approaching Walden: From Emerson to Thoreau"
Students examine selected local leaves in greater detail in the classroom by using more analytical drawing techniques. They use Thoreau's drawing of a Scarlett Oak as their model. Students choose a leave from a box of leaves removed...
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Ethos, Logos, and Pathos
Students compare and contrast "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" and "Civil Disobedience" by writing a paper using MLA format.
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Incorporating Thoreau And Theatre
Students investigate the writings of Thoreau. They read passages orally and look for words of imagery in the text. Students also answer a series of questions and they convert passages of writing into theatrical presentations in order to...
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Breaking Free From Conformity
Students reflect upon how Transcendentalism focuses on individualism. From their belief that God was within every person to their steadfast belief that every man should make decisions based on personal moral values, individualism was...
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Breaking Free From Conformity: A study in modern day Transcendentalism
Students begin with a journal entry on the topic "Why does Ralph Waldo Emerson advocate self-reliance?" They listen to Gavin Degraw's "I Want to Be." Students write their interpretation of the song. Students write an essay about Liars...
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Great Philsophers Revisited
Learners work together to research the great philsophers of literature. With a focus on Emerson or Thoreau, they describe his ideas of transcendentalism or civil disobedience, respectively. In groups, they create a short video clip to...
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Non-violent Protest Through The Ages
Students are introduced to non-violent ways to solve disagreements with others. In groups, they analyze the ways Martin Luther King, Gandhi and Thoreau shared their views in non-violent ways. They complete a sketch of the life of each...
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Criticism of Modernity: Gandhi's Association with the American Transcendentalists
Eleventh graders explore Gandhi's philosophy links to the works of American Transcendentalists Emerson and Thoreau. In this transcendentalism lesson, 11th graders discuss essential questions about civilization and modernity.
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American Transcendentalism and Buddhism:
Students study American transcendentalism through readings of Emerson and Thoreau. They make cognitive connections to the similarities to Buddhism in these writings. The connection of the literary movement is explained in the art of the...
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Give Peace A Chance: Nonviolence as a valid strategy for social change
Students analyze how people solve conflicts. In this conflict resolution instructional activity, students look at Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King's nonviolence movements. They see the reasoning behind nonviolence and how it works.
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Court Documents Related to
Students use the National Archives to researcj cout coduments related to Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Anonymous Patriots: Songs of the Revolution
Give your class a deeper understanding of the context and meaning behind early American song lyrics. By reading the lyrics to "Yankee Doodle" and "Revolutionary Tea," high schoolers will practice analysis by examining the structure and...
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The Evolution of Transcendentalism
Key concepts, major writers, and historical events related to Transcendentalism are explored in a student-produced PowerPoint about this movement. The presentation could be used as an introduction to a unit or as a model that class...
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The Individual and His Role in Society
Tenth graders discover how various writers approach the themes of : alienation and solitude, living life "deliberately" and "phonies." Through reading, journaling, class discussion, and writing assignments they realize the power of the...