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Astronomy with a Stick
Learners describe the movement of the Earth as it relates to the sun and
formulate a hypothesis for the movement and the changing length of the shadow. They express the relationship between the sun and the Earth and how that causes the...
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Challenges and Rewards
Students are to research a specific disaster after seeing the Challenger explosion. They are to create a collage for the disaster they are choosing to show.
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Fifty Years: From the Little Rock Nine to the Jena Six
Students discuss how the issues surrounding school integration have changed since the Little Rock Nine entered Central High School. They discuss the recent events in Jena, Louisiana. Students write a letter to a school administrator...
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Pressing Cases
Students investigate famous criminal cases in which the media has played a significant role and reflect on how the news helps to shape attitudes and behaviors in their own lives.
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Sense-itive Issues
Students consider the difficulties of adapting to the loss of different senses. They work in small groups, each developing a fictional superhero who experiences a loss of one of sense and must compensate for it with his or her other senses.
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Hall Monitors
Students investigate the incidence of different types of violence that occurs in their schools through reading, discussion and interviews. They question local authorities about the best ways to reduce school violence.
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The Life You Save...
High schoolers identify common warning signs of depression that, if not addressed, could lead to suicidal behavior. They write skits and create booklets in which they document appropriate suicide prevention techniques.
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Treasure in the Trash
Students decode archaeological artifacts in order to recreate an event, using discarded objects as a model for real-life artifacts. They apply this model to reconstructing historical or literary events from artifacts they create.
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Gazing Into the Faces of AIDS
Students consider whether or not there are generalizations that can be made about people who are infected with H.I.V. or who have the AIDS virus. They create public service ad campaigns to educate the public and consider other ways to...
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Phishing Tales
Students research different types of identity-theft fraud and ways to avoid falling victim to various scams. They create focused public service announcements in different media, targeted to individuals most susceptible to consumer fraud.
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I Heard It Through the Grapevine
Students write a first-person narrative from the perspective of a runaway slave, or a historical character of the period, and present their story orally.
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Civil War
Students explore rules of conduct in a political body, first drafting rules that apply to their classroom, then adapting them to political actions in Congress.
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Urban Legends
Students consider how people of color and minority culture are represented in video games. After debating the issue as representatives of various interest groups, students reflect on their personal feelings regarding this issue.
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From Basketball Court to Supreme Court
Young scholars discuss scenarios about unfairness and retaliation in school sports. They read about a recent Supreme Court ruling about Title IX, and research, conduct polls and write articles about public opinions on gender issues in...
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Writings on a River
Students identify words that can be used to describe Mark Twain's character Tom Sawyer. Students explore stage production of "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" by reading and discussing "An Older (and Calmer) Tom Sawyer". They develop their...
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All The Way to Timbuktu
Young scholars discuss the concept of historic preservation and relate it to their own families and communities. After reading an article, they discuss the efforts of Mali to preserve their history. Using the internet, they research...
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Gotta Dance
Students share dance moves that reflect their personalities or depict how they are feeling, explore popularity of recreational and competitive social dancing by reading and discussing the article "Follow the Flying Feet,"
present...
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A Pixie Biography Report
Students practice biographical writing after completing research on the subject. In this journalism activity, students read a story of an important person's life and discuss the important moments along the way. Students...
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Reality Check
Students evaluate different types of reality television programming in "focus groups" and then submit their opinions on this type of programming to a television network.
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Titanic Disasters
Students contemplate the worst man-made disasters in history, focusing on the Titanic, read/discuss the article 'The Titanic's Mystique in Digital Packages,' and create an 'Internet scavenger hunt' - Web sites and related questions about...
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Poison Play Scenarios
In this real-life scenario worksheet, students posing as campers act out six short scenarios that involve situations that campers may indeed find themselves in one day in the future.
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Lunar Lollipops
Students simulate the phases of the moon using a lamp and styrofoam balls. In this lunar phases instructional activity, students stand around a lamp and act as Earth. They hold styrofoam balls and rotate to show the phases of the moon.
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What is a Cloud?
Learners identify what clouds are made of. In this weather science lesson, students look at clouds outside the window and draw what they see in their journals. Learners read the book It Looked Like Spilled Milk and identify what clouds...
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Family Genealogy
Students create a family tree. In this genealogy instructional activity, students research their family history and create a pictorial representation of their family tree. Students use the computer to design the layout and scan...