Breaking news reports can be short of facts. Young journalists select a pair of news articles about a disaster; one published within hours of the event and the second published the following day. They examine whether facts in the report...

Scholars examine front-page news stories to gather evidence about significant historical events. They hypothesize how these events changed people's lives who lived through them and how they continue to impact lives today.

Young historians take an in-depth look at the five freedoms granted by the First Amendment. Groups apply their knowledge of the freedoms to a series of scenarios to decide if the depicted actions represent a violation of the amendment.

After researching statistics about their community in local census reports, young journalists interview a resident about their interests and then analyze a local newspaper or homepage to see how similar the stories are to the residents'...

Young journalists use a "Is This Story Share-Worthy?" flowchart graphic to decide whether a story is worth sharing online. Instructors provide groups with fake news, poor quality stories, opinion pieces, biased news, and high-quality...

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter From Birmingham Jail" was written in response to "A Call for Unity," written by eight white ministers from Birmingham and published in the local newspaper. After reading both letters and following a list...

Be curious! Seek out different opinions! Be conscious of your thinking process! After reading an article about confirmation bias and motivated reasoning, class members apply these strategies to the topic of school start times. They read...

Class members brainstorm a list of people in the news (immigrants, millennials, etc.). Teams then select one to research. Using the provided worksheet and guided by a list of questions, the teams examine the stereotypes in news reports...

To understand the importance of the wording of the articles of the First Amendment (freedom of religion, freedom of speech and the press, and freedom to assembly and petition), teams argue before a jury for draft amendments of one...

Young historians use primary source materials to investigate the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor and the sinking of the USS Arizona. After reading background articles and studying maps and images of the attack, class members consider whether...

Scholars discover information about World Book Day. Working in pairs, learners read a text about the special day, and then write about their own favorite book. To finish, pupils complete worksheets and a crossword puzzle about World Book...

Give it up for updraft towers. Pupils learn about solar updraft towers by first watching a video. They then research these structures on their own and think about how the toys they made in the previous lesson use the same scientific...

Who says toys can't be educational? The fourth of five parts in the Solar Updraft Towers unit has scholars create toys that run on solar and wind energy. The devices need to be solar updraft towers that can be placed on a warm surface...

Turn a learning experience into a fun activity. Future engineers create blades for a wind turbine using card stock. Using a fan, they test how well the blades help the wind turbine turn. The goal is to build blades that are effective...

Check out climate anomalies just like NASA climatologists! Investigators use a GISTEMP map from NASA to analyze one month of climate anomalies. Scientists look for data extremes and generate possible explanations for observable...

He saved a group of men under fire from the Viet Cong, and he urged those fleeing the burning Trade Center Towers on 9/11 to "be calm, be strong." Rick Rescorla was last seen going back into the twin towers to bring others to safety....

Combine math and science with fun in the sun! Scientists build a solar gnomon using reusable materials to calculate relative air mass. Mathematicians measure the pole's shadow and use the data to solve for relative air mass....

Explore global temperatures from the comfort of your learning place! Meteorologists analyze surface temperatures and anomalies across different latitudes. Investigators evaluate graphs to find temperature differences and answer questions...

Analyze years of hard climate change evidence in minutes. Climatologists evaluate graphical data about climate change by answering questions. Scientists work collaboratively using a literacy cube or virtual die that directs them through...

Working in teams, pairs, or individually, scholars select one resource from a gallery of historical sources and consider which examples might be considered propaganda, the techniques used to persuade audiences, and evaluate how the...

After brainstorming a list of contemporary local, regional, and national civil rights issues, pairs of scholars select one of these issues and design an information campaign to spread awareness of the issue.

Young journalists engage in a role-playing exercise that asks them to consider the journalism and ethical issues raised by the coverage of the mass shootings at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007. Pupils play the role of either a reporter...

Young journalists investigate the various ways to share news about a disaster and evaluate the pros and cons of each of these types of news. Individuals then select two different forms of media reports of a recent disaster. Using the...

Young journalists compare news coverage of four major events with how the same events are covered in historical accounts. The ensuing discussion asks class members to compare and contrast the role of a reporter and the role of a historian.