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Charity Begins At Home
Students read and discuss "Prosperity Extends Its Reach, but Not Far Enough to Benefit All," and examine the difficulty, for the working poor, in making ends meet, and propose philanthropic solutions.
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Executive Decisions
Students examine the reasons behind key presidential decisions throughout American history and, by debating the pros and cons of these decisions in retrospect, students consider how these decisions affect us still today.
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Keeping A Watchful Eye
Students explore the use of satellite surveillance systems to track criminals. They consider how the use of this technology in law enforcement might affect them and write opinions on whether or not such a system should be adopted by...
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Home Bound
Students consider the detainment of students by the Immigration and Naturalization Service and, imagining that they are detained Students, compare and contrast what life as a child is like in their homelands versus in I.N.S. custody.
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Revisiting Roe v. Wade
Students explore the American anti-abortion movement's "incremental" approach to legislation; they then evaluate key decisions, regulations, and legislation from the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, to the present.
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Pet-agogy
Students explore interesting animal behaviors and adaptations. They create information sheets about an animal residing in a fictional sanctuary and assess the animal's likelihood of being a good pet.
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The Spirits of Toys Past, Present and Future
Students explore the evolution of toys and explore how the toy industry has adapted their products in response to advances in technology and changing customer expectations.
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Get Surreal
Students analyze and write text for audio guides about particular pieces of art from the Surrealism movement.
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Security and Savings for All?
Students act as either Democrats or Republicans to debate plans to alter Social Security. For homework, they consider whether Social Security has become too politicized and propose their own solutions.
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Operation Iraqi Democracy
In this instructional activity, students consider various forms of government and examine the idea of political sovereignty, then prepare outlines for oral presentations on international models of government. For homework, they write...
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Closing the Gaps
Students examine the defining characteristics of their own generation. They apply their analysis to learning about previous generations, and synthesize their learning by creating improvisational skits and writing creative essays.
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A Tough Act to Re-enact
Students discover the significance of various historical events. Using the information they find, groups re-enact these events, stressing their importance to history and our lives today.
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Trying Teens
Students explore the court cases and legal organizations that were instrumental in creating a system of juvenile justice in the United States, then present their findings in a composite timeline.
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Strike Up the Band
Students create song lyrics celebrating the history of labor unions serving the entertainment industry, then create posters illustrating the importance of each union to the industry they represent.
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2003: A Space Tragedy
Students examine the facts and logistics connected to the space shuttle Columbia tragedy and present at a teach-in on the incident. February 3, 2003)
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Covering the News
Students compare the coverage of two crime stories Using local or national newspapers, news magazines and other reference materials, each group trace the "unfolding" of two crime stories: The Laci Peterson investigation plus one students
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Sweet on Faith
Students create informative pages for a fictitious desserts cookbook that examine the religious significance and symbolism of holiday sweets from cultures around the world.
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Where the Spirit Moves You
Students explore the spiritual significance of locations throughout the world. After studying the historical and mystical importance of these places, students write about a spiritual place that is special to them.
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Primate Primer
Students examine the different branches of the primate family tree. They create fact cards about various species of non-human primates and then write fictional skits about interactions among the different primates.
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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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Performance Poppers
Students examine the controversies surrounding the use of performance-enhancing supplements in sports by interviewing athletes and writing feature articles that compare the skills required to compete in different sports.
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Healthy Hearts
Students focus on advanced technologies used to treat disease impacting the cardiopulmonary system; they then reflect on the experiences of having and overcoming illnesses.
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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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In a Class of Their Own
Learners explore taxonomy and how birds are classified in this scientific system. They use this knowledge to create entries for a field guide to birds that can be used to identify different species.