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Mission Possible
Students create blueprints for imaginary inventions based on real-world technological principles. They write explanations of how their inventions work in the form of movie dialogues.
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Birmingham Blues
Students investigate racial inequality and prejudice in American history through the words of Langston Hughes, an American black poet. They develop and share thoughtful collages and presentations inspired by the words of Langston Hughes.
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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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Members Only
Students discuss the advantages and disadvantages of private communities and the lives led by their residents. They design ideal planned communities for people featured in other Class Matters articles.
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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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Industrial Light and Magic
Learners investigate early mass production in various industries, and then create presentation posters outlining how a typical 19th-century factory, mill or refinery worked.
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A Walk Through History
Students examine the relationship between relics found in history museum exhibits and the meaningful ways in which those relics are presented. They, in groups, select objects for a history exhibit about the event or time period of their...
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Master of His Domain
Students investigate the basic elements that comprise the Internet. They create illustrated posters demonstrating their understanding of how the Internet works and develop maps of their personal Web communities.
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Nature, Red in Tooth and Claw
Students explore the science and art of taxidermy, and research various biomes that could be depicted in museum displays. They synthesize their knowledge by creating dioramas that depict the diverse life forms typical of these biomes.
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Spy vs. Spy?
Students consider their beliefs about proper and improper surveillance and then create imaginary neighborhoods featuring surveillance technology in various public and private sites.
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Bridging History and Technology
Students study the history and importance of the Triborough Bridge in New York City, and then research different bridges and prepare presentations about them. They, in groups, research a bridge and prepare a poster about it.
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A Historic Gamble
Students explore and evaluate the economic impact of legalized gambling on Native American Indian communities. They draft short, persuasive speeches that take the perspective of a tribal elder appearing at a town council meeting.
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Worried Sick
Is health insurance a luxury? The class examine the increasing number of uninsured middle class Americans; they then research and present information on various aspects of medical coverage and care at a classroom forum entitled "The...
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Painting versus Photography
High schoolers consider the nature of objectivity and subjectivity in photography as an art form by taking a class poll, discussing the results and writing a one-page paper.
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Sleep Central
First graders explore healthy and unhealthy sleeping habits. They make a class graph of the total number of hours students, as a class, sleep for the week.
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Fall Leaves Fall! Lesson Plan
Students discover facts about leaves. In this early childhood lesson plan, students identify different types of leaves, and make predictions about which types of leaves they think they will find in their community. Students collect...
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Inside the Warsaw Ghetto
Eighth graders examine the conditions of the ghettos during the Holocaust. In this World History lesson, 8th graders analyze the impact of the Jewish fighters during he Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Students participate in a round table...
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A Day at the Beach-Why Did We Do It?
Middle schoolers investigate pollution at the beach. In this environmental lesson, students participate in a beach clean-up and calculate the weight of the debris collected. Middle schoolers write a reflection in their journal about...
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Using My Senses
Students observe crickets in the terrarium. Have them record in their journal any evidence of crickets having senses. Then they answer questions like these: How do they use their sense organs? Where are they are located?
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Not Just Books
Learners consider uses of a library and explore the collections at the Morgan Library and Museum in New York City, and create proposals for exhibits of various artifacts.
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Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Overview
Young scholars observe human heath by completing a worksheet in class. In this STD lesson, students identify the different types of diseases which are spread through sexual intercourse and what symptoms will become noticeable. Young...
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Shifting Wins
Students analyze how the outcome of the 2002 midterm elections changed the balance of power in the government. They write a news analysis and evaluation of how the nation be governed in the future.
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It's a Small World After All
Students link important individuals who shaped the news in 2002 by playing a variation of a game based on the idea that all people can be connected with 6 or less associations between them. They propose appropriate New Year's resolutions.
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Forceful Persuasion
Pupils investigate U.S. foreign policy in Middle Eastern countries, and rank their level of support for American military and diplomatic actions.