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Front Page News
Students write original earthquake articles typically found on the front page of a newspaper. Each student has the freedom to write in a variety of writing styles (lead story, human interest story, editorials, etc.). They research...
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The American Revolution: Moving West and South
Students examine several letters to the editor from both a local newspaper and national newspapers. After reviewing current letters, they write a letter to the editor of an 18th-century newspaper expressing their opinion about the...
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A New Deal for Peace in a Land of War
Students explore the causes and effects of recent conflicts in the Balkans, and discover the current peacekeeping attempts by NATO and the new Yugoslav government. They research an aspect of the Kosovo conflict and prepare skits based...
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Scooting Away from Justice?
Students examine President Bush's July 2007, decision to commute the 30-month sentence of former White House official, I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby by reading a New York Times article. They scan editorial sources on various sides of the...
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Laws and Force in Law Enforcement
Students investigate the issues of police brutality, use of excessive force, and the underlying issues by participating in a round-table discussion. They compare how these issues are explored differently in different types of...
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Breaking the Code: Actions and Songs of Protest
Students listen to and discuss the purpose of protest music. They analyze an editorial cartoon related to Jim Crow and read questions from the literacy tests given to African-Americans. They work together to write a song about the...
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Treasures and Travels
Students review basic information about the Three Gorges Dam. They discuss some of the benefits and drawbacks of the dam and write an editorial either for or against the it.
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Reconstruction to Civil Rights
Eighth graders complete a unit of lessons on the period of time from Reconstruction to the Civil Rights movement. They analyze and interpret political cartoons and editorials, conduct research on famous civil rights places, and complete...
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Industrialization of the American Landscape - Language Arts
Young scholars examine poetry , editorials, and other writings during the Industrial Revolution. They perform a "chalk talk" to explain perceptions, ideas and observations of the working world. Students write poetry and essays modeled...
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Publication Project
Ninth graders publish a magazine during a ten week marking period. They make individual contributions to the group project that is based on career choices. They write and publish articles, poems, entertainment pieces, and a play that...
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A Heritage Study: Using Information Resources to Research Family History and Traditions
Students research their family history through ethnographical study. They locate information through a variety of sources, interview people, write a report and present an oral presentation to the class.
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Hero Research
Students examine and research the idea of heroism. They watch and discuss a Powerpoint presentation, conduct research, and write a research paper about the qualities and characteristics of a hero.
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Kicking It Around
Students analyze the recent boom in women's sports, focusing on the Women's World Cup Soccer tournament to examine various people's views about women athletes. They write a newspaper article summarizing what they learned in their...
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Gender Bender
Students explore the effects of Title IX. In addition, tudents create revised rulebooks for a sport in their school based on their understanding of Title IX and write a related article for the school newspaper.
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Swift Response
Students examine how matters of national security affect the press' ability to practice free speech. They read and discuss an article regarding the Swift program, discuss opinions about patriotism and the press, and write a letter to the...
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Deception and Advertising: When is it Misleading and when is it Puffery?
Eighth graders explore advertisements and deception in advertising. In this marketing and advertising lesson, 8th graders write cause and effect paragraphs describing products, promises made, deceptions caused, and the immediate...
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Exploring Ethical Issues
High schoolers learn about ethical issues and its connection to journalism. Students examine examples of ethical issues some journalists have faced. in small groups, high schoolers collaborate to write a code of ethics for their school...
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Has Peace Finally Settled in the Middle East?
Students evaluate the changes made in the Palestine National Council charter and their potential impact on the future of Israeli-Palestinian relations. They write a brief essay focusing on an article from an Israeli or Palestinian...
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Creating the Future
Students work together to develop and write scenerios for the future of hazardous waste cleanup. They share their scenerios with the class. They complete activities as well.
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A Historical Career Search
Learners analyze the use of language, including non-standard written and oral English. They write persuasive, descriptive, narrative and/or evaluative pieces in response to the story read and keep reflection journals. Finally, students...
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Through the Eyes of Al McIntosh
Students examine World War II through the eyes of local journalists such as Al McIntosh. As a class, they discuss how stories about the war affects the public back at home. In groups, they compare and contrast how newspapers reported...
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Indian Removal: Does History Always Reflect progress?
Students explore the idea that progress for some might not mean progress for all. In this Native American lesson, students recognize different viewpoints about historical events through the study of primary documents. Students decipher...
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The Rise and Fall of the Jim Crow Era
Learners explore African American history by researching the Jim Crow laws. In this Civil Rights lesson, students define the Jim Crow laws, the reasons they were put into place, and how they were ultimately defeated. Learners write a...
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Bioethics: Where the Future May Take Us
Learners investigate bioethical issues. In this bioethical issues lesson plan, students research gene cloning, imaging technologies, transplantation, and other bioethical issues. Learners share their finding with their classmate and...