In this lesson students analyze a propaganda poster, a photograph, and a poem to understand the tensions unleashed by the entry of African Americans into the industrial workforce during World War II.
Antibiotics save people’s lives...and make bacteria stronger and more likely to kill us. What is the best practice to balance these conflicting issues? In this problem-based learning module, the students will be evaluating real-life medical situations in conjunction with actual staff at those institutions and offering action plans to be ‘implemented’ there. In order to accomplish this, the science unit will be interlocking with social studies and a language arts unit that will have them identifying target audiences and sculpting a way to present their findings. This unit has the potential to be a full problem-based unit as well as highly interdisciplinary--it’s connected to full units in social studies and language arts which stand alone but can be fully integrated if desired.
In this problem-based learning module, students will be asked to brainstorm ideas and think innovatively both independently and collaboratively in addressing a real-world problem that is relevant to their daily lives and health. Are students aware of their calorie intake and how it affects their overall health? Students will investigate the calories consumed in a typical day and how much physical activity is needed to stay healthy and fit. Students/teams will be encouraged to use the internet for research purposes in their design phase. Students will utilize various online platforms to design an infographic that can be shared with relevant individuals in the community and others in the school building
In this activity students analyze Kipling's famous poem about imperialism and read several poems that were written in response to it. Students discuss how effective the poems are as art, political commentary, and historical evidence.
Tools and Ideas for educators who want to provide more authentic learning opportunities to kids.
This problem-based learning module is designed to master the Ohio Learning standard of Science in Earth and Space Science number 2, Cycles and Patterns of Earth and the Moon. Thermal-energy transfers in the ocean and the atmosphere contribute to the formation of currents, which influence global climate patterns. Students will be exploring the various factors affecting the climate patterns we experience due to thermal energy. Students will work independently as well as with a partner. The final product is expected to be presented to their peers and teachers. This blended module includes teacher-led instruction, student-led stations, real world data analysis and technology integrated investigations.
The second of this series, this video features Georgetown University faculty and administrators exploring the interdisciplinarity of climate change and its implications for education, including the need for project-based learning.
The first in a series of videos engaging the Georgetown University faculty and staff in a conversation about the relationship between a Georgetown education and climate change. Each brief video explores a different theme or set of questions. Above, you will find the first video, which features interviewees discussing students' "scientific literacy" with respect to climate change. In the following week, we'll produce and share two additional videos, one exploring the interdisciplinarity of climate change and its implications for education, and the other describing what faculty and students are already doing to battle climate change on campus and beyond.
In this problem-based learning module, students will explore the importance of sleep and the impact sleep has on their lives. During the launch phase students can choose to record sleep data via downloaded apps or in a sleep diary. Days 2 through 4 have students explore the concept and necessity of living organisms need to sleep. On day 2 the participants will take a series of cognitive test for baseline data. Through station rotation and a jigsaw activity learners will become familiar with circadian rhythm and sleeping disorders. Finally, days 5-7 have the students produce a video or infographic to communicate the importance of sleep and its relationship to performance both physically and academically.
Diverse literary texts provide opportunities for making connections about race and hearing multiple voices and perspectives. In this activity, students read literature and poetry from different American writers, reflecting on the meaning and experiences of race in the United States. Due to copyright restrictions, we cannot reproduce the texts here, but the instructions below include anthologies and links to online sources where the texts can be printed out.
In this lesson students look at primary source images and read short secondary texts to understand slave life. In the activity, the teacher models and students practice differentiating between different types of text (primary, secondary, etc.) they might encounter in the social studies classroom. Students show their understanding of a passage's central concepts by selecting words and phrases to compose a "found poem" about the main ideas of the text. This lesson was designed for struggling readers and ESL/ELL students.
In this lesson students read poems and letters that describe the work and lives of nineteenth-century Irish immigrants to the United States. As students read the documents, they choose words and phrases to create found poems that reflect their understandings of the Irish-American experience.
In this activity students read about slavery's effect on women from the perspectives of an enslaved woman and a plantation mistress. Then students create a dialogue between the two women.
Throughout this problem-based learning module students will address real world skills. Students will be asked to brainstorm ideas and think innovatively both independently and collaboratively in addressing a real-world problem that is relevant to their daily lives and surroundings. Students/teams will be encouraged to use the internet for research purposes in their design phase. What components should be included for a modern, updated classroom? Students will utilize various online platforms to design an ideal, modern, contemporary “dream classroom”. Students will incorporate components that would meet the needs of all learners and a classroom that would be able to integrate technology. These classrooms can be shared with relevant individuals in the community and others in the school building.
Throughout this problem-based learning module students will address real world skills. Students will be asked to brainstorm ideas and think innovatively both independently and collaboratively in addressing a real-world problem that is relevant to their daily lives and surroundings. Students/teams will be encouraged to use the internet for research purposes in their design phase. What components should be included for a modern, updated classroom? Students will utilize various online platforms to design an ideal, modern, 21st century “dream classroom”. Students will incorporate components that would meet the needs of all learners and a classroom that would be able to integrate technology. These classrooms can be shared with relevant individuals in the community and others in the school building.
In this problem-based learning module, students will be given the chance to plan their idea of the perfect party. They are given a budget of $2,500, this is the maximum amount of money they can use. The goal is for students to plan a party that they think people would want to attend and would enjoy being a part of. The students will need to come up with categories of what their party will need (food/drink, decorations, entertainment, location, etc). These will then be the stations students will move at their own pace through to complete the party planning. At each station they will need to identify what they are doing to have/do for the party and how much it will cost. They will then have to figure out the unit cost (cost per person) for that category. The final station should allow for students to find the total cost of their part and total unit cost per person for the party. If the total cost exceeds $2,500 students should make adjustments as needed.Students will then create an advertisement (commercial, flyer, poster etc.) to promote their party as the “PARTY OF THE YEAR!”Students will then present these advertisements to school staff, parents, administrators etc. to vote on the party they would want to throw for their own child. They should take into consideration cost per person, entertainment, and enjoyment of the party.
Below is a link to an interdisciplinary, tech-enriched Earth Day themed unit of study. The unit was designed for 3rd/4th-grade learners. The unit was designed to develop an understanding of important environmental issues so that students are more aware of the actions they can take to protect the Earth and environment. It was also planned with the intention of connecting concepts and ideas across multiple disciplines. This allows students to understand that topics can be interrelated regardless of subject matter. Teaching thematically helps deepen understanding by bringing ideas together to create more meaningful learning.This unit also strives to include technologies that do not simply act as substitutes for traditional activities. Instead, it attempts to integrate technologies that can modify and transform learning tasks into more meaningful, collaborative, and differentiated activities.https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RFtsd2UT-M7m8KKZ6Q-8HwU8aZvtkxwdJLVHBTZvM9U/edit?usp=sharingAuthors:Nick Tirozzi, Karen Frawley, Harry Bartlett, and Kristie Guevremont
In this activity, students read a series of primary source documents, including the 1872 print "American Progress," that depict the social, political and cultural conflicts between settlers and Native Americans during the 19th century. Then, working in small groups, students will consider the events from the perspective of Native Americans, and create an illustration to counter George A. Crofutt's famous print of "American Progress" moving across the Great Plains.
In this problem-based learning module, students will investigate the importance of genetic diversity will be explored by examining several case studies revealing consequences that can occur in individuals within a limited gene pool and how a variety of genes can lead to the survival of a species. Students will be able to create and interpret information from pedigree charts.
LandTalk is a citizen science and environmental history project that documents through interviews
how local landscapes change over time. Its goal is to provide an opportunity for conversations between generations, and a chance to learn from observers about changes they have seen.
Land Talk is a great exercise to do with students of most ages. Several lesson plans, based on the Next Generation Science and Core Curriculum standards, have been developed to complement the project. While these plans target standards for specific grade levels, they are intended to be adapted to other grades and subjects.