Curated OER
Tribal Truths
Students research and analyze the interactions of American Indian tribes with Meriwether Lewis and iam Clark. Then they stage displays to inform the public about their findings.
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Fur Right or Wrong
Students explore the uses for animals in different societies. Then, through research and reflection, students prepare for a mock convention for animal rights. They write a letter to a governmental animal regulatory body.
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Atmospheric Pressures
Students research past, present and proposed climate change policies. They develop timelines based on different predictions of climate change effects and assess the likelihood of each timeline playing out in reality.
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True Admissions
Students examine affirmative action and study the diversity of their own classrooms and communities, then of a particular college or university. They write essays examining how colleges should increase the diversity of their student bodies.
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A Penny for Your Thoughtfulness
Students reflect on the value of a penny. They examine how working families endure economic hardships with the help of charities. They create their own philanthropic event to raise money for a charity.
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Bootleg Bytes
Students conduct background research to explore the positions of different groups involved in the digital piracy debate, then participate in a fishbowl discussion that seeks to find a consensus on the issue.
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In the Forecast, a Flurry of Concerns about Snow
Students consider the effects of climate change on snowfall and how a lack of data in snowfall collection impair climate change research. They, in groups, investigate different effects of snowfall and make recommendations to lobbyists.
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That Was Then, This is Now
Learners read about the effect of strict fur trading laws on the lives of the Inuit people in Canada, then use print and digital resources to compare past and present-day ways of life of several indigenous peoples around the world.
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A Chorus For Us
Students examine "serious" choral music written for student choirs and the composers who write it. They reflect upon the notion of "serious" music, and examine the trend of concert composers writing pieces for student chorus
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Frighteningly Fabulous Festivals
Students explore the significance of holiday foods, first by researching Halloween-type festivals from around the world, and then by reporting on foods related to different holidays celebrated in their homes.
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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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Thirsty for Drought Relief
Students research a variety of drought-related concerns, acting as part of a 'drought preparedness taskforce.' They propose next steps for the government to take in case of drought and assess the viability of these proposals.
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Practice What You Preach
Students explore the meaning of religious tolerance, first by analyzing quotations about the acceptance of different beliefs and then by researching the history of tolerance within various religions as related to the quotations.
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A City Lost and Found
Students hypothesize about the origins of the Incan lost city of Machu Picchu. They examine archaeological methodologies used by researchers to piece together the history of the site and create an audio tour of the location for visitors...
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Primate Primer
Young scholars 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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Creature Creation
Students explore the characteristics of dragons as represented in the myths of cultures around the world. They create their own mythical dragons by hybridizing two creatures with desirable traits and writing stories about their creation.
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Deep Thoughts
Students examine what lies within the Earth. They research and create scale models illustrating the layers of the Earth and write skits advocating a travel plan to send a probe into the Earth's mantle.
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Hungry for History
Students examine what their diets would be like without the inclusion of staple crops such as corn, wheat and sugar, and discover the value that chocolate had for the Mayan people. They create display boards for a food festival.
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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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Organic Feud
Students examine possible pesticide exposure in their fruit and vegetable consumption. They compile fact sheets exploring various organic food issues and interview their parents about the food choices they make for their Students.
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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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Cooking Up an Explanation
Students pose scientific questions about food items and research their explanations. They then create recipe cards with the answers and present their findings in a cooking show format.