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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: On Reading the Koran

For Students 9th - 10th
Lesley Hazleton sat down one day to read the Koran. With serious scholarship and warm humor, Hazleton shares the grace, flexibility and mystery she found, in this myth-debunking talk. [9:34]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Hidden Meanings of Yin and Yang

For Students 9th - 10th
The yin-yang symbol holds its roots in Taoism/Daoism, a Chinese religion and philosophy. John Bellaimey explains why we all contain the spirit of yin and of yang- and how we can achieve a balance of both in our lives. [4:09]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Happy Secret to Better Work

For Students 9th - 10th
We believe that we should work to be happy, but could that be backwards? In this fast-moving and entertaining talk, psychologist Shawn Achor argues that actually happiness inspires productivity. [12:20]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Let's Talk About Dying

For Students 9th - 10th
We can't control if we'll die, but we can "occupy death," in the words of Dr. Peter Saul. He calls on us to make clear our preferences for end of life care- and suggests two questions for starting the conversation. [13:20]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Our Buggy Moral Code

For Students 9th - 10th
Behavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons some think it's OK to cheat or steal. Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational- and can be influenced in ways we can't...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Detention or Eco Club: Choosing Your Future

For Students 9th - 10th
Growing up surrounded by gangs in South Central Los Angeles, Juan Martinez wasn't exposed to the great outdoors. One day in high school, he was given the life-changing choice between detention or Eco Club. He chose nature and has since...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How to Practice Effectively for Just About Anything

For Students 9th - 10th
Annie Bosler and Don Greene explain how practice affects the inner workings of our brains. [4:50]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How to Be Confident

For Students 9th - 10th
The fastest route to confidence is to stop being so attached to one's dignity and seriousness; and plainly admit that one is an idiot. The School of Life explains. [5:03]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: A Syrian Refugee's Story

For Students 9th - 10th
In this short film, Welcome to Canada, learn about a Syrian refugee's story, Mohammed Alsaleh, who fled violence and imprisonment by the Assad regime during Syria's Civil War. Mohammed was granted asylum and now lives in Canada where he...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How Do Animals Experience Pain?

For Students 9th - 10th
How do the animals all around us experience pain? Robyn J. Crook examines pain in both vertebrate and invertebrate animals. [5:06]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Why Are We So Attached to Our Things?

For Students 9th - 10th
Our sense of ownership emerges incredibly early. But why do we become so attached to things? Christian Jarrett details the psychology of ownership. [4:34]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Neuroscience of Imagination

For Students 9th - 10th
How does your brain produce an image of something you've never seen? Andrey Vyshedskiy details the neuroscience of imagination. [4:49]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Are Good Looking People Jerks?

For Students 9th - 10th
AsapSCIENCE uses math to understand your dating life. [2:54]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Why Do We Feel Nostalgia?

For Students 9th - 10th
Clay Routledge details the way our understanding of nostalgia has changed since the term was first coined in the late 17th century. [4:09]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: What Makes a Good Life? Lessons From the Longest Study on Happiness

For Students 9th - 10th
As the director of 75-year-old study on adult development, Waldinger has unprecedented access to data on true happiness and satisfaction. In this talk, he shares three important lessons learned from the study as well as some practical,...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: 5 Weird Involuntary Reflexes Explained

For Students 9th - 10th
Why do we often jerk our bodies awake right before falling asleep? Why do we yawn? Why do we hiccup? Why do some people sneeze when they look at the sun? And why does your eye twitch? This week we'll look at the science behind these...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Why Is Being Scared So Fun?

For Students 9th - 10th
What could possibly be fun about being scared? Margee Kerr examines the biology and psychology behind what makes fear so fun. [4:29]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Benefits of a Bilingual Brain

For Students 9th - 10th
Mia Nacamulli details the three types of bilingual brains and shows how knowing more than one language keeps your brain healthy, complex, and actively engaged. [5:04]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Could Your Brain Repair Itself?

For Students 9th - 10th
Ralitsa Petrova details the science behind neurogenesis and explains how we might harness it to reverse diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. [3:59]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: I Forgot My Phone

For Students 9th - 10th
Are we living in a world forever transformed by our use of smartphones? Before you make a decision, take a look at this documentary by Charlene deGuzman and see if this is similar to your daily experiences. [2:11]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: How Do Dogs See With Their Noses?

For Students 9th - 10th
You may have heard the expression that dogs 'see with their noses.' But these creature's amazing nasal architecture actually reveals a whole world beyond what we can see. Alexandra Horowitz illustrates how the dog's nose can smell the...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Is Telekinesis Real?

For Students 9th - 10th
Telekinesis, the ability to manipulate matter with the mind alone, is a trait exhibited by some of the most iconic fictional characters, including Neo, Yoda, and, of course, Carrie. But is this mind control actually possible in real...
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: The Quest to Understand Consciousness

For Students 9th - 10th
Every morning we wake up and regain consciousness- but what exactly is it that we regain? Neuroscientist Antonio Damasio uses this simple question to give us a glimpse into how our brains create our sense of self. [18:43]
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Unit Plan
TED Talks

Ted: Ted Ed: Different Ways of Knowing

For Students 9th - 10th
Daniel Tammet has linguistic, numerical and visual synesthesia- meaning that his perception of words, numbers and colors are woven together into a new way of perceiving and understanding the world. The author of "Born on a Blue Day,"...