D Block:
Ethan C.: Ethan's website offers lesson plans for middle school students to learn about the Transcontinental Railroad in California. His lessons feature maker-projects and connections to science and engineering. Violet F.: Violet's website looks at the history and experience of incarceration among different sections of the American population. Her lessons feature structure debates, analysis of images and personal narratives, and current political issues surrounding mass incarceration. Justin F.: Justin's website looks at minimalism, a musical movement. Every aspect of the music is explained in clear terms as are the overlapping connections to the minimalist artistic movement of the same time period. Justin's website involves musical creation as well as interpretation and critiquing. Eric L.: Gaby L.: Gaby's website explores the Berkeley Free Speech Movement of the 1960s. The website's focus is on 2nd and 3rd graders and delves into the importance of free speech and protest and asks students to decide for themselves: what is important enough to fight for? Athena L.: Athena's website delves into the California Gold Rush with lessons and activities for elementary school students. Full of projects and hands-on experiences, Athena hopes students, teachers, and parents enjoy learning about the history of California. |
F Block:
Anika K.: Anika's website brings together STEAM and the Social Sciences. Anika's innovative projects and activities have upper elementary and middle school students learn about developments in the history of space exploration, the politics of the Cold War through integrated hands-on lessons. Maddie L.: Maddie's website looks at gender dynamics in World War 2 through the lens of the "pin-up" girl. Students compare presentations of women as "pin-up" girls and the exotic but dangerous carriers of disease. In her own words: Through this unit, I aim to give high school juniors and seniors the tools needed to uncover the racial, gender, and class biases present in the social and military sphere during World War Two that could explain this paradoxical dichotomy. In addition, students will explore how the "roles" set in World War Two have evolved into the standards of the present. Nikki L.: Elizabeth R.: Elizabeth's website covers "Political Punks," and the history of punk rock. The unit uses punk music to explain social and cultural history of the 1960s to present. The unit focuses on a single essay, but each day is broken into different activities to facilitate that writing process and features a curated set of student resources. Bella U.: Bella's website is The Daily Show meets The Onion for American Foreign Policy. She uses satire to explore why America seems to differentiate between certain "evil" communist countries and other "allied" communist countries. From our history of the Vietnam war to current relations with China, Bella's website has scope and a lot of laughs as she breaks down a recipe for good relations with the US. Rachel Z.: What makes or breaks the culture of a city? Some cities, like San Francisco are experiencing an identity crisis as the past and the future collide. Rachel explores how a few key city-wide festivals can show this collision and ask students to think about how to shape culture. |