D Block
Emily C.
This website is designed to provide educational resources for both teachers and students wishing to learn about the First Amendment and censorship in California. This site and curriculum focuses on free speech specifically during the 1930s to the 1960s, with an emphasis on McCarthyism, Hollywood censorship, and the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. It includes a four-day planned curriculum complete with worksheets and homework assignments designed for seventh and eighth graders, culminating in a class debate on the justifications and consequences of censorship in the media. Students will learn to consider their rights of speech in school and the correlation between fear and censorship.
Chris F.
The purpose of this website is to provide a greater understanding of the layouts, designs, and complexities of the ring of forts that guarded San Francisco. There are four sections to this project, each corresponding to a time frame in history; Civil War, Early 20th Century, Cold War, and the remnants today. The table of contents will take you the four exercises of this project; each exercise contains a short video about the forts and their usage, followed by a series of questions that will require you to make use of map and observational skills to come to conclusions about the strategic importance of the forts in the Bay Area.
Whit G.
In this site, I hope to provide both a historical summary and analysis of tourism in America's National Parks and National Forests. As absorbing information across a period of over 150 years is a daunting task for students, the use of El Dorado County as an analogy for the broader history of the United States hopefully will make this both more manageable and more entertaining for visitors to the site. Also, focusing on a small and largely unstudied area allows for a complete historical analysis that gives information on an area that would have probably gone unstudied by students otherwise. Enjoy!
Matthew M.
Many have called our current day American society a "New Gilded Age." The massive inequality and power of big businesses remind of the late 19th century in which the new industries of oil, steel and other industrial products ruled the economy. "Gilded Age to Information Age" aims to explore what has changed over the past 100 years in big business and why those changes have transpired. After giving a background on both eras students will analyze a number of primary sources while learning about charity, inequality, labor, politics and more in both time periods. Overall, the website aims to illuminate our modern day society by learning about the Gilded Age of the late 19th century.
E.V. N.
In elementary school you learn that America is made up of various groups of immigrants making the US a melting pot of culture and people. However, kids never truly learn about the immigration into California coming from Mexico and Central America. Latinos are actually the majority of the population in California, but their stories are hidden from our history books. This website is to shed a light on the hardships and struggles that many Latinos go through in choosing to come into the US. The audience for the website is geared towards fourth graders who may be living in Spanish speaking homes. Therefore, there is a parent resource page that allows parents to understand what their kids are learning each day so that they will be able to help them without language being a barrier.
Lindsay R.
With the 2016 California Primary rapidly approaching, students with learning or social differences need to become informed on their voting options. The internet and its tools can be a very intimidating place to start, and can often lead to misconceptions and uninformed decisions. The goal of this lesson plan is to allow for 17-18 year old students with special needs cast an informed vote while learning about what their political party and decision to vote really mean. This site offers a five day lesson plan that includes information on the electoral college, the history and positions of political parties, the 2016 presidential candidates, and how to cast an informed vote for the 2016 primaries. Each lesson includes a slideshow, interactive timeline, worksheet or activity, and homework assignment. The culminating assignment will be for the students to write a short essay on who they are planning on voting for in the upcoming primary.
Casey R.
History can be confusing, especially the history of something as complex and confusing as America's government. However, once understood, American politics, economics, and government are intriguing and interesting topics that can spark intellectual conversations and even fun discussions. The history of American government, politics, and economics are intricately connected with issues today. Furthermore, a connection can be found between Federal Legislation and the equivalent Californian document. On this site, students will be able to understand difficult topics through videos, songs, questions, and quotations, and teachers or other educators will have access to additional worksheets, essays, lesson plans, and supplemental learning resources.
This website is designed to provide educational resources for both teachers and students wishing to learn about the First Amendment and censorship in California. This site and curriculum focuses on free speech specifically during the 1930s to the 1960s, with an emphasis on McCarthyism, Hollywood censorship, and the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. It includes a four-day planned curriculum complete with worksheets and homework assignments designed for seventh and eighth graders, culminating in a class debate on the justifications and consequences of censorship in the media. Students will learn to consider their rights of speech in school and the correlation between fear and censorship.
Chris F.
The purpose of this website is to provide a greater understanding of the layouts, designs, and complexities of the ring of forts that guarded San Francisco. There are four sections to this project, each corresponding to a time frame in history; Civil War, Early 20th Century, Cold War, and the remnants today. The table of contents will take you the four exercises of this project; each exercise contains a short video about the forts and their usage, followed by a series of questions that will require you to make use of map and observational skills to come to conclusions about the strategic importance of the forts in the Bay Area.
Whit G.
In this site, I hope to provide both a historical summary and analysis of tourism in America's National Parks and National Forests. As absorbing information across a period of over 150 years is a daunting task for students, the use of El Dorado County as an analogy for the broader history of the United States hopefully will make this both more manageable and more entertaining for visitors to the site. Also, focusing on a small and largely unstudied area allows for a complete historical analysis that gives information on an area that would have probably gone unstudied by students otherwise. Enjoy!
Matthew M.
Many have called our current day American society a "New Gilded Age." The massive inequality and power of big businesses remind of the late 19th century in which the new industries of oil, steel and other industrial products ruled the economy. "Gilded Age to Information Age" aims to explore what has changed over the past 100 years in big business and why those changes have transpired. After giving a background on both eras students will analyze a number of primary sources while learning about charity, inequality, labor, politics and more in both time periods. Overall, the website aims to illuminate our modern day society by learning about the Gilded Age of the late 19th century.
E.V. N.
In elementary school you learn that America is made up of various groups of immigrants making the US a melting pot of culture and people. However, kids never truly learn about the immigration into California coming from Mexico and Central America. Latinos are actually the majority of the population in California, but their stories are hidden from our history books. This website is to shed a light on the hardships and struggles that many Latinos go through in choosing to come into the US. The audience for the website is geared towards fourth graders who may be living in Spanish speaking homes. Therefore, there is a parent resource page that allows parents to understand what their kids are learning each day so that they will be able to help them without language being a barrier.
Lindsay R.
With the 2016 California Primary rapidly approaching, students with learning or social differences need to become informed on their voting options. The internet and its tools can be a very intimidating place to start, and can often lead to misconceptions and uninformed decisions. The goal of this lesson plan is to allow for 17-18 year old students with special needs cast an informed vote while learning about what their political party and decision to vote really mean. This site offers a five day lesson plan that includes information on the electoral college, the history and positions of political parties, the 2016 presidential candidates, and how to cast an informed vote for the 2016 primaries. Each lesson includes a slideshow, interactive timeline, worksheet or activity, and homework assignment. The culminating assignment will be for the students to write a short essay on who they are planning on voting for in the upcoming primary.
Casey R.
History can be confusing, especially the history of something as complex and confusing as America's government. However, once understood, American politics, economics, and government are intriguing and interesting topics that can spark intellectual conversations and even fun discussions. The history of American government, politics, and economics are intricately connected with issues today. Furthermore, a connection can be found between Federal Legislation and the equivalent Californian document. On this site, students will be able to understand difficult topics through videos, songs, questions, and quotations, and teachers or other educators will have access to additional worksheets, essays, lesson plans, and supplemental learning resources.
E Block
Junko A.
The goal of this site is essentially to provide a means for teaching about the value of recognizing and analyzing bias in sources. It can be very easy to write off a source when it comes off as overly biased, but in reading into that bias and tracing its origins, it is possible to benefit from that bias rather than just let it discredit the "information" it provides. The first step in teaching how to appreciate bias in a source is learning how to recognize it through breaking down language or images. Discussing the language around the use of the atomic bombs against Japan in World War II is a great place to begin discussing bias, as the ethics are hugely controversial, and it is a recent enough event that journalists and academics have not yet learned to completely mask their biases when writing about it.
Ben B.
To Californians, the number one most well-known tragedy to occur in this state is probably the Great Depression (either that, or the San Francisco Earthquake). But unfortunately, I’m sure not many can give an apt description of why it was so important or even what exactly happened. Therefore, I want to tailor this website to middle school teachers wanting to teach their kids one of the most significant events in our state’s history without overwhelming them. The Great Depression is a major topic, so this website will break it down and probe its causes, impacts, and influences on the population and economy.
Jamie C.
American classical music has a much shorter history than its European counterparts. In the brief time that it has developed, many different compositional styles have flourished, with prominent composers drawing inspiration from jazz, folk music, or Latin American themes. While many European countries have an unmistakable national style, a distinctive “American sound” is much more difficult to define. Considering the number of diverse cultural influences that composers from the United States have adopted, the question of how our country’s music should sound has become inextricably tied up with issues of defining a national identity – who can be considered truly “American” if American music relies so heavily on the styles of other cultures? This website provides resources for high school students and teachers looking to answer this question by analyzing the works of several distinguished American composers.
Kate D.
This site is aimed to provide students in grades 9-10 with a greater understanding of the importance of balancing free speech with national security. Students look at primary sources including propaganda and legal cases from the 1950s, exploring the two main issues that limited free speech during the Cold War through primary sources. On the final day, students take part in a debate centering around free speech and the trial Dennis v. United States, using the knowledge they have learned to argue for or against the conviction.
Chloe L.
Despite the major cultural and economic differences between the United States and India, both countries have managed to create booming film businesses. I therefore thought it would be interesting to compare both film industries. This site explores the birth of Hollywood and Bollywood, delving into the histories of both film industries. It also explains the birth of cinema and the changing economical factors that led to the growth of the film industry. I analyzed both Bollywood's portrayal of Western culture and Hollywood's depiction of Indian culture through photos and movie clips ranging from the early 1900s to the today. Enjoy!
Kevin L.
It is popular in history classes to approach subject areas such as the California Gold Rush in a linear fashion-- that is-- covering a few essential milestones to understand how the state was created. The goal of this website is to introduce high-school students to the Gold Rush while encouraging them to think about the ways in which the gold rush and California's founding may have tied into the other cultural movements at the time in California and the United States. This website ties California's founding with its historical and current religious identity, but there are any number of connections one could find between the Gold Rush and larger American themes.
Chris L.
California’s economy is a complex and challenging marketplace. Which, begs the question of what makes a thriving economy? This website proposes that the free trade market is the driving force behind any prosperous economy. Yet, California’s trade economy has been defined by the transportation—not the producer or the consumer. This website explores the origin of the Californian trade market, specifically the railroad. This website makes the claim that the California railroad system crafted the entire Californian economy. While, the railroad may have been great for the economy, it made countless enemies. This website explores the confusing relationship between trade and populous. The lessons and examples given are targeted towards kids in the 8th Grade. The website has been made so the student can explore the entirety of it, while still grasping the material. On more challenging topics links have been given for teachers to further bone up on the subject. Thank You!
Mina N.
Entertainment has the power to influence the mindset of the public, and for the past century, Hollywood has dominated this industry and the distribution of media. This website intends to provide high school students and teachers with the knowledge, activities, and resources necessary to understand political gaslighting and manipulation in different facets of the entertainment industry. We will evaluate how Hollywood has worked, either purposefully or coincidentally, to boost political agendas, specifically focusing on the industry’s impact on feminism, racism, and war advocacy. We will explore the history of political persuasion before the introduction of film through newspapers and theater. Moreover, we will build a connection between political manipulation in the 20th and 21st centuries, focusing on how the effects of a more progressive and liberal Hollywood are impacting the nation.
Zoe P.
The relationship between children of California citizens and Mexican immigrants, especially central to the Bay Area, can be extremely polarizing. Because of the nature of the Silicon Valley, combined with the surrounding agricultural industries, public schools host students with vastly different socio-economic standings all in the same classroom. The latter years of elementary school history requirements involve a study in the American past, but how do you make immigrant students interested in history that does not apply to them? The better question becomes how to construct a lesson plan that does apply to them and their native-english speaking classmates all at the same time. Looking at the historical relationship between Californians and Mexican immigrants will open discussions on the topic, and a furthered study of this relationship will encourage a mixing of both ethnic groups in and out of the classroom. Finally, though focused on California, all curriculum options can be personalized to any student or teacher interested in pursuing the study of the Mexican-American relationship, no matter their location.
Ashwini S.
In this website, there are resources for teachers and students in 8th grade to explore the prison system during the Reagan Era in comparison to today. I focus on comparing the changing war on drugs and its relationship with race. As a result of Reagan's policies, today's epidemic of mass incarcerations unproportionately affects millions of African-Americans and drug offenders. I wanted to raise awareness of this issue that is extremely overlooked in the media today and refute the misconceptions about the origins of what caused America to have the highest incarceration rate in the world and its current racial disparity.
Sarah W.
This unit explores Bay Area shipyards in World War II, giving 4th-6th grade students an understanding of the ways in which war creates innovation. There is a large focus on interdisciplinary study of history, math, and science to employ young students with valuable skills for intellectuals and historians. Students are introduced to various forms of technology that were key to wartime success, and then apply that knowledge to the rise of Silicon Valley. Through a lens focused on innovation and war, students are provided with a valuable historical lesson about a frequently overlooked aspect of war in elementary classrooms.