Building on the screens that the class designed in the previous lesson, teams combine screens into a single app. Simple code can then be added to make button clicks change to the appropriate screen.
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Teams run another round of user testing, this time with their interactive prototype. Feedback gathered from this round of testing will inform the final iteration of the app prototypes.
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This unit introduces poetry forms and craft elements while students explore poetry about everyday topics or themes. Students begin by discussing their varying definitions of poetry, brainstorming all the different types of poems they know, and briefly discussing elements of poetry. In each subsequent session, students are introduced to one form of poetry. This lesson uses concrete/shape, haiku, cinquain, two-voice, and free-form poetry, but the lesson can be easily adapted for any poetic form. Students read examples, define the form, and find additional examples in poetry books. They create their own poetry collection by adding examples, definitions, and their own poems to a writer's notebook. In the final session, students go back through the poems they have collected, looking for examples of five elements of poetry.
In this learning activity, students will gather information about personal experiences of survivors of Japanese-American internment camps during World War II. Students communicate the information they learn by creating their own comic to retell the story of the survivors. Resource links to videos, journals, articles, comic book template and artwork are included in the material.
This learning activity is an exploration into government, beginning with the historical roots of democracy in the United States and focuses on New York State Government. The learning activity features a particular case study of legislation pioneered by a group of elementary students in New York State with the end result of yogurt becoming the official state snack of New York. The activity has students analyze the idea that we all have a voice in government. Click on the Download PDF or DOC button to access additional resources including videos, illustrations, articles, and charts.
In this learning activity, students investigate youth voting practices and consider the ways youth voting habits may influence their own decision to vote. Students compare ways voting rights have changed through the years including women, African Americans, age, and non-property owners. The activity addresses the cornerstone of democracy, that voting is the most direct way for citizens to participate in government. Click on the Download PDF or DOC button for additional resources including a video, a New York State voting ballot, graphs, and articles.
In this learning activity, students explore political parties and how well they represent individuals. Students look closely at how politicians address international issues, issues important to them, and issues they support. Students compare political parties and construct an argument about which party best represents them. Additional resources are available under the Download PDF or DOC button.
In this learning activity, students investigate the economic and military factors that caused the United States to be on the winning side during World War II. Students will examine the impact of entry into World War II on American society. Additional resources are available under Download PDF or DOC including a video, war posters, and World War II statistics.
In this learning activity, students explore the First Thanksgiving and focus on the declining relationship between the European settlers and the Native Americans. Additional resources for this learning activity can be found by clicking on Download PDF or DOC.
In this learning activity, students will learn about the terrorist attacks on September 11th and the uniforms the firefighters wore. They will compare the firefighters with the firefighters from their own community. Students are then asked to think about how uniforms help other people complete their jobs and what kind of outfit they might need to complete their own job. The learning activity includes links to several resources including online stories about September 11th attacks, pictures, and activities for students to complete.
In this learning activity, students learn of a slave named Robert Smalls who stole a ship and used his map skills to escape to freedom. Students will view a map of Robert Smalls route and create a map of their own neighborhood.
In this learning activity, students will hear the story of John Bull, one of the first locomotives in the United States and compare transportation from the past to today's transportation. A video of John Bull is included along with web links to other activities.
In this lesson, students will analyze President John F. Kennedy's response to the buildup of Soviet nuclear missiles and weapons sites in Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Resources included in this learning activity are surveillance photographs of Cuban missile sites, the map prepared for President Kennedy showing the range of the ballistic missiles in Cuba, and President John F. Kennedy's October 22, 1962 address to the nation.
In this lesson, students use primary sources relating to the abolitionist John Brown and his rebellion. Students use a creative medium to recognize his contribution to history. Resources included are a portrait of John Brown, an article from Harper's Weekly, a picture of John Brown's rifle, a picture of John Brown going to his death, and a student analysis chart.
In this lesson plan, students debate the legacy of John Brown and how he should be remembered. The lesson includes videos of an actor portraying John Brown, a plea to the people of Concord from Henry David Thoreau, and a John Brown song.
In this learning activity, students investigate the positive and negative results of United States expansion abroad. The focus is on the United States' involvement in the Spanish American War. Resources included are a newspaper front page from 1898, an article from the Los Angeles Herald from 1898 depicting starvation in Cuba, a cartoon criticizing imperialism from 1902, and a map of American expansion.
In this learning activity, students examine Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin to explore how words affect public opinion. Additional resources are available by clicking Download PDF or DOC button including a video, a Source Analysis Chart, Organizing Quotes Chart, a summary from the book, and illustrations from the book.
In this learning activity, students examine the factors surrounding Puerto Rico's statehood. Additional resources are available by clicking the Download PDF or DOC button.
In this lesson, students research conflicting perspectives of the Mexican War. Additional resources included are a map of the United States from 1839, a recruitment poster, and several videos of first-hand accounts from the Mexican War.
In this learning activity, students think of symbols to represent Martin Luther King, Jr. and create a window decoration containing those symbols.
In this learning activity, students portray a character from 1963 and gather information from evidence in a historical artifact to decide whether to march on Washington for freedom and jobs. Additional resources include links to a handbill from the March on Washington.
In this learning activity, students examine a letter or speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. and turn his words into word art using the Wordle website. The activity includes a list of compositions by Martin Luther King, Jr.
In this lesson plan, students examine the Greensboro Woolworth's Lunch Counter and its importance to the Civil Rights Movement. Additional resources and links are included.
In this lesson, students watch a video and examine a collection of primary sources and curator interviews to gather information on the history of voting rights in the United States. Students use the information they gather to create a virtual exhibit. Additional voting resources and links are included.
In this lesson plan, students examine Thomas Jefferson's desk to gather information about the writing of the Declaration of Independence. After reviewing additional resources, students create a virtual exhibit.
In this lesson, students examine the gold nugget which began the California Gold Rush to understand the westward expansion and the idea of Manifest Destiny. This resource includes additional resources for the California Gold Rush.
In this lesson, students will gather information about the Greensboro Woolworth's Lunch Counter sit-in and how it helped change the Civil Rights Movement. Students create a virtual museum exhibit using the information they gathered. Additional links to resources are included.
In this learning activity, students use Google Maps to find their school and to locate the closest body of water. The activity includes links to additional resources.
In this learning activity, students examine protest signs from the Civil Rights Movement. Students then create their own expressive chalk art or poster.
This activity can be used in conjunction with the book, Freedom on the Menu by Carole Boston. Through the activity, students will gather information about the Greensboro Woolworth Lunch Counter sit-in and how it was related to the Civil Rights Movement. The activity includes links to other resources.
In this lesson, students use the problem-solving process from earlier in the course to solve a data problem. After reviewing the process, the class is presented with a decision: whether a city should build a library, pet shelter, or fire department. Students work in teams to collect information on the Internet to help them decide what should be built, then use this information to build an argument that will convince the city council of their choice. They map what they have done within the problem-solving process that they have been using throughout the course, comparing the general problem-solving process to its specific application to data problems.
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In this lesson, students look at how data is collected and used by organizations to solve problems in the real world. The lesson begins with a quick review of the data problem-solving process they explored in the last lesson. Then students are presented with three scenarios that could be solved using data, brainstorm the types of data they would want to solve them, and how they could collect the data. Each problem is designed to reflect a real-world service that exists. After brainstorming, students watch a video about a real-world service and record notes about what data is collected by the real-world service and how it is used. At the end of the lesson, students record whether data was provided actively by a user, was recorded passively, or is collected by sensors.
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In this lesson, students look at a simple example of how a computer could be used to complete the decision making step of the data problem-solving process. Students are given the task of creating an algorithm that could suggest a vacation spot. Students then create rules, or an algorithm, that a computer could use to make this decision automatically. Students share their rules and what choices their rules would make with the class data. Then, they use their rules on data from their classmates to test whether their rules would make the same decision that a person would. The lesson concludes with a discussion about the benefits and drawbacks of using computers to automate the data problem-solving process.
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To conclude this unit, students design a recommendation engine based on data that they collect and analyze from their classmates. After looking at an example of a recommendation app, students follow a project guide to complete this multi-day activity. In the first several steps, students choose what choice they want to help the user to make, what data they need to give the recommendation, create a survey, and collect information about their classmates' choices. They then interpret the data and use what they have learned to create the recommendation algorithm. Last, they use their algorithms to make recommendations to a few classmates. Students perform a peer review and make any necessary updates to their projects before preparing a presentation to the class.
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