Children are fascinated by rocks. They enjoy digging in the ground and take pleasure in finding rocks of various types. "The Earth Beneath Our Feet," an Earth science unit for high-ability third and fourth graders, builds on the excitement that students have by engaging them in hands-on scientific investigations about rocks. Students begin to explore and understand the major components of rocks, the rock cycle, and the important uses of rocks. The unit works to expand the students' content knowledge by including information about weathering and the impact that various natural and man-made...

Exploring America in the 1970s: Celebrating the Self is an interdisciplinary humanities unit that looks at literature, art, and music of the 1970s to provide an understanding of how those living through the decade experienced and felt about the world around them. Through the lens of "identity," it explores life in America and the myriad groups that coexisted in harmony and, often, with friction. Cultural movements like disco and the punk are examined alongside larger issues such as Watergate, post-Vietnam stagflation, and the birth of the women's liberation, Chicano, and gay pride movements....

Exploring America in the 1980s: Living in the Material World is an interdisciplinary humanities unit that looks at literature, art, and music of the 1980s to provide an understanding of how those living through the decade experienced and felt about the many social changes taking place around them. Through the lens of "identity," it explores why these changes occurred and lends an ear to the voices of the groups that clamored for them. Cultural icons like Madonna and Bill Cosby are examined alongside larger issues such as the end of the Cold War and a changing economic and political identity....

Exploring America in the 1990s: New Horizons is an interdisciplinary humanities unit that looks at literature, art, and music of the 1990s to provide an understanding of how those living through the decade experienced and felt about the world around them. Through the lens of "identity," it explores life in America and the myriad groups that coexisted in harmony and, often, with friction. Cultural movements like grunge and Generation X will be examined alongside larger issues such as rising racial tensions following the O.J. Simpson trial and Rodney King riots, the conflict between progress...

Exploring America in the 2000s: New Millennium, New U.S. is an interdisciplinary humanities unit that looks at literature, art, and music of the 2000s to provide an understanding of how those living through the decade experienced and felt about the world around them. Through the lens of "identity," it explores life in America and the myriad groups that coexisted in harmony and, often, with friction. Cultural movements like the rise of social media and the advancements of minorities are examined alongside larger issues such as 9/11 and its profound effect on American identity, our redefined...