Sometimes the best learning activities are those that happen on the spur of the moment, helping students understand the world around them in real time using an event in the media that captures their attention. The challenge, of course, is lesson planning on the fly. And here is where SAS Curriculum Pathways can come in quite handy.
The social studies Web Lesson How the World Views the News was created for just such moments. Using this lesson, students research coverage of a news event in online international media sources to gain different perspectives. The lesson includes links to U.S. and international news outlets; students use their research to create a map related to the event using the Interactive Atlas.
Important news events often meld elements of science along with politics, history, and geography. The 2014 Ebola outbreak and current questions about the Zika virus provide opportunities to combine several SAS Curriculum Pathways resources, providing a multi-disciplinary look at the problem.
Start by using two related science audio tutorials to gain an understanding of viruses and disease transmission. Each audio tutorial combines a short video with an online quiz. They are equally suitable for individual or full-class instruction and provide a printable version of the quiz.
Audio Tutorial: The Immune System
After this introduction to the science behind the news, students can apply their understanding to the current Ebola outbreak using How the World Views the News, completing the lesson’s Comparing Media Coverage activity and creating a customized map using the Interactive Atlas. This combined activity would have equal value in a social studies or science course, and the materials are easily differentiated for middle or high school.
Taking a day out of your course pacing guide is tough. But there are times when students’ interest in a subject, given the right materials, justify such a detour. Don’t miss the opportunity to tie core learning to the real world, something all teachers strive for in their planning.
SAS Curriculum Pathways has additional resources in science and social studies related to disease and disease transmission for further investigation if time allows.
1918 Pandemic: Global Reach of the "Spanish" Influenza
VLab: Disease Dynamics
Lab: Simulating Disease Transmission
