These educational videos provide an invaluable resource on Ancient Nubia for Middle and High School Ancient World History and Geography teachers and students. The video content aligns with Geography, Economics, Civics, and Historical Thinking Social Studies standards across the nation. Key concepts and inquiry skills from each content area weave seamlessly throughout the videos and associated lesson plans. This unit overview document links to developed resources on the Archeology in the Community site.

This video will help students, particularly those not in AP-level classes, have a practical application for knowing about the major divisions between plants, particularly about the details of plant anatomy and reproduction. Students will be able to :Identify the major evolutionary innovations that separate plant divisions, and classify plants as belonging to one of those divisions based on phenotypic differences in plants. Classify plants by their pollen dispersal methods using pollen dispersal mapping, and justify the location of a _„ƒcrime scene_„Ž using map analysis. Analyze and present their analysis of banding patterns from DNA fingerprinting done using plants in a forensic context.

Students choose a question to explore, research it using a variety of resources, organize their information on a TCF chart, and then collaboratively write a class scientific explanation.

What should the United States do when it becomes the largest Spanish speaking nation in the world?Grade: 11-12Overall Goal: Students will be expected to form an opinion on what actions the United States government should take by or before the year 2050, the year when the US is projected to have more Spanish speakers than any other nation, with more than 30% of Americans speaking Spanish. The student will then support their opinions with research and tie their opinion with their resources in an informative and persuasive letter to their local Congressional representative. This letter will then be translated into Spanish and both copies will be sent to the representatives of their district. They will also be asked to create and share with the class a video of their own stances and reasoning.  StandardsLearning ObjectiveAssessmentLearners use the target language to expand their knowledge of and make connections among multiple content areas 3.5.2- Implement content area concepts and skills through relevant activities- Students will identifyfind three different, factual pieces of evidence - Students will compose professional, persuasive letters in both Spanish and English- Students will create a 2-3 minute video that shows their opinion and why they believe thatThe students letters and videos will be graded on two separate rubrics. The videos will be rated on scales of 1-3 for creativity, use of sources, logical flow, and strong intro, body, and conclusion. The letter will be graded on scales of 1-5 for logical flow, professionalism, grammar, correct translations/conjugations, separation of ideas, introduction and persuasion skills.  Key Terms & Definitions: Bilingual: the ability to speak two languagesProficient: showing competency in somethingFluent: having the ability to express oneself with little trouble (even in another language)Non-Native speakers: people who speak a language but learned it outside of the homeNative speakers: people who speak a language they learned at homeInstituto Cervantes: worldwide non profit made by the Spanish government named after Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote Latino- people of Latin American descendancy, an ethnic groupHispanic- Spanish speaking countries or people who speak SpanishContent Farm - any website that appears high on a search engine’s search list with low quality content, trying to get large amounts of screentime to make money from ads  Lesson Introduction (Hook, Grabber): To begin this lesson the students will be presented two videos. One video will bring up the topic of discussion, the main crux of this assessment: the fact that by 2050 the United States will become the largest Spanish speaking nation in the world. The video does not go on to propose any solutions or what we as the American people should do about it. The following video, however, shows a clip of President Donald Trump, in a Republican debate, saying the quote “We are in a country where we speak English, not Spanish” where the crowd responds with applause. This contrast of opinions currently in the United States on the subject will set the stage for when I will pose the question to the class. What should the United States do when it is the largest Spanish speaking nation in the world? I believe the students will be engaged in the question because of the polarizing effects of President Trump. He stimulates opinions in a majority of people, whether they are positive or negative, and with his inclusion into an already tantalizing discussion question I believe the students will be very interested and involved in the question and ensuing classwork.   Lesson Main: After watching the video the guided research worksheet will be passed out. The students will be given two days of class time to use their devices or the computer lab to research evidence that supports their opinion. They will need to list three of the separate websites visited from which information was gathered. Each source must have all three of the following: author name, date of publication, and document title If a site is missing any of these things it will not be considered a valid source for them to use. The three criteria must be recorded on the guided research worksheet.   Day 1 & 2: During class the first day I will give them a brief talk about ‘content farms’ and what sites to watch out for when composing arguments based on factual evidence (i.e Wikipedia, LiveStrong, Ask).  Day 3-5: Once those two days of research are done they will then be asked to create a video in small groups of no more than four people, all of which must have the same opinions. This video will be about why they believe in what they do and to give at least three facts to support their opinions. These videos will be created during the next three days of class which will start the day I show my example video. I will explain the process of how I made the example video using iMovie. This will include my original recording of just my drawings on a whiteboard, putting the clip on to iMovie to adjust the speed of the video, recording my voice to match the video, and then the combination of the two. The students will be show how to work iMovie, record audio, record video, and then string the two together. The video will be a formative assessment of the cross curriculum learning being done, evaluated on it’s own separate rubric.   Lesson Ending: Day 6 Before the final summative assessment is given, students will be first asked to share their videos. Students will be encouraged to take notes on each of their classmates videos. They will record information like what their opinion is, their three pieces of evidence, and their own opinion on if the evidence was worthy enough to convince a total stranger of that opinion. These will all be written down on a separate worksheet given to them. At the end of each video the group or individual will have the opportunity to answer any questions the audience may have about their opinion or their evidence they used to reinforce it. Once all students have done this they will be asked to watch the screencast which I have made for them. This will explain to them how to set up the beginning of a professional letter in both Spanish and English. This professional letter will be the final, culminating assessment of the entire project. The students will be tasked with compiling their opinions and evidence, having the opportunity to change/alter their evidence or even opinions after viewing videos of other class members, into persuasive letters. The letters, written by themselves,  will be first drafted in English and focus on explaining the coming situation in 2050 when the United States becomes the largest Spanish speaking nation in the world. They will also explain what they believe should be done about this situation and why, citing their research. These letters will be professional and sent to local representatives to Congress; however, they will not be sent until they are translated into Spanish and both copies of the letter are in the correct, professional layout, printed, and signed. Afterwards, other copies of the letters will be turned in to me and evaluated using another rubric. The day the letters are turned in, the class will have a quick, anonymous vote (the classic closed eyes, raised hands) to show what the class believes should be done: make the US bilingual, make English the official language, or leave it as is and continue like we have been. Once this decision has been reached, the class will come up with their three most important reasons why they believe it should be this way and their decision will also be posted above their letters on the wall.  Assessment Rubric: Video RubricCATEGORY3- Above Standard2- Standard1- Below StandardCreativityThe video was original and showed strong effort was put forthThe video was original and showed some effort was put forthThe video was not original and showed no effort put forth.Use of SourcesSources to back opinions were strong and prevalent through the video.Sources to back opinions were good and semi prevalent through the video.Sources to back opinions were weak and not prevalent through the video.Defined Intro, Body, and ConclusionThere is a well defined introduction, body, and conclusion with transitions.There is an introduction, body, and conclusionThere is no definitive introduction, body, and conclusion.Logical FlowThe video flows as a whole with one topic leading into the otherThe video goes through multiple different topics, yet does not have logical transitions between themThere is no order to the video and it does not follow a logical series of events. Letter RubricCATEGORY5 - Exceeds Standards4 - Above Standards3 - Meets Standards2 - Approaching Standards1 - Below StandardsProfesionalismThe letter demonstrates a strong sense of professionalism and respect for the receiver. The letter is formatted correctly and professionally.The letter demonstrates a good sense of professionalism and respect for the receiver. The letter is formatted correctly and professionally.The letter demonstrates a standard sense of professionalism and respect for the receiver. The letter is formatted correctly and professionally.The letter demonstrates a weak sense of professionalism and respect for the receiver. The letter is not formatted correctly or professionally.The letter demonstrates no sense of professionalism or respect for the receiver. The letter is not formatted correctly and professionally.GrammarThe letter has no grammatical mistakes or punctuation errors.The letter has a few grammatical mistakes or punctuation errors.The letter has some grammatical mistakes or punctuation errors.The letter has a lot of grammatical mistakes and punctuation errors.The letter is littered with grammatical mistakes and punctuation errors.Logical FlowThe letter has a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. There are no tangents and all opinions are supported with evidence.The letter has a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. There are a few tangents and almost all opinions are supported with evidence.The letter has an introduction, body, and conclusion. There are some tangents and most opinions are supported with evidence.The letter has an unclear introduction, body, and conclusion. There are a lot of tangents and few opinions are supported with evidence.The letter has no clear introduction, body, and conclusion. There are several tangents and no opinions are supported with evidence.Correct Translations/ConjugationsThe Spanish copy of this letter reflects the same points and evidence that the English version does. There are no verb conjugation mistakes.The Spanish copy of this letter reflects most of the same points and evidence that the English version does. There are few verb conjugation mistakes.The Spanish copy of this letter reflects a majority of the same points and evidence that the English version does. There are some verb conjugation mistakes.The Spanish copy of this letter reflects few of the same points and evidence that the English version does. There are a lot of verb conjugation mistakes.The Spanish copy of this letter does not get across the same points. The letter is littered with verb conjugation mistakes.Separation of IdeasEvery opinion is fully developed and thought out. Each one has many supportive details and information to back them up.Most opinions are fully developed and thought out. Each one has some supportive details and information to back them up.A majority of the opinions are fully developed and thought out. Each one has a few supportive details and information to back them up.Some opinions are fully developed and thought out. Each one has a some supportive details and information to back them up.None of the opinions are fully developed or thought out. Each one has no supportive details or information to back them up.Introduce Topic/Use Persuasion SkillsThe topic was thoroughly introduced and the use of persuasive skills was strong throughout the letter.The topic was well introduced and the use of persuasive skills was good throughout the letter.The topic was introduced and the use of persuasive skills was evident throughout the letter.The topic was kind of introduced and the use of persuasive skills was in parts of the letter.The topic was not introduced and no persuasive skills were used at all.  Resources / Artifacts: Hook/Grabber Videos-Newsy with the Why:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMf-luVOKocTrump in Republican Primary Debate:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNjcAgNu1Ac  Lesson Main Resources-Guided Research: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xmAJ32oeKlwWp42S5f-Im5IyUblMg8L7lPankZI-9B0/edit Video Notes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mXRVSFh5oMYJPFon-0ynkGQDWT6vHPLltFf5vnesxLs/edit  Example Video-https://youtu.be/lT3gbN9MTrA  Screeencast- Writing Final Letter: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bywn_ulH7UpGQy1XX2NINDRVcEk   Differentiation: High ability students:will be expected to make a references page at the end of their video and cite all references according to APA style guidelines Students with different, lower abilities:will be permitted at least one content farm as a piece of evidence      3. Students with different backgrounds:may use their experiences as one of their three pieces of evidence      4. ESL students:may compose their first draft of the letter in Spanish and translate it to English      5. Students without access to the internet/electronic devices:will be given access to the lab during my classwill be allowed to come and work with me during my prep period on their videos  Anticipated Difficulties: The students have the possibility to run into some problems along the way. These problems may include finding quality sources, not having a large enough vocab in Spanish to translate their letter accurately, and/or not enough knowledge of conjugations to translate their letters well. If students have trouble finding quality sources I will have a list of my own few sources for each argument. I will point them in the direction of Google searches which should yield at least one of the websites on my list for them to explore. If the students do not feel that they have a large enough vocab in Spanish to translate the letter using words that get the exact point across they want, rather than the same general idea, I will have Spanish-English dictionaries for the students to use in class or a website which they can use at home. If their knowledge of conjugations is lacking because they have not experienced a certain type of conjugation in Spanish that they are comfortable using in English I will personally step in to explain how the verb should be conjugated in the situation and why.

This Problem-Based Learning Assignment addresses the following questions:

- When do Americans have the right to privacy?
- Are there ever any circumstances where Americans should give up certain rights to privacy in order to have greater security measures to be protected by the government?

Grabber: a John Oliver video and two articles about snapchat and internet privacy, relevant to students' worlds

Introductory mini lesson is included

In the Culminating Activity students are researching the FBI v. Apple debate. They are split into four group sand must collaborate together to come up with a stance their perspective would agree with alongside historical events in history that support their side.

This lesson uses the fundamentals of protein synthesis as a context for investigating the closest living relative to Tyrannosaurus rex and evaluating whether or not paleontologist and dinosaur expert, Jack Horner, will be able to "create" live dinosaurs in the lab. The first objective is for students to be able to access and properly utilize the NIH's protein sequence database to perform a BLAST, using biochemical evidence to determine T rex's closest living relative. The second objective is for students to be able to explain and evaluate Jack Horner's plans for creating live dinosaurs in the lab. The main prerequisite for the lesson is a basic understanding of protein synthesis, or the flow of information in the cell from DNA to RNA during transcription and then from RNA to protein during translation

Join the ladybug in an exploration of rotational motion. Rotate the merry-go-round to change its angle, or choose a constant angular velocity or angular acceleration. Explore how circular motion relates to the bug's x,y position, velocity, and acceleration using vectors or graphs.

Join the ladybug in an exploration of rotational motion. Rotate the merry-go-round to change its angle, or choose a constant angular velocity or angular acceleration. Explore how circular motion relates to the bug's x,y position, velocity, and acceleration using vectors or graphs.

Students learn about organic gardening by developing their own research questions, conducting research, gardening at their school, creating signs about their plants, and presenting their research to the class.

A collaboration between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the CK-12 Foundation, this book provides high school mathematics and physics teachers with an introduction to the main principles of modeling and simulation used in science and engineering. An appendix of lesson plans is included.

“Breakout” or “Escape” rooms have become extremely popular for children and adults as an entertainment option to have fun and use teamwork to solve a puzzle in a designated amount of time.  The Mystery Escape! problem-based learning module leads student groups through designing their own puzzle based on Chemistry and Periodic Table of Elements.  The culmination of the Module invites students to crack codes to unlock 4 locks that give a clear answer. “Can YOU escape peril?”

The purpose of these PBL units is to provide advanced students of Spanish (generally 3rd and 4th year college students) a series of compelling problems from Spanish culture and society. Each unit introduces a problem that students must solve collaboratively in small teams (4-6) over the course of approximately four weeks, assuming 2-3 class meetings per week. The instructor coaches the teams as they seek to fill gaps in understanding, revise hypotheses to incorporate new knowledge, and craft solutions that recognize various perspectives on the problem. Each unit is based on particular objectives, but the skills and processes students will exercise are the same across all units: collaborative problem solving, self-directed research and synthesis of information, argumentation based on sound evidence, and communication in Spanish. 

The purpose of these PBL units is to provide advanced students of Spanish (generally 3rd and 4th year college students) a series of compelling problems from Spanish culture and society. Each unit introduces a problem that students must solve collaboratively in small teams (4-6) over the course of approximately four weeks, assuming 2-3 class meetings per week. The instructor coaches the teams as they seek to fill gaps in understanding, revise hypotheses to incorporate new knowledge, and craft solutions that recognize various perspectives on the problem. Each unit is based on particular objectives, but the skills and processes students will exercise are the same across all units: collaborative problem solving, self-directed research and synthesis of information, argumentation based on sound evidence, and communication in Spanish. 

This unit is focused on the examination of a single topic, in this case, the Native Americans of the inland Northwest and conflict that arose when other non-native people started to settle in the northwest, and to specifically address the native populations that lived in the inland northwest. The materials were created to be one coherent arc of instruction focused on one topic. The module was designed to include teaching notes that signal the kind of planning and thinking such instruction requires: close reading with complex text, and specific instructional strategies or protocols are described that support students’ reading and writing with evidence are described in enough detail to make it very clear what is required of students and how to support students in doing this rigorous work. Materials include summative assessment of content and process, central texts, key resources, and protocols that support and facilitate student learning.

The idea of Threshold Concepts has been widely discussed in higher education for more than a decade. As defined by Jan H.F. Meyer and Ray Land, a threshold concept “can be considered as akin to a portal, opening up a new and previously inaccessible way of thinking about something. It represents a transformed way of understanding, or interpreting, or viewing something without which the learner cannot progress”.  (Meyer, J., & Land, R. (2003). Put another way, threshold concepts are the core ideas and principles in any discipline that often become second nature to experts, but may be completely foreign to the novice. And yet, without an understanding of these core concepts, learners cannot progress in further learning in any given subject area. As with all academic disciplines, threshold concepts exist in the area of Information Literacy; grasping information literacy threshold concepts is essential for students to become effective researchers.In 2015, the American Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) replaced their Information Literacy Competency Standards, with a “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education”. The Framework is organized into six Frames, each anchored by an information literacy threshold concept and supported by a set of knowledge practices and dispositions. These six information literacy threshold concepts include:Authority is Constructed and ContextualInformation Creation is a ProcessInformation Has ValueResearch as InquiryScholarship as ConversationSearching as Strategic ExplorationBased on the research studies and experiences of academic instruction librarians who see first-hand the challenges students experience when conducting college-level research, the new Framework was developed to support information literacy instruction in the digital age. The literature suggests that most students entering college are unprepared for the rigors of academic research. (Head, A. J. (2013). If students can gain an understanding of these six threshold concepts, they will likely be better researchers and generally more successful in their academic work.What are the implications of this huge paradigm shift in college-level research instruction for school librarians? Simply put, school librarians have a wonderful opportunity to prepare students for college level research by systematically teaching information literacy threshold concepts in grades K-12. A scaffolded information literacy instruction program focused on threshold concepts along with standards and skills could help pave the way for students to be effective college researchers. With an estimated 30% of US college and university students dropping out after their first year, preparing research savvy students for the demands of college assignments could have a significant impact on student success and ultimately on college graduation rates.  Instructional ObjectivesBy the completion of Module 1, students will be able to identify a threshold concept from their field or discipline and design a learning activity that could be used to teach this concept.By the completion of Module 2, students will be able to identify one or more stumbling blocks that students encounter when conducting academic research, and describe how a better grasp of one of the six ACRL Information Literacy threshold concepts could help overcome this research barrier.By the completion of Module 3, students will be able to create a lesson plan for a K-12 classroom which teaches or reinforces the threshold concept “Research as Inquiry”. 

This was my inquiry-based project for W200. It was done with a partner and includes our driving question, hook or grabber for the project, and the culminating activity, as well as a rubric for how the culminating activity will be graded.

A park ranger needs to build a zipline to drop food supplies to her mentor park ranger at the bottom of a gorge. Unfortunately, she does not have the instructions to build the zipline according to the proper specifications. Without directions, she is unsure of the correct angles to attach her zipline to each tree. Additionally, she needs to figure out how to open the chute to drop the food supplies.  Challenge: Create a zip line that will release from her bucket (paper cup) the food supplies (represented by a marble) onto the target (placed 5/8 of the way down the zipline)  before the gear reaches the opposite end of the zip line.