This curriculum unit on textiles is intended for middle school students who have previously studied the cultures of modern and ancient Latin America. The unit does not employ Spanish language skills. Its lessons apply to individual, small group, and whole group work, and may take from 30 minutes to three class periods. The guide lists necessary…

Children's literature reflecting authentic multiethnic cultures can help young minds recognize the diversity of their families and communities. Books that allow children to see themselves in a positive role give them an opportunity to affirm their identities. Children and youth also need books that show the interaction of people of diverse…

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has produced a distance learning series of four 60-minute video programs with an accompanying Web site and companion teacher guides. The story lines of each program or episode involve six inquisitive school children who meet in a treehouse. They seek the solution of a particular problem, and…

This eight-lesson unit introduces students to developments in Tokugawa, Japan, from 1630-1867. Students explore art, literature, and other primary sources to compile a picture of the stable, hierarchical society that the Tokugawa rulers sought to establish and maintain; students then draw on these sources to analyze social, economic, and cultural…

This publication addresses trends and issues in global education, providing information about what global education is and how to teach it. The publication emphasizes ERIC resources. It offers ERIC Digests about global education and selected items from the ERIC database that exemplify different viewpoints and approaches to global education. It…

In this activity, students design and create a LEGO (plastic building blocks) structure to house and protect a temperature sensor. The structure is left in a safe spot and the temperature is regularly checked and charted. This activity uses a time frame of 45 minutes. (Author/SOE)

In November 1997, the National Institute for Science Education (NISE) brought together for a two-day conference faculty members of NISE, individuals who have special expertise or experience pertaining to interdisciplinary collaboration and problem solving and representatives of research projects addressing the topic of interdisciplinarity. The…

With regard to the acceptance of human-computer interfaces, immersion represents one of the most important methods for attracting young visitors into museum exhibitions. Exciting and diversely presented content as well as intuitive, natural and human-like interfaces are indispensable to bind users to an interactive system with real and digital…

This study documents the type of support and professional growth science teachers gained as they implemented technologies from summer institutes. Teachers and staff maintained communication after the program through a telecommunications network. This study involved 91 high school science teachers from across the country who participated in an NSF…

This paper addresses nontraditional methods and issues involved in presenting a productive undergraduate political science course that provides the knowledge, skills, and abilities to aid good citizenship and a variety of career choices. This educators incorporated team teaching, cross training, original research, and small group work, and invited…

This curriculum unit requires students to use science, geography, and language arts skills in studying the weather. Students are asked to report on weather anomalies and are provided with background information, detailed instructions, online resources, and reflection questions. The teacher's guide describes the unit's purpose, correlation to…

The Master of Arts program in Communication (MAC) at Wichita State University is integrated and interdisciplinary. The assumption is that all professional communicators engage in gathering and analyzing information, and designing and delivering messages. The program, therefore, seeks to prepare students to engage in these activities across…

Folk art tells the story of many generations and reflects cultures everywhere. It is a wonderful tool for introducing students to world cultures and traditions. This book brings the world of folk art into the classroom with extension activities that integrate art, social studies, science, language arts, and music. Organized into three sections,…

The three lessons in this interdisciplinary curriculum unit invite students to explore the meaning of landmarks, places, people, and ideas that distinguish their environment. Lessons include: (1) "Looking Close to Home"; (2) "Moving Out into the Community"; and (3) "Celebrating Landmarks." Each lesson contains student…

This book uses a detective approach to teach about environmental issues. Student sleuths investigate many potential causes of fish dying including chlorine pollution, acid rain, erosion and sediment pollution, predator-prey relationships, phosphate pollution and algal blooms, and oil pollution. The text provides students the opportunity to grapple…