Students will investigate the possible connection between the Cambrian explosion, methane hydrates and global warming. Students will work in collaborative groups to research a organism whose fossil can be found in the Burgess Shale. They will then share information in a large-group session and discuss how methane hydrates might be involved with global warming. In an optional extension activity, students create a model of the specimen they researched.

Students will be able to describe major features of cold seep communities; list at least five organisms typical of these communities; infer probable trophic relationships among organisms typical of cold-seep communities and the surrounding deep-sea environment; describe the process of chemosynthesis in general terms; contrast chemosynthesis and photosynthesis; and describe at least five deep-sea predator organisms. Students will work in collaborative groups to research the ecology of cold seep communities and orally present their findings to the rest of the class. The teacher will also lead an effort to create a food web showing the ecological relationships of these communities.

Students research four additional examples of physical geography and borders. They explore how mountains, oceans, and islands create physical barriers that affect the country borders in Europe.

In this lesson, students work in groups to research the different aspects of the human heart. The groups work through steps to create a multimedia presentation following preset criteria.

In this lesson, students will use short video clips and other web resources to study the group of animals known as billfish and learn how ocean currents influence the eating habits of various fish. Students will also have the opportunity to shoot their own video to create a nature documentary to present in the classroom.

Using the theme of identity, students will work through various activities to learn the characteristics of a Narrative Essay. This particular unit will/should take place prior to writing the Narrative Essay. Many of the lessons address how to identify, create, apply and analyzeheme, dialogue punctuation, figurative language and citing direct and indirect evidence.

In this lesson, students will analyze primary resources to explain how the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and the issue of fugitive slaves escalated tensions between the North and the South, and led to the secession of several states and finally to war. Respond to an ECR writing prompt to demonstrate understanding of how the North and the South had different cultures and how these differences eventually drove them apart.

Students will use the internet to learn about the Native peoples that stretched across the North American continent in 1615, and learn about Native American populations today.

Students examine the impact of digital technology on print journalism and develop creative ideas for delivering news

In this lesson, students examine the impact of digital technology on print journalism and develop creative ideas for delivering news

This lesson, Nonviolent Resistance, focuses on Dr. Martin Luther King's, “The Sword that Heals,” and asks student to listen to interviews with veterans of the freedom struggle as they discuss the role of nonviolent direct action.

The poem describes the victorious homecoming of a ship. The Captain responsible for the safe return of his ship and crew has died before reaching port, and the narrator is grief stricken at the loss. While acknowledging the greatness of the victorious return of the ship to port, the poem also laments the loss of the leader responsible. In this CCSS lesson, students will explore this story through text dependent questions, academic vocabulary, and writing assignments.

Students analyze three broad ocean habitats, the characteristics and conditions of each, and research the animals of each zone and their adaptations.

In this lesson, students research aspects of the Victorian Era as an introduction to a unit on "Jane Eyre"

In this speech, Rudolfo Anaya celebrates the purchase of the 1 millionth library volume by the University of New Mexico. He begins by describing how as a child on summer evenings he sat under the stars and listened to the stories of los viejitos, the old ones. For Anaya the million volumes in the university’s library represent freedom because preserving access to ideas leads to the preservation and ultimately the regeneration of our cultural ideals. In this CCSS lesson, students will explore this story through text dependent questions, academic vocabulary, and writing assignments.

Students work with primary documents and latter-day photographs to recapture the experience of traveling on the Oregon Trail.

In this lesson, students explore environmental issues that are relevant to their own lives, self-select topics, and gather information to write persuasive essays. Students participate in peer conferences to aid in the revision process and evaluate their essays through self-assessment. Although this lesson focuses on the environment as a broad topic, many other topics can be easily substituted for reinforcement of persuasive writing.

In this lesson, students compare how both George and Martha Washington felt about General Washington becoming the first President of the United States. Students should complete the George Washington's Letter to Henry Knox about the Presidency and Martha Washington's Letter about the Presidency worksheets prior to beginning this activity.

In this WebQuest, students will learn about the microorganisms that live in Atlantic White Cedar Swamp habitats. Then they will combine creative writing skills and biology knowledge to bring these microbes to life. Through the art of storytelling, they will bring awareness to Atlantic White Cedar Swamps and increase our understanding of the microbial world.