Phennd Resources

11th Grade Government & Economics: Financial Health Fair

2009-08-04T17:31:07Z

Financial Health Fair
Many families struggle to make ends meet. While there are several reasons for this (public policy, joblessness and economic conditions, etc.), there are ways that individuals can take better control of their finances to make their money work for them. As students learn about Personal Financial Literacy (Unit 2 in the Economic section), they will share that information with their community through the creation of a student-run Financial Health Fair. Students will learn about and create workshops based on various topics such as: banking basics, maintaining good credit, understanding federal benefits, managing debt, and paying for college. Students should be encouraged to survey their peers, parents, and neighbors to make the Fair as relevant as possible to the specific needs of their community. Students will be responsible for all aspects of planning the event: securing space, creating and disseminating promotional materials, creating presentations, securing additional outside speakers, creating a budget for the event, fundraising, and evaluating the final product. As this concept progresses, year-after-year, students can tackle more difficult topics such as starting a small business, taking out a loan, steering clear of predatory lending, and/or buying a home.

11th Grade Chemistry: Waste Management

2009-08-04T17:30:25Z

Waste Management
Pennsylvania is one of the largest importers of trash. Trash from other states fills our landfills. Yet, research has shown that landfills are not safe for long-term waste disposal. Landfills leak toxic chemicals into our air and water.

Students will research the chemical processes at work in landfills (3.4.12 A-B, 3.6.12 A), everything from the decomposition of various forms of waste, the release of gases from the landfill, and the contamination of ground water caused by the landfill. The landfill will be a focal point from which to engage students in the course content, i.e. chemistry.

11th Grade Literacy: Who wears the “A”?

2009-08-04T17:29:28Z

Who wears the “A”?
Despite the gains for the Civil Rights, Women’s, Chicano, and Gay and Lesbian Rights Movements in this country, many groups are still marginalized by mainstream culture. In our schools and communities, people are still held back by barriers due to their ethnicity, race, religion, gender, age, immigrant status, educational status, physical ability, and/or sexual behavior. Students will read about one example of this in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter (1.1.11, 1.3.11 A-C, F). Other works highlighted in this course also explore the theme of institutionalized discrimination – Lorene Carey’s The Price of Child (racism) and Arthur Miller’s The Crucible (gender and sexual behavior as well as its allegorical references to political discrimination.)

10th Grade American History: Conflict Resolution

2009-08-04T17:28:40Z

Conflict Resolution
Today, many of our schools and communities are plagued by violence. Whether in the form of bullying on the playground, abuse in the home, drive-by shootings in our neighborhoods, or even war and destruction around the world, violence is all around us. However, as in the past, today’s communities are taking a stand against the bloodshed.

The Conflict Resolution project is designed to engage students in this fight against violence while at the same time reinforcing the theme for this academic course, “Freedom and Stability.” Unfortunately, many of our students have first-hand experience with violence; this project is meant to help transform tragedy into positive action for the common good. In this project, students will explore the impact of violence in communities throughout the American historical experience (8.2.9 D, 8.3.9 D). They will study the impact of violence in their own lives, school, and community, and will design methods by which to alleviate tensions and reduce harm. Two suggested methods are the creation of a school-wide or school-community Social Contract (5.1.9 A-F, H-J; 5.2.9 A-C, F; 5.3.9 G, J), followed by the implementation of a conflict resolution/peer mediation program for the school.

10th Grade Biology: Blood Drive & Community Health Fair

2009-08-04T17:27:59Z

Blood Drive & Community Health Fair
Despite new technologies and new medications constantly debuting, Americans are not necessarily getting healthier. In Philadelphia, persistent health problems continue to impinge on our quality of life. In this project, students will research and address health problems specific to their community (3.2.10, 3.8.10 B). Their “community” may be interpreted as their age group, their ethic/racial community, and/or their geographic neighborhood.

10th Grade Literacy: Criminal Justice Project

2009-08-04T17:27:17Z

Criminal Justice Project
Our justice system is an imperfect one. For various reasons, guilty individuals sometimes do not pay for their crimes, while the innocent are sometimes wrongly accused and convicted. Students will read about one example of this in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird (1.1, 1.3.A-C, 1.3.F, 1.6.B, 1.7.B).

For this project, students will read an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer or another local newspaper about a person wrongfully convicted of a crime (1.2.A, 1.2.B, 1.3.F). (Teachers can use the article provided, “N.O. Man Cleared in ‘84 Murder,” or an article of their own choosing.) Students will also listen to the story, “Perfect Evidence,” from the This American Life program of National Public Radio (NPR) and/or watch the award winning documentary Murder on A Sunday Morning (1.2.B). Then, students will research the issue of wrongful convictions and interview experts in the field (1.1.A, 1.2.A, 1.6.A, 1.6.C, 1.6.E, 1.8 A-C). These experts will train young people in their rights and responsibilities with regard to the justice system (1.6.A, 1.6.C). Students will also survey the local community to determine needs and ideas for change (1.6.A, 1.6.C). They will then lobby decision makers for more just procedures, such as the videotaping of interrogations. This advocacy will occur in several ways. First, students will write persuasive letters and essays to law enforcement officials, legislators, and local newspapers (1.4.B, 1.4.C, 1.5.A-G). Then, they will host a Justice Forum, inviting officials, experts, and young people to meet and discuss issues of concern in their community. At the Forum, students and community members can publicly make their recommendations to the Police Commissioner and others, while officials have an opportunity to respond and share their needs (1.5.G, 1.6.A, 1.6.C-E). Students will be responsible for planning this event, from preparing presentations, to inviting guests, handling promotions, securing space, and seeking media attention (1.4.C-D, 1.5A-F, 1.6.C, 1.6.E).

9th Grade World History: Human Rights Day

2009-08-04T17:26:22Z

Human Rights Day
The goal of this service learning project is for students to educate their peers and fellow citizens about Human Rights issues at home and around the world. Students will research successful strategies employed by social justice and human rights advocates. Students will raise awareness to create positive change in their school and neighborhoods by using the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in conjunction with their research of non violent human rights movements. After they have analyzed the tactics and tools utilized to improve human rights conditions locally, specific non-violent strategies and tactics used by social justice and human rights advocates can be used effectively in case study and experiential learning. Optional expansion activities include researching the propaganda methods used to foster negative stereotypes, violence and human rights abuses.

9th Grade Physical Science: Green School Project on Energy Efficiency

2009-08-04T17:25:44Z

Green School Project on Energy Efficiency
The Green Schools program is a school energy efficiency program that uses energy-saving action to teach science, math, English language arts, and social studies. It addresses several pressing issues: the need for resource efficiency in schools and home; the need for multi-disciplinary, hands-on learning opportunities for students; and the need for better communication and cooperation among stakeholders in a school (teachers, custodians, administration, students, and parents).

8th Grade Social Studies: Conflict Resolution

2009-08-04T17:24:26Z

7th Grade Social Studies: Thinking Globally, Acting Locally

2009-08-04T17:23:43Z

Thinking Globally, Acting Locally
For this plan, 7th grade world history is broken up in six-week units in such a way that the themes and locations examined can be connected to present-day situations. Below are suggestions as to how this can be done within a service-learning context. The project can span the entire year or be shortened as needed. There are group elements required for research; however the class works as a whole to identify the issues they want to address.