Rachel Carson Lesson Plan: Individuals’ Contributions and Identities

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This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP topic Rachel Carson, and supports the standard of analyzing individuals’ contributions to scientific progress and society. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Ask students:

• Where do you see human impact on the environment in your community?
• How can humans reduce their environmental impact?

Step 2: BUILD BACKGROUND

• Read the description on the Rachel Carson topic page.
• Play the Movie, pausing to check for understanding. 
• Have students read one of the Related Reading articles. Partner them with someone who read a different article to share what they learned with each other.
  

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS

Assign the Rachel Carson Quiz, prompting students to apply essential literacy skills while demonstrating what they learned about this topic.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND
Students express what they learned about Rachel Carson while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student needs.

• Make-a-Movie: Produce a biopic of Rachel Carson highlighting her scientific contributions. Explain their effect on humanity’s understanding of how we impact the environment. 
• Make-a-Map: Identify the timeline of events that led to the ban on DDT use in the United States. 
• Creative Coding: Code a newscast announcing the findings of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.  

More to Explore

Time Zone X: Rachel Carson: Challenge students to put historical events in chronological order in this interactive timeline game.
Lakeland: Students balance the use of resources for business and food in this simulation game.
Famous Scientists Unit: Continue to build understanding around individuals’ scientific contributions by exploring more BrainPOP biographies.

Additional Support Resources:

• Pause Point Overview: Video tutorial showing how Pause Points actively engage students to stop, think, and express ideas. 
• Learning Activities Modifications: Strategies to meet ELL and other instructional and student needs.
• Learning Activities Support: Resources for best practices using BrainPOP.