Centering Student Stories
Middle School Science
Here, students learn more about the earth from its inception to humans’ current global impact. Students recognize the responsibility they have as characters in this continuing story.
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Students: • Read scenarios and watch videos designed to share the story of the earth • Research the earth from the perspectives of different communities and geographic locations • Create a public health story in which they research a disease, its community impacts, and individual and community efforts toward a cure, and then present this story through a slideshow presentation with images
Students and teachers read real-life stories together as they examine their country’s social justice stories, its historical narratives, and the workings of individuals and communities. Students learn from the past and examine their current institutions, communities, and contexts.
Students: • Experience content through stories from multiple perspectives • Share their own stories through reflection prompts, discussion, and class activities • Deliver speeches, create slideshows, and engage in group projects to analyze history and tie their life experiences to current events
Connections made in the teacher narratives in this chapter include: • How can teachers build empathy with students they may never see in person? • How can teachers encourage story sharing? • What role does encouragement play in empathetic communication? These questions all point teachers to the impact of sharing their stories and experiences to create connection.
Jill Clingan: Empathy in Blended Learning Environments Jill Clingan has taught in online, blended, and in-person contexts for high school and college. Anyone who meets Jill comments on her encouraging and warm nature, and she is known in her school as its heart. Jill’s work with international students and partners carries this empathy forward, as she shares in her narrative.
©️2022 by Solution Tree Press
Social Studies
