updated 24 April 2008
Worlds of Perception: Exploring
Individual, Artistic,
Foreign, Scientific, and Historical Lenses
(the first 4 weeks of a 12 week course of study for multiple
credit in Language Arts, History, Science, and Art)
by Joseph R Adams, State of Georgia Licensed Secondary School Teacher of Language Arts
and Social Studies; M.A. History, Univeristy of Hawaii
Rationale: Students with special needs often have negative, and sometimes destructive, attitudes toward academic studies and the "world" as they perceive it. This curriculum aims to make students more aware of the unique filters through which each person perceives the world; and, introduce them to other "lenses," cultural and academic, through which to consider the world in other contexts. Through this series of tutorials, students should begin to utilize the fields of History, Science, Geography, Foreign Languages, Language Arts, and Art as tools for observing and analyzing the world more constructively.
School Credit: This is the first four weeks of a possible 12 week course of study, providing course credits in History, Language Arts, Science, and Geography, Foreign Language, and Art depending on student academic needs. Students begin completing the tutorials listed below according to their interests and/or emotional needs until communications with the student's school leads to other academic work. These tutorials are applicable for credit in the courses they are receiving from other schools, or the assignments can stand alone as separate courses in History (HIST), Language Arts (LA), Science (SCI), and Georgraphy (GEO), Art (ART), Foreign Language (FL) according to guidelines in the state of Georgia.
Further details on accumulating course credit: In the state of Georgia, one academic credit unit requires an equivalent of 90 documentable hours studying that subject under the guidance of an licensed teacher. The tutorials numbered below require approximately three hours -- 90 minutes of class interaction and 90 minutes of guided preparation time. For those students needing a full course of credit during the first few weeks at a boarding school, adequate performance in the following twenty class assignments (or alternate assignments under many numbers below). Parallel readings of select books can also be assigned to augment the curriculum below or to suplement studies from the students' school of origin. Class discussions will insure that the books are analyzed in a variety of contexts. Each book and related drafts of the writing process will be discussed for at least 8 hours in class. Some books critiqued thus far include Man's Search for Meaning, by Victor Frankl; All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque; Farenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Ken Kesey; The Kite Runner, by by Khaled Hosseini, Dracula, by Bram Stoker; The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
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Tutorials
(approximately 3 hours of guided study for each)
1) Individual views of the world Changing-Over-Time. Students shall demonstrate proficiency with a graphic organizer an ability to identify life experiences that helped shape their view of the world; and then process the data into a short analytic essay to show how the student's perspective of the world changed over time. Summary of Instructions: Think back to the experiences of your early childhood to the present that helped shape your view of the world (for example, stories told to you by family members and friends, experiences moving and traveling, T.V. shows, movies, news events, etc.). On a blank sheet of paper, write down and/or illustrate these experiences on a timeline; and then, on another page, summarize and analyze your view of the world as it changed over time (for example, what experiences are more influential than others, and why?) For discussion: Compare your experiences with others in a group, or read samples from a collection of student work. What commonalities do you share with the others and what differences? (see examples in appendix A, or on-line in a new window here) (HIST, LA, ART) *Completed by every student for three hours credit each*
1.1) Adapting to Wartime Adversity: Optional Parallel Reading, Man's Search for Meaning, by Victor Frankl. Question for notetaking and discussion: Faced with horrifyingly “abnormal” living conditions, how did Victor Frankl find ways to live from day to day; give examples of how Victor’s thinking and philosophy changed over the course of his time at Auschwitz. To what extent is his philosophy of Logotherapy relevant to people living “normal” lives? (HIST, LA) *Completed by student #1, January 2008 for 8 hours HIST or LA credit*
1.2) Individual Plants Adapting to Changing Environmental Factors: (duration: one to four weeks (6 to 24 hours guided study) Objectives: Identify factors that affect the development of plants; keep a journal tracking the plant(s) development over time; develop a hypothesis regarding the change you are observing; set an end date for your experiment; write a conclusion based on the evidence of change you observed, including a proposal for a future experiment, justifying your proposal with adequate an adequate rationale. (SCI, LA) *Two week and Four week experiments completed by student #2 March 2008 for 30 hours credit*
2) Other Cultural Views of the World. Students shall take the perspective of a Japanese primary school student looking at the world and formulate a response, to the student's "(mis)perception" of the world, and foreigners in particular. This lesson will be completed in class during the teacher's presentation of his experiences teaching in Japan. Here is the summary of the presentation: Imagine going to an island country in the world where English isn't spoken. Japan is one of the island nations. Imagine your surprise (or shock!) when some Japanese elementary school children ask you if foreigners come from a different PLANET than Japanese. They say, that would explain why they don't speak Japanese and they don't take their shoes off in the house, they've got hair on their bodies, different colored eyes and hair on their heads than most Japanese. Some kids also had the impression that all Americans carry pistols!
I found that these kind of impressions of the world were not uncommon among elementary school kids that I taught over a five year period. Japanese kids, like American kids don't study anything formally about other people in the world until high school, so their impressions of the world are shaped through T.V. , and other haphazard exposure to foreigners. Unlike America, Japan was not settled by immigrants from all over the world and united further by a world-wide religion that teaches Sunday school lessons about all of humanity as brothers and sisters.
I wanted the kids to feel like I was their friend, or even brother, rather than a foreigner visiting from another country (or PLANET!), but I needed to be careful not to focus too much on my country the U.S.A. that would lead to their observations when looking at a world map that America, and most of the other countries are "so much bigger than Japan!" It's not hard to imagine why peoples, including the Japanese, become xenophobic and warlike toward the rest of the world when there are global economic problems. I decided to introduce them to some historical "lenses" to show them that they are indeed a part of the human story of life on our small planet earth. I decided to use the lenses of Astronomy, Paleontology, and Anthropology to show them that they were indeed a part of human history that is more global than national.
Questions for discussion and three week test: 1) To what extend do our childhood impressions of the world last into adulthood? How might rural and urban impressions of the world be common and different throughout the world? Review the first storyboard, "School Bus Rocket during this class meeting. (LA, FL) *Completed by every student, January--April 2008 for 3 hours LA credit*
2.1) Adapting to Economic Adversity: View and discuss the Iranian film, Children of Heaven. Questions for discussion: What are the children's family responsibilites? What are the functions of the mosque for the unemployed father? What are the differences between the boys' and girls schools? Why didn't the little girl become angry with the first grader for wearing her shoes? What was the culture shock for the father when he and his son go to another part of town in search of work? Explain the significance of the title of the film, given the film's ending? (HIST, LA) *completed by every student January--April 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit*
2.2) Adapting to Economic Adversity: Optional Parallel Reading, Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls, taking notes on how Jeannette adapted to the changing circumstances of her chaotic family life and what she learned in the process. (LA) *completed by student #1 and two students in wilderness programs February--April 2008 for 3 hours LA credit*
3) The Astronomer's lens of perception. Read the first chapter of Big History, pp.1-15. (appendix B) Objectives: Students shall demonstrate an ability to apply the field of Astronomy, in the form of a timeline) of to view the world, and potentially the individual, in space; including consideration of the unknowns of the field of astronomy. Answer the following questions while reading in preparation for class discussion: How old is the known universe according to Astronomers? What are the characteristics of Cosmic Plasma? Quarks?, Hydrogen and Helium? What is so exquisite about the "Exquisite Balance?" What are the 4 fundamental forces and to what extent do we know their relationships to one another? How does light prove that distance and time interrelated in the universe? What is the primary energy of most stars? What is a supernova and how is it relevant to our solar system and the element, gold, in particular? What is the relationship between Yellow stars, Red Giants, White and Black Dwarfs, Supernovas, and Black Holes. How many "galaxy years" old is our solar system? What is string theory? Dark matter? How does the astronomer's view of time and matter perceive the individual human being? sample responses on-line here. (HIST, SCI, LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2, as well and one student in the wilderness program January--April 2008 for 3 hours HIST, SCI, or LA credit*
3.1) Advanced Astronomy Reading Assignment: Chapter 1 of David Christian's Map's of Time, The First 300,000 Years" (see appendix C; or the first seven pages on-line here). Questions for discussion: What are the philosophical implications of discoveries in modern astronomy; and why do the questions remain the same as they have for thousands of years? How trustworthy is "Big Bang Cosmology"? (HIST, SCI, LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2 February--April 2008 for 3 hours HIST, SCI, or LA credit*
4) Applying the Astronomer's field of perception. Students shall apply perspectives of space and time to tell a story; learn some basic Japanese words and phrases. Class presentation: Overview the "School Bus Rocket," and first part of "Everyone's Birthday Party" storyboards, learning a few Japanese words (instead of the English phrases/words that were taught in Japan) see appendix D and E for the full storyboards (on-line versions are here). Learn the phrases for Where are you from? (Anata wa doko kara kimashitaka?) and How old are you? ("Anata wa nan sai deska?"); the words for rocket (uchusen), ten (jyuu) nine (kyuu), eight (hachi), seven (nana), six (roku), five (go), four (shi), three (san), two (ni), one (ichi), home (uchi), sun (taiyo), moon, (tsuki), stars (hoshi), earth (chikyuu), solar system (taiyokei), milky way (amanogawa -- heavenly river), galaxy (gingakei). For discussion, reviewing material from Big History: What makes our sun different from other stars in our galaxy? What makes our planet different compared to other planets? (LA, FL) *Completed by all students January--April 2008 for 3 hours LA credit*
4.1) Astronomy Timelines: Read and follow instructions for Carl Sagan's Astronomy article, completing the timeline (see appendix F or on-line version here). View and discuss the timeline and others presented in class (see appendix G or on-line version here) Discussion Question: What can be percieved regarding humans using the Astronomer's timeline? (HIST, SCI, LA)
4.2) Astronomy Field Trip I: Learn how to use a telescope to see the moon and stars with optical lenses and your own eyes. Describe the methods and tools you used to make your obsercations (SCI, LA) First proposed by Lance Henson, March 2008
4.3) Astronomy Field Trip II: visit a local university planetarium to find out more about the season's observable planets and constelations. Objectives: Be able to describe the trip to the planetarium, your impressions of the presentation, and follow-up research that would help your understanding. North Georgia College observatory is open every Friday evening.
4.4) Adapting the Astronomers view of time for a story and/or illustration. Include the birth of the first atoms and the first living cells. Be creative! You can model your story on another culture's creation story, including the Hebrew/Christian/Islamic creation story, while incorporating discoveries from Astronomy as well. Read the introduction for the Universe Story for ideas (see appendix H or on-line version here). (LA, ART) *Completed by student #1 February, 2008 for 2 hours LA credit*
5) Living Earth: the field of Paleontology Read second chapter of Big History, pp.16-37, (see appendix I) taking your own notes, including enough notes to answer the following questions for follow-up discussion in class and three week test. Objectives: Students shall become proficient in using the perspective affored by the field of Paleontology (history of biology on earth), appreciating some of the recent developments in the field and ongoing debates. Questions for discussion and three week test: Why is life on Earth a "shimmering mystery"? What is the significance of autopoiesis to the definition of life and the Gaia theory? How does the human body reflect the history of the universe and life on earth? (matter/energy hydrogen/carbon balance in cells, like earth; carbon and five other elements, like 99% of dry weight of all life; begins as a single cell; first cells bacteria--human body has 10X more bacteria cells than any other cells; our blood has seawater salt; 9 mos. of watery life as an embryo, temporary gills, tail; bodies 65% water -- like the earth) How did life form on earth? The Big Belch? Protocells? What is the significance of symbiotic relationships in the history of life on earth? Biota? Species? Genera? Family? Order? Pangaea? (its effect on climate and land life?) How did amphibians become reptiles and why should we be "grateful" to reptiles? What caused the dinosaurs extinction? When did the first mamals appear; and, when and why did their numbers and variety increase? What two large mamals returned to the sea when the earth's climate warmed up between 55 and 50 million years ago. What causes the shift in the earth's temperatures and climate patterns? What is the story of human development in the context of other primates? What accounts for larger brain size? How did the formation of the Great Rift Valley nurture human developments? How does the social behavior of chimpanzees and bonobos differ and how can there behaviors be potentially significant to understanding human social history? (HIST, SCI, LA) *Completed by student #1 and #2, January--April, 2008 for 3 hours HIST, SCI, LA credit)
5.1) Macroinvertebrates on Earth. Reading on Freshwater Invertebrates Objectives: Be able to describe the significance of invertebrates in the history of life on earth; identify at least 8 species of invertebrate and describe their relevance to the ecosystem and in predicting the quality of the water. Questions for reading (see appendix J) and three week test: What is an invertebrate? Macroinvertebrate? What percentage of all living organisms (including plants) do invertebrates represent? Percentage of all animals? What roles do invertebrates play in the ecosystem? Why is it useful to take samples of freshwater invertebrates? How are invertebrates classified according to Kindom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species (species definition: similar in structure and able to produce offspring). What is the most functional level for identifying invertebates that one might sample in a stream? What is the greek definition of ecology?
5.2) View and discuss the Japanese animation, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, by Hayao Miyazaki. Question for discussion: how does the predominance of invertebrates and their abilities to adapt to adversity give some legitimacy to the film's portrayal of the future on the planet?
5.3) Field Experiment Part I (three hours of a six hour block): Defining a site for a Georgia Adopt-a-Stream river invertebrate sampling at a local stream. Defining a site and understanding protocols. *Completed by students #1 and #2 and wilderness program students February--April 2008 for 3 hours SCI credit*
5.4) Field Experiment Part II (three hours of a six hour block) Sampling and Identifying invertebrates and using state (Georgia Adopt-a-Stream) protocols. *Completed by student #1 and wilderness program students February--April, 2008 for 3 hours SCI credit*
5.5) Language Arts Assignment #1 for Outdoor Experiences: Tell the story of your Ridge Creek or Mountain Brook Adventure: Take notes on the trail, in the cave, or on the mountain, refer to your journal entries, and then write-up an adventure narrative (compete with setting, character development, plot, conflict, a climax, and final resolution) that you could tell around the campfire and share with your friends and family. You can change the names in the story.
5.6) Language Arts Assignment #1 for Outdoor Experiences at Ridge Creek and Mountain Brook: Knot-tying story chain story assignment: Write a story in a page or two using all of the knots you learned. Each knot should help you overcome some hardship in the story. Write the story with enough action and drama to make it a good campfire story. Another version: one person start a story using one knot story and another person continue the story with another knot.
6) The Anthropologist's view of HUMANS on earth: Read the third chapter of Big History, pp.38-56, (appendix K) taking your own notes, including enough notes to answer the following questions for follow-up discussion in class and three week test. Objectives: Students shall become proficient in using the perspective affored by the field of Anthropology (history of human/hominid life on earth), appreciating some of the recent developments in the field and ongoing debates. Questions for discussion and three week test: "So You Think You're Human?" Overview the last 6 million years of human (Hominid) development. What makes the hominids different form other primates, while we share 98% of the same genes? walking upright (Australopithecus), using stone tools and an extended childhood, bigger heads (Homohabilis), using stone tools and some fire, increasing phonemes (Homoerectus), making fire and art (Homosapiens). Why was Africa, and the Great Rift Valley so significant? What makes us so human?! Terms: Homoerectus migrations, Java Man, Peking Man (controversy and discuss Japanese film, Peking Genjin), Neanderthals (Why did they go extinct?), HomoSapienSapiens (What's so clever about them/us?-- from 20 species to one over five million years). Larnyx and Adam's apple for a complex voice, can't drink and breath like other animals. Be able to identify migration routes and time periods to each of the continents and Polynesia (1500 y.a.). Larger cycles of global warming cooling based on earth's "wobble" (every 41,000 years) and earth's orbit from circle to an elipse (every 90,000 years). 10 ice ages over the last million years. (HIST, SCI, or LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2, February--April, 2008 for 3 hours HIST, SCI, or LA credit*
6.1) Read the short story, "To Build a Fire," by Jack London, taking notes on new vocabulary and considering the significance of fire and twentieth century man's dependence on matches (in contrast to Homoerectus and most of Homosapien history of firebuilding) Who would be more advanced technologically in the setting of the Great White North in a survival situation?! See on-line version here. (LA) *Completed by student #1 and a wilderness program student March--April, 2008 for 3 hours credit*
6.2) Learn the science and attempt the skills required for "Busting an Ember" with a bow-and-spindle fire kit for Chemistry and/or Outdoor Education credit (SCI) *Completed by student #2 in March 2008 for 6 hours SCI credit*
6.3) Advanced Reading (potential AP World History credit): Read Chapter 1 of The World, by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, taking notes (outline) and reflecting on interesting parts for class discussion. (HIST, SCI, LA) Completed by student #1 in February 2008 for 3 hours HIST or SCI credit)*
7) Read "Advanced Hunting and Gathering" in Big History, pp.57-71 (see appendix L), answering the following questions for discussion and test #1: How can the period of hunting and gathering in human history be considered an "age of affluence"? What was the average size of hunter-gatherer communities? Men's and women's roles? Why was disease less of a factor for hunter-gatherers than for farmers? Explain the predominance of the female figure in the earliest artistic representations between 25,000 to 23,000 y.a.? Cordage, spear throwers, needles 20,000 y.a. Seven Sisters constellation signficance? (3 areas of the world, evidencing early migratory connections) Protolanguage in S.Africa? (gutteral, clicking) 12,000 y.a. Ganges, Yellow, Indus, Tigris/Euphretes flow change? Bospurous Straight opens-up/Great Flood. Discuss why did women, potentially, have more status during the hunting and gathering dimension of human existence. (HIST, SCI, LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2 February--April 2008 for HIST credit*
7.1) Read the Cherokee creation stories: 1) "Turtle Island" as told to the Japanese students How do creation stories reflect the unique environments and human societies in which they are a part? Discuss other creation stories for other parts of the world too. (see appendix N or an on-line link to the stories here) (HIST, LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2 February--April 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit*
7.2) Read "The Origin of Medicine and Disease." Questions for discussion and the three week test: How do the relationships between human society and the surrounding ecology reflect hunter-gather views of the world more than a farmer's view of the world. To what extent it their thinking in line with modern science today (specify which field(s) of science). See appendix O or an on-line link here. (HIST, LA) *Completed by students #1 and #2 February--March 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit)
7.3) Walk in the Woods (Part I of IV) Reading Preparation: Begin reading and discussing Pathways to Nature, by Tom Brown (see appendix M) for discussion on field trips along the river. Learning Objectives begin to tune your senses of sight, hearing, and smell to approach the world of the hunter-gatherer. Write down and/or illustrate artistically your observations and reflections as you begin to notice more on your excursions at Ridge Creek and Mountain Brook (HIST, LA, ART) *Completed by student #1 and #2 and all wilderness program students February--April 2008 for 3 hours HIST, LA, or ART credit*
7.4) Read John Muir's Range of Light, responding to the following questions for discussion: How did John Muir make a living during his life and how did he come to view storms, floods, winds and other hardships? (HIST, LA) *Completed by student #2 and a wilderness program student March--April 2008 for HIST or LA credit*
7.5) Walk in the Wooks (Part II of IV) Reading Preparation: Begin reading and discussing "Pathways to Nature," in A Field Guide to Nature Observation and Tracking, by Tom Brown (see appendix M) for discussion on field trips along the river. Learning Objectives begin to tune your senses of sight, hearing, and smell to approach the world of the hunter-gatherer. Write down and/or illustrate artistically your observations and reflections as you begin to notice more on your weekly excursions (HIST, LA, ART)
7.6) Find a special spot in the woods that allows you to focus on the natural surroundings, relax, pray, or meditate. Use the natural building materials at hand to make your spot even more special for you and other should you choose to take them there. (ART) *Completed by student #2 for 12 hours credit in ART*
7.7) Walk in the Woods (Part III of IV) to apply strategies learned in "Pathways to Nature" Students will write and draw during their guided field walk. (HIST, LA, ART)
7.8) Walk in the Woods (Part IV of IV) to apply strategies learned in "Pathways to Nature" Students will write and draw during their guided field walk. (HIST, LA, ART)
7.9) Together as a class, hand-draw a world map on a piece of construction paper as a part of our review. Include major oceans, ocean currents, mountain ranges, rivers, and seasonal winds, and human migration routes/dates. Illustrate the major ecologies and relationship to skin color, eye shape, and body size. Geography students should begin studying the locations of countries and capitals on the African continent. Assignments for each continent. (HIST, SCI, ART) *Compreted by students #1 and #2 February--March 2008 for 3 hours HIST, WGEOG, or LA credit)*
8) Review for Test #1
9) Take Test #1 (combined multiple choice, matching, short essay response and extended essay response) See February 2008 test here; March 2008 test here *Completed by student #1 and #2 February--March 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit*
10) Early Agriculture (8000-3500BCE) Chapter 5, Big History Questions for Discussion and Test #2: 1) Why was the agricultural revolution such a huge watershed in world history (consider the backdrops of 200,000 years and 5 million years)? 2) Why did people make the shift to an agricultural-based lifestyle considering the relative drop in food variety and increase health risks? 3) How do scientists know about climate change and changes in human diet? 4) How did the domestication of some animals proceed and contribute toward the agricultural revolution? 5) What is complex foraging? 6) Why are women usually given credit for domesticating wild plants? 7) What does the linguistic evidence say about the way that lifeways changed in the Mid-east, Europe and Southern Asia? 8) Draw a map of the plant and animal domestication in the world, including the most recent domesticated plants in North America. 9) Based on the evidence presented regarding Catal Huyuk, what type of agrarian-society did it have? 10) How did agriculture change human society? 11) Why were goddess figures associated with the earth from Europe to Asia? 12) Why did some peoples in the world not make a shift to agriculture? 13) What gave the horse nomads of the Eurasian Steppe advantages from 500 BCE? 14) What was the epic of Gilgamesh about and how does it sybolize the reservations people had changing from from hunter-gathering way of life to farming? 15) When and where does the garden of Eden story originate and how does it, like Gilgamesh reflect the reservations humans had over the transition to farming? 16) Cain and Abel? Sample Responses here: (HIST, LA) *Completed by student #2 March 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit*
11) Early Cities (3500-800 BCE), Chapter 6 in Big History Questions for Discussion and test #2: 1) How did the caste system develop in India, and what features did it have that convinced most people to accept the socio-economic immobility (include consideration of varnas, atman, and karma)? 2) What and who challenged the existing caste system? 3) Why was Siddharth Gautama nicknamed, "the Enlightened One"? 4) What are bodhisattvas and to what extent are they comparable to saints in Christianity? 5) What was the course of Indian history after the birth of Buddhism -- Alexander the Great to Asoka the Great? 6) Why was the crossbow so important in early Chinese history? 7)To what extent was Confucianism comparable to Hinduism? 8) What qualified people for beauraucratic positions in Han China? 9) To what extent is Taoism comparable to Buddhism? 10) What was the significance of silk in Eurasia and to human history? Sample responses here. (HIST, LA) *Completed by student #2 March 2008 for 3 hours HIST or LA credit)*
12) The Afro-Eurasian Network (800 BCE--200CE), first half (India and China) of Chapter 7 (pp.110-117) in Big History, Questions for Discussion and test #2: 1) How did the caste system develop in India, and what features did it have that convinced most people to accept the socio-economic immobility (include consideration of varnas, atman, and karma)? 2) What and who challenged the existing caste system? 3) Why was Siddharth Gautama nicknamed, "the Enlightened One"? 4) What are bodhisattvas and to what extent are they comparable to saints in Christianity? 5) What was the course of Indian history after the birth of Buddhism -- Alexander the Great to Asoka the Great? 6) Why was the crossbow so important in early Chinese history? 7)To what extent was Confucianism comparable to Hinduism? 8) What qualified people for beauraucratic positions in Han China? 9) To what extent is Taoism comparable to Buddhism? 10) What was the significance of silk in Eurasia and to human history? Sample responses here. (HIST, LA) *student #2 completed April 2008 for 3 hours HIST, LA credit*
13) The Afro-Eurasian Network (800 BCE--200CE), second half (Greece and Rome) of Chapter 7 (pp.117-126) in Big History, Questions for Discussion and test #2: