Media Specialists
October 30-November 5, 2013

Find the latest educational resources from Iowa Public Television.

Halloween Spooky Science Special
Grades: PreK-1

Using this resource group, students learn about Halloween related science topics. The kids investigate how bats are helpful creatures that catch mosquitoes, spiders are expert engineer web builders, cats are leaping aerial acrobats, and skeletons help hold up our bodies! At the Halloween party, the kids also investigate how to make icky, gooey green slime. Susie then ends the day with a special "Halloween Parade" song so the kids can march around and show off their spooky and scientific costumes!

Supernatural Elements in Shakespeare

Grades: 8-12

In this media collection, students explore the use of supernatural elements within William Shakespeare's plays, focusing particularly on Macbeth, Hamlet, and The Tempest. Students examine supernatural beliefs during the 16th and 17th centuries, and they also identify how supernatural elements drive the plot of many of Shakespeare's plays.

The Zombie Autopsies for Educators

Grades: 8-13+

The following lessons about neuroscience have been inspired by the book, The Zombie Autopsies, written by Dr. Steven C. Schlozman, and are intended to complement it. The Zombie Autopsies was inspired by George Romero's 1968 cult-classic horror film Night of the Living Dead.

These original lessons build upon each other, using the undead to teach the living about the brain. The lessons follow an accompanying plot line where the world is fighting a zombie apocalypse and the best and the brightest young people are being trained as medical students - with a specialty in neuroscience - with the hopes that they will be able to provide a cure to this terrible epidemic and save humanity.

Although the materials are organized as a unit, lessons can be used as stand-alone or can be shaped to fit the needs of you and your students regarding time and content. Introduce zombie neurobiology to your classroom today!

Haunted House: The Tuhhhh
Grade Range: 1-3

Mummy and Werewolf have a hard time figuring out Bat's instructions and they make a mess of the bathroom. The goal for this segment is letter sound -t-.

Saudi Women in Cars Protest Driving Ban
Grade Range: 7-12

Women in Saudi Arabia stood up to authorities Saturday by breaking a ban on driving. The rule stems from conservative religious customs and isn't written in law -- but that hasn't stopped police from arresting women who get behind the wheel.

Super Smog Forces Shutdown for Chinese City

Grade Range: 7-12

The rise of a middle class in China has brought a better life to millions of Chinese. However, the increase of quality of life has come at a great cost to the environment. Yesterday the northeast city of Harbin came to a screeching halt as smog pollution rose to 40 times the limit of the international safety standard. Planes were grounded, schools were closed and roads were off limits to buses.

Comparing Fractions: Bubble Gum Blowing Contest
Grade Range: 3-5

This interactive activity adapted from Annenberg Learner's Teaching Math Grades 3-5 invites students to be the judge of three bubble gum blowing contests. To determine the winner of the contests-Class A or Class B-students have to create and then compare fractions based on how many students blew bubbles and the size of each class. These numbers vary from contest to contest. Students use the activity to plot the fractions on number lines, which provides them with the comparison. The winning class will have a larger part of the number line filled in.

Multiplying Bigger Numbers
Grade Range: 3-6

In this video segment from Cyberchase, every time Delete sneezes he creates three clones of himself. The CyberSquad uses their knowledge of multiplication to figure out how many clones exist after Delete sneezes 103 times.

Baseball and Social Change: The Story of Roberto Clemente
Grade Range: 5-8

In this blended lesson supporting literacy skills, students learn about baseball legend Roberto Clemente, his early years in the United States during segregation, and changes in the 1960s that made the U.S. culture more open to Clemente's Latino culture. Students develop their literacy skills through a social studies focus on how culture shapes individual identity and how a culture changes when new groups of people enter it. During this process, they read informational text, learn and practice vocabulary words, and explore content through videos and interactive activities.

The Powers of Government
Grade Range: 5-8

In this blended lesson supporting literacy skills, students learn about the three branches of the United States government. Students develop their literacy skills as they explore a social studies focus on the powers that the Constitution assigns to each branch-legislative, executive, and judicial-and how the three branches work together. During this process, they read informational text, learn and practice vocabulary words, and explore content through videos and interactive activities.

Writings of the Ancient Maya
Grade Range: 5-8

In this blended lesson supporting literacy skills, students are introduced to the ancient Mayan civilization through their writings. Students develop their literacy skills as they explore a social studies focus on the destruction of many Mayan writings by the Spanish and what archaeologists have learned from the writings that remain. During this process, they read informational text, learn and practice vocabulary words, and explore content through a video and interactive activities.

Teaching Students About Credit
Grade Range: 9-13+

Now more than ever, it's essential that young people know how to use credit cards wisely and manage their debt, before they learn the hard way. This video features Lauren Popkoff, a teacher at Brooklyn College Academy in Brooklyn, New York. As Lauren lifts the veil off of credit, she outlines a lesson she teaches her high school students to arm them with the knowledge they need to make wise financial decisions. In this lesson, Lauren presents the advantages and disadvantages of credit, compares credit card offers with her students, discusses ways to establish credit, and highlights the Credit Card Act of 2009.

Art in the Muslim World
Grade Range: 5-12

In classical Islamic art, forms of art such as calligraphy, architecture, and decorative arts are celebrated. Through the materials presented in this lesson, students will explore basic elements of Islamic art, learn about the origin and styles of the specific art of Islamic calligraphy, and create their own piece of artistic calligraphy.

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