Both of the articles that the students are currently reading in Mrs. Porter's English class contain references to important people and events related to the selections’ essential question: How has science changed our lives?
To better understand these topics before reading, the students completed a mini-research project. The students selected a topic at random from an envelope. They were required to find six to eight facts by using the search engines provided by the school's library. The students were reminded to evaluate their resources as they worked. The topics researched were the C-Leg, prosthetics, robots in medicine, Isaac Newton, Dr. Edward Jenner, smallpox, Louis Pasteur, and Alexander Fleming. Next, the students met with the other students in the class that had selected the same topic. As a group, they selected what they thought were the six most interesting facts about their topic. Then, they created a poster and shared their information with the class. As each group shared their information with the class, the students were encouraged to ask the presenting group questions.
