UTILIZING LOCAL EXPERTISE

 

To make the unit more relevant, consider using local resource people and going on a field trip.  If approached well ahead of time and given clear information about your unit, local resource people are usually very happy to help.  Here is how some of the pilot teams connected with local resource people:

 

Making Winter Positive   A city planner gave ideas and resources about the International Winter Cities organization, which holds conferences to help city planners understand solutions to the challenges of living in the winter.  The science teacher, Bruce, was able to attend this conference.  The team also made a video when a representative from the local mountain man club demonstrated for students how to light a fire.  The students had just read Jack London’s To Light a Fire.

 

Should Rivers be Dammed?  Two representatives from the local utility company met with the teachers during the planning process to help them understand the issues surrounding hydroelectric power.  Later, these two representatives hosted an all day field trip so the students could tour three dams.  Also, a U.S. Forest Service employee spoke to the students about the Wild and Scenic Rivers initiative.

 

How do you make a ghost town?  The first time this unit was taught, students gathered information from a CD about the ghost town and from a field trip to the site.  The second year, two historians connected with the historic park met with the team to think about how to make primary documents available to students to use in their investigation.  The students also looked at secondary sources and were able to compare primary vs. secondary sources.