|
Want to get students interested? Show them a woman beating off a crocodile with a canoe paddle! Works every time. |
English/Language Arts
Explore lead sentences - starting with a quote
This Minute starts out with a quote. There are two choices for focus here. First, have your students talk about whether or not it works to start out with a quote. There are mixed schools of thought on this - some editors think a quote should never lead, others think it is okay under certain circumstances. Can your students generate a list of potential pros and cons? Does it depend on genre? Second, if using a quote, what kind of punctuation should be used? Do you need to provide and attribute for the quote as Author Munro does here? Having a thoughtful discussion about what works in writing helps create better writers!
Social Studies
Explore women’s roles in history
What was the proper role of British women in the late nineteenth century? What conditions existed that allowed Mary Kingsley to break some of these gender barriers? What conditions existed that caused women to be so limited in their educational exploration? What changed between then and now? What has not changed? Do gender barriers still exist?
Explore the British Empire - Imperialism at work
Have students map out the sphere of influence known as the British Empire -they can check out this GIF that shows the rise and fall between the 1600s and the present. What factors led to Great Britain acquiring such a large sphere of influence? Are there geographical contributors to the geographic success? If geography helped them grow, what were the causes of the decline? Are there similarities to be found among the British colonies?
STEM
Explore river travel
Take a closer look at the rivers of Africa. Have students look at the plant and animal life likely to be found there. Now have them come up with the safest and most creative ways to navigate these rivers. What materials are available? What risks must be weighed? Was Mary Kingsley’s canoe a smart option given the amount of crocodiles that call this river home?
Explore the value of specimen collection
Author Munro tells the reader that Mary Kingsley was collecting specimens for the British Museum at the time of her accident. Have your students table talk about the value of collecting. What can be learned? Why would so many museums choose to see and use these collections? Now challenge your students to find something in nature to collect and come up with a way to collect it. Will they draw and document or collect actual samples? What are some of the challenges and solutions that exist when collection?
Research Skills
Explore museum collections - virtually
Have your students explore one of the world’s largest museum databases - the British Museum. Give them some time to click around and acclimate to the best way to use the site. You can have then document their travels, or write up procedures for the best way to navigate the site. What are some of the pros and cons of the site?
Explore lead sentences - starting with a quote
This Minute starts out with a quote. There are two choices for focus here. First, have your students talk about whether or not it works to start out with a quote. There are mixed schools of thought on this - some editors think a quote should never lead, others think it is okay under certain circumstances. Can your students generate a list of potential pros and cons? Does it depend on genre? Second, if using a quote, what kind of punctuation should be used? Do you need to provide and attribute for the quote as Author Munro does here? Having a thoughtful discussion about what works in writing helps create better writers!
Social Studies
Explore women’s roles in history
What was the proper role of British women in the late nineteenth century? What conditions existed that allowed Mary Kingsley to break some of these gender barriers? What conditions existed that caused women to be so limited in their educational exploration? What changed between then and now? What has not changed? Do gender barriers still exist?
Explore the British Empire - Imperialism at work
Have students map out the sphere of influence known as the British Empire -they can check out this GIF that shows the rise and fall between the 1600s and the present. What factors led to Great Britain acquiring such a large sphere of influence? Are there geographical contributors to the geographic success? If geography helped them grow, what were the causes of the decline? Are there similarities to be found among the British colonies?
STEM
Explore river travel
Take a closer look at the rivers of Africa. Have students look at the plant and animal life likely to be found there. Now have them come up with the safest and most creative ways to navigate these rivers. What materials are available? What risks must be weighed? Was Mary Kingsley’s canoe a smart option given the amount of crocodiles that call this river home?
Explore the value of specimen collection
Author Munro tells the reader that Mary Kingsley was collecting specimens for the British Museum at the time of her accident. Have your students table talk about the value of collecting. What can be learned? Why would so many museums choose to see and use these collections? Now challenge your students to find something in nature to collect and come up with a way to collect it. Will they draw and document or collect actual samples? What are some of the challenges and solutions that exist when collection?
Research Skills
Explore museum collections - virtually
Have your students explore one of the world’s largest museum databases - the British Museum. Give them some time to click around and acclimate to the best way to use the site. You can have then document their travels, or write up procedures for the best way to navigate the site. What are some of the pros and cons of the site?
© Karen Sterling, 2018 - May be used for educational purposes without written permission
