This inquiry leads students through an investigation of representation in the Senate. The fact that representation in the U.S. Senate ignores the size of each state’s population has both benefits and challenges. As students work through the supporting questions, formative tasks, and featured sources, they are able to explore those benefits and challenges and decide for themselves if a change in Senate representation is warranted.Participate in a Harkness discussion addressing the central question in the article, “Are cows better presented in the Senate than people?”
9-12
The Heart of Social Studies
Inquiries
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of representation in the Senate. The fact that representation in the U.S. Senate ignores the size of each state’s population has both benefits and challenges. As students work through the supporting questions, formative tasks, and featured sources, they are able to explore those benefits and challenges and decide…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the Mexican Revolution. By investigating the compelling question, students examine justice; by completing this inquiry, students begin to understand that revolutions may not bring justice to all.
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the concept of “courage” in general, and the actions of those who responded to the 9/11 attacks, more specifically. Those attacks, over 10 years ago, have now passed from current event to history. By focusing on a relatively recent event, students should see that history is not…
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This inquiry leads students through an economic investigation of the mid to late 1800s. By investigating the compelling question, “How Did Cotton Sow the Seeds of Panic?”, students identify the market forces of demand and supply at play in the boom and bust of the cotton industry. They learn how these forces impacted the treatment…
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This inquiry helps students understand current censorship efforts as played out in the past year’s unprecedented number of book bans. Students will examine commonly banned books and will evaluate why different groups–families, teachers, and politicians–argue those books should be banned. The performance tasks provide space for students to understand why people ban books and how…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the Industrial Revolution from its technological innovations and economic strategies to its reliance on immigrant labor and its effects on individuals and societies. In addressing the compelling question “For whom was progress worth its costs?” students will work through four supporting questions with accompanying formative performance tasks….
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the suffrage movement in Utah and the unique role it played during the national women’s suffrage movement. In addressing the compelling question “How do people respond when democracy is impeded?” students will analyze the reasons women were excluded from voting, the influence of arguments for voting rights,…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the Progressive Era and focuses on the working conditions and reform efforts of working-class, industrial populations in the United States. In addressing the compelling question “Does change guarantee progress?” students will analyze how the experiences of workers in the 20th century impacted the need for labor laws…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of questions around Indigenous People’s land rights. Focusing on the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), students explore how disputes over treaties and historical land bases complicate the already contentious issue of resource extraction. Students are progressively introduced to land rights issues centering on the experiences of…
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This inquiry leads students through an investigation of the nature of warfare in the 21st century. Focusing on the concept of total war, students explore how different elements of warfare from World Wars I and II compare to the way war is waged today. Students are introduced to a definition of total war that identifies…