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SAMPLE PROJECT

(grade-level adaptable)

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CONNECT

Sample essential questions and immersive experiences inspiring care about the problem.

• Middle/High School: ​

  • Immersive experience: Simulate misinformation campaigns and their effect on elections by dividing the group in two and giving opposing pieces of information for use in voting on an issue that impacts everyone in the group. Experience the consequences of the decision. Discuss how the information influenced your vote and how it felt to have the other group see things in such a different way and impacting the outcome. Connect to democracy and the importance of distinguishing fact from fiction to make informed choices.
  • Essential questions. What is democracy? Why value it? In what ways has democracy been threatened in our country and elsewhere? What is needed to preserve it? 

• Elementary School:

  • Immersive experience: Vote on group norms or a matter than concerns everyone in the group but allow only certain members to cast their vote. Experience the consequences of the decision. Discuss how it felt to have your vote counted or not counted. Connect to democracy and the importance of everyone's voice counting.

  • Essential questions. What is democracy? Why value it?
     

ANALYZE

​Examine the various dimensions, root causes and systems contributing to the problem through research and partnerships with citizen experts.

• Middle/High School:

  • Examine the ways in which democracy has been threatened through gerrymandering, media misinformation campaigns, voter suppression laws, and other means, historically and in the present, in the US and explore various reasons behind these threats.

  • Examine authoritarian regimes and groups whose voting right have been undermined (e.g. women, immigrants and other oppressed groups) and the relationship between free speech, democracy, social media algorithms, competition for power and other relevant factors.

  • Research and utilize interdisciplinary content and skills and conduct interviews with political scientists, historians, leaders, voting rights activists and concerned citizens to analyze the problem and what is being done about it.​

• Elementary School:

  • Explore the history of democracy and challenges to it in the U.S. and elsewhere and what it has taken to preserve it and how young people have contributed to the preservation of democracy.

  • Research and utilize interdisciplinary content and skills and conduct interviews with political scientists, historians, leaders, voting rights activists and concerned citizens to analyze the problem and what is being done about it.​

  • Participate in guided and independent reading, museum visits, oral history interviews, and create videos, storyboards and skits to demonstrate the problem.

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RESPOND

Co-create and implement with experts, teachers and peers an action plan for addressing the problem, utilizing Society and Soul Skills. 

• Middle/High School:

  • ​Partner with political scientists, voting rights activists, social media reformers and concerned citizens to tackle threats to democracy via data collection, policy memos, awareness or fundraising campaigns, voter registration initiatives, phone banking and other local and national efforts to preserve democracy.

• Elementary School:

  • Partner with voting rights activists and concerned citizens to raise awareness of the importance of democracy, truth vs. fiction, social media misinformation, and the ways in which free and fair elections can be preserved. 

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EVALUATE

Reflect on progress and learnings and analyze and evaluate impact.

• Middle/High/Elementary School:

  • ​Measure your impact on raising awareness about threats to democracy and on efforts to preserve democracy through interviews, observable changes, quantitative and qualitative data, policy changes, feedback from experts, leaders, citizens, teachers, peers and stakeholders. 

  • Reflect on academic learnings and your development of Society and Soul Skills.​