ThinkCERCA provides a thematic alignment to Summit's Personalized Learning Platform for English Language Arts. The ThinkCERCA aligned differentiated lesson sets (including Direct Instruction, Applied Reading and Writing, and Additional Reading Practice) support the content that students will be focusing on in the Summit PLP's anchor texts, standards, and performance tasks. Additional Direct Instruction resources are provided as an extra support for skills critical for success with the PLP's topics and themes.
Cultural Narratives Project
Essential Question: Why is it important to tell my story? What has influenced my culture and who have I become?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- Family and Influence: How do our families help shape the people we become?
- Growing Up: How do authors convey themes about important moments of change in their lives to their readers?
- Cultural Memoirs: How does culture help shape the people we become?
- Perseverance: How do we overcome challenges in our country, our communities, and our lives?
Direct Instruction
Roman Society Debate
Essential Question: How did the government of the Roman Republic solve problems of the empire? What makes a society like Rome just? How can one constructively debate with my peers?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- Societal Hierarchies: How did the early Japanese, Chinese, and Korean peoples organize their societies?
- The Art and Architecture of Ancient Greece: What values and beliefs of ancient Greek culture are reflected in its art and architecture?
- Struggles of a New Nation: What should citizens do when they feel their government is not acting in their best interest?
Direct Instruction
Middle Ages Project
Essential Question: How can I learn about the world at the time of the middle ages and share my learning with others?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- The Black Death: What were the short and long term effects of the Black Death on European societies?
Direct Instruction
¿Quien Soy?: Through the Eyes of the Aztecs & Conquistadors
Essential Question: How is history written? How do we know which version of a story to believe? What really happened during the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- The Ancient Maya: What does the way that the ancient Maya interacted with the environment and the people around them reveal about their cultural values?
- Christopher Columbus: What were the causes and effects of Columbus’s voyage to the New World in 1492?
- Conflict and Dominance: How do conflict and the struggle for dominance affect the human spirit?
Direct Instruction
From Book to Screen
Essential Question: How do people form artistic opinions when they see a story presented two different ways?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- Technology and Art: How does our experience of literature change when it is delivered in different mediums?
- Image and Impact: How can a powerful image create change?
Direct Instruction
Justice and Injustice in our Society
Essential Question: What is justice? How do we know something is unjust? What is the most effective way to address acts of injustice in our society today?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- Bullying: How does bullying affect everyone involved: the victim, the bully, and the bystander?
- Conflict and Character: How do different characters respond to conflict?
Exploring the Arguments of the Scientific Revolution
Essential Question: How did the discoveries during the Scientific Revolution create tensions with the Catholic Church?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- The Afterlife in Ancient Egypt: How did the ancient Egyptians’ beliefs about an afterlife affect their everyday lives and their burial practices?
- Evolution: How do animals adapt as their environments change?
- Gravity: What makes gravity an important force on Earth and in space?
Humanities Capstone
Essential Question: How can understanding the story of someone from the past help you understand your own?
Differentiated Lesson Sets
- Cultural Perception: How is our identity defined by how others perceive us?
- Family History: How do family history and traditions contribute to your identity?