Embedded Files
“
“
Oh, monstrous! Oh, strange!
We are haunted.
William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Monsters are objects of both fear and fascination, giving form and expression to the human experience of anxiety, terror, and otherness. For this reason, the figure of the monster has long been a powerful cultural tool across historical moments and geographical locations. Monsters are both how human beings understand disorder and how we come to create order out of it — a projection of our most primal fears that forces us to confront both our own power and our own limitations.
Unit 1: Seeing Double
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U1
Unit 1: Seeing Double
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U1
Oscar Wilde, Kurt Gödel, and Alan Turing were acknowledged as brilliant thinkers who forever changed their fields; however, all three faced hardships. Turing and Wilde, in particular, struggled: both were persecuted for being gay, and they died young as a result. In this unit, students study the work of Gödel, Turing, and Wilde and apply concepts these men articulated to the contexts of computer science, the legal system, and social media. They also explore the effects of the persecution they suffered on their work.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
Unit 2: Creation and Destruction
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-MON-U2
Unit 2: Creation and Destruction
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-MON-U2
In this unit, your child will draw connections between the information they’ll gather about how nanomachines will allow us to build, atom-by-atom, a new future and the story of how the power to build that future could lead to dangerous and terrifying consequences. Use this prospectus as an overview of the kinds of connections your child might be making, a guide to the content of the unit’s books and projects, and a tool for engaging with your child as they come to understand the relevant science and to ask important ethical questions.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
Unit 3: Existential Crisis
Grades 9 and 10 | 3 Weeks | GW-MON-U3
Unit 3: Existential Crisis
Grades 9 and 10 | 3 Weeks | GW-MON-U3
The texts and projects of this unit revolve around World War II and the technology, science, philosophy, and art that resulted from it. Waiting for Godot shows characters searching for meaning in a world that suddenly, at the time, seemed meaningless, while Trinity: A Graphic History of the First Atomic Bomb depicts the development and consequences of the Manhattan Project.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
Unit 4: Power and Perception
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-MON-U4
Unit 4: Power and Perception
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-MON-U4
Violence is influenced by evolutionary drives, such as survival and competition, as well as psychological and social triggers like fear, anger, and group dynamics. While certain instincts may predispose humans to aggression, cultural, environmental, and situational factors also play critical roles in shaping violent behavior. Insights into fast, intuitive thinking and slow, deliberate reasoning help illuminate the psychological struggles in Macbeth, showing how unchecked ambition and flawed decision-making can result in tragedy.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
Unit 5: In Harm's Way
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U5
Unit 5: In Harm's Way
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U5
What happens when data-driven systems and personal biases cause harm? Weapons of Math Destruction reveals how algorithms can reinforce inequality, often with devastating consequences for vulnerable communities. In parallel, The Reluctant Fundamentalist explores the personal impact of bias and suspicion in a post-9/11 world. This unit invites students to examine how systemic forces, whether technological or sociopolitical, can perpetuate injustice, affecting individual lives and societal structures alike. Through this exploration, students will gain insight into the ethical complexities behind both personal and institutional actions.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
Unit 6: Vanishing Worlds
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U6
Unit 6: Vanishing Worlds
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-MON-U6
In this unit, students explore the fragility of existence. The two texts that form the basis for the unit reveal the monstrous forces — natural and human-made — that threaten life on Earth and the universe's ultimate fate. By examining extinction, climate change, and cosmic collapse, students grapple with humanity's role in creating and confronting these crises, connecting the year's theme of monstrosity to the awe and terror of vanishing worlds. They also imagine better futures.
Books
WORLD
STEAM
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