Embedded Files
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If I were the blushing kind,
I would blush to be called a hero.
Aung San Suu Kyi
Heroes represent the core values of a particular society by giving a human form to cultural ideals and aspirations. But is there a universal definition of heroism? What common traits are shared by heroes across periods and places and what key differences exist in definitions of heroism across historical moments and geographical locations — especially when it comes to race, class, gender, and sexuality? Is heroism relevant, useful, or even possible in today’s world? Heroes may not always be good, but they are always extraordinary — which is precisely why they expand our sense of human possibility.
Unit 1: Back to the Drawing Board
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U1
Unit 1: Back to the Drawing Board
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U1
The form in which information is presented, whether that information is a coming-of-age story or a physics primer, can be as significant as the information itself. In this unit, students consider the graphic novel form while also exploring the plausibility of superhero powers and learning about issues of identity, immigration, and U.S. history.
Books
WORLD
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
STEAM
The Physics of Superheroes by James Kakalios
Unit 2: Growing Concerns
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-HERO-U2
Unit 2: Growing Concerns
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-HERO-U2
Humans grow from the inside and from the outside. Inside, it’s a process of cell division and specialization. Outside, it’s a process of conforming to one’s political, cultural, and national identity — or rebelling against it. In this unit, students explore the details of both kinds of growth.
Books
WORLD
In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez
STEAM
The Song of the Cell by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Unit 3: Body and Soul
Grades 9 and 10 | 3 Weeks | GW-HERO-U3
Unit 3: Body and Soul
Grades 9 and 10 | 3 Weeks | GW-HERO-U3
Slavery was abolished in the United States in 1865, but its repercussions are felt to this day. In this unit, students engage deeply in researching, considering, and writing about those repercussions, exploring the U.S.’s historical and contemporary exploitation of Black Americans’ cultural, linguistic, artistic, intellectual, and physical selves.
Books
WORLD
The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B Du Bois
STEAM
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Unit 4: Between Men
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-HERO-U4
Unit 4: Between Men
Grades 9 and 10 | 7 Weeks | GW-HERO-U4
Concepts of masculinity can lead to conflict that causes both great tragedy and great innovation. In this unit, students explore the toxic — and uplifting — dynamics that can occur between men, especially when those men are jockeying for positions of power. In the process, they’ll learn about the history behind one of Shakespeare’s most acclaimed plays and the science of electricity.
Books
WORLD
Henry IV, Part I by William Shakespeare
STEAM
The Last Days of Night by Graham Moore
Unit 5: A War to End All Wars
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U5
Unit 5: A War to End All Wars
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U5
World War I was a turning point for humanity — an event that ushered in modernity and created opportunities for incredible heroism and incredible catastrophe. The two texts that comprise this unit look at both the heroism (in A Farewell to Arms, overpowering love, in The Alchemy of Air, the saving of millions of lives) and the catastrophe (in both texts, horrific war, mass killings, and outrageous destruction).
Books
WORLD
A Farewell to Arms by Earnest Hemingway
STEAM
The Alchemy of Air by Thomas Hager
Unit 6: Higher Education
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U6
Unit 6: Higher Education
Grades 9 and 10 | 5 Weeks | GW-HERO-U6
The protagonists of both texts in this unit struggle to educate themselves in a world that doesn’t think they should be educated. Exploring the value of learning and the power of each individual to insist on their own education, the unit presents hands-on projects (creating a bibliography and outline, coding a computer game, cooking a meal) focused on the idea that doing is learning — and that anyone can learn, if they are determined enough.
Books
WORLD
Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga
STEAM
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
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