Shhh! … Mum’s the Word: Secret Cities of the Manhattan Project

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Acknowledgements

Special thanks to fellow colleague, friend, and exemplary English teacher Suzanne Buffington, who invited me into her Structured English Immersion class to co-teach this lesson with her marvelous ELL students. The opportunity to pilot the lesson with her students proved invaluable as it allowed me to “test drive” the learning activities with an authentic audience. Of supreme benefit was the direct student feedback that allowed me to identify preliminary problems in the areas of vocabulary and Lexile level. In addition, the constructive critique and suggestions offered by my esteemed colleague resulted in lesson edits to enhance the level of comprehensible input for ELLs and diverse learners.

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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

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Notes on contributors

Jeannine Kuropatkin

Why should social studies teachers care about STEM? Within the field of social studies, I identify myself first and foremost as a teacher of human geography with a primary focus on the diverse landscape of cultural mosaics, the phenomenon of cultural diffusion, and the “messy” realm of geopolitical issues. From my vantage point, the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and math have, both individually and collectively, provided the “think tank” mechanisms for tackling humanity’s challenges as well as advancing innovations that have improved standard of living and shaped a better quality of life. However, the dilemma is that STEM “advancements” have contributed to unintended consequences, namely in the arena of global warming, population momentum, the world water crisis, global food shortages, and security of nuclear arsenals. The twenty-first century poses a critical juncture in how STEM can and must be used to mitigate the health and security of our planet for future generations. One could easily adopt a doomsday scenario; however, the STEMSS Project enabled me to see that an educational focus on STEM, coupled with a social studies curriculum that emphasizes global connections, civic responsibility, multicultural awareness, and global stewardship, will be the key to engineering and implementing solutions for the complex problems of today and the future. As such, our students, and the world community, need STEM and social studies educators to collaborate. The synergy power of STEM + SS education can create and deliver a curriculum that addresses relevant issues, respects social equity, teaches the inquiry process, and develops critical thinking skills—all vital to tackling the sustainable development and geopolitical challenges of the present day and future. As such, programs such as the STEMSS Project inject a dose of optimism, bolster a growth mindset, and catalyze a polymath perspective on effective classroom learning.