I gave Lauren a brief summary about what the book was about and sounded interested in learning more about the story. (She did not know much about the Ivory-billed Woodpecker prior to this interview.) I then read each of my classroom applications to her and asked her for her opinions about each. She told me that all the ideas sounded good and that students would probably enjoy doing them.
Lauren offered a variation to the debate activity that I felt was a great idea! Basically, students would split into groups, but instead of taking one major viewpoint (i.e. farmers vs. conservationists), have each student in the group represent a different individual in the community (i.e. the farmer, the birdwatcher, the teenager, the souveneir shop guy, a chain grocery store owner, etc.). Then, have each person research the topic from the perspective of their community individual and present their argument to the rest of the group. I thought this idea was great because I could see students getting actively involved/engaged in the project. Lauren told me that they did this activity in her English class (the topic was stem cell research) and she really enjoyed presenting her argument from the perspective of a paralyzed pro football player and listening to other students' perspectives.
Book Talk Poster Webpage Home