Great tie-in to CCLA and argumentation

This article presents a unit on feuding paleontologists in a way that encourages students to examine claims and evidence in a non-scientific (but still true to the concept) manner by looking... See More

This article presents a unit on feuding paleontologists in a way that encourages students to examine claims and evidence in a non-scientific (but still true to the concept) manner by looking at the acts of the scientists and putting them on trial. The students have to prepare letters of either indictment or support drawing on the evidence, a LA tie-in. And, while the authors focus on this argument, there are many other conflicts in other areas of science that could be equally examined (Meyer vs Mendeleev, Kepler vs Brahe, Darwin vs Russell-Wallace, etc.) There are all kinds of examples of the human nature of scientific endeavors to draw on. The structure of this lesson could be adapted to any of them (although they might not be as exciting!).

And a card game too!

The activities described in this article provide students with an opportunity to learn about the history of science, including one of it's not-so-brilliant moments. I agree with the author t... See More

The activities described in this article provide students with an opportunity to learn about the history of science, including one of it's not-so-brilliant moments. I agree with the author that using this introduces students to the human side of science and is an excellent way to help students relate to science (and scientists). I also double checked and the game references in the article is still available for purchase. I'm also very excited that this activity also allows for easy integration with social studies as well.