Curriculum Unit
Renee Allen
Disasters From History
Title Author
KEY LEARNING, ENDURING UNDERSTANDING, ETC.
At the end of this unit students will be able to use vocabulary specific to disasters and disaster research such as vulnerability, recovery, and resilience, as well as understand what various types of social capital are. They will also understand why convergence occurs, why it can become cumbersome, and what they can do to help in a disaster. Students will be able to define and categorize the various types of disasters. They will be able to describe different disasters not only in their physical terms, but also by their causes and the impacts they have on the communities they affect. Students will be able to describe a particular disastrous event from history and discuss what could be done to improve the community’s resilience and ways to prevent or minimize the effects of another disaster of this type if it should occur again in the future.
ESSENTIAL QUESTION(S) for the UNIT
What are the differences among emergencies, disasters, and catastrophes? How are communities effected by disasters? What can be done to improve resilience? What can you do in these events? What causes this type of disaster? What can you do to prepare for, during, and after the disaster? What could be done to prevent this type of disaster from occurring or to minimize its effects on the community?
CONCEPT A CONCEPT B CONCEPT C
Specific Disasters – General Information and Historical Facts
Community Effects of Disaster
Emergency, Disaster, Catastrophe
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS A ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS B ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS C
What causes this type of disaster?
What can you do to prepare for, during, and after the disaster?
What could be done to prevent this type of disaster from occurring or to minimize its effects on the community?
How are communities effected by disasters?
What can be done to improve resilience?
What can you do in these events?
What are the differences among emergencies, disasters, and catastrophes?
VOCABULARY A VOCABULARY A VOCABULARY A
Various vocabulary words based on the disaster assigned.
Vulnerability, Recovery, Resilience, Social Capital, Bonding Capital, Bridging Capital, Linking Capital, Convergence
Emergency, Disaster, Catastrophe
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION/MATERIAL/TEXT/FILM/RESOURCES
Students will utilize Google Slides and Docs in creating a presentation about their assigned type of disaster, a one-pager with general information on the type of disaster they researched as well as a one-pager of information on a specific event of this type from history. In addition, they will create a five-question quiz to present to their classmates. Students will use www.weatherwizkids.com for general information on most of the natural disasters presented. Teachers can use the book The Social Roots of Risk: Producing Disasters, Promoting Resilience by Kathleen Tierney as a resource for information on vulnerability, resilience, and recovery as well as discussions of various disasters throughout history. The video clip Disaster relief donations that don’t bring relief on YouTube is used as a visual for students about the vast number of donations that go unused and to prompt them to think of better ways they can help communities after a disaster.