Welcome to Big History Chronicles, an engaging and personalized course 1v1 designed to take students aged 11 to 15 on an incredible journey through time and space. Based on the thought-provoking Big History Project curriculum, this course will provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the universe's history, from the Big Bang to the present day. Through interactive lessons, discussions, and activities, students will explore the connections between disciplines such as astronomy, biology, history, and anthropology, fostering a holistic understanding of our world and their place within it.

Big History is an intellectually stimulating course that encourages students to think critically and expansively, nurturing their curiosity and fostering a passion for inquiry and exploration. By delving into the sequence and vast expanse of 13.8 billion years, this course not only equips students with a comprehensive understanding of history but also cultivates essential skills and intellectual tools.

Throughout the course, students develop the ability to think critically across various scales and disciplines, enabling them to make connections and draw insightful conclusions. They learn to construct well-informed arguments, honing their ability to articulate ideas effectively. Additionally, students are encouraged to formulate and test claims, fostering a spirit of inquiry and experimentation. Moreover, this course places emphasis on developing strong writing skills, enabling students to communicate their thoughts and ideas with clarity and precision.

Big History is primarily designed as a social studies/ history course catering to students in grades six to nine. Its content is presented in a variety of formats, incorporating scaffolding techniques and structured routines to facilitate the development of fundamental historical thinking and writing skills. Importantly, the Big History Project accommodates a wide range of student skill levels, ensuring that the course is accessible and beneficial for all learners.

Big History offers a transformative educational experience that challenges students to think critically, instills a broad perspective, and ignites A lifelong passion for learning and exploration. By mastering the vastness of history and developing essential intellectual tools students emerge equipped with the skills necessary for academic success and meaningful engagement with the world around them.

All the course content is conveniently accessible online. The entirely web-based model ensures that the content remains current and up-to-date, providing students with the latest information. The course incorporates media-rich materials that can be utilized in various ways, enhancing the learning experience. Class materials are available in PDF allowing for easy viewing and printing in different environments.

While the span of 13.8 billion years may seem vast, the big history project is thoughtfully structured to make it both feasible and rewarding within the confines of a school year. The course is organized around 8 thresholds, each representing a significant moment in the universe's increasing complexity. The journey begins with The Big Bang, the origin of all matter and energy. The story of these eight thresholds is unfolded across 10 units, providing A structured framework for exploration.

Each unit consists of a series of four to 10 lessons, carefully designed to present content and digestible segments. These lessons encompass a range of resources such as articles, videos, infographics, and activities all aimed at reinforcing key concepts and fostering the development of critical skills. The integration of diverse materials ensures A dynamic and engaging learning experience.

This comprehensive course offers over 40 lessons that cover a wide range of topics. It provides A multitude of resources, including PowerPoint decks, and project-based learning activities like “Invent a species” in unit 5 and “How many people could the earth support now and 100 years from now?” In unit 7.

In addition, this course incorporates investigations, which are writing activities designed to delve into significant issues addressed in each unit. These investigations foster critical thinking, research skills, and persuasive writing abilities. To support students in their writing endeavors, they will have access to SCORE, A free essay-scoring service. This service not only provides real-time feedback on writing but also offers valuable classroom and student-level reports specifically tailored to the investigation writing activities.

To cater to diverse learning styles and instructional preferences, the course offers an array of resources. Students can engage with videos featuring captions and transcripts, complex texts, animations, comic books, infographics, interactive classroom activities, leveled reading materials, audio readings, and much more.

Overall, this course provides A comprehensive and flexible learning experience, offering a wealth of resources and activities that accommodate various learning and instructional styles. Lesson plans that include project-based learning activities, investigations, and a range of multimedia materials, students will have a rich and engaging educational journey. Neurodivergent students are welcome.

This course provides valuable opportunities to review student work through a variety of formal and informal assessment methods. All assessments are optional and can be utilized based on the discretion of the teacher and/or students’ adults. The assessment tools incorporated in this course are designed to support student learning and growth.

Some of the assessment tools included are rubrics, which guide students in their writing, presentations, and project-based learning projects. These rubrics provide clear criteria for evaluating student work. Additionally, lessons incorporate closing activities such as exit cards, discussions, and essays, allowing for informal assessment and reflection on student understanding.
To reinforce learning, practice question sets are available at the end of each lesson, enabling students to test their knowledge and comprehension. These sets serve as formative assessments, providing valuable feedback on areas that may require further attention.

For a more comprehensive evaluation, formal writing activities like investigation essays and research papers are included in the course. Research has shown that these activities contribute to improving student's writing proficiency over the duration of the course. By engaging in research-based writing tasks Thomas students can develop and refine their writing skills.
Furthermore, end-of-term exams are provided to assess overall understanding and retention of course content. These exams offer a summative assessment of student progress and provide a comprehensive view of their achievements. These exams are optional.

As previously mentioned, students will have access to Score, a valuable resource designed to enhance their writing skills. Providing students with ample and quality feedback on their work is crucial for their development as writers. However, teachers often face time constraints that make it challenging to provide extensive feedback on every student’s work. That's where Score comes in.

Score Is a free service specifically tailored for the Big History Projects’ nine investigation writing assignments. It serves as a formative tool rather than a replacement for the teacher. By utilizing Score, students receive immediate feedback on their writing, enabling them to improve their skills as they progress. This saves teachers valuable time while still ensuring that students receive the guidance they need.

Score utilizes the Turnitin revision assistant machine scoring engine. It has been trained using the OCR project writing rubric for the big history project. Instead of waiting days or weeks for assessment results, students receive instant feedback that helps them grasp and implement the expectations of the rubric as they write.

The interconnected nature of thinking, reading, and writing skills in the course of learning makes it crucial to teach the entirety of Big History. Nevertheless, I encourage everyone to approach the Big History Project in a way that suits their needs and preferences. Whether it involves incorporating selected components into an existing curriculum or adopting the complete course, we will collaborate to determine the most suitable approach for your learners and their individual learning styles. It is worth noting that the big history project course has been specifically designed to align with the Common Core state standards for English language arts (CCSS ELA), the C3 Framework for Social Studies, and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS).

Big History can be customized in various ways to cater to your students’ needs. If your students have a stem focus, the big history project provides rigorous yet accessible content that covers essential topics in chemistry, physics, and biology, as well as data literacy and analysis. This makes BHP an ideal fit for students seeking a stem-oriented education.

For those interested in a project-based learning approach, the BHP offers activities that encourage students to delve deeply and creatively into finding solutions to complex interdisciplinary issues. By combining PBL and the big history project, students can participate in meaningful, student-driven learning experiences. Notably, BHP includes ready-to-deploy PBL activities in units 5, 7, and 10 of the course, providing valuable resources for incorporating PBL into the curriculum.

Unit 1: What is Big History?
Unit 2: The Big Bang
Unit 3: Stars and Elements
Unit 4: Our Solar System and Earth
Unit 5: Life
Unit 6: Early Humans
Unit 7: Agriculture and Complex Societies
Unit 8: Expansion and Interconnection
Unit 9: Acceleration
Unit 10: The Future

This is an ongoing class that will start back at the beginning once classes are cycled through.

Week 1:  Unit 1: What is Big History?

September 5 - Class 1: Welcome to Big History and Scale - Big History commences by zooming out to observe the grand panorama. By delving into the significant concepts of Big History right from the outset, we establish the foundation for the subsequent journey. The sheer vastness of Big History necessitates the utilization of a diverse range of skills to comprehend the various subjects within the course. Employing different temporal and spatial perspectives enables us to effectively navigate through the multitude of topics. 

September 7 - Class 2: Origin Stories - Throughout history, humans have consistently shared origin stories, and narratives that explain the origins of the universe and humanity. Big History, on the other hand, offers a contemporary, scientific approach to understanding our origins. In this context, one can explore origin stories encompassing various cultural perspectives, such as modern scientific, Chinese, Christian, Iroquois Mayan, Greek, Zulu, Efik, Cosmology, and faith. PDF readings and video files will be shared and discussed in class, 

Week 2: Unit 1: What is Big History?

September 12 - Class 1: Claim Testing - The process of determining what to believe can be complex. Merely encountering information on the internet does not necessarily guarantee its truthfulness. Similarly, when it comes to information provided by a doctor, critical evaluation is essential. Claim testing serves as a valuable tool in assessing the reliability of information. In our course, we will engage in various activities to enhance our understanding of this process. For instance, we will read an article on different approaches to knowledge and watch a video that explores how we make decisions about what to believe. Additionally, we will participate in activities that involve testing claims and analyzing investigative writing, focusing on claims and clarity of expression. These activities will also include the explorations of relevant vocabulary words to further enrich our understanding. 

September 14 - Class 2: Yardsticks and Clocks - As humanity's ability to observe the vast expanse of space has advanced, we have had to develop innovative methods of measurement to comprehend the immense distances between celestial objects and accurately determine significant events within the framework of the Big History timeline. In our course, we will delve into the subject by reading an article titled "How Did We Find the Distance to the Sun?"  and watching two informative videos: "Crash Course Astronomy: Distances" and "How Old Is The Earth?" These resources will provide valuable insights into the techniques and discoveries that have allowed us to gauge astronomical distances and estimate the age of our planet. 

Week 3: Unit 2: The Big Bang

September 19 - Class 1: How did our understanding of the universe change? - The notion that the Sun revolves around the Earth may not be accurate. Over time, astronomers have employed the available tools and knowledge to unravel the mysteries of the universe, with each generation building upon the theories and discoveries of their predecessors. In our course, we will explore this progression by watching the video "Crash Course Big History: Why Cosmic Evolution Matters." Additionally, we will read articles on influential figures such as Claudius Ptolemy, Galileo Galilei, Nicolaus Copernicus, Henrietta Leavitt, and Edwin Hubble. Engaging in activities will allow us to test various authorities, track vocabulary usage, and gain a broader perspective through changes in scale and timeline views. 

September 21 - Class 2: What are Disciplines? - Big History draws upon the expertise of scholars from diverse disciplines like physics, astronomy, chemistry, biology, anthropology, and history to tackle complex questions. In our course, we will explore this interdisciplinary approach by watching several videos, including "Are We Alone?", "Ways of Knowing: Introduction to Cosmology," and "Ways of Knowing: Introduction to Astrophysics." These videos will provide valuable insights into the subject matter. Our activities will focus on expanding vocabulary understanding different disciplines, contemplating what we know and what questions to ask, and honing our skills in investigation writing and the use of evidence. Through these activities, we will develop a well-rounded understanding of Big History and its multifaceted nature. 

Week 4 : The Big Bang

September 26 - Class 1: Ways of Knowing: The Expanding Universe - The concept of space expansion raises intriguing questions, if everything is expanding, why do we not observe the Earth moving away from the Sun or the Milky Way galaxy? Furthermore, why do objects like houses, humans, and hamburgers not undergo expansion? In our class, we will delve into these queries by watching educational videos titled "What Is the Universe Expanding Into?" and Hubble Finds Ghostly Ring of Dark Matter" and explore another video that explains the enigmatic phenomena of dark matter and dark energy. These resources will shed light on the fascinating subject of space expansion and the various forces at play within the universe. 

September 28 - Class 2: Investigation: How and why do individuals change their minds? - In this investigation which students have already explored as Investigation Zero in Unit 1, our focus will be on understanding how, why, and when scientists revise their perspectives. We will closely examine the geocentric view, the heliocentric view, as well as scientific writings by influential figures like Galileo and Copernicus. To enhance our understanding, we will enrich our exploration of this topic. By delving into these materials, we will gain insights into the dynamic nature of scientific knowledge and the factors that contribute to its evolution over time.