Students in QuIP recently made some real world, cross-curricular connections with an unusual subject... murder.
In English, they completed The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe, a chilling story about a man who lures his enemy into a wine cellar and bricks him up--alive--into a tiny enclosure. Students practiced multiple literacy skills including close reading, working with tone and mood, and annotation.
In English, they completed The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe, a chilling story about a man who lures his enemy into a wine cellar and bricks him up--alive--into a tiny enclosure. Students practiced multiple literacy skills including close reading, working with tone and mood, and annotation.
Taking extensive notes on details of the story ended up being important for more than just their English class. In Biology, QuIP students were completing a study in cell respiration and exploring the relationship between exercise, heart rate, and breathing. In Math, they were wrapping up a unit on geometric and arithmetic sequences. Both subjects dovetailed nicely with a story about masonry and suffocation.
Once they had finished the short story in English, students began to immediately realize the practical applications in both Math and Biology. In Math, they used their annotations to figure out exactly how big the fatal enclosure was, and exactly how many bricks it would have taken to seal the entrance. Clues from the story provided the initial pieces of the math problem, and students extrapolated from there to determine the height and length of each brick, taking into account the need for mortar between layers.
In Biology, the ongoing study of cell respiration took a more morbid turn as students worked to figure out just how long it would have taken the victim to suffocate in the small enclosure. Students used their math findings to determine exactly how much air would have been in the enclosure, considering variables like the thickness of bricks and the air displaced by the victim. They then conducted a lab to measure lung capacity so that they could determine the rate of air consumption. Taking these findings, they again turned to their annotated stories to factor in variables such as the state of the victim's breathing (both drunkenness and panic played a factor) and the victim's likely lung capacity, given clues regarding his size and health.
To completely bring the project full-circle, students then took their findings from both Math and Science back to their English class to use them in the preparation of a mock trial against the murderer from the story. The hard-won facts and data served as the foundation for a short study into argumentation and debate, culminating in several thrilling courtroom battles.
Next up for QuIP adventures is a Downtown San Jose Field Trip on October 16th! Stay tuned for details!