Original Promptseventh grade ELA students have been studying social and medical epidemics. They've just finished creating a podcat about an epidemic. This activity will be for the students that finished early and need something to work on while the rest of the class puts the finishing touches on their podcasts. It should take about 45 minutes.
This learning resource focuses on the 1918 influenza pandemic, commonly known as the 'Spanish Flu,' which emerged during the final year of World War I. The resource provides a comprehensive examination of how the pandemic became one of the deadliest events in human history, affecting nearly one-third of the global population, particularly targeting healthy young adults. It discusses the role of World War I in facilitating the virus's spread through overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, as well as the subsequent societal adaptations, such as public gathering bans, school closures, and the use of masks. Students will engage in evidence-based analysis by answering text-dependent questions and will reflect on the long-term social and medical impacts of the epidemic. The resource encourages creative and advanced writing through prompts that ask students to imagine life during this time and propose future public health laws based on lessons learned.