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Marie Curie: The Most Famous Female Scientist of All Time with Author Carla Killough McClafferty

by  Author Carla Killough McClafferty

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This program is based on the book, Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium by Carla Killough McClafferty.
Do your students groan with boredom when they hear the words nuclear physics, periodic chart, or radium? This interactive session approaches science in a completely different way—through the personal life of Marie Curie. Using Curie’s own photographs, letters, diaries and books, we will discuss the life and work of the most famous female scientist of all time. Using Carla Killough McClafferty’s book Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium, we will get to know young Marie as a child whose mother never hugged or kissed her (she feared her tuberculosis would spread to her daughter) and as a governess whose heart is broken by her first love, and as a wife and mother who woman who discovers the presence of the previously unknown elements-radium and polonium. After your students understand Marie Curie, the woman, they will understand her groundbreaking scientific work. We will also discuss the consequences of her work and what the world did with radium while looking at photographs of consumer products that contained radium such as suppositories, bath salt, cigarette holders and many more. This program ties together the fields of science, history, and art.

This fun program fits the objective of Common Core State Standards as it focuses on complex text and ideas across the curriculum including language arts, history/social studies, science and technical subjects.

Program Rating

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About This Program

Cost

Multipoint: $300.00
Multipoint Premium: $270.00
Point to Point: $300.00
Point to Point Premium: $270.00


The price is per site. iNK Think Tank will invoice and collect the fee.

Length

1 hour for grades 4 through 12 preferred, but will fit it to your schedule if necessary


Target Audience

Education: Grade(s) 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, Parent, Adult Learners teacher professional development workshop, keynote, conferences Public Library: Library Patrons civic groups

Minimum participants:

No minimum

Maximum participants:

No maximum. However, smaller groups will allow the participants to receive more interaction with the author.


Primary Disciplines

Character Education, Gifted & Talented, Health & Physical Education, International, Language Arts/English, Literacy, Problem Solving, Reading, Science, History & Social Studies, Writing


Program Delivery Mode

Videoconference - H.323 (Polycom, Cisco/Tandberg, LifeSize, etc...)
Videoconference – Webcam/desktop (Zoom, Google Meet, Cisco WebEx, GoToMeeting, Microsoft Teams, etc...)



Booking Information

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Receive this program and 9 more for one low price when you purchase the CILC Virtual Expeditions package. Learn more

For more information contact CILC by email info@cilc.org or by phone (507) 388-3672

Provider's Cancellation Policy

We make every effort to rebook. However, a last minute cancellation, with less than a two day notice will incur a $100.00 kill fee.

About This Provider

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Author Carla Killough McClafferty

Benton, AR
United States

Carla Killough McClafferty is a popular presenter for interactive video conferences, and is an award-winning author of nonfiction books for young readers. She began providing interactive video conferences in 2011, and has worked with classrooms of students all over the United States and in countries around the world. McClafferty offers a wide variety of topics for video conferences. Some of her programs are based on books she has authored and others are programs that teach research / writing skills. She can customize a program that fits the needs of your audience. 

In addition to online videoconferencing, she has provided many in person presentations for wide variety of local, national, and international venues. She has been a featured speaker at teacher workshops and conferences including ALA, AASL, NCTE, and IRA. She has been a keynote speaker for a variety of organizations including CSpan 2 Book TV, Mount Vernon’s Ford Book Talk Series, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the U.S. Consulate in Marseille, France, and many more.

Books by Carla Killough McClafferty include:

Spies in the American Revolution

Buried Lives: The Enslaved People of George Washington’s Mount Vernon

A Short Biography of George Washington

Fourth Down and Inches: Concussions and Football’s Make-or-Break Moment

Tech Titans

The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon

In Defiance of Hitler: The Secret Mission of Varian Fry

Something Out of Nothing:  Marie Curie and Radium 

The Head Bone’s Connected to the Neck Bone:  The Weird, Wacky and Wonderful X-ray

 

Her books have been recognized for excellence by the Junior Library Guild, Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children by the CBC, New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age List, IRA Children’s Book Award Winner, a NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book, ALA Best Books for Young Adult List, ALA Amelia Bloomer Project List, NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book, National Council of Social Studies/Children’s Book Council Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People, Booklist Top Ten Sci-Tech books, NCTE Orbis Pictus recommended book, an International 2008 Society of School Librarians International Book Award Honor Book, Cooperative Children's Book Council (CCBC) Choices 2009 list, Arkansas’s 2008-2009 Charlie May Simon Reading List, American Library Association Notables Nominee, School Library Journal Best Books of 2011, Moonbeam Children's Book Award silver medal winner, Society of School Librarians Honor Book, BCCB Guide Book to Gift Books, and BCCB 2011 Blue Ribbon List. Her books have received starred reviews in School Library JournalBooklist and Jewish Book World, and The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books.  

Contact:
Carla McClafferty
ckmcclafferty@gmail.com
5019930434

Program Details

Format

1. This interactive program will start with a discussion on the legacy of Marie Curie’s work like the word “radioactivity” (which she coined), nuclear power, and nuclear bombs.
2. We will discuss the world Marie Sklodowska (later Curie) was born into which includes living in Poland which was under the oppression of Russia, a mother who was seriously ill, an educated but poor family. Students can interact about the problems Marie faced, and contrast them with problems found in our culture today.
3. We will view photographs and using primary source documents we will follow Marie’s journey to become a scientist through her own words recorded in letters, diaries and books. By the time Marie gets to the leaky shed where she and Pierre discover radium, the students will understand not only the science behind her work but her personal drive to achieve the goal.
4. We will discuss what the world did with radium by looking at photographs of consumer products that contained the radioactive element. In this section, I’ll show photos of the “radium girls” and tell the story of their horrific deaths as a result of painting radium watch dials. This will open interaction about public safety then and now.
5. Time is allowed for questions and answers about Marie Curie, my research, or writing.

Objectives

1. The participant will learn about science in a different way. Instead of approaching the discovery of radium through the nuts and bolts of science, they will come to see this subject through the eyes of the woman who made the discovery. In this way, students will not only discover the “what” of Curie’s scientific work, they will also discover the “who”, “when”, “where” and “why” behind it. As students discover how Marie Curie overcame poverty, discrimination, and tragedy in her life, they will understand how she was able to do what had never been done before, or since.
2. By looking at the life and work of Marie Curie, participants will know they too can overcome disadvantages in life to achieve their goals.
3. The participants will accomplish the inquiry of science in a way that includes language arts, history, and art.

Standards Alignment

National Standards

Common Core State Standards
Note: The presenter, Carla Killough McClafferty, is also the author of the book, SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING: MARIE CURIE AND RADIUM, on which this program is based.

Teachers can use the video conference and book in the classroom in a wide variety of ways that align with the Common Core State Standards:
READING
In conjunction with this interactive video conference, using SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING: MARIE CURIE AND RADIUM as a mentor text in the classroom will accomplish the following CCSS Anchor Standards in Reading:
Key Ideas and Details
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.1 Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2 Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
Craft and Structure
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.4 Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.5 Analyze the structure of texts, including how specific sentences, paragraphs, and larger portions of the text (e.g., a section, chapter, scene, or stanza) relate to each other and the whole.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.6 Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.7 Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.8 Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.10 Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
WRITING
In conjunction with this interactive video conference, the book can be used as a mentor text as your students write arguments, explanatory texts, and narratives based on information found in the book, and by using research found in its bibliography and list of web sites. Using the book in this way will accomplish the following CCSS Anchor Standards in Writing:
Text Types and Purposes
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.1 Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details and well-structured event sequences.
Production and Distribution of Writing
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.4 Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.5 Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.7 Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.8 Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Range of Writing
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.
SPEAKING AND LISTENING
Following this interactive video conference with the author, class discussion about the topic and the speaker’s point of view of the topic will reinforce comprehension. Students can choose a topic discussed during the video conference as a topic for a speech which will reinforce research skills, comprehension, collaboration, knowledge and ideas. This will accomplish the following CCSS Anchor Standards in Speaking and Listening:
Comprehension and Collaboration
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.2 Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.3 Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.5 Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
LANGUAGE
The video conference and book, Something Out of Nothing: Marie Curie and Radium , can be used to discuss standard English grammar and usage, domain-specific vocabulary words such as radium, half-life, radioactivity etc. This could also open the discussion of medical testing, nuclear power, nuclear weapons and more. These discussions will accomplish the following CCSS Anchor Standards in Language:
Conventions of Standard English
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
Knowledge of Language
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.3 Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.
Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases by using context clues, analyzing meaningful word parts, and consulting general and specialized reference materials, as appropriate.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.6 Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to comprehension or expression.

State Standards

The author will adjust each program to fit the needs of each state’s standards.