Materials | Copies of handouts, music player and music from the ‘80s and ‘90s (optional), student journals, computer(s) with Internet access (optional).
Overview | What events and trends both reflect and shape each generation? In this lesson, students compare their generation with one or more older generations and the reasons for differences between them. They generate defining events they have experienced and consider how those events have shaped who they are—and will become. They then interview a member of another generation about his or her own defining experiences.
Warm-up | Give each student a copy of the Back in the Day & Today handout (PDF) to complete as best they can in 10 minutes. (You might substitute, or augment, this activity with having students write using the prompts of our related Student Opinion question, “What Do Older Generations Misunderstand About Yours?”)
