← Universal Themes

Change

“Change” is a concept that can apply across all content areas.

Introducing Universal Theme of Change

Part 1: Introducing Universal Theme of Change

Everything changes. But how does it change? Students brainstorm dozens of examples and boil them down to one big idea.

Change: Canyon vs. Earthquake

Part 2: Change: Canyon vs. Earthquake

Change can be slow or fast, and a different perspective can reveal a longer buildup behind a sudden event.

Change Leads to More Change

Part 3: Change Leads to More Change

Can you think of a time in your life when “Change lead to more change?”

Change: One Domino

Part 4: Change: One Domino

You nudge one domino. It tips the next, which tips two more, which tip four, until a thousand have fallen. Did you cause one change, or a thousand?

Change: The Tree’s Scar

Part 5: Change: The Tree’s Scar

A nail got hammered into a young tree. The tree didn’t push it out — it grew around it, sealing the nail inside a knot of new wood. Was that change the tree healing, or the tree getting damaged?

Change: The Sealed Jar

Part 6: Change: The Sealed Jar

You love a flower so much you seal it in a jar to keep it exactly as it is, forever. A month later it’s brown and crumbling. Did sealing it stop the change, or just hide it?

Change: The Caterpillar’s Bargain

Part 7: Change: The Caterpillar’s Bargain

To become a butterfly, a caterpillar doesn’t just sprout wings — inside the cocoon it dissolves into liquid first, almost nothing left, then rebuilds. Would you trade everything you are now to become something far greater?

Change can be positive and negative

Part 8: Change can be positive and negative

A beaver’s dam is a nice home and a terrible flood. Students pick a change and note how it can be both positive and negative.