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Unique ideas for psychology?


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We did this for history and not psychology, but my daughter and I were astounded by a Frontline DVD on the famous "brown eyes, blue eyes" classroom experiment (the title of the DVD was A Class Divided). I have now ordered another DVD with Zimbardo's prison experiments and other experiments regarding obedience to authority.

 

A few years back, we also used GEMS Learning About Learning, an introduction to the brain and learning which among other activities had us watching an extremely sad but powerful older program on Genie, the girl who was found at age 13 strapped to a potty chair in a bare room, unable to talk. The program follows scientists' efforts to bond with Genie and teach her language - warning: no happy ending.

 

There are tons of trade books out about the workings of the brain, child development, the chemistry and biology of personality. There are books like Oliver Sacks's Anthropologist From Mars, which straddle the borders between medicine and psychology. There are books on the psychology of crowds and mass hysteria and the like, which incorporate theories from history, science, psychology, and sociology. In fact there are just a whole lot of really weird and bizarre stories out there to be read!

 

I'd start by just going out and browsing the shelves in your library and/or bookstore to get a sense of what's there. You could use the table of contents from a standard psychology textbook to give you ideas about what areas you want to investigate, but use regular books, movies, and DVDs to actually do it.

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I would think a review of major theories, as well as a review of the anatomy of the brain, would be similar the topics covered in an Intro to Psych text. You could use a text to create a list of major theorists, and then research them independently. Also, a magazine such as Psychology Today may provide some additional interesting topics, or you could go with a more professional journal, such as one available through the APA.

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