Frankenstein

“When scientific knowledge makes something possible, does that mean humans should do it?”

Welcome to the Novel Science series—curriculum unit frameworks designed to bridge literature, rigorous scientific inquiry, and social and environmental justice.

Frankenstein: Science, Literature & Responsibility is a comprehensive, nine-week integrated unit framework that uses Mary Shelley’s classic text to explore cellular biology, anatomy, electricity, genetics, radiation, and environmental ethics. Rather than treating the novel merely as a reading assignment or science as a collection of isolated facts, this framework challenges high school students to examine what scientists create, who benefits, who bears the risk, and where human responsibility begins.

What Makes This a "Unit Framework"?

This resource is not a scripted, one-size-fits-all lesson plan binder. I trust educators as the experts in their classrooms and communities.

This framework delivers the architectural blueprint and pacing for your unit—the guiding questions, laboratory concepts, scientific audits, standards alignments, and project rubrics. You retain the autonomy to adapt daily activities, readings, and investigations to reflect your students' lived realities and local environments.

What’s Inside the 9-Week Arc?

Each week pairs specific chapters of Frankenstein with targeted NGSS and CCSS standards, inquiry questions, and lab investigations:

• Week 1: The Scientist, the Story, and the Question of Life (Inquiry, Living vs. Nonliving, "Is It Alive?" Lab, Scientific Inquiry Notebook)

• Week 2: Death, Decomposition & the Boundary of Life (Cellular Death, Homeostasis, Matter Cycling, Decomposition Investigation)

• Week 3: Creating the Creature: Anatomy, Physiology & Boundaries (Hierarchical Body Systems, Homeostasis, Human Body Interdependence Modeling)

• Week 4: Electricity, Lightning & the Myth of Reanimation (Electric Charge, Energy Transfer, Nervous Tissue Signaling vs. Sci-Fi Myths, Lab Safety Practical)

• Week 5: Nature vs. Nurture: Biological & Social Case Study (Genetics, Gene Expression, Environmental Interactions, Phenotypic Plasticity Lab)

• Week 6: Environment, Resources, Inequity & the Creature’s Education (Ecosystems, Carrying Capacity, Place-Based Community Environmental Health Audit)

• Week 7: Genetics, Reproduction, Immortality & "Playing God" (Heredity, Population Growth Modeling, Second Creature Ethics Hearing)

• Week 8: Radiation, Matter, Environmental Consequences & Responsibility (Nuclear Processes, Isotopes, Half-Life/Decay Modeling, Environmental Justice Case Studies)

• Week 9: Synthesis & Culminating Performance Task (The Frankenstein Test, Multiple-Product Options, Final Reflective Socratic Seminar

Key Features Included:

• The Frankenstein Science Audit: A recurring one-page student analysis tool connecting literary claims to empirical biology and modern ethics.

• Place-Based Fieldwork: Guidance for conducting a localized Environmental & Community Resource Audit using neighborhood data.

• Culminating Performance Task ("The Frankenstein Test"): Students evaluate a modern technology (e.g., CRISPR, AI, nuclear energy, plastics) through an 8-part scientific, environmental, and ethical case study with flexible product choices (podcasts, posters, policy briefs, documentaries).

• Complete Cross-Disciplinary Standards Alignment: Threaded alignments for NGSS Life Science, Physical Science, Earth & Space Science, and Engineering Design alongside CCSS-ELA 9–10 reading, writing, and speaking standards.

What You Receive:

Upon purchase, you will receive a downloadable PDF containing direct access to the master Google Drive file. Simply make an editable copy directly to your own Drive to tailor, differentiate, and pace the framework according to your school calendar and classroom needs.