Jodi Freedman's sixth-grade humanities students presented the capstone of their "cultural universals" unit this week, marking the completion of their first signature piece of the Middle School curriculum and an enormous step forward on their journeys to becoming broad conceptual and critical thinkers. As an introduction to their study of a range of ancient civilization this year, students worked in depth to answer the questions: "What are the characteristics of all sustainable cultures and civilizations?," "What are the 'cultural universals' shared by successful civilizations throughout history,?" creating the framework through which they will study the specific cultures of Ancient Greece, Egypt, China, India, and the Near East. Working in small groups and with their math/science, humanities, technology, music, and art teachers, students created their own imaginary cultures, detailing aspects such as mythology and religion, food, physical geography, music, rites of passage, and more. Interdisciplinary presentations wove together public speaking, HyperStudio presentations, ceramic "archeological artifacts," musical performance, written work, and intricate poster boards. Parents, guardians, and fifth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade classes had the opportunity to view and interact with the multi-faceted exhibits of the cultural universals museum, as sixth-graders ran through their presentations all morning long. The entire event culminated in a thorough clean-up and a celebratory luncheon for the whole group.