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All TRAILS Resources
All TRAILS Resources
May 31, 2023

Browse the entire collection of TRAILS resources here.

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Chengguang Hu
Between Voice and Silence: Teaching Students How Social Environments Shape Political Engagement and Avoidance
July 6, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Mass Communication/Public Opinion, Political Sociology, Socialization
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200
Class Size(s):
Medium
Abstract:

This activity teaches students that politics is not limited to elections or public protests but also appears in everyday conversations, decisions, and moments when people choose to speak or stay silent. Through guided mapping and structured reflection, students...

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A woman shopping in a grocery store reaches for produce
Trenton Ellis, Michael Hollingsworth
Grocery Run: Teaching the Social Model of Disability through a Virtual Field Experience Activity that Combines a Podcast with Google Street View
June 9, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Aging/Social Gerontology, Development, Disabilities, High School Sociology, Medical Sociology, Theory, Urban Sociology
Resource Type(s):
Assignment, Class Activity
Class Level(s):
Any Level
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

Google Maps Street View can be an effective tool for assessing social factors affecting accessibility, inclusion, and disability (Seekins, Traci, and...

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A cell phone with the YouTube logo on it
Hannah Judson
What are the Rules of the Game? Teaching Socialization with Game Changer's Lie Detector Episode
May 20, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Socialization
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This activity is designed to help students learn core sociological concepts through analysis of and application to a short game show TV episode. Students will watch and draw connections between the Lie Detector episode of the Dropout show Game Changer and the...

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A woman holds up a pink "burn book" like from the movie Mean Girls
Dakota Dougherty
Learning Social Processes through Mean Girls Film Analysis
May 15, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Social Psychology
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200
Class Size(s):
Medium
Abstract:

This activity is designed to help students strengthen their understanding of key sociological theories and concepts. Through analysis of the 2004 film Mean Girls, students gain a deeper understanding of social processes. After viewing the movie, students...

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A drawing of a person with red dots indicating contagion or germs
Hannah Espy
Pandemic for Teaching Contagion: Illustrating Simple and Complex Contagious Spread through Interactive Board Game Play
May 12, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Collective Behavior/Social Movements, Medical Sociology, Social Networks
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
Any Level
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

The Pandemic for Teaching Contagion in-class activity illustrates the difference between ‘simple’ contagions (like a virus) and ‘complex’ contagions (like a new medical intervention), and how they spread through a social network in unique ways. Derived...

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A teenaged girl smoking.
Jaclyn Tabor
The Teenage Bill of Rights: Social Construction of Adolescence from 1945 to the Present
April 7, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Children and Youth, Communication and Information Technologies, Comparative Sociology/Historical Sociology, Cultural Sociology, Education, Socialization
Resource Type(s):
Assignment, Class Activity, Film List
Class Level(s):
College 200, College 300
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This resource uses the documentary Teenage (Matt Wolf, 2013) and the New York Times “Teenage Bill of Rights” (1945) to help students analyze adolescence as a socially constructed life stage. Students watch the film in class with two structured pause...

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An overview shot of two cheesburgers, French fries, and drinks.
Ellen Meiser
Sociology of Food Syllabus
March 17, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Other
Resource Type(s):
Syllabus
Class Level(s):
College 400
Class Size(s):
Medium, Small
Abstract:

This syllabus is created for a 17-week long, upper-division in-person Sociology of Food course designed with an interdisciplinary Food Studies approach. Using literature and research from all corners of the food world— journalism,  cultural studies, emotions,...

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A view of the backs of a group of college students walking toward a university building
Reginald Byron
Teaching about ‘Racialized Space’ on Campus
March 11, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Race, Class and Gender, Racial and Ethnic Relations
Resource Type(s):
Class Activity
Class Level(s):
College 100, College 200, College 300
Class Size(s):
Medium, Small
Abstract:

Recent scholarship urges us to examine the physical and social spaces at universities including their historic statues, building portraits, and meeting spaces because these purported colorblind environments are often saturated with racialized meaning. This class...

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A charcoal grill heating up
May Takeuchi, Alex Takeuchi
bbq-statistics-introduction-to-linear
BBQ Statistics – Introduction to Linear Regression Analysis
March 11, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Research Methods, Statistics
Resource Type(s):
Assignment
Class Level(s):
College 300
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

To make the entry level inferential statistics more approachable to undergraduate students, we use “down-to-earth” real-life examples with a hint of humor in teaching and learning of regression analysis.  Specifically, this resource features one of the iconic...

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a road map of the United States
Jacqueline J. Crowell
Place and Inequality: A Geographic Comparison of Resources and Poverty Study
March 11, 2026
Subject Area(s):
Introduction to Sociology/Social Problems, Rural Sociology, Stratification/Mobility
Resource Type(s):
Assignment, Class Activity
Class Level(s):
Any Level
Class Size(s):
Any
Abstract:

This self-directed research activity introduces students to the relationship between place, resource access, and inequality through comparison of urban and rural communities in different regions in the United States. The activity—which is designed for courses such...

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