No Prep Plans: People Who Shaped America: Florida--John Gorrie

No Prep Plans: People Who Shaped America – Florida: John Gorrie
Documentary Storyboard

Introduce students to the life and inventions of John Gorrie, the Florida doctor whose pioneering work with artificial ice laid the foundation for modern refrigeration and air conditioning. In this engaging research and project-based lesson, students investigate how Gorrie used science and creativity to solve real-world medical problems before creating a Documentary Storyboard that tells the story of his groundbreaking invention and its lasting impact on everyday life.
Students develop research, historical thinking, storytelling, and communication skills while exploring how one innovative idea changed the world.

What's Included
- Teacher directions (1–2 class periods)
- Historical overview of John Gorrie
- Mini research activity
- Collaborative Documentary Storyboard project
- Three student research and planning pages
- Reflection and historical thinking activities
- Online research resources
- Full-color student pages
- Black-and-white versions for economical printing

Students Will Learn About
- John Gorrie's early life and career as a physician
- Why diseases like yellow fever and malaria inspired his work
- The challenges of cooling patients in nineteenth-century Florida
- The invention of his ice-making machine
- How mechanical refrigeration works in simple terms
- Obstacles Gorrie faced during his lifetime
- How his ideas influenced modern refrigeration and air conditioning
- The importance of innovation, perseverance, and scientific problem-solving
- How historians connect past inventions to today's technology

Perfect For
- Florida History
- State History units
- U.S. History
- STEM integration
- Science and engineering connections
- Inventions and Innovation units
- Grades 4–8
- Project-Based Learning (PBL)
- Research projects
- Early finishers
- Substitute lesson plans
Part of the People Who Shaped America – Florida Series
Build an engaging Florida history curriculum with project-based lessons featuring influential individuals whose discoveries, leadership, and service helped shape both Florida and the nation.

Why Teachers Love It
- Ready to teach with minimal preparation
- Integrates history, science, and engineering concepts
- Encourages creativity through documentary planning
- Develops research, sequencing, and storytelling skills
- Promotes historical inquiry and critical thinking
- Flexible for individual, partner, or small-group work
- Print-and-go classroom resource
- Includes both color and black-and-white student pages

This resource is an independent educational product created to support classroom instruction. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to any curriculum organization, examination board, state education agency, the John Gorrie Museum State Park, or any government organization. It is designed to complement teacher instruction and may be adapted to meet the needs of individual classrooms.