Mr. C's Class Blog: 12/1/20

Thursday, December 17, 2020

Rick Steves' European Christmas

Today we will look at some of the Christmas traditions as celebrated in different countries in Europe. It is very interesting to compare how we in the US or even in our own house celebrate Christmas with how it is celebrated in other cultures.

EQ: What are some Christmas traditions in Europe?

Engage:

What traditions do your family have this time of year?
If you don't celebrate Christmas, are there other holidays you celebrate during this time?
Do any of you not celebrate during this time of year?

Explore:

European Christmas Rick Steves (55:31)

Explain:

Do these traditions look like your traditions?
Which traditions would you like to do?
Which traditions are you glad you don't do?

Evaluate:

Class discussion

Sunday, December 13, 2020

Washington's Crossing Part 2: Pop Art

Emanuel Leutze "Washington Crossing the Delaware "

The painting of "Washington Crossing the Delaware" by Emanuel Leutze is a historically significant piece of art in the United States. It is so iconic it has become inspiration for pop art. Read about pop art here.

Below is one example of using the painting to create a pop art piece. Compare the two pieces of art, what is similar and what is different?

By WatermelonRat

Assignment

Create your own piece of pop art using the knowledge you learned from the Wikipedia page. Use "Washington Crossing the Delaware" as your inspiration.
Check with me if you have any questions.

EQ:

What is pop art and why should it be a thing?

Engage:

Part 2 of the lesson

Explore:

The students will examine the painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emmanuel Leutze
Pop Art

Explain:

Is pop art based on original works ok?

Evaluate:

Students will create a piece of art using Leutze's painting as inspiration.

Victorian Slum House

https://www.pbs.org/show/victorian-slum-house/

Victorian Slum House is a reality show created by the British Broadcasting Company in 2016 to show how people lived in a slum in London during the time from 1860-1900.

As we continue to migrate from South America to Europe we can learn a little about England here as well as review a few lessons from the social-emotional learning we have been learning in the mornings.

As you watch this show think about life during this time. How does it compare to your life today? In what ways is your life better? In what ways is it not as good?

EQ: What lessons we learned from SEL are reinforced by watching Victorian Slum House?

Engage:

What SEL topics have we covered in the past four months?

Explore:

Victorian Slum House video (54:36) AppleTV

Explain:

Define: slum, outhouse, dosshouse, on the tick, piece work
Why do people live in the slum?
What problems do the people face?
How can the people become successful?
How is your life different from the children in the show? Create a 'T' Chart to compare the kids lives in the show and the students' lives today.

Evaluate:

Vocabulary
Class Discussion

Extend:

The rest of the series is online.

Tuesday, December 08, 2020

Washington's Crossing

Washington Crossing the Delaware is a very famous painting. Its use in popular culture probably even led to a contest to pick the best George Washington impersonator to re-enact the crossing every year. Watch this video to find out more about the contest.

Being George

After watching the video, lets look at the paining. What do you see? Can you find any historical inconsistencies? You can find more information about the painting of Leutze's Washington Crossing the Delaware.

Emanuel Leutze "Washington Crossing the Delaware "

The painting creates a lot of questions. Why was this painted? Is it historically accurate? Who is the artist Emanuel Leutze? Check out the article below to find out these answers.

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-iconic-american-history-painting-facts-wrong

Assignment

In the comment section of this post answer the following questions:

In "Being George" why do you think portraying George Washington is so important to the contestants?
Why did Leutze paint "Washington Crossing the Delaware"?
Identify three historical inaccuracies in the painting.
Should art be historically accurate? Explain why or why not.

Copy and paste the following frame for your comment:

Portraying George Washington is important to the contestants because
Leutze painted "Washington Crossing the Delaware" because
Three historical inaccuracies in the painting are
Yes, art should be historically accurate because/No, art should not be historically accurate because

EQ:

Should artists have a responsibility to make their art historically accurate?

Engage:

Fred Armiston Art Afficionado (2:58)

Explore:

Being George: The real-life drama in the contest to re-enact Washington crossing the Delaware (39 min)
The students will examine the painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emmanuel Leutze

Explain:

The students will examine pop culture homages to the painting. We will also discuss how the painting has been used for political reasons.

Evaluate:

In "Being George" why do you think portraying George Washington is so important to the contestants?
Why did Leutze paint "Washington Crossing the Delaware"?
Identify three historical inaccuracies in the painting.
Should art be historically accurate? Explain why or why not.

Spotlight on Peru

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Machu_Picchu%2C_Peru.jpg

EQ:

Which videos should I use to teach about Peru?

Engage:

Call back to the Peru segment from Walt and El Groupo
Students will be given a short intro to each video and will choose which to watch.

Explore:

Peru's Sacred Valley (47:00) Gordon Ramsay Uncharted National Geographic Disney+
The Lost City of Machu Picchu (44:00) National Geographic Disney+
Lost Temple of the Inca (44:00) National Geographic Disney+

Explain:

Questions will depend on video students choose.

Evaluate:

Class discussion

Monday, December 07, 2020

Paul Revere and Joseph Warren

Typically this is the story that is told about Paul Revere and his 'Midnight Ride'. Revere is still famous today because of this act that happened on the eve of the Shot Heard 'Round the World, the battles of Lexington and Concord. What many do not know what that Revere wasn't the only rider out to spread the word or that he was captured before he could completely fulfill his mission. This raises the question, why do we not talk about William Dawes and Dr. Samuel Prescott?

https://prh1734.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/PaulRevereMap121416.jpg

In the last lesson we learned about Paul Revere's propaganda piece, the Boston Massacre print. Did you also know that Revere was a silversmith and an occasional dentist as well? On this night, though he was a man on a horse tasked with alerting John Hancock and Sam Adams they were about to be caught by the soldiers.

Longfellow's poem was written in 1860. It was really a call to keep the union together before the split creating the Civil War. Although it didn't stop the secession of the Confederate states, it did create the myth of Paul Revere's ride.

THE TRUE STORY OF PAUL REVERE

By Charles Gettemy (link)

"Most men like Revere--- somewhat above the average of the mass, but not possessing the usual elements of enduring fame-- pass out of life eulogized by their fellow-citizens; remembered by a circle of admiring and respecting friends until they also pass away; and are ultimately forgotten, finding no place upon the pages of written history.

"Paul Revere was rescued from this fate by an accident-- the witchery of a poet's Imagination. His famous ride on the night of the 18^th of April, 1775, remained unsung, if not unhonored, for eighty-eight years, or until Longfellow in 1863 made it the text for his Landlord's Tale in the Wayside Inn.
"It is to Longfellow's simple and tuneful ballad that most persons undoubtedly owe their knowledge of the fact that a man of the name of Revere really did something on the eve of the historic skirmish at Lexington which is worth remembering."

Let's take a look at Dr. Joseph Warren next. Warren was a leader, along with Hancock and Sam Adams, in the Sons of Liberty. He publicly spoke twice in honor of the Boston Massacre and was appointed President of the Massachusetts Provincial Government, basically the political leadership of those rebelling against the government in Massachusetts. He learned about the British soldiers' plans to march to Lexington and Concord and sent William Dawes and Paul Revere out to warn the towns and then went out to lead the rebels in their fighting against the soldiers. He helped to organize for the siege of Boston and in his governmental capacity negotiated with General Gage. Because of these activities he became well known to British soldiers, which would later cost him his life.

At the battle of Bunker Hill Warren was killed. His body was defiled with bayonets and put in a shallow grave. A few days later a British officer opened the grave and defiled the body again.

The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill

Ten months later Paul Revere accompanied Warren's brothers with the hope of recovering the body for reburial. When they found the grave they believed to be his they could not recognize his body because of the British defilements. Fortunately, Paul Revere did identify him because of his dental work. It seems Revere had given him and artificial tooth that was identifiable which makes him the world's first forensic dentist.

At the time the death of Warren was both a blow and a benefit to the early days of the Revolution. While he was considered a very important person in the Massachusetts rebel organization in his death he was considered a martyr which energized the rebels. Check out this poem,Ode, published in an English newspaper after his death. It celebrates his speeches given in memory of the Boston Massacre and honors his death. This goes to show that there were those in England who supported the cause of the American rebels as well.
Ultimately both of these men were instrumental in Boston's early contributions to the American Revolution. Their lives seemed intertwined for a half dozen years, until Warren's death.

EQ: Why is Paul Revere more famous than Joseph Warren?

Engage:

Andy Griffith Lexington and Concord (3:23)

Explore Revere's Ride:

Explore Dr. Joseph Warren

Explain:

What did Paul Revere do that made him famous?
Who wrote the poem that made Revere famous?
How did Paul Revere know Dr. Joseph Warren?
What was Warren's role in the Battle of Lexington and Concord?
Where did Warren die?
Who identified Warren's body?
Why do we remember Paul Revere and not Dr. Joseph Warren?

Evaluate:

Answer the questions

Extend:

Write a poem about Dr. Joseph Warren
Sybil Ludington Wikipedia page
Video Sybil Ludington (4:41)

How Did Fascism Rise in Europe?

As we watch today's video and define the vocabulary words, think about the rise of fascism in Europe. Could this happen in the United States today? What techniques did the fascists employ to become popular with the people of their countries?

EQ: