Thursday, November 30, 2017

Samorost



Samorost 1 is a crazy cool game. The idea is to get the character, Samorost, to explore the space ship that he finds flying towards his planet. To play this game you simply point and click until you find out how to progress. You will have to collaborate on this one, don't be selfish when you figure out the puzzles!

Check out Amanita Designs other stuff here.

Monday, November 27, 2017

Art as History?

Washington Crossing the Delaware is a very famous painting. It's 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. 


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 "

Next listen to the story behind the painting on NPR's Morning Edition from October 28, 2002. Has your opinion of the painting changed? Does it have more or less meaning for you now? 



NPR Morning Edition October 28, 2002. This NPR program discusses the painting.

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Add An HTML Game to Your Blog


Today you will pick an html game to place in a blog post. Follow the directions and you can have a game like this on your blog.


Sunday, November 05, 2017

Help Mr. C Visit Canada!

Mr. C is wanting to visit Canada next summer. He wants you to come up with an itinerary for the trip. His only instruction to you is he wants to see 'the real Canada, not the one portrayed in movies like Strange Brew!!!' 

You will need to come up with 6 places Mr C absolutely, positively, without a doubt must visit while there.  Oh, and he wants it done by the end of class Friday. 





After watching the two videos above, what other sources will you use to to find information about 'must do' places in Canada? Here are some of Mr. C's suggestions:

1) Do a Google search of places to visit in Canada.
2) Do a Youtube search of places to visit in Canada.
3) Ask around to see if anyone has visited Canada, and ask them.
4) Ask Mr. C if he knows someone who might be willing to to answer some of your questions about Canada. (Don't wait until Friday) 
5) Visit the library, maybe they have some of those old things called 'books' that might have some information.
6) Check Wikipedia, maybe they have some good information.
7) Do a search for the Canadian Visitors Bureau. 
8) Sit around until Friday and write down any junk you think of. (This one is probably not a very good suggestion, but you know how Mr. C likes to joke.)

Mr. C has worksheet for you to use to gather information. He thinks you will probably need more room to write than that, but it could be used as a good organizer. Make sure to pick one up from him.

Assignment Requirements

1) Find the 6 most Canadian places for Mr. C to visit.
2) Create a Google document. 
3) Write down each place with your explanation of why he should visit there.
4) Add some pictures of each place. Mr. C does require you to cite where you get the picture from and to make sure the picture you picked is copyrighted so that you can use it legally. 
5) Hyperlink the address where the picture came from.
6) Share your document with Mr. C when completed
7) Make sure it is finished on Friday. Late work will be accepted, but you will have to do it on your time. Class moves on!

Monday, October 30, 2017

Paul Revere and Joseph Warren


This essential question is the guide for this lesson. The students will be examining the role of Paul Revere and Joseph Warren from Revere's famous ride to the Battle of Bunker Hill. We will look at what Paul Revere and Joseph Warren contributed to these famous events. 

Here are the links to the media we will use in class along with pages 134-135 in our textbook.

Andy Griffith Lexington and Concord https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c_er4mMfvI
‘Real’ Story of Paul Revere http://www.paulreverehouse.org/ride/real.html
Longfellow’s Midnight Ride of Paul Revere http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4hUMQG3MI8



After learning the stories of Revere and Warren the students will write an ode to Dr. Warren using the following rhyme scheme: ABABCDECDE

Sunday, October 22, 2017

US States Map Game


This is a game we can use to practice for the assessment next week. Use this and the sample assessment to prepare.

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Geography Terms Vocabulary Quiz #1


Thursday, October 12, 2017

Road to Revolution



Here is the presentation over the events that led to the creation of the Declaration of Independence. 

The essential question is: What events led to the creation of the Declaration of Independence. 

Create a timeline of the events. You might be able to find an online timeline creator to use, but how will you share it with me when you are finished? You can work together with a partner to figure that out, but you will need to turn in your own timeline.  

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Which Amendment Would You Give Up?





Below are the first ten amendments to the Constitution. We call them the Bill of Rights. If you were forced to give one up, which would you choose? Why?
Bill of Rights

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.
No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

A Virginia Colonist' Despair/Colonial House



Loving and kind father and mother:


My most humble duty remembered to you, hoping in God of your good health. This is to let you understand that I, your child, am in a most heavy case because of the nature of the country, which causes much sickness. When we are sick there is nothing to comfort us. Since I came out of the ship, I never ate anything but peas and loblollie (that is, water gruel). As for deer or venison, I never saw any since I came into this land. There is indeed some fowl. But we are not allowed to go and get it. We must work hard both early and late for a mess of water gruel and a mouthful of bread and beef.
We live in fear of the enemy every hour; we are but 32 to fight against 3,000 if they should come. And the nearest help that we have is 10 miles from us. When the rogues overcame this place the last time they slew 80 persons.
I have nothing to comfort me. I have nothing at all—no, not a shirt to my back but two rags, nor no clothes but one poor suit, nor but one pair of shoes, one pair of stockings, and one cap. My cloak was stolen by one of my own fellows. And to his dying hour, he would not tell me what he did with it. Some of my fellows saw him take butter and beef out of a ship, which my cloak, I doubt not, paid for.

I am not a quarter as strong as I was in England, and all is for want of victuals. I tell you that I have eaten more in one day in your home than I have here in a week. You have given more than my day's allowance to a beggar at the door.
If you love me you will redeem me suddenly, for which I do entreat and beg, And if you cannot get the merchants to redeem me for some little money, then for God's sake get a gathering or ask some good folks to lay out some little sum of money in meal and cheese and butter and beef. The answer of this letter will be life or death to me.


Your loving son,
Richard Frethorne
Virginia
3rd April, 1623
http://www.sitesalive.com/hl/tg/private/hltgReasons.htm

After watching some of the Colonial House episodes, how does the letter above compare to what you saw on the video? Was the colony in the video realistic?

Imagine you have been selected to participate in Colonial House 2. Write a letter home talking about your living conditions. Are you a freeman, indentured servant, or even the Governor? What kinds of things do you do day by day? Are you having trouble keeping the rules? Is the life you are experiencing similar to the writer of the letter?

Friday, October 06, 2017

Colonial Williamsburg Website

Colonial Williamsburg is an incredible living history project. Here is a link to the history of present day Williamsburg. This city holds an incredibly important space in our country's history. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, and James Madison spent considerable amounts of time there.
The Kids Zone has a lot of games and activities related to the city and the Colonial Revolution time period. I want you to explore the site and leave a comment about which of these games and activities would be most beneficial to do in a history class that was teaching this time period. Which ones give you a "feel" for the time period? Which ones could be skipped?

Thursday, October 05, 2017

Play the Oregon Trail!


If you are as old as I am, you remember playing this game on the school's old computers (Apple II's or maybe Commodore 64's). If you don't remember, or simply aren't old enough then take a few minutes to play through an early 'video' game that kids used to love.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Friday, August 18, 2017

Tragedy of the Commons

The Tragedy of the Commons in an economic theory that explains how a minority of people can take a common good, such as shared resources, and take more than what is good for everyone. 

We will be looking at this concept and relate it to our classroom and school resources. What are our common resources? How could these resources be abused by us? How can we keep that abuse from happening? 


Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Kiva in the Classroom



A few years ago I created a Kiva group for my students to make micro loans. We ended up loaning out $100 that year. Today we are going to start lending again.

The students will be using the website Dollar Street to examine the homes and lives of disparate people living all around the world. From that information we will choose a country to target for our micro loan. We will then go to Kiva and look for someone we want to invest in and we will make the loan.

Kiva site
Dollar Street

Me Toloui
Mary Grace
Rahaf

The Foot Soldier of Brimingham



In this lesson we are using the podcast The Foot Soldier by Malcolm Gladwell to discuss inherent bias.  Can the art we create be used to influence belief systems? As we examine the story as well as look at the statue and the picture from which the statue comes, what can we learn about ourselves and how we react based upon what we believe now?

Podcast

Transcript of the podcast. 

Monday, April 10, 2017

Andrew Jackson and the Trail of Tears



Southwest and Central Asia


Map Directions

1) Draw and label Kazakhstan, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, United Arab Emigrates, Oman, Qatar, Iran, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. (p. 404)

2) Label the capitol cities for each country. (p. 404)

3) Label Black Sea, Caspian Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and the Persian Gulf. (p. 404)

4) Identify on the map the major resources for southwest and central Asia. Draw the oil pipelines but not the shipping lanes. (p. 405) 

5) Color the countries and the bodies of water.


We will be watching these videos this week as we work on our maps of the eastern Mediterranean region. 




Tuesday, April 04, 2017

Russia, So Much to Learn

There is so much information on Russia, we are going to spend the week learning about it (maybe more?) Follow the steps below to take care of the requirements.

1. Make a copy of the GDoc titled Russia Template and rename the copy Name Russia
2. Watch Russia Physical Geography below and answer the questions on the GDoc
3. Choose a video below, watch and answer the questions on the GDoc. 
4. Repeat
































Erie Canal, Manifest Destiny, and the Monroe Doctrine

Read Chapter 10 Sections 2-3 in the online textbook then watch the videos below.








Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania

As you watch the videos below on Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania 

make sure to answer the questions on the GForm.









Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Growth and Expansion Part 1

In this assignment we are going to look at two different historical time periods to find out how the industrial revolution positively and negatively effected women. As you watch the videos and scan the online information, you should reflect on what happened and why. You should also think about how they have influenced women (and men) in factory work today. Please note you will not finish this activity today, so don't even bother trying. 

1) Read Chapter 10 Section 1 in the online textbook.

2) Click the link to watch

Mill Time David Macaulay

3) Watch the video below


4) Here is the link to the

  Lowell Mill Girls Wikipedia Page

5) Click the link to watch

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

6) Here is the link to the

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Wikipedia Page

7) The Crime of Carelessness (1912), and Thomas A. Edison short inspired by the Triangle Factory fire.

Thursday, March 23, 2017

Pick an Event and Write About It

Today the lesson starts on Wikipedia's Timeline of United States History


1) Choose an even that took place between 1801 and 1815. Pick wisely, something that you are interested in. Take a few minutes to look through them before you choose.

2) After you have picked an event, find 5 good resource sites to learn about that event. You will need to identify these sites on your assignment.

3) On a Google Doc in your team drive, write a 300-500 word summary of your event. Answer the following questions in your summary:

a) What happened?
b) Why is this event important to United States history?
c) Why did you pick this particular event?

At the bottom of the document add links to the five sites you used as resources. Write the name of the site down, highlight it, then click on the chain button to add the web address. 

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

A Vacation in Denmark. Make It Happen!

You say you are obsessed with Denmark? Well, why don't you vacation there? You say you are worried your parents will say no? I say, make them say yes!

Watch the videos below and check out the websites underneath. Collect information that will convince your parents to take you on vacation to Denmark. Maybe if your presentation is good enough they may even decide to move!








Requirements for this assignment:

  1. Make a Google Presentation on visiting Denmark with 15-20 slides.
  2. Embed at least one video
  3. Add pictures to at least 10 slides
  4. Cite your sources for all pictures, videos and information
  5. Include information that you think will make your parents want to go!

How to make a Google Presentation Playlist

Monday, March 20, 2017

A New (Old) Resource

Today we are going to get you access to our online textbook. Click on this link to take you to the page pictured below. Notice, the link is on the left side of the blog in the Geography/History links.


On the board you will find the code that you have to submit to get into the site. When you put in the code click on the name of the textbook, The American Journey Early Years.

1) You will need to read Chapter 9 The Jefferson Era. See what things you can click on as you read through the pages. Are you finding anything useful? Did you remember that if you click the speaker it will read the text to you? Click around on things and see what they do.

2) Leave a comment on the post explaining the usefulness of having this online textbook, or explain why you think it isn't a very useful resource.

3) After you have finished reading, choose 12 questions from the section reviews to answer. You will answer them using a Google Doc in your new team drive. I will show you how to use that. 

Thursday, March 16, 2017

Lewis and Clark

Watch the Lewis and Clark National Geographic video below.








How accurate is the Time Warp Trio video? Use the National Geographic video as your reference. Also feel free to do a search on anything you find in the TWT video you have a question about. Leave your answer in the comments section of this post.



Monday, March 13, 2017

Norway: You Make the Test!

After Monday's assignment, I thought you might like to create your own lesson on Norway, complete with creating your own test using Google Forms. (Even if you won't like it, you are going to do it anyway :P)

Watch this video first!

This video will give you the basics on how to create a Google Form. You can watch it and refer back to it as necessary. If you get stuck, ask someone sitting next to you. If they can't figure it out, let me know and I will help. 



Create your Google Form. 

You need to title it with the name of the country Norway. Next share the form with me. Pay attention, I may leave you comments as you work!

Use these sources to find your questions:


Requirements for this assignment:

  1. Every question must have a link to the web page the question is answered on in the description. Remember CTRL C will copy and CTRL V will paste. Remind me, I can show you how to do this.
  2. There must be at least 4 sources used for information.
  3. There must be at least 2 questions from each source.
  4. There must be 10 total questions for full credit.
  5. At least two questions must be about the government. 
  6. You must create an answer sheet for your questions. You can do this on paper or using a Google doc to share with me.

Tuesday, March 07, 2017

The Louisiana Purchase

Hoisting American Colors, Louisiana Cession
by Thure de Thulstrup, 1903
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase

This video is a quick overview of the Louisiana Purchase.



This video is much more in depth on the purchase. 




In the comments section of this post do all of the following:

  1. Write a 50 word summary of the Louisiana Purchase. Make sure this is not copied. If you copy/paste your summary the consequences will be unpleasant. Remind me to talk about DBJ in the classroom. 
  2. When you publish the comment will not be seen until I allow it. 
  3. Explain which video you found more valuable for your learning about the Louisiana Purchase. That means you need to tell me why one was better for you than the other. Do it well or do it over!
  4. Explain which website worked best for you. Why did you choose that site? Do it well or do it over!
  5. Do a Google search. Identify one site you would not recommend to be used by someone wanting to learn about the Louisiana Purchase. Explain why you would not recommend it. 

After posting your work in the comment section, check out this game: 

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/west/


Sunday, March 05, 2017

Fantastic Finland

Click on the appropriate link to go to your classes GForm:


Today we are learning about Finland. Click the link to go to GMaps. 

Using GMaps, find out how long it takes to fly from Springfield, Missouri to Helsinki, Finland.  The answer has to be exactly right to get the question correct!

Next, watch the video below on the Do's and Don'ts in Finland. 

Answer the questions on the GForm using the information from the video.




Watch this Geography Now video of Finland.

Don't forget to answer the questions on the GForm.


Next, head over to the Wikipedia page on the government of Finland. 

Click here to go to the page. Note that the government 'page' is just one section of the Wikipedia article. Read carefully and answer the questions on the GForm.

Finally, head over to Rick Steve's page on the Helsinki and Talinn: Baltic Sisters video.

Click here to go to the page. Scroll to the bottom of the page and notice the section marked Travel Details. If you click the circle with the + sign it will have information drop down. Follow the instructions on the GForm. 

https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/video/tv-show/helsinki-and-tallinn-baltic-sisters


Wednesday, March 01, 2017

The United Kingdom





First we will start off with this Rick Steves video on the city of London. While we watch, fill out the GForm below. 




Let's have some fun today!

http://www.toporopa.eu/en/uk_countries_capitals.html

First let's play a game to help us identify the countries and capitols in the United Kingdom.


http://www.toporopa.eu/en/uk_mountains_waters.html

Next let's play a game to learn about some of United Kingdom's mountains, rivers and lakes.


After you finish the two geography games, check out these games about the history of the United Kingdom.









Tuesday, February 28, 2017

The Election of 1800


Scan the Wikipedia page on the election of 1800. Then answer the questions on this GForm. You will need this information to do the next activity. 

Listen to the song The Election of 1800 from the musical HamiltonHere are the lyrics to the song, follow along as you listen. 

How do you think Aaron Burr felt when he found out he lost the election because of Alexander Hamilton? Write a rap that explains how Burr may have responded. Use the instrumental track below. You may want to use the original lyrics as a guide. 

Monday, February 27, 2017

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

A Test of Our Network



Do you think we can have 25 computers streaming this video at the same time? We are going to find out today!