Tuesday, October 27, 2020

The Halloween Tree

 


EQ: What are some of the influences for today's Halloween celebration?

Engage:

  • The students will watch The Halloween Tree

Explore:

  • What happens in Egypt?
  • What happens in England at Stonehenge?
  • What happens in France?
  • What happens in Mexico?

Evaluate:

  • None

Extend:

  • Read Ray Bradbury's The Halloween Tree

Witch Trials and the Haunted History of Halloween

 Happy Halloween! Today we are going to learn a little about the Salem Witch Trials, where mass hysteria and a couple mean kids caused the death of over 20 people. Is there anything more Halloween-like than that? Unfortunately real people suffered for things we tend to enjoy, the confluence of life and death.


As you watch try to identify what caused the trials to begin and what caused them to end.



As you watch see how many cultures are represented by the holiday. Also, when did Halloween as we celebrate it come into being?

EQ:
  • What were the Salem Witch Trials?
  • What is the history of Halloween?
Engage:
  • Don't really need any, it is Halloween
Explore:
Explain:
  • What started the Salem Witch Trials
  • Why did the trials end?
  • What are the historic roots of Halloween?
  • When did the modern version of Halloween start?

Friday, October 23, 2020

Map of Mexico

 


This is a political map of Mexico. You will color the states, but do not label (otherwise there will be way too much writing on the map when we are finished.) 



https://www.mapsofworld.com/mexico/mexico-political-map.html

Here is the physical map that you will use to label the names provided on the checklist


https://www.ezilon.com/maps/north-america/mexico-physical-maps.html

EQ: Where in Mexico do you find the important landforms and cities?


Engage:
  • Ask if any students are from Mexico. If so, have them identify on the map where they are from. 
  • Mexico Geography Now (18:20) 
Explore:
Explain:
  1. Color the states of Mexico on the paper map.
  2. Find and label on a transparency over the blackline map. 
  3. Checklist
  • Rio Grande River
  • Rio Santiago River 
  • Rio Bravo River
  • Yucatan Peninsula 
  • Isthmus of Tehuantepec 
  • Baja California 
  • Mexican Plateau
  • Sierra Madre Del Sur, 
  • Sierra Madre Occidental 
  • Sierra Madre Oriental Mountains
  • Pacific Ocean 
  • Gulf of Mexico 
  • Gulf of California
  • Caribbean Sea
Evaluate:
  •  Map of Mexico
Extend:

Colombian Exchange/Transatlantic Slave Trade

 Today we are looking at how choices made by Europeans fundamentally changed Europe and the Americas.


In the first video we will look at what scholars call the Columbian Exchange. It encompasses the exchange of plants and animals, diseases, and ideas. As you watch identify the positive and negative exchanges. How important were they to the Americas? How important were they to Europe?



The second video is on the importation of kidnapped Africans to the Americas to be slaves. This, along with the attempted genocide of the indigenous peoples of the America, is the most shameful act of the European colonists of the Americas and later of the citizens of the United States. 


EQ:
  • What were some of the effects of the Columbian Exchange on Europe and the Americas?
  • Understand the inhumanity of the transatlantic slave trade.
Engage:
  •  None
Explore:
Explain:
  • What foods did Europe gain from the Americas?
  • What diseases were transferred from Europe to the Americas? 
  • What diseases were transferred from the Americas to Europe?
  • How many Africans were forcibly moved to the Americas?
  • What was the life expectancy of a kidnapped African in a British Colony in the 1700's?
Evaluate:
  •  Student Worksheets
Extend

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Dia de los Muertos

By José Guadalupe Posada - ArtDaily.org, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1485430Add caption

Today's lesson surrounds the Dia de los Muertos celebration in Mexico. Translated Dia de los Muertos means the Day of the Dead. We will watch a National Geographic video on what it is and then we will read about it. 

Next we will look at the artist Jose Posada and examine his work La Calavera Catrina which is an iconic piece of artwork that may be the artistic symbol for Dia de los Muertos. 

There has been a lot more interest in this holiday thanks to movies such as the Disney film Coco and  Guillermo del Toro's The Book of Life.

Essential Question:

  • What is the Day of the Dead and why is it celebrated in Mexico? 
  • Who is Jose Posada?
  • Why is the image La Calavera Catrina important to the Day of the Dead in Mexico?

 Engage:

Explore:

Explain:

  • Why does Mexico celebrate Dia de los Muertos?
  • Who is Jose Posada?
  • Why is La Calavera Catrina important to Dia de los Muertos?

Evaluate:

  • Notebook Page: Jose Posada
  • Day of the Dead 5 W's and H worksheet

Extend:

  • Day of the Dead Wordsearch

Massacre at Mystic: The Pequot War

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pequot_War#/media/File:Pequot_war.jpg

The Pequot Wars started with the death of one man and ended with making use of the word Pequot a crime. We often put the Puritans on a pedestal, due mainly to the pride many Americans have with being remotely descended from a passenger on the Mayflower as well as politicians constantly referring to them when they talk about our Judeo-Christian culture.

Essential Question: Is violence inevitable between indigenous peoples and colonists?

Engage:
Explore:
  •  Watch the video Massacre at Mystic 
  • Vocabulary: wampum, concessions, subjugated, diplomatic
Explain:
  •  What was the relationship between the Pequot and Puritans before the massacre? After?
  • What differences in ideas about land and property caused so much trouble?
  • Why did some Native Americans fight with the Puritans against the Pequots?
  • How much responsibility do you place on the Puritans actions leading to the massacre?
  • How did the massacre change the colonies going forward?
Evaluate:
  •  Class Discussion questions during the watching. 
 Extend:
  • Read p. 118 of Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewn
  • Read about the Pequot War

Tuesday, October 20, 2020

Compare and Contrast Jamestown to Colonial House

 This letter below is an actual letter written in 1623 by Richard Frethorne and indentured servant in Jamestown Colony.



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



Nightmare in Jamestown


Essential Question: How was the Colonial House experience different from Jamestown?

Engage:

Explore:
  • Read the Richard Frethorne letter
  • Read the Wikipedia Page entry on the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia from 1607-1609 Arrival and Beginning through 1609-1610 Starving Time and Third Supply.
  • Watch Colonial House
  • Nightmare in Jamestown

Explain:
  • How does the letter compare to the television show?
  • Does this letter change your opinion about colonizing the Americas?

Evaluate:
  • You are a Jamestown colonist. Write a letter home describing the conditions you are living with. 

Monday, October 12, 2020

Canadian Vacation

  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 next Wednesday. 



After watching the video 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. 

Assignment Requirements


  1. Find the 6 most Canadian places for Mr. C to visit.
  2. Use this worksheet to gather your information.
  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. Creative Commons has a search engine you might want to use https://search.creativecommons.org/
  5. Hyperlink the address where the picture came from.
  6. Create a Google Slideshow using this template 
  7. Share your slideshow with Mr. C when completed
  8. Make sure it is finished on Wednesday. Late work will be accepted, but you will have to do it on your time. Class moves on!
EQ: Where are the most 'Canadian' places to visit in Canada?

Engage:
Explore:
  • Students will identify a variety of sources to gather information from with an eye on tourism.
  • Possible choices would be visitor bureaus, wikipedia, youtube etc.
Explain:
  • On a document, take notes with links to original sites.
  • Name 6 places that epitomize Canada and explain why.
  • Identify pictures to share and create hyperlinks 
Evaluate:

Monday, October 05, 2020

Mapping Canada

   For this activity, we will be making a couple maps of Canada. We are going to be creating a political, physical, and climate map. First, let's watch this EPCOT video from the Canada Pavilion:




Now that you get a feel for the 'flavor' of Canada, let's do a little learning about the country. You will be given two maps of Canada. The first map you will color the climate zones of Canada and create a key which will let me know what the colors represent.

Next you will color and label a landform map. Make sure you include all of the places I identify on the checklist

Finally, you will be given a transparency sheet and a wet erase marker. You will place the transparency on top of the landform map and label the capitals, provinces and territories. 

EQ:

  • What are the major climate areas of Canada?
  • What are the major landforms of Canada?
  • What are the provinces, territories and capitals of Canada?

Engage:

Explore:

Explain:

  • Where are the provinces and territories in Canada?
  • Where are the capital cities in Canada? 
  • What/Where are the physical landforms of Canada
  • What climate zones do you find in Canada?

Evaluate:

  • Label the capitals of Canada.
  • Draw and label the physical landforms.
  • Color and label the climate zones.
  • Checklist to use