Friday, December 11, 2009 - Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

You guys are so, so cool and I'm going to miss you all & hope I have the opportunity to teach you again in the future!! I learned so much from you, such as:

* One of you is a secret ninja
* One of you is going to Vietnam
* One of you liked my extra credit questions :)
* One of you is a programmer - so cool! I used to program my TI-85 when I was bored in High School. I created this cool fortune telling program that was pretty neat, but now I can barely write HTML without my "for dummies" book by my side, and it's been so long since I've built a computer that I wonder if I can remember how!
* A few of you celebrated my Trogdor affinity
* One of you thinks dogs are better than cats - sooo misguided!
* Most of you like to have fun, for some reason ;)
* At least 2 of you really like Pokemon (even more than I do)
* One of you liked the haircut I got for my Battlestar Galactica costume
* A few of you like to write poetry
* One of you is obsessed with the word "shenanigans"
* Some of you don't want others to know how smart you are
* Most of you agree that being a student in 2009/2010 is busy to the point of ridiculousness and that there are many, many more distractions than previous generations had to deal with. I agree; your lives have different challenges than I had growing up. To show I have at least a little perspective, however, here's what I was involved in when I was in High School: Track, Drama, FBLA, Honor Society, Tutoring, Independent Projects, & work @ my beloved Subway (20 hours/week sophomore year, 40 hours/week junior/senior year). Hope that helps make it real!
* One of you hates the color yellow, which I can understand, but also CHOCOLATE, which I just can't comprehend at all
* Mr. Powell plays way too much Tic-Tac-Toe
* My afternoon class was obsessed with coconuts
* Almost all of you like teachers with good senses of humor
* One of you doesn't believe other teachers play video games :D

I will miss each and every one of you. Thanks for being such great students AND great people and sharing the last few months with me!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009 - Arts & Crafts/Jeopardy Day

Today we spent most of the period working on News Magazines in class (they're due Tuesday next week), and we played some super-fun Jeopardy! Don't forget; you not only have your News Magazines due next week, but also your second self-evaluation. You can find these inside the News Magazine packet.

No homework for Friday.

Monday, December 7, 2009 - Socialism, Marx, & Utopian Societies

Today we:

• Took guided notes on parts of a video called Heaven on Earth: the Rise & Fall of Socialism (see below for the 3 links to what we watched).
  
• Came up with a Utopian society in small groups, presented them to the class, & voted on which one we thought was the most feasible.

Links to video:

1. Part 1, Segment 1: Robert Owen & New Harmony

2. Part 1, Segment 2: New Harmony (cont.) & Engels & Marx

3. Part 1, Segment 3: Marx

Homework:

• News Magazine: Profiles & Features due Wednesday, Dec 9th (ignore the bit about Turnitin.com & bring a physical copy).
  

Thursday, December 3, 2009 - Industrial Rev. & Economics

Today was jam-packed with information! Here's what we did:

• Industrialism Powerpoint
• Reviewed Liberalism & Socialism HW (it was really difficult, so we spent some time on this in class)
  
• Capitalism Powerpoint
• Economic Simulation

Homework:

• Owens & Marx HW
  

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 - Scientific Revolutions

Today we looked into the Scientific Revolutions that happened during the Renaissance & Enlightenment periods. We did a jigsaw activity where everyone became an expert on one scientist & shared their information with their group.

The homework for Thursday builds on the last one you did on Capitalism. We're doing a lot of preparation to talk about economic issues, so get ready for Thursday!

Homework:

• Liberalism & Socialism HW
  

Wednesday, November 25, 2009 - Projects Day

I'm posting into the future so I don't forget to on Wednesday :).

Today you did peer editing on your papers for Projects.

Next class we're moving into economic philosophy, so I have a short homework assignment for you that acquaints you with a little something called "The Invisible Hand." Enjoy, and have a great Turkey Day!

Don't forget: Dec 1st is our next class, and that is when your 2nd News Magazine Progress Report is due. Can you believe it's nearly December? Wow, time flies...

Homework:

• 2nd News Magazine Progress Report due
• Europe and the Rise of Capitalism HW
  

Monday, November 23, 2009 - Political Primary Source Comparison

Today you used your knowledge of political philosophy to analyze primary source documents. You tried to figure out what Enlightenment idea influenced specific pieces of sources like The Rights of Man and the Bill of Rights...and hopefully were able to pair the philosopher with the specific idea!

Next class you'll be doing peer editing with your Projects papers, so be sure to bring a copy of your rough draft! Other than that, no homework tonight :).

Thursday, November 19, 2009 - The Three Revolutions

Today we:

• Got into small groups by revolution (ex: American, Glorious , French) & came up with the top 5 causes of your specific revolution.
• Combined small groups with others exploring the same revolution, agreed on the top 5 causes, & created a 5-point Bill of Rights on what basic human rights people should have based on what happened during your revolution.
• Each large group did a 3 minute presentation on their revolution & main points.

I loved today because I got to be sneaky. Unbeknownst to the rest of the class, I had 1 of the French groups read information about women's issues during the French Revolution. This made for interesting discussions/experiences when the larger groups got together; the women in the PM French group seceded and formed their own group. Way to go, ladies!

Monday's my birthday, so I'll be taking the day off and Mr. Powell gets the pleasure of wrapping up our work on political philosophy & revolutions. Actually, I won't see you guys until Dec 1 because Wednesday you have projects, which is also Mr. Powell's domain, so I won't be attending those classes, either. Have an excellent Turkey Day & I'll see you in a week!

Homework:
None for this weekend, but bring your rough draft of your Projects paper to class on Wednesday for peer editing.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 - Rousseau & Montesquieu

Here's what happened today:

• Turned in News Magazine Outline & Enlightenment HW
• Did an activities on Rousseau & Montesquieu
• Received individualized homework assignments
  

Homework for next class: depending on which group you're in, your assignments are found below:

3 Revolutions Groups Chart (this will tell you which homework you need to do)

• The American Revolution
• The Glorious Revolution (English)
• The French Revolution

If you were absent in the morning class, please email me ASAP so I can prep you for our next class (swan5524@pacificu.edu).

Thursday, November 12, 2009 - Library Research Day

Today we:

• Turned in all missing/late work (today was the last day I could accept it since tomorrow's a Grading Day)
• Talked about credible internet sites vs. site you probably shouldn't use in your News Magazine Project
• Had group time to work out who would be doing what
• Worked in the library on the News Magazine Projects

One thing we talked about in class was that successful projects in the past were typically modeled after an existing magazine you might see in the "real" world. For example, you might have a magazine called "Philosophy Today" instead of Psychology Today.

Homework:

• Enlightenment HW due Tuesday, Nov 17
• 1 Outline for the News Magazine Project for each group is due Tuesday, Nov 17
  

Monday, November 9, 2009 - Hobbes & Locke

Today we:

• Answered the first 2 questions on the Englightenment Homework (below)
• Discovered how much we either agreed or disagreed with Thomas Hobbes' theories of political philosophy through an interactive Powerpoint
• Analyzed 3 pieces of art using John Locke's views of politics & human nature
• Received the "New & Improved" News Magazine packet, complete with the guiding question AND due dates (sorry afternoon class; I forgot to give you these, but will hand them out on Thursday OR you can see the previous post & download the new version on your own)
  

Next class (Thursday) we'll be having our only planned Library day so your groups can start conducting research for your News Magazines. Thursday is also the last day I can accept late work since Friday is a Grading Day! Be sure to get me your late work by the beginning of the period.

If you missed class, please view these Powerpoints:

• Hobbes PP
• Locke PP

Homework:

• Enlightenment HW (Due next Tues, Nov 17th)
  

Revamped News Magazine Packet

We revamped the News Magazine! I'll hand out the new & improved packets tomorrow (Monday), but I wanted to post it online in case you need another copy.

News Magazine Project Packet

Missing Work Announcement!

Next Friday is a Grading Day, so that means all missing work is due next week!

The last day I will accept late work is next Thursday (Nov 12th) at the beginning of the period.

I will be posting grades to Basmati tomorrow (Nov 5th) so you can check your progress. If you need copies of the work you're missing, you can find them on this blog or you can ask me if I have copies after class. Please contact me if you have any questions!

Thursday, November 5, 2009 - Machiavelli

Here's what we did today:

• Projects check-in
• Group Quiz/News Magazine intro (people chose their groups of 3)
• What makes America Great & Unique
• Fear & Love Discussion
• Machiavelli Reading/Posters

Homework:

• Finish Machiavelli Poster (I don't have an electronic version of this, so if you were absent, you can do this alternate assignment)
  

Tuesday, November 3, 2009 - Renaissance In-Class Essay

Today we did our open-note in-class essay on the Renaissance. Students took about 20 minutes to fill out the outline sheet I provided (10 points), had me check them, & then wrote their essays (30 points) for the rest of the class. Students made sure to underline each topic sentence in their essays.

Instead of collecting the "World Reborn" notes & the green Renaissance homework (that was due last class, but I said I'd collect it after the essay), I walked around & graded them on the fly: if you had them completed, you got full credit. If you were missing some answers, you may have lost a few points. I did collect the Renaissance Comic Strips that were due today. After students finished their essays, they stapled their Outlines to their essays & turned them in.

At the end of class, I passed out a packet of the culminating project of our European Civilization Unit. It's a cool News Magazine project, and we'll talk about it more next class & I'll show examples of what students have done in the past when we reconvene on Thursday. This is your last formal assessment for this unit, so no more actual "tests:" just this project, and you have about a month to work on it.

If you were absent:

• Fill out the essay outline & write your essay. Underline each topic sentence & turn in these documents to class on Thursday.
• Do the homework posted below.
  

Homework:
Read through the News Magazine packet & be prepared for a 5 point quiz on Thursday.

• This is a group quiz: I will randomly choose 5 students to answer each of the 5 questions, and if they get their question correct, the whole class gets it correct. Be prepared & don't let your classmates down!
  

Friday, October 30, 2009 - The Renaissance (video)

Kudos to those that dressed up today besides me & Mr. Powell! We were few, but we were AWESOME!

Today we:

• Finished watching "A World Reborn" (see previous post if you need to watch it: here are the filled-out notes if you missed class)
  
• Got cool cool prizes for wearing costumes

The essay has been pushed to Tuesday as an in-class open-note essay, and you'll fill out an outline form in class before you start writing.

Homework:

• Cartoon Assignment (and make sure to look at the questions on top: they're your options for the essay on Tuesday!). This is due at the beginning of the period on Tuesday.
  
• Bring back the green Renaissance homework that was due today (I let you keep it to help you for the upcoming essay).
• Have a fun, safe, happy Halloween!
  

Want to win a cool prize?

Dress up tomorrow (Friday) & come to class! I have some pretty neat prizes for those who dress up....

In other news, I've decided that we need a little more time on the Renaissance, so we'll do the essay in class on Tuesday instead of as a take-home over the weekend. I'll have a fun comic strip assignment to help get you ready for the essay. Remember, it's open-note, so take great notes!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009 - Renaissance Day 1

Today we started an extremely intellectual video called "A World Reborn" by Dr. Theodore Rabb, which we will finish watching on Friday. We used guided notes to help solidify the big ideas in this film, and we stopped the video periodically to make sure we were all on the same page.

If you missed class, please watch the videos on You Tube here. The videos listed should be the ones we watched in class. Be sure to use the guided notes

Homework:
Renaissance HW

Monday, October 26, 2009 - The Reformation

Today was a lot of fun...mostly because I tricked the class and we got to watch a music video. But I also enjoyed the Powerpoint & the activities :).

Today we:

• Bought Extra Credit (and later found out it was a joke about the indulgences)
• Experienced the Reformation Powerpoint (sorry, too big to upload: email me if you need this)
  
• Jammed to the 95 Theses Rap Music Video
• Completed an activity on the 95 Theses
• Started group Poster Projects using children's books about the Renaissance
  

No Homework tonight!

Next class we start our 2 day video on the Renaissance. If you're absent, check back here for the link to the video on YouTube & the guided notes to go along with it.

Thursday, October 22, 2009 - The Power of the Church

Sorry if I was a little out of it today. My cat Gryphon got hit by a car last night & had to go the emergency vet, so my mind was with him instead of the content today (he's mostly ok).



Today we:

• Turned in Middle Ages homework
• Reviewed the Middle Ages & Feudalism
• Talked about the Power of the Church
• Had workshop time to complete the "Power of the Church" handout

We also went over that next Friday is a half day, so the open-note in-class essay I had planned will now be a take-home. Hopefully you'll have time after the film to write on outline of what your essay will look like.

Homework:

• Finish the Power of the Church handout (due Monday)
• Complete the Reformation handout (due Monday)
• If I gave you a progress report, have your parent sign it and bring it back to our next class (this lets you avoid a call home). Complete the attached missing work.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009 - Feudalism & the Middle Ages

This outline might be a little different if you were in the afternoon class, but this is the general gist of what we did today:

• Mr. Powell taught how to write an effective thesis statement.
• We talked a bit about how the fall of the Roman Empire gave way to the Feudal System in the Middle Ages (homework review).
• We did a simulation on how the Feudal System was composed of interdependent symbiotic relationships.

Homework:

• Finish the pink Middle Ages homework sheet assigned at the end of our last class.
• If I gave you a progress report, have your parent sign it and bring it back to our next class (this lets you avoid a call home). Complete the attached missing work.

Friday, October 16, 2009 - Grading Day

Today was a bit hectic because we had a very short amount of time. Mr. Powell updated you on Projects for part of the class, and for the rest we either made Posters of the Self-Assessment Outcomes or jumped straight into Feudalism depending on which class you are in. Regardless, the homework was to finish the worksheet on the Middle Ages, which is due on Tuesday when we reconvene.

Homework:

• Middle Ages homework
  

Monday, October 12, 2009 - What is Learning?

Today we had a great conversation about what it means to be a good learner & how that relates to grades. We had a lot of insightful comments, and then brought it home by taking about Learning & Behavioral Outcomes. I let the class know part of their final grade (about 5%, or half a letter grade) will be based on their own self-assessments of how their learning has improved. The first one was given as homework due this Friday. I let the class know it is IMPERATIVE students save their graded work so they can use them as evidence to demonstrate improvement on specific goals.

Homework:
* Read through the Global History Learning Outcomes & Behavioral Outcomes
* Fill out your first self-assessment form (no evidence required) & bring it back Friday for a completion grade.

Extra Credit Opportunity!
If you have lower than a C in this class, you can earn extra credit by creating a nice poster of one of these Learning or Behavior Outcomes. Talk to me first!

Wednesday, October 7 - Test on Greece & Rome

Today we took the test on Greece & Rome, and we decided to push the Tic Tac Toe project back until next class (Monday, Oct 12) since you guys were having such a full, hectic week already. That's the only homework, and then we'll start up on the Middle Ages next week. Some people had missing work in their lockers they were going to put in Mr. Powell's box in the IHS office, which I will accept, collect & grade when I come back to Sheldon on Monday morning. After this, no more late work will be accepted with the single exception of the class syllabi that I am still missing from a few people.

If you were sick or absent, please email me & I'll send you a take-home version of the test to turn in to me when we regroup on Monday.

As always, feel free to email me if you have any questions. I'm usually glued to my computer, so I'm pretty good about giving prompt responses :).

Have a fantastic weekend!

Monday, October 5, 2009 - Roman Law: The 12 Tables

Today we:

• Reviewed the Roman Military Homework (the pink sheet)
• Did a super-cool activity on the 12 Tables & discussed what social problems Romans must have faced for these to be developed.
• Played a Jeopardy review game to help prepare us for the test on Wednesday

If you have questions about the Tic Tac Toe Choice Project, please email me! I am happy to work with you on changing/modifying projects on an individual basis so you can get as much as possible out of this project and have fun while you're doing it!

As a reminder, the 50 minute test on Wednesday is composed of:

• 10 multiple choice ?s
• 5 short answer ?s
• 1 essay ? (you can choose between 2 essay options & write on one of them.

For you overachievers out there (of which you all most certainly are), be sure to bring a book so you have something to do if you finish early.

See you Wednesday, and don't forget: no class on Friday.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Belated post for last week (Thursday, Oct 1 - Roman Empire & Military)

Today we:

• Ate delicious apples (thank you, overachievers!).
• Watched "Empires & Armies" and took guided notes. Fabulous film about the development of Rome.
• If we had time, we discussed a few questions from the guided notes.
• Received our study guide for the test on October 7th over Greece & Rome
  

Tuesday, September 29, 2009 - Rome & the USA

Today we:

• Introduced the Roman Republic through group work on the Roman Republic activity/homework (some of you over-achievers even got started on the Roman Military homework that's not due until next week).
• Journal entry: What is an Empire?
• Read the journal article, "Is America an Empire?" and had a marvelous discussion/debate on the issue.
• Introduced the Tic Tac Toe Choice Project & handed out grids (scoring guides on the back).
• You were challenged to watch the news tonight while keeping the question of the day in mind: is America an Empire?
  

Homework:
Slightly different homework than is posted on the collective IHS Global History Site, as discussed in class.

1. Roman Republic Homework .pdf (due 10-1-09)
   
2. Roman Military Homework .doc or .pdf (due 10-5-09)
3. Tic Tac Toe Choice Project .pdf (due 10-7-09)
4. Tic Tac Toe Choice Project Assessment .pdf
   

IHS Sophomore History site is up & running!

I probably won't post many blogs now that our official site is up and running. Please visit our collective site for more information on classwork & homework assignments

Hooray for Global History!

Welcome back from what I hope was a phenomenal, action-packed, life-affirming summer! This year we have a lot of great material to cover, the first twelve weeks of which I will be teaching.

Today we:

• Discussed what history is and how it is difficult to get a clear picture of the past out of context.
• Created namecards (hold on to these for future extra credit opportunities).
• Discussed the virtues & challenges of being able to fly or turn invisible
• Segued into Plato's "Ring of Gyges" (part of the homework due Wednesday)

A piece of your first assignment is to download the syllabus, print it (double-sided would be fabulous so we can save paper), read it, & have a parent or guardian read & sign it as well. Bring this signed syllabus to our next class & turn it in as part of your homework.

The other piece of your homework is to read Plato's "Ring of Gyges" & answer the questions I have included. If you misplaced the copy I handed out in class, you can find it through the link below. You're going to love it!

We're going have a great 12 weeks together, and I'm excited to see our growth & cohesion develop as a class!

-Kat Swanson


Homework (due 9-16-09)
link: Syllabus .pdf -or- .doc (print the .pdf if you are able: it is 2 pages while the .doc is 3)

link: Plato's "Ring of Gyges" .pdf -or- .doc