Mr. Brilla's Musings

Welcome:  This week we welcome the students back from Thanksgiving break and to the month of December! It was a busy week in homeroom as we had a second-step lesson on Wednesday and clubs on Thursday. We've also been busy collecting items for Operation Giving Tree--donations will be accepted through December 11, so please think about helping if you can.  Social Studies (Periods 2, 6, 7 and 8):  This Past Week: #22-Trails West Google Doc: Most of the week was centered on this Google Doc. The students completed four parts to help them gain a better understanding of the lengths to which Americans went in order to survive and thrive in the West in the 19th century.  Part One:  This was a simple chart about the trails that went west that the students completed using content burst videos recorded by Miss Boyd (the Orange Team social studies teacher).  Part Two:  The students then answered a series of questions to help serve as guided research about life on ...

Welcome:  Welcome to November! As we turned the page on the calendar we also turned to a new quarter and a new unit of study. This quarter is all about the physical growth of the United States as we start our unit of study called "Surviving and Thriving in the American West." Finally, the students took part in the Chester County mock election--here are the results for our school.  Social Studies (Periods 2, 6, 7 and 8):  This Past Week:  Manifest Destiny Defined:   We started the week with a Pear Deck to help the students better understand the meaning of the term "Manifest Destiny" and how it relates to the physical growth of the United States in the 19th century. The students were also asked to analyze a painting from the 19th century called "American Progress."  Flashcard Factory:     We played a Flashcard Factory to help the students make sense of four key terms for this unit; thriving, surviving, manifest, and destiny.  #03-Territories Ch...

Welcome:  This week marked the end of the Make a Difference Day donation drive for our district. We had the opportunity to unload the bus at the Coventry Food Pantry with the wrestling team and it was amazing to see how much the OJR community donated. Thanks to all of those who sent materials in!  We had the time to watch a quick video this week and I showed a great video from the now-defunct Livestrong Foundation. The video, about a cancer-survivor who summits Mt. Everest on one functioning lung, is a great reminder of how powerful humans can be. I think my favorite line from the entire video is when he says "everybody has mountains to climb." I hope you enjoy!  This Past Week:  Social Studies (Periods 2, 6, 7, 8): Monday: We started the day with a few rounds of Blooket to review for the Civics Exam and then the students had some time to finish their writing piece of the Electoral College Cyber Sandwich from Friday. Some of the students finished early enough to use ...

Welcome This week we continued to collect for the North Coventry Food Pantry as a school for the annual Make A Difference Day drive. The students can continue to bring in canned goods, paper products, and personal hygiene products throughout the week. This is an outstanding drive since everything stays right here in this community.  This Past Week:  Social Studies (Periods 2, 6, 7 and 8)  #38-Three Branches Infographic:  This assignment is designed as a culminating project where students synthesize their understanding of the three branches of government. After thoroughly investigating the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, students created an infographic that serves as a quick reference for key information. This includes the primary responsibilities of each branch, additional roles they perform, and the specific requirements for serving in each branch. The infographic offers a visual summary that students can use for future reference in understanding the ...

Welcome:  Just like that, we are into the middle of October and more than halfway done the first quarter! The students started the annual fundraiser this past week and went wild over rubber ducks and possible trips to Citizens Bank Park. Next week marks the beginning of the Make a Difference Day collection--the students will be collecting canned goods, paper products, and personal hygiene products to donate to the Coventry Food Pantry to support local families.  I've been listening to a lot of Ryan Holiday and his Daily Stoic podcast lately and he has been on a moment mori kick. Momento mori  is the idea that everything must die, it although it sounds morbid, is a great reminder for us to live our lives to the fullest. This reminded me of one of my favorite clips from the movie Dead Poets Society-- we didn't have time to watch it on Friday so we'll start the week with it on Monday.  This Past Week:  Three Branches Mastery Grid: The students spent most of the wee...

Welcome:  Just like that, we are into the last week of September. I was talking to one of the students in my third-period class about how quickly this year is flying by—we are already one-eighth of the way through it. The students participated in some Spirit Week competitions to help celebrate Homecoming this week and it was great to see so many kids decked out in jerseys, team colors, and, school colors.  I decided to show a quick clip from the movie The Pursuit of Happyness  since we were discussing the Declaration of Independence. The movie is a great movie based on the real-life story of Chris Gardner. We watched a 2-minute clip about the importance of dreams and never letting anyone squash your dreams.  This Past Week:  The Fight Begins: The students used this slide deck to guide them through most of the work they needed to complete this week. I was out on Monday and Tuesday for training from the district so this helped them.  Boston Massacre Writing A...