Skip to main content

Week 16: Decemberr 9, 2024

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 the Oregon Trail. 
    • Part Three: The students took some time to update a Canva presentation they created called "My American Story." They will be making updates to this presentation throughout the quarter and will use it to create a video detailing American history as they see it. 
    • Part Four: This portion of the assignment was the only graded part. The students selected an essential question that they will be answering throughout our study of American history and then applied what they've learned in the first three parts to their answer for the question. 
  • My American Story Website Updates: The students also updated their website called "My American Story." They will be using this website to keep track of everything we learn throughout the year and will have a portfolio of sorts when the year is finished. 

Next Week:

  • Content Check-in #5: The students will take the fifth content check-in of the year on Friday, December 13. We will continue to play small review games in class and the students can use the review games on the Google Classroom in the Classroom Resources section to study on their own at home if they'd like. 
  • The California Gold Rush: The students will spend most of next week learning about the gold rush that took place in California in the mid-19th century. We will watch parts of America the Story of Us: Westward and the work for this activity will closely mirror the work the students did for the trails west. 

Accelerated Social Studies (Period 3): 

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 the Oregon Trail. 
    • Part Three: The students took some time to update a Canva presentation they created called "My American Story." They will be making updates to this presentation throughout the quarter and will use it to create a video detailing American history as they see it. 
    • Part Four: This portion of the assignment was the only graded part. The students selected an essential question that they will be answering throughout our study of American history and then applied what they've learned in the first three parts to their answer for the question. 
  • The California Gold Rush: The students also spent time learning about the gold rush that took place in California in the mid-19th century. We watched parts of America the Story of Us: Westward and the work for this activity closely mirrored the work the students did for the trails west. 
  • My American Story Website Updates: The students also updated their website called "My American Story." They will be using this website to keep track of everything we learn throughout the year and will have a portfolio of sorts when the year is finished. 

Next Week:

  • Content Check-in #5: The students will take the fifth content check-in of the year on Wednesday, December 11. We will continue to play small review games in class and the students can use the review games on the Google Classroom in the Classroom Resources section to study on their own at home if they'd like.
  • The Transcontinental Railroad: The students will take some time to investigate the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad in the final Google Doc about groups that went west. They will continue to answer guided research questions, add to their "My American Story" Canva and then answer an essential question. 
  • My American Story Video: The students will make their final additions to their "My American Story" Cavna presentation this week and will then record their videos to help them make sense of the story of Manifest Destiny in America.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Week 12: November 11-15

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...

Week Seven: Friday Ocbtober 13, 2023

Welcome:  And just like that we are finished with the seventh week of school and halfway through October! This past week was a fun one as we celebrated homecoming with a Spirit Week that culminated with some fun in the gym at the end of the day on Friday. Don't forget that we have team spirit wear available and information about the Make a Difference Day food collection on our middle school website.   This week brought another Friday and another opportunity for an inspirational video. This week we watched a video of one of the most inspiring people I've ever seen--Inky Johnson. Inky talks all about belief and overcoming obstacles in this video.  Social Studies (Pd. 1, 5 and 6):  This Past Week:  Monday:  On Monday we finished the episode of America the Story of Us  that we were watching about the American Revolution. The students also picked topics for the Common Craft video portion of the American Revolution Menu and got into groups.  Tuesday: To...