Egypt

Well, it's about time to head back to school.  I hope that everyone had a nice break!  To get things started off, I thought I would share with you my latest creation...



Using Prezi, I created something that I hope to use as I teach about Egypt.  When we come back on Thursday, if we aren't snowed out that is, we will begin our exciting journey.

Students, who are in my honors classes, have a literature assignment due.  We will discuss your reading of "Judaism" and use our Cornell notes to guide our discussion.  If you didn't turn it in on the last day of school, make sure you have it with you on Thursday!

See you all soon!

Anti-Semitism and Judaism

Last week, we continued debates in my honors sections; period two has completed all of their rounds, but period eight has one more to go.  All in all, they were all well done.  I found that the students have really come to understand the format.  In this round, we added POI (points of information) in to the equation.  I look forward to introducing new debate topics in the new year.  If there are any suggestions, please comment on this post.  Note, the next round of debates should have to do with Egypt (past or present) or current events.

With the exception of period eight, all students have taken the open-notes quiz on the Fertile Crescent Empires.  Most students scored very well.  Period eight will be given the test the day after the last debate takes place - most likely, the quiz will be on Tuesday.

All grades are up-to-date and can be viewed online.

This week we will be discussing anti-Semitism and Judaism.  This will be the first of the three major monotheistic religions we will study.  The emphasis will be placed on the Israelites and Phoenicians of ancient Canaan.  If time permits, we may spend a little time talking about the time between 1935 - 1945.  I always like to include this part of history, despite the fact that it seems out of place, to help the students understand how the people of this part of the world have been a big part of the history of humankind.

Reminder:  All students should be bringing their textbooks to class with them each day.  There are no longer textbooks available in my classroom as they have all been assigned.

 

Looking at the Israelites

Last week my classes each worked on different assignments.  It was kind of hectic, but I think that all of my students got what they needed.  By this point, all general classes should be able to describe the empires we have studied:  Babylonians, Assyrians, New Babylonians, and Persians.

I am planning a quiz/test for this upcoming week.  It will be given on Wednesday to period one; however, periods three, four, and six will take it on Tuesday.  Students in my period one class will be working on a type three writing assignment on Monday - the other classes have already completed the assignment.

Students will be permitted to use their note sheets for the quiz/test.  Their note sheets are two-sided.  On the front, they have Cornell notes regarding the empires (students took those notes while reading).  On the reverse, they should have copied information while we matched features on the SMART board as a class. Students MUST have their notes with them in order to use them on the test/quiz - that sounds like it should go without saying.

Textbooks were assigned to all students this week.  There are two reasons I decided to assign them:  1. Students were making a mess with them in my classroom - leaving them on the floor, etc., and, 2.  Some students have been asking to check them out to complete work unfinished in class.  Either way, I expect that students carry them to and from class each day.

This week, we will begin to study the Israelites and Anti-Semitism.  This will help form the foundation for what they will encounter in English class (if they have Mr. Bezler).  We will also discuss the function of propaganda which will be further explored in their reading classes (if they have Mrs. Post).

Honors classes will continue debating this week.  So far, we have had one round of debates (Friday) which went very well.  All four of the groups debated the effectiveness of the Patriot Act and did a fantastic job of either affirming or opposing the proposition.

Honors classes have been assigned Cornell notes for homework - they are due upon the completion of the debates.  At that time, they will also be given a test/quiz on the empires.

Back to School... and the Fertile Crescent

I hope that you all enjoyed the extended weekend; I know that I did.  I had a lot of fun with my loved ones and I assume that you all did as well.  Hmm... Are you ready for a type one writing prompt?

Giving thanks...

Giving thanks is important, but not just one day a year.  From the perspective of a:

Geographer - Give thanks for the Earth (and the processes that shape it)!
Historian - Give thanks for the many great people who came before us and for their contributions to humanity - those that have been recorded, anyway.
Economist - Give thanks for Black Friday!  Seriously, though, give thanks for all that we have both tangible and intangible.
Political Scientist - Give thanks for the laws that protect us; keeping us safe from the dangers of the world is very important.
Behavioral Scientist - Give thanks for our cultures.  Always remember that we are not all the same - that is a good thing!

As we get back to the classroom, we will have some time to review the major civilizations of the Fertile Crescent.  At some point, there will be a test (I'm guessing the week of the 9th).  Then it will be on to Egypt!

All of the students in my honors sections should have been preparing for the upcoming debates.  Don't wait until the last minute to prepare!  If you need help, ask to see me during POWER period and I will help you find your way.

See you on Tuesday!

The Babylonians and Assyrians - Model Essay

Students in my period six class were given the following type three writing prompt:  There were many similarities between the Babylonians and Assyrians.  They were to include at least three examples and the following were the focus correction areas:  1. End Punctuation, 2. Capitalization, and 3. Organization (their essays should have had three distinct parts).  Below, you will find a model essay which students will read in class.

The Fertile Crescent Empires

This week, students in my general classes completed vocabulary charts.  Basically, they displayed all of the vocabulary terms, definitions, and applications graphically.  The application part seemed to be the most difficult based on my review of their work.  I will give some examples below.  But first, here are the definitions of their newest set of terms:

1. Empire:  many territories and peoples controlled by one government
2. Babylon:  the capital of Babylonia; a city of great wealth and luxury
3. Caravan:  a group of travelers journeying together
4. Bazaar:  a market selling different kinds of goods
5. Zoroastrianism:  a religion that developed in ancient Persia

Students also completed a physical map of the ancient Fertile Crescent.  For the most part, they scored well.  I will distribute their graded maps in class tomorrow.

Back to the vocabulary assignment...  Since so many students struggled to appropriately apply the words, I will apply each of them tonight.  I will be reviewing all of the words on Monday and sharing these sentences.

1. Scribe:  In ancient Sumer only male students could study to become scribes.
2. Fertile Crescent:  The modern-day country of Iraq is located in the middle of the ancient Fertile Crescent.
3. City-State:  Singapore is an example of a modern-day city-state; few remain.
4. Polytheism:  The polytheistic people, such as the ancient Egyptians, worshipped several gods and goddesses.
5. Myth:  Sumerian myths warned that the gods would punish the people who angered them.
6. Empire:  Hammurabi, leader of the Babylonians, created one of the first empires as he conquered many Mesopotamian city-states.
7. Babylon:  Some historians would argue that Babylon was the most gorgeous capitol city of the ancient world.
8. Caravan:  The nomads of north Africa often traveled in caravans as the moved from place to place in search of food.
9. Bazaar:  When I visited Khan al-Kahlili in Egypt, I was amazed at the variety of goods that were sold and traded at the bazaar.
10. Zoroastrianism:  The Persians, a polytheistic people, primarily practiced Zoroastrianism.

Hopefully you can see how the sentences that I created demonstrated that I fully understood the words that I defined.  You should also notice that I included words from the previous unit in my definitions.  That is what I'm looking for from my students.

Honors students completed another literature assignment.  They read about the Babylonians and the nonfiction article did a great job of showing us how people changed as time moved on.  From hunter-gatherers to somewhat modern civilizations, the Fertile Crescent transformed before our eyes.  Students took Cornell notes as they read.  I have gone through their notes and I am very pleased with the way the students interacted with the text.  Students should continue to work on their physical maps of the Fertile Crescent - they must be complete and submitted by Wednesday.

Upcoming:  Honors students will be in the library, for research, as they begin to prepare for their upcoming debates.  General students will have a review of the vocabulary and will become more familiar with Cornell notes.

Land Between Two Rivers

The vocabulary words from last week were:

1.  Scribe:  a professional writer
2.  Fertile Crescent:  a region in Southwest Asia; site of the first civilizations
3.  City-State:  a city that is also a separate, independent state
4.  Polytheism:  the belief in many gods
5.  Myth:  a traditional story; in some cultures, a legend that explains people's beliefs

In class, students read about ancient Mesopotamia and the Sumerians.  Understanding the geographic setting will help them to understand the civilizations which we will begin to study this week.

Students in my general classes wrote about current events.  Unfortunately, we did not have a lot of time to talk about them because class on Friday was very tricky.  Some students worked on retakes of the map quiz and others worked on catching up on reading and other assignments.  I also tried to conference with many students regarding their performance on the map quiz and in general.

I was disappointed when I scored the map quizzes.  It seems that many students didn't study for it at all; however some students did study and had a great deal of success.  I decided to offer retakes in class on Friday to give students time to study and improve.  Again, many students did not study and that is reflected in their scores.  My advice is to study each night, for a short amount of time, when preparing for a map quiz. Waiting until the last minute to study will be ineffective for most students.  Students should also try to play the games that I posted - they will help a lot!

In my honors classes, students took notes on, "The Monster Humbaba" from their literature books.  "The Monster Humbaba is an excerpt of the Epic of Gilgamesh.  They used the Cornell format to take their notes which I collected for review this weekend.  Overall, they were done very well.  I will be returning them during class on Monday and we will have further discussion which will include looking at some of the highlights.  I think most students enjoyed reading the story and I look forward to reviewing their notes on, "The Babylonians" this Friday.  Students should be reading, "The Babylonians" this week and taking notes (due on Friday).

Upcoming debate topics:  1.  The Hammurabi Code is more effective than modern law; 2.  Farming should be considered one of components of civilization; 3.  The Palestinians should have their own country within the boundaries of modern Israel; 4. The United States should not give aid to the Philippines after the recent typhoon; and 5.  The Patriot Act is necessary despite infringing on our privacy.

Debates will take place on Tuesday, November 26th.

The Babylonian Empire will be the central focus next week.  Along with the Babylonians, we will study the Assyrians, New Babylonians, Persians, Phoenicians, and Israelites.  It will take us two weeks or more to learn about these civilizations.

Our next set of vocabulary will include the following terms:  empire, Babylon, caravan, bazaar, and Zoroastrianism.  I will post definitions when I blog next week.