And that is how democracy impacted the world...

In the short class that we had today, we spent much of the period talking about the ways in which democracy has impacted the world...

How practical is democracy?  Can we get 100 people together?  A thousand?  A million?  A billion?  That would not be an easy feat, nor would it be something that we could do on a regular basis...

The truth is that the democracy of ancient Greece has INSPIRED many other groups of people to seek a style of government where they have a voice.  In the case of the United States, it is a Republic.  A republic is NOT the same as a democracy, but it does have democratic principals.  In a republic, the masses elect representatives who govern (and are supposed to act in their best interest of the people).  Although there are flaws in the systems in place around the world, many of the ideas that we cherish come from the ancient Greeks!

Any questions?

Note:  Tomorrow we will begin to look at a modern political map of the countries of Europe.  All students will have time to work on the map AND ask questions in class tomorrow.  There will be a quiz in a week!

Essential Question #2 (Ancient Greece)

How and why was democracy developed in Greece?  How did democracy change the world?

To help answer this essential questions (with two parts), students were presented with the following PowerPoint slide.  Please review the slide and post any questions that you have regarding the process by which ancient Greece adopted democracy and the reasons why they chose to do so...

Famous Greek Americans (E.C.)

Are you interested in earning some extra points in social studies class this marking period?  If so, you are in luck!  All you have to do is pick a famous Greek American from Wikipedia's List of Greek Americans, do a little bit of research, and present your information to the class.  You may read what you find on Wikipedia, but remember that it is wise to look at other sources too!

Here is what I am looking for:
1)  Who are you talking about?  Perhaps you want to have a picture to show the class...
2)  Why are they famous?  How are they important?
3)  What accomplishments have they made?
4)   If you can find out, how did they go about immigrating to the United States?  If they are not a first-generation Greek-Americans, how did their family immigrate to the United States and when?
5)  Provide any other details that you think are important or interesting!

Better yet (added 02/10/2011) - Can you tell me how being Greek has influenced their lives?  For example, Greek stories, traditions, mythology, philosophy, etc...

Make a poster, make a PowerPoint, or do whatever it takes to make your presentation interesting (3-5 minutes would be the ideal length)!  Please turn in a copy of whatever articles that you use (or obtain information from) to create your presentation.  Feel free to highlight and/or write notes on the articles themselves.  If you have any questions, feel free to post them or ask me in class.

Good Luck!

and then there was DEMOCRACY

Today students were expected to finish their BDA assignment and begin to answer the newest essential question.  Be sure that it is complete and ready for me to review at the start of class. 

Tomorrow we will spend the majority of the period discussing democracy.  Begin to think about the ways in which democracy has impacted the world.  Have those changes been good?  Bad?  What do you think? 

Note:  Maps of Europe are coming soon!  Maybe even tomorrow!

Democracy, Greece, and the World

New essential question:  How and why was democracy developed in Greece?  How did democracy change the world?

Students should be in the process of answering the above-mentioned essential question.  The first part of the question could be answered based on a reading assignment that we began today.  The second part of the question will be answered after we have a class discussion in the coming days...

Can you define the word citizen?  Feel free to post a definition (in your own words) which will hopefully lead to some discussion!

Notes:  I have decided to break this unit into two parts.  Instead of one large assessment at the end of the unit, there will be two smaller assessments.  Between the first and second parts, we will begin to work on a project involving people from ancient Greece.  Finally, keep checking for information regarding another extra credit assignment (for the third quarter).

Cause and Effect (Friday's Class)

We discussed the cause and effect relationship that geography has on the lives of people who live in a particular place.  Here is the chart we analyzed in class for your review:

We also reviewed all of the key terms from section 6.1 (graphic organizer was due/collected on Friday). 

If you  have any questions, please post!

The Consequences of Geography

Yes, there are CONSEQUENCES of geography.  What do I mean?  Well, what I am trying to say is that geography is the 'cause' of many 'effects,' and that is exactly what we are talking about with regard to ancient Greece.

The goal for today's class was to extend our study of the essential question regarding geography.  Previously, we took a look at the impacts of geography on people (in general); today we looked at geography with regard to the impact that geography has had on two groups of people:  the Minoans, and the Mycenaeans.  In class tomorrow, we will discuss this concept further.

Reminder:  Vocabulary Sheet 6.1 is due TOMORROW and we will have a discussion about those words in class....