The Electoral College - September 26, 2008

The 2008 Presidential Election is just over a month away, and so today we learned about the exciting (but often confusing) Electoral College.

We started off with this handout:
http://staff.hartdistrict.org/rvi/electoral.pdf

And we then simulated Election Night using an interactive map from the New York Times website here:
http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/president/whos-ahead/key-states/map.html

Who do you think will win on Election Day? Use the simulator to predict your picks. Take a screenshot of your picks and e-mail it to Mr. Ippolito no later than Monday, November 3. The student who gets closest to the real results on Election Day will get lunch from your choice of Jersey Mike's, Red Brick Pizza, or Pick-Up Stix!

Finally, don't miss the first debate between Senator McCain and Senator Obama TONIGHT. Coverage starts at 6:00 p.m. on most major networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, CNN, etc.).

RVI

National Treasure - Part II

We're finishing the film National Treasure today in class. Make sure that you have the Study Guide completed (on pages 26 and 27) by our next class session. Hope you enjoyed the movie, and that you learned a little more about the motivation and theory behind the Declaration of Independence!

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Quiz Re-Take

Every one of my students will have the opportunity to re-take the unit quiz. Here are the details:

1. You must take the quiz re-take on Wednesday, 9/24, at lunch.
2. Once I put the quiz re-take in your hand, your old score is erased. You must take the new score from the re-take.
3. This re-take score will NOT affect your progress report grade, but it will affect your final quarter grade (the grade that matters).

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National Treasure - Part I

Agenda:
1. Check homework ("Growing Problems and Shays' Rebellion")
2. Go over Unit Quiz questions and answers
3. New unit! - we now create a new cover page and new table of contents
4. Cover page - "The Constitution" (pg 23)
5. Table of Contents (pg 24)
--leave pg 25 blank for right now--
HW: National Treasure Study Guide (pgs 26-27) - this is not due until after we finish the movie

We transitioned from one unit to the next today. Make sure you begin a brand new Table of Contents on page 22, and remember those five symbols (in color) on the cover page.

We also began our viewing of National Treasure today. We watched the first 35 minutes in class today, and we will finish the rest of the film in our next class session. Once we finish the movie, be prepared to dive into our next unit: the Constitution!

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Quiz corrections

The average quiz scores for all my classes was right around 70%. It was a tough quiz! Kudos to all who survived, and because the average score is lower than I would like, I have decided to offer quiz corrections. The quiz corrections score will NOT count toward the progress report, but it will make a difference in your final quarter grade (that's the one that counts).

You will get more details on how you can improve your quiz grade in our next class.

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Grades are done!

Progress report grades have been updated as of 9/20/08 (even though it says 9/12; I have to fix that from home). If you have a dispute, you can see me before school Monday. Otherwise, those are the grades that will be including in the 1st Quarter Progress Report.

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Growing Problems and Shays' Rebellion

This was the homework that I assigned for the quiz/INB grading day.
Didn't get it? Not to worry! Thanks for checking the blog for the
assignment! You rock! Here is the assignment:

Growing Problems and Shays' Rebellion

DIRECTIONS: Cut and paste these questions on the top of page _____ in
your INB. Then, answer these questions on the bottom of the page. Use
pages 82-83 in the textbook to help you answer the questions. You
don't need to use complete sentences, but you must answer the
question in a way that Mr. Ippolito knows that you understand the
answer.

1. What two main factors made trade between the states difficult
under the A of C?
2. In what ways did foreign nations show a lack of respect to the
U.S.?
3. What group was hit hardest by the economic depression of the
mid-1780's?
4. What did state governments do to collect taxes during the
depression?
5. Who was Daniel Shays and what did he do in 1786?
6. How did Shays' actions alter Americans feelings toward the A
of C?

Are you ready???

The end of the grading period is quickly approaching. Here's what you need to do between now and then:

1. Prepare your INB. Your Interactive Notebook should be complete, pages 1-21. Need another copy of the INB grade sheet? Download it HERE.

Need another copy of something? Get it from my classroom, or simply e-mail me at rvi@hartdistrict.org and I'll either e-mail it to you, or post it to the blog so everyone can get it. Your INB must be ready to go by the time the next class period begins.

2. Get ready for the quiz. What's the best way to study? Use your INB. Don't bother with the textbook. You need to know what's in your notebook. Pay particularly close attention to everything we learned about the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. This will be most of the quiz.

Good luck, and of course contact me if you have any questions.

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Table of Contents

Help with the ARTICLES acrostic poem assignment

I had a student e-mail me who needed a little help and inspiration for the acrostic. Here's my response. Perhaps it will help you as well!

So you are going to write the letters in the word "Articles" down the page in your INB, like this:

A
R
T
I
C
L
E
S

Then you think of a sentence or two that describes the Articles of Confederation. For example, if I were doing an acrostic poem for ice cream, it might look something like this:

In my mouth, all those flavors are yummy!
Cold is the temperature of ice cream.
Every flavor is great, but my favorite is strawberry

Chocolate is also a great flavor of ice cream
Rocky Road is great because it has almonds and marshmallows in it
Everyone loves a cold ice cream treat on a hot day
Actually, I'm thinking about getting some ice cream right now
Mmmmmmmm! Ice cream!

Hope that helps, and good luck with your homework!

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The Articles of Confederation Simulation - September 12-15, 2008

Agenda:
1. Articles of Confederation Game (pg 19)
2. Features of the Articles of Confederation (pg 20-21)
HW: Finish the Articles acrostic (pg 18)

Today we played the Articles of Confederation Game. You have to play it to truly experience it! If you've already played the game, don't spoil it for everyone else! It's a great way to help students get a feel for the frustration and anger that the Americans felt in the 1780s while they were struggling to form their new nation.

Hey, Period 2, that was quite a simulation, eh? We get so wrapped up that we didn't get to finish "Features of the Articles," so you can download the packet HERE.

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The Articles of Confederation - September 10-11, 2008

Agenda:
1. Operation US - students who would like to participate must submit their application by 9/15
2. What does our National Anthem mean to you?
3. Declaration Marketing Campaign presentations (pg 15)
4. The End and the Legacy of the Revolution (pg 16)
5. Problems with the Articles of Confederation (pg 17)
HW: Articles Acrostic (pg 18)

Today we began by presenting our Declaration of Independence Marketing Campaign presentations. We then examined the legacy of the American Revolution, and finished by looking at the Articles of Confederation. We will continue our study of the Articles in our next class.

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Scooter's Jungle - September 8, 2008

We are headed to Scooter's Jungle tomorrow on our first Team Yukon field trip! Because of this, your next homework ("The End and the Legacy of the Revolution") will not be due until Wednesday (A-day) or Thursday (B-day).

We look forward to a great day at the Jungle!

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Declaration of Independence Marketing Campaign

Agenda:
1. Review of the Great Awakening and the Enlightenment
2. Work on Declaration of Independence Marketing Campaign
HW: The End and the Legacy of the Revolution (pg 16)

Today we took our 2008 knowledge and went back in time to 1776 to help
the Founders of our nation market the Declaration of Independence.
Working in groups of five or six, we developed a slogan, a jingle, and a
print ad to "sell" the idea of the Declaration to other Americans, the
British, and the French (whose help we need to win the Revolution).

You may not have gotten the homework sheet, so if not, the assignment
is here:

The End and the Legacy of the Revolution

DIRECTIONS: Cut and paste these questions on the top of page _____ in
your INB. Then, answer these questions on the bottom of the page. Use
pages 61-63 in the textbook to help you answer the questions. You
don't need to use complete sentences, but you must answer the
question in a way that Mr. Ippolito knows that you understand the
answer.

1. How did the Battle of Saratoga mark a turning point in the
Revolution?
2. What country entered into a formal alliance with the United
States?
3. Which OTHER country was also helpful in fighting against Britain
during the Revolution?
4. How did the Americans win final victory at Yorktown?
5. Under the terms of the Treaty of Paris, what were the new
boundaries of the United States?
6. How did the American Revolution affect France?
7. What effect did the American Revolution have in Latin America?

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What's the opposite of mustard?

Because of the special assembly schedule today, we used today to catch-up on work. Tomorrow we start work on our Declaration of Independence project!!

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