Monday we will be finishing up our Art Presentations in class. For homework, students will read the biography of either Leonardo da Vinci or Niccolo Machiavelli, two of the major characters of the Renaissance movement. Students will then write down one thing they have learned about their character after reading. One is remembered as the ultimate "Renaissance Man" for his knack in inventing, painting, and studying all sorts of different things. The other is remembered (perhaps incorrectly) as a ruthless politician who once said "It is better to be feared than loved."
Tuesday we will be looking at both biographies and sharing our observations with the class. We will also look at some of the reasons we remember both of these figures. We will also take a quiz to see whose personality we are most similar to out of four memorable Renaissance characters. For homework, students will read a worksheet about Mozart and Beethoven and answer questions. Due Thursday.
Some of da Vinci's ideas included the crossbow, the parachute, the tank, the helicopter, and the glider.
Apparently, Machiavelli looked way cooler in Assassin's Creed than in real life.
Wednesday will be a half-day, and we will dive into another artistic revolution: Music. We will look at the lives and works of composers such as Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Chopin , and others. It will be very exciting, so I need everyone to please contain their happiness. Just kidding. Really though.
Because on Thursday, we will finish up looking at music, and we will see how music like this...
....was the precursor to music like this......
Oh my gosh, you mean you like classical music and you just never knew it!?!?!
Friday, we will begin looking at the Scientific "Revolution" (there is a pun at play there) that occurred during the Renaissance, with men like Galileo and Copernicus. Bring your lab coats! (No, that was just a joke, but if you really want to, you can.) We will spend the class making cool collector's cards for some of the famous Renaissance Era Scientists (activity here if you were absent). Students will finish their collector's cards for homework if not finished in class.
US History I - A Period
Monday we will continue to work on our Constitutional Convention Jigsaw projects, collecting what we've learned about our Constitutional problems and how they were solved, and then students will be gathering into groups with everyone else who had the same problem as them, to ensure that everyone is on the same page. For homework, students will read a 3-page excerpt of a popular comtemporary novel about a young man who witnesses the Constitutional Convention, titled "Legacy."
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| Mr. Madison |
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| Mr. Hamilton |
POP QUIZ TODAY on whether or not you actively read the homework! For those of you who check the blog, congrats, you have a heads-up! Tuesday we will be forming into groups again, but this time each group will include one expert in each different problem - Slavery, the Power of the States, and Trade. You will be teaching the other two students in the group about your problem and how it was solved, as well as learning about the other two main issues at the Convention. At the end of class, students will turn in their projects for a quiz grade (25 points). For homework, students will study for the quiz tomorrow.
Wednesday is a half-day, and we will have a brief open-notes quiz on what we've learned so far. Some keys words to focus on: Treaty of Paris, Newburgh Conspiracy, Shays' Rebellion, Land Ordinance of 1785, Northwest Ordinance of 1787, Articles of Confederation, Annapolis Convention, Constitutional Convention, the 3/5 Compromise, the Virginia Plan, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, Daniel Shays. No homework tonight.
Thursday we will dbe jumping ahead to a modern Supreme Court case: Snyder v. Phelps (2011). Snyder's son was a Marine killed in Iraq, and Phelps is the head of a religious group called the Westboro Baptist Church, who claims that God kills American soldiers because America is full of sinners. Opinions are great, but when Alfred Snyder tried to hold his son's funeral, the WBC arrived with pickets and protested the funeral, saying things like "Thank God for Dead Soldiers." A few years later, after suffering a great deal of added emotional distress at the hands of the WBC, Mr. Snyder sued Mr. Phelps for causing him so much emotional and psychological pain. The case was bounced all the way up to the Supreme Court due to its publicity, but many were disappointed when the Supreme Court ruled that Phelps and the WBC were protected under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. Here is the main question we will consider: Despite our own feelings for these people and their opinions, when we are forming a country, should we focus on our own beliefs, or protect everyone's? Is it dangerous to persecute someone for their opinions, or is it fine? And finally, were the judges right or wrong??? These are all opinions. For homework, students will complete their current events, due Friday. Also, students will work on a packet on the Great Compromise, due Monday.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." - Aristotle
Friday we will be in the computer lab, beginning our For/Against Essays, the final drafts of which will be due on Tuesday. Students will read this article on Snyder v. Phelps to establish some context, and then begin on their two (2) essays. The students will take on the role of lawyers. For one essay, each student will defend Snyder, arguing that Phelps has abused his First Amendment rights and crossed a line. For the second essay, the student will have to change roles, defending now Mr. Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church, making the argument that everything they say and do is protected by the Bill of Rights. Each essay will be 3 paragraphs in length, and will follow the format found here.
