Friday, December 21, 2012

Class Update: 12-20-12 and 12-21-12

Yesterday in history class we broke into two groups, one learning about the Battle of Vicksburg and one learning about the Battle of Gettysburg. I was in the Gettysburg group. We were supposed to use our devices to go on a website to read about this battle. But, we had some technical difficulties. It was hard to pull up the website for some reason so we ended up having it on only one device. And then we had trouble moving to the next pages of the very long article. Eventually, we just used the textbook. By this time we didn't have much time to make our poster but we got it done. Today, the world did not end and instead we went to the winter concert.
Happy Winter Break and
Merry Christmas!

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Class Update: 12-18-12 and 12-19-12

Yesterday in history class, well let's just say I lost a lot of respect for Abraham Lincoln. We learned about habeas corpus and how it is written in the constitution that it can be suspended in time of rebellion or invasion. Lincoln was the first and last to ever use this privilege. I was shocked that thousands of people were put in jail, simply for speaking out against Lincoln or the Union. One of the most basic freedoms was taken away from them, which in my eyes makes Lincoln a hypocrite. He was obsessed with preserving liberty to all, but took it away from anyone who went against him. Today in class we took lots of notes on the civil war. We also watched a short clip on the projector and looked at excerpts from the Emancipation Proclamation. I find it funny that Lincoln said "If my names goes down in history, it will be for this" It's funny that he used if as if he wasn't sure if he would be remembered. I don't think there is a person in this country that doesn't know Lincoln! He's even immortalized with a memorial and on our currency.

Monday, December 17, 2012

Class Update: 12-14-12 and 12-17-12

On Friday we went to the computer lab. We worked on a large powerpoint that had some questions we had to answer. Basically, the ultimate question we were finding evidence to answer was: Who had the easier task ahead of them, the North or the South? I think my essay will discuss why the South actually should of had the easier test. Today in class we had another QR code scavenger hunt! There were ten questions each describing battles of the Civil War.

Class Update: 12-11-12 and 12-12-12

Lately we've been talking about South Carolina succeeding from the union. Today we discussed whether or not they had the right or the justification to do so. I believe that they should have the right to leave, but their reasoning was not strong enough. Today we talked about the different points of view taken, such as a New Orleans newspaper which clearly thought Lincoln was attacking their way of life. Lincoln believed that he was only preserving liberty to all by eliminating slavery.

Class Update: 12-7-12 and 12-10-12

On the seventh we didn't have class because of the half day but on the tenth we did some worksheets. We talked about a quote from Lincoln where he compares the idea of "liberty to all" to a golden apple and the Constitution and Declaration of Independence to silver settings which preserve the apple.

Class Update: 12-5-12 and 12-6-12

Yesterday in class we had an Ed-Cafe discussing who the most important figure of the 1850s was. Things got pretty heated and we debated loudly as most everyone had a strong opinion. Most people seemed to think that the person they were assigned was the most important even though the winner ended up being Abraham Lincoln, my person. But, I do think that it was really luck of the draw for me as Lincoln was such a large figure. The nest day we had our test, which caused a major hand cramp!

Class Update: 11-30-12 and 12-3-12

I've been quite the bad seed lately and keep forgetting to make my blog posts, but here it is! On Friday we worked on a packet about what caused some Southern states to want to succeed from the union. Today we looked at a political cartoon of the 1860 presidential election. It depicted Republican candidates, including Lincoln, ripping apart a large map of the United States while others worked diligently to glue it back together. Clearly, the cartoonist did not agree with Lincoln as he is seen as tearing apart our nation.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Class Update: 11-28-12 and 11-29-12

Yesterday in history we finished discussing the debates between Lincoln and Douglas. We filled out a chart showing their varying view points on many topics. In the end, Douglas become senator of Illinois. We also began discussing John Brown and the crimes he had committed. To me, he basically sounded like a crazy person with good intentions. All he wanted was to liberate the slaves, but sadly he went about it all wrong. Today in class we read three primary source documents on John Brown. They included official reports and court testimonies which described what happened when Brown and his men took over an armory.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Class Update: 11-26-12 and 11-27-12

Yesterday in class we discussed the case of Dred Scott vs. John Sandford. Basically, the case was a slave versus his master to sue for his freedom. Scott believed he could win this case because he had lived on free land for quite some time. Also, there were other cases of this in which the slave was able win. It was interesting to see that the final verdict was basically an opinion. The judge was strongly anti-slavery which obviously caused him to rule against Dred Scott. This judge's ruling would also end up changing the way the public viewed slavery and popular sovereignty. Today in class we watched a video clip depicting the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Steven Douglas. Each one was vying for the position of Illinois senator. I was shocked to see some of the racist things Lincoln had said. I think most people, including myself, tend to idealize him by saying how he was for equality. In reality the country was a century away from equality it would have been shocking for the time to see Lincoln preach such a thing.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Class Update: 11-19-12 and 11-20-12

I realize now that with the preparation for homecoming and the hypnotist show, I forgot to make a class update post on Tuesday. Here it is! On the nineteenth in class we talked about Uncle Tom's Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. We talked about how slaves were captured and the fugitive slave act, which encouraged Northerners to help return fugitive slaves. It was sickening to discuss how the slaves were hunted down by dogs, as if they were animals or some kind of prey. Fugitive slave cases were taken so seriously that even the small acts that Northerners did such as feeding or housing fugitive slaves could get them jail time or a hefty fine. The next day we completed multiple worksheets on the Nebraska-Kansas Act and what was known as "Bleeding Kansas". These explained the creation of Kansas and Nebraska and allowing them to have a popular vote on the topic of slavery. This caused a huge commotion and many deaths as pro- and anti-slavery activists alike tried to gain control of these lands. I was shocked to hear about the attack between a Northern Senator and a Southern Representative and that despite beating someone nearly to death, the Southerner never received jail time. Many people can't believe the dirty politics and slander that occur today, but nothing compares to this incident over 150 years ago!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Abraham Lincoln

Class Update: 11-13-12 and 11-14-12

Field trip! Yesterday we went to the computer lab to do work with a map of the United States in 1820 on the computer. The map showed the amount of slave states and free states and also showed Arkansas Territory and the Unorganized Territory. The Southerners outnumbered the Northerners which meant that in the house of representatives the power was swayed in favor of the Southerners. But, in the Senate the balance between the two was relatively equal. When the south wanted Missouri added to the union, Northerners feared that another state in the south would upset the balance. The Missouri compromise added Maine as it own state restoring balance. Today we talked more about the Missouri compromise and the Mexican war. This was the war between the U.S. and Mexico over the southern border of Texas. In the end the United States also received land which made it a "Two ocean country".

Friday, November 9, 2012

Class Update: 11-7-12 and 11-8-12

Yesterday in History class we took more notes on slavery and each received a document either defending or supporting slavery which we answered questions on. My document was by a Southern Senator named John Hammond. The document was one of his speeches about why he supported slavery. He stated that every society needs a group of inferior people to do low level tasks while the more superior people do the more difficult tasks such as running the government and other parts of society. Reading his speech was quite disgusting and it was amazing to see someone justify something as horrible as slavery. Today in class we took more notes on slavery which talked a lot about the underground railroad.  We then read 10 textbook excerpts from 10 different textbooks, all explaining the underground railroad. While of the textbooks explained the basics, they all seemed to have different takes on its importance. Most textbooks seemed to believe the underground railroad only helped few slaves and was really of no importance.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Ted Talks: 30 Day Change

I just watched the Ted Talks video which discusses what you can do for thirty days to make a change. This can either be taking something up or giving up something. I've decided that my thirty day challenge will be studying for math every night. Typically, I only study before a test but for thirty days I'll make sure to study math for at least 15 minutes each day, which will not include completing homework. I will do this either in a study, by staying after, or just at home. For me, math is the hardest subject so I think this challenge will be very beneficial.

Class Update: 11-5-12 and 11-6-12

Happy election day! Today at the beginning of class we had our own mock election which everyone in school participated in. It will be interesting to see who wins and if it will match the country's vote. After our "election" we talked about whether or not the Constitution was pro-slavery. Interestingly enough, we found out that Frederick Douglass first believed it to be pro-slavery but then changed his mind. We looked at his points for both sides of the argument and then had to make up our own minds. I believe that the Constitution was anti-slavery. The founding father could have easily began the document with "We the citizens", "We the delegates", or even "We the upper class white men" but they didn't. They said the people of the United States deserve rights and this is one of the reasons I think the Constitution did not support slavery. Yesterday we talked about 5 people who were very outspoken about their opinions of slavery. It seems as though the highly educated rich people with no hardships in life where pro-slavery. I think this is because they had no way to relate to slaves or the lives they live. In most cases they probably owned slaves themselves and thought only of the money made when a business holds slaves. Before this we made Venn Diagrams about three true accounts of slavery. They showed that some slaves could have kind masters and better lives while others where forced to endure extreme hardships and suffer greatly.

Friday, November 2, 2012

Class Update: 10-30-12, 11-1-12, and 11-2-12

Because we had no school on Monday due to the power outage and Hurricane Sandy, today I bring you three class updates for the price of one! On Tuesday in class we worked on our Integrated projects which we then presented yesterday. My group consisted of me, Rachel Mahoney, Eliza Mullen, and Maeve Callewaert. We wrote, performed, and recorded a scenario in which Julius Caesar was on trial by the Continental Congress. It was a lot of fun to create and we edited it together into a more professional looking video. I was very happy with our finished project although in the end it had some glitches when we played in the school library. Today in class we read documents about slavery. My group read about slaves being transported in ships under horrific conditions. It was understand that many wished to jump ship and drown over live a life of slavery. We then created a storyboard which showed what our documents were about in pictures and words.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Class Update: 10-25-12 and 10-26-12

Yesterday in class we had a quiz on the preamble of the Declaration of Independence. After the quiz we took notes on the final battles and the resolution of the Revolutionary War. Our notes included information on the battle of Yorktown and the Treaty of Paris. It was interesting to see that the Treaty of Paris included giving the Americans the land between the Appalachians and the Mississippi River when this was one of the reasons the revolution began. As Mr. Boyle said, "everything came full circle". Today in class we had our second "Quest" which included identifying ten of the thirteen colonies, writing two sentences about seven terms, and answering three short answer questions.

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Values in my Nation

Class Update: 10-24-12 and 10-23-12

Yesterday in class we went on a technological scavenger hunt! We split into five groups with each group having about 3 people and exactly one "device". Then we ran around the bottom floor of the school, scanning a total of ten QR codes that were scattered about. Each one described a battle of the Revolutionary War, and we had to write down the description of the battle and then decide which battle it was and what the date was. The first group to get all the battles, dates, and descriptions in the correct order won! Our team ended in third. Today we watched a VoiceThread that Mr. Boyle created which described 8 paintings by four artists. Each painting had something to do with the Revolutionary War, such as showing famous battles. WE heard about some very famous paintings such as the one depicting the meeting of delegates constructing the Declaration of Independence and the painting showing Washington crossing the Delaware. One thing I found interesting was how often the paintings were full of historical inaccuracies. I understand artistic license and that it may have been hard for them to know how things actually looked, but it really is a shame that the paintings are spreading false information to the people viewing them. 

Friday, October 19, 2012

Class Update: 10-18-12 and 10-19-12

On the 18th we had a substitute teacher. While Mr. Boyle was gone we read an essay by Thomas Paine which began with the lines "These are the times that try men's souls". We each had to write an essay on whether or not we believed that this sentence applied to modern times. I wrote that it does. I think that because of the tough economy and the wars overseas, many family's souls are being tired. Some are having trouble simply putting food on the table and others are seeing their loved ones killed in battle. Today in class we discussed our opinions after taking notes on the crossing of the Delaware and the battles in Princeton and New York City.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Class Update: 10-16-12 and 10-17-12

Yesterday in class we read the Declaration of Independence. Then, we were put into groups and each group was assigned a section of the Declaration. My group had the closing. The authors stated that they were now separate from Britain and gave themselves full right to act as their country and make all their decisions with the consent of the King. They closed by declaring that they would give everything (such as their fortunes and sacred honor) to make it work. They would rather put their lives on the line for treason and loose everything than break their promise to give the colonies liberty. The next day we were put into groups with people we were not with the day before. We each told each other about what we learned the yesterday. Then, as a class, we talked about what it means that each man signed the Declaration as opposed to the conspirators in Julius Caesar who simply gave each their word. We also discussed what it means to trust people- that to everyone trust is different and may be easier or harder to give out. I really don't blame the signers for wanting their promise in writing; they had a lot to loose if they weren't able to win the Revolution and I'm sure some of them would consider going back on what they said. But, this document was more than just about a promise. It was also showing King George III that they were serious and 56 highly respected men wished for independence and were willing to do whatever it takes. Also in class, we talked a little bit about the debate and how the government has changed and how we can still use our rights to change what we don't like.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Class Update: 10-12-12 and 10-15-12

On Friday we went into groups and each group had a different document pertaining to the revolution. My group had "The Plain Truth". It was written by James Chalmers, who was a loyalist. He wrote this 70 page pamphlet to convince other people that the colonies should not try to gain independence from Britain. He said that democracies and republics such as Rome and Greece would always come and go, and it was not a stable way to run a government. He thought we would not be able to find a better way to run the colonies than what Britain was already doing. This was written in response to a pamphlet called "Common Sense" which came before. It was written by Thomas Paine, who was a patriot. Paine explained that it was time for the colonies to distance themselves from Britain. The next document we talked about was the Olive Branch Petition. This was a letter written by the Second Continental Congress to the King. It was in hopes that they could find a way to solve their differences without bloodshed. It was ignored, and the colonists could see that war would be necessary. Today in class we presented our Revolutionary Replica projects in front of the class by explaining who our person was and what was in their "pocket".

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Class Update: 10-9-12 and 10-10-12

And the revolution has begun! Yesterday in class we discussed how eyewitness accounts are not always as accurate as they may seem. we then saw that first hand in two ways. We watched a very interesting video on the science of eyewitness accounts and we took notes on different accounts of "The Shot Heard 'Round the World". It was pretty funny because every British (Regular) person said the Americans (Patriots) started it, while every American said it was the British. It reminded me of two children saying "He did it! Not me!". Today in class we talked about the Battles of Lexington and Concord and Bunker Hill. It was amazing to see how many British casualties there were when they were the most powerful army in the world. We put together a video based on things we thought each side would have been "Googling" during the Battle of Lexington and Concord. For some reason the embed code isn't working but the link to our video is here.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Class Update: 10-4-12 and 10-5-12

Yesterday in class we had our second Ed-Cafe to discuss events that led up to the Revolutionary War. It wasn't as good as the first Ed-Cafe, as it was mostly having the person tell you about what happened and then taking notes. There wasn't much to discuss, and usually by the time you were done taking notes you had to move on to the next topic. Today we did more discussing the events that led up to the revolution. After that, we read the poem about the ride of Paul Revere and talked about the actual events that occurred. Then, we wrote our own sonnets in pairs about the ride of Revere, Dawes, and Prescott. It was fun and very different to do something like that.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Class Update: 10-2-12 10-3-12

Yesterday in class we talked about the French and Indian war. It was interesting to see that the Indians got involved and that different tribes took different sides. Also, I couldn't believe that colonists endured harsh winter conditions, low rations, wounds, and even death for the land west of the Appalachians. I don't think anyone can blame them for being outraged when King George said that they couldn't live there. He said that he cared about the safety of the colonists, but in actuality he would have never let them die for it if he cared at all. Today we prepared for the second Ed-Cafe by reading our packets of information and making a slideshow on it. I liked going to the library and doing the slideshow, but Google Docs was really frustrating! It kept "updating" and forcing us to refresh the page, sometimes loosing what we were working on. But, it was nice to do something outside of the classroom.

Friday, September 28, 2012

Class Update: 9-27-12 and 9-28-12

Yesterday in class we had our first ever Quest! Overall, it wasn't too bad. The next day, we went back to things as usual. We focused on the differences between the northern, middle, and southern colonies. When you think about it, the U.S. varies so much. Most countries are so much smaller with cultural history to connect them. In the U.S. we have and had varying religions, languages, nationalities, professions, and climates. In groups, we wrote about what the life of a typical colonist would be like using voki.com. It was a really fun class!

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Timeline of the Constitution

Class Update: 9-26-12

Today in class we tried the Ed-Cafe for the first time. I really liked it! It was interesting to hear other people's point of view on our basic freedoms. At first, when Mr. Boyle said that we should discuss what was bad about them, I didn't think there could be anything to say! But, listening to what others had to say about really made me think otherwise. We debated over how free the press really should be. With they way some magazines go overboard on stalking celebrities, it really doesn't seem right. If you are going to print an article on someone's life, it makes sense that you would need their approval to do so. Also, the right to peacefully assemble can sometimes get out of hand. It's easy for assemblies to become violent, and also what is peaceful and what is not can sometimes be blurry. There should be a stronger definition on that particular right. Overall, I really liked doing the Ed Cafe. It was very different and I would like to do it again.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Class Update: 9-21-12 and 9-24-12

Today in class we received information on the federalist and democratic-republic parties. It was interesting to see their different view points and the fact that after only about 20 years, the parties died out. Basically, the parties were built around going against each other. After one had near complete control, it was clear that the parties didn't even need to exist anymore. Also, it seemed strange that there would be two differing Federalist groups, though after the Constitution was ratified one didn't even exist anymore. We took all of our notes and put them up on the projector. I liked highlighting the notes, it was very helpful to pull the best information out of the papers we were given. On Friday, we had a half day and didn't attend class. 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Class Update: 9-18-12 and 9-19-12

Yesterday in History class we talked about the roles of the three branches of government. We also completed worksheets on what each branch does and how they balance each other out. We then had to create an info-graph on this topic (scroll down to see the finished product!). The next day we read about Federalists and Anti-federalists. Federalists were the group of people who believed the Constitution should be ratified while the Anti-federalists disagreed. We read about the points each group made for their side. We then had to create fake "magazines" showing the opinion of one group. My partner and I created an Anti-federalist magazine.  

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Civic Values in My Friends

I'm very lucky to have great friends who display many values. Here are two of my friends and the values they demonstrate.

Info-graph

In history class today, each group was asked to create an info-graph showing the three branches of government. My group's info-graph can be found here.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Class Update- 9-14-12 and 9-17-12

On Friday, we took most of the time to discuss the many on-going projects we have right now. Also, we addressed any technological issues people may have had. We had a lot assigned these fist two weeks so it was definitely good to be able to step back and regroup. On Monday we each had a piece of paper describing different plans that were considered while the Constitution was being created. We then took down notes of the different plans. All of the plans included information on what powers the president should have, how many presidents there should be, and how they are elected and impeached. It's strange to think that we could have ended up with two or three presidents, or even a president who serves for life. I wonder how these things would have effected history.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Class Update: 9-12-12 and 9-13-12

Yesterday in class we were put into groups, each of us with a copy of James Madison's notes on a particular topic. My group had notes on the debate over whether states should equal or proportional representation. We were able to read multiple opinions, and why they felt the way they did. Some argued that proportional representation would destroy smaller states, for they would hold no weight during voting. Others said that the small states don't represent as much of the population should they shouldn't have as many votes as the larger states. We wrote down the different thoughts of four men who attended the Philadelphia Convention (Brear, Patterson, Madison, and Wilson). The next day we started class by writing down the preamble to the Constitution which we memorized. I listened to the School House Rock song a lot the night before! After that, we were again separated into groups, this time with people who took different notes than us yesterday. Then we shared our findings amongst our group, and later on the projector with the whole class.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Family- Photo Essay

My photo essay shows how my grandparents represent courage and resourcefulness.

http://private.rewindy.com/story/Jj65X7gi/view/1

Friday, September 7, 2012

Three Artifacts

If an archaeologist were to discover artifacts left by me, he would most likely find my camera. I'm not much of a serious photographer but I still love taking pictures. They can so easily capture a moment of joy and fun. I definitely prefer candid, unpredicted shots because they show real life and real emotion. Also, looking back in photo albums takes you right back into that time. Photography is such an incredible invention, and the archaeologist would even be able to see exactly what my life was like.

An archaeologist also might discover my tennis racket. It was only about two years ago when I started playing, but I loved it right away. Already, my abilities have grown. When  I first started playing, I couldn't even get my serve over the net. It was very frustrating and took a lot of work to fix it. I would beg my parents to take me to the courts so I could practice. I've never felt that way about any other sport I've played. Playing tennis taught me determination and perseverance. It's also a sport you can enjoy with friends and play for your entire life.It has also connected to an awesome team. We have so much fun at games and practices, I love going everyday in the spring. My racket is a definitely a great representation of the fun and hard work of tennis.

Another item that may be found would be my kindle.I love to read and the kindle  was a great gift to receive. Reading takes you to a whole new time, place, and world an I really love that. You can read about anything from any point of view. And with a kindle you can get basically book at anytime just by pushing a button. Also, it's so easy to carry and use. You can even get games and different activities on it which I also love. The kindle really is an incredible invention which I thoroughly enjoy.