Socials 10-3: Riel Resistance Google Doc Activity

Today we worked collaboratively to gather research on the Riel Resistance of 1870; here is a link to the Google Doc.  I was pleased with the way the bit of silly behaviour on the computers quickly ended and people got to their work.  I think we'll be able to use this learning model in the future to save ourselves time and effort.

Please remember to check the last couple of SS10-3 blog posts to learn what to do around the Red River Resistance sketchnote assignment that I'd like handed in next class.  Contact me if you are still unclear on any of the details.

History 12-1: Intro to Marxism

Today we debriefed the exam policies.  Those who missed the test yesterday due to a variety of circumstances my write tomorrow at 3:10.  Remember that you may rewrite any test, but in order to do that you must attend the first sitting, attend a mandatory review session and accept the second mark, even if it's lower than the first (that rarely happens anyway).

Next, I shared a funny (okay, it's supposed to be funny) story to introduce the idea of the right wing vs. the left.  We then had a discussion about Marx and Marxism.  I issued a reading from Pipes' Communism, A History and asked you to come to class with it read (and with notes in the margin showing your thoughts/observations - I've given you some of mine to get you started).  Finally, I asked that you read pp. 37-40 in DeMarco, and complete the brief notes for the questions in Ex 1-2.

Remember: test tomorrow at 3:10.

Socials 8-1/8-3: Test and test prep.

Today in H Block, Socials 8-3 wrote their unit test and then worked on a review of world geography (oceans, seas, continents and major lines of latitude).  Next day they will start a mini-unit on Japanese feudalism with Ms. Wagner, a teacher who is upgrading her teaching credentials and who will be working with us for the next three weeks.

At the end of the day, Socials 8-1 did a round-robin review of their group review artifacts and then collaborated in a group review on the board.  Please check the earlier posts to see board notes for the test review, including the test format: ensure you know the society pyramid, can sketch a manor and its parts, and a castle and its parts.

Here are the notes from today:

Don't just use these, visit earlier posts (Friday, Feb 21) to see everything.

Socials 10-2: Riel Google Doc Activity

Today we did some collaborative research on the Riel Resistance of 1870.  Here is a link to the Google Doc.  There were one or two people who had difficulty staying on task, but the rest of the class was focussed and successful; I was pleased with this first attempt at collaborative work on Google Docs.  If you were unable to get done, please do so at home.

History 12-1: Test Notice

Please be advised that we will write the 1919 unit test today.  If you are not here to write it, you will have to do so after school; unfortunately, we can't miss too many class blocks or we'll run out of time to complete all we need to complete in this course.  I will be starting the Russia unit tomorrow.

Socials 10-3: Red River Resistance research and sketchnote

If you missed class today, it is your responsibility to come to 

our next class with your readings and notes completed: we 

will not be using class time to catch up.

We started by reading pp 148-149 (text) which dealt with he merger of the two fur trade companies; although the NW Co had more shares initially, the HBC still ultimately came out on top.  We created some brief notes in our notebooks and then made a comment at the bottom of this post.

Next, we read some timeline info about the Red River Resistance at the "How Stuff Works" website here.  The website gives a simple overview that will allow you to create a timeline (sketchnote, I hope) of the events that led up to and were included in this first "rebellion."

If you create a sketchnote, the metaphor of "the road that led
to the events" might be useful; this will get you started.

Since the class was so small today, I chose to stop the lesson a bit early.  Students spent the rest of the block composing their sketchnotes.  Next class we will fill out Ex 14 to review the fur trade and then see a clip from the National Film Board (NFB) documentary Cree Hunters of Mistassini from the 1970s that demonstrates the way the Cree people of James Bay Quebec live(d).  Again, you will be able to here an aboriginal language and also learn some of the processes that would have been used during the fur trade.  Here is a link to the documantary

Socials 8-1/8-3: Day 2 of 2 Test Prep.

Today we finished our test prep.  We started with groups tidying up their study guides and then we shared info and Mr. Marshall recorded notes on the board.  Students in 8-3 will write their test on Tuesday.  Students in 8-1 lost time due to the hockey game (Go Canada Go) and will need a bit more time to share info before they write the test on Thursday.