Women's Suffrage and the 19th Amendment

The film Iron Jawed Angels is featured in class to support our lessons on the 19th Amendment.

The Rise of Labor Unions in America

Today we are discussing the birth of the American Labor Union. Using "Stick Figure Theater", students will understand why unions started, what they fought for in the early days, and how management had to adjust to this new form of worker power.

Back work assignments "Will Goes to Work" and "Pittsburgh" can still be made up, but are duw by tomorrow 12/11 Any student needed an extra copy can see me after school or tomorrow morning in D-9 dueing homeroom.

The Triangle Factory Fire

Update: I have been having trouble with Google Docs. 1st Marking Period I was posting class worksheets, but they are unprintable at home. I don't know how to fix this problem. I am looking to try another kind of file sharing program called Drop Box and will keep everyone posted as to when worksheets can be posted. Any students who need replacement worksheet are to see me for the time being.

Stocks, Monopolies and Trusts

Today we are looking at vocabulary essential to studying Big Business in the late 1800's. Stocks and Dividends are introduced as well as Monopolies and Trusts. There will be a homework sheet tonight on the importance of Pittsburgh, PA in the development of the U.S. Steel Industry.

A Major Test Will be given this Thursday. Student will be given the list of items they need to study and review to prepare for the exam.

The Rise of Big Business

Today we are moving on.... The Immigrants are rushing in and the factories, farms and small business in America are expanding at an exponential rate.

Looking Ahead...Marking Period 2

The first quarter is in the books and we move forward onto Marking Period #2. Students should know their area of weakness (Homework, Quizzes, Tests) and should make an effore to attack these areas and bring up averages this Marking Period.

Ellis Island and New Immigrants

Today's class is very informative and kinda fun for most students. We will be taking a trip through Ellis Island through the eyes, ears and senses of a new immigrant family around 1900.

Elections and Results!

Sorry for the delay and posts. I guess with Halloween and staying up late to watch the election I just got behind....

Today we looked at the State, Local and National election results and learned quite a lot about how things work the day after an election. There is a local election that is still too close to call!!! We discussed absentee balloting as well as our new voting devices and possible recounts with those machines.

On the National level we looked at how the Congress shifted Republican overnight and how that may effect President Obama. Classes in the afternoon got to watch some of his speech at 1pm.

Plains Farmers and Sod Homes

Yesterday and today we started learning about how the early farmers of the Great Plains fought for survival. It was The Homestead Act that brought 1,000s of families to the Plains to seek their fortune. The prize???? Well if a family could successfully maintain a working farm for 3 years they would receive 160 acres of land abolsolutely free. Sounds kinda like an 1800's version of "Survior".

Indian Boarding Schools

Custer and Dawes... Two Very Different Approaches

The Indian Wars 1864-1890

Today in class we are looking at events between Native American tribes in the West and the U.S. Government. Starting with the Fort Laramie treat of 1861 and ending with the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890, we are looking at some events during that time.

Through a series of broken treaties, violence on both sides, and overwhelming firepower and tactics on the part of U.S. soldiers, the Indian tribes of the West eventually submitted to the reservation system set up for them by the U.S. Government.

The Plains Indians and Buffalo Hunting

Today we are going to look at scenes from a true American classic film "Dances with Wolves" .

The Plains Indians and Wal-Mart!

Today we are looking at the Plains Indians of the United States. These tribes relied almost totally on the Wild Buffalo for their survival. In a way the Buffalo was like a giant "Wal-Mart" containing everything the Indians need to survive and also elements of the culture too! We examined the different styles of hunting and how they changes with the introduction of the horse from Spain. We also looked a2 two short video clips. One involved a recreated buffalo hunt using the "Jump"
method in which a tribe led small groups of buffalo off cliffs for their food. The other clip showed a man make a water carrier out of a real buffalo bladder! YUCK!

Cool Links:Coming Soon....

Railroad Building in the U.S. Late 1800's

Today we are looking at the development of the transcontinental railroad and other railroads that followed in the West.

Workshop Day

Media Connect

Segregation

Welcome Parents!!!

Welcome to Parent Night 2010-2010!!!

Today in class we began a discussion on why people traveled west after the Civil War. Students recalled the California Gold Rush 1849, The Pioneers, and Lewis and Clark 7th Grade social studies. We took the discussion further by adding other groups that wanted to go west after the Civil War.

A board game was played in small groups where students would get a change to see some of the upcoming topics we will cover in the next few weeks.

The End of Reconstruction

Our Reconstruction Unit is coming to a close this week and we are looking at the event that ends reconstruction. It is the Election of 1876 in which a compromise is made that formally ends reconstruction. Going further we are looking at the effects the end of Reconstruction had specifically on the African American Communities in the South.

Terror and the Rise of the Ku Klux Klan

Today's lesson will focus on the increasing violence during U.S. Reconstruction in the 1870's.

Though the Army of the North was in the South for an extended period of time after the Civil War ended, there were still many major outbreaks of violence. Much iof this violence was directed especially against the newly created citizens of the Unites States... Ex Slaves .

Middle Reconstruction: Grant, the Army and the Klan Wars

Today we are examining the President of Ulysses S. Grant. Though an amazing general, his presidency didn't live up to the hype surrounding his image. His Administration was full of scandals and "bad behavior" even though we was elected 2x!

The Movie: The Killing of Mary Surratt will also be shown....

Links: The Story of Mary Surratt

The Death Penalty: States that allow it and their methods

Quiz Tomorrow... Beginnings of Reconstruction

Tomorrow's Quiz will be 20 questions of the short answer variety (Multiple Choice, True/False, and Short Answer). To be successful you need to review the following materials.

Homework Sheets: Sect 1 and Sect 2
Notes on the Freedman's Bureau, Radical Reconstruction
Text Pages 546-555

See my assignments box on the right if you need any of these materials

Congress vs The President

A New President and Reconstruction

We are moving on after the Lincoln Assassination and on to some major changes in plans for Reconstruction. The new President, Andrew Johnson takes over and immediately a conflict arises between his leadership and the leadership in Congress. Johnson allows for Southern States to rejoin the Union and elect new representatives to send to Washington DC.

To the North's shock these newly elected representatives are almost all former leaders of the Old Confederacy. Northern representatives kick out these new Southerners and the battle begins.

Who will win this fight?? President Johnson or the Northerners in Congress!

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

Cool Links:
Virtual Tour of Ford's Theater
Ford's Theater

U.S. Reconstruction 1865-1977

Today we are diving "head first" into the Reconstruction period of American history which followed the U.S Civil War.

Intro To My Blog

Hello new 8th Graders! This is my Social Studies 8 blog. Every Day I will be listing what we've done in class as well as assignments for the week. It is a great resource to check especially if you have been absent or need to get assignments.

Today's Assignment: Text Tour Worksheet
Using the online textbook The American Nation students will learn how to navigate through the text and find important shortcuts and resources that will help with homework assignments and studying for exams and quizzes.

Grade 7 Webquest

The Civil War (click here)

8th Grade Review (Day2)

Today we are continuing our review of the 8th grade year. Students are working on practice multiple choice exams from previous years seeing what they know and what they need to work on.

Homework: Finish the 8 M/C Quizzes along with completing quiz worksheets.

Quizzes to be completed for Friday: 5c, 6c, 7c, 1d and 2d, 5d, 7d, 8d

Quiz WebSite: Click HERE

State Test Review Sessions

This Wednesday and Thursday we will be in the library going through sets of review quizzes for the Grade 8 Social Studies Test. The Test will be on June 14th and 15th and multiple choice questions will account for 50% of the grade.

The Quiz Questions

Wednesday: Do 5C, 6C, 7C, 1D

The Assassination of JFK

Today in class we are examining the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Using Powerpoint, Magazine and NEwspapers and The Zapruder Film, students will analyse the events surrounding the day of the assassination> We will also highlight events immediately following the November 22, 1963 murder of JFK.

Homework: Complete Worksheet 26 Sect:2 In Civil Rights Packet

Civil Rights Movement

Today's Topics
Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955 and Little Rock HS 1957

Homework: Read in Text 886-692

Detente and the End of the Cold War

Moving through the basic timeline of Cold War events, we are looking at the 1970's and 1980's. Detente and Nixon's visit to China and the SALT treaties of the 1970's are being discussed. The Soviets invasion of Afghanistan, Reagan's military buildup and the 1989 Fall of the Berlin Wall will also be covered.

Homework: Review Questions... last page of Cold War packet

The Berlin Wall

Today we are continuing through the Cold War by looking at its most visible symbol, the Berlin Wall. Students will understand where and why this massive enclosure was built. Students will also learn about the architecture and attempts of many to escape to West Berlin.

Tonight's Homework: Ch25 Sect 4

Korea and the Cold War

We have been studying the Cold War period and some of the struggles that took place during those years (1945-1991. Today we are finishing up Korea and how the war ended with the country split in two (same as before war began).

Math Tests Tomorrow: Abbreviated Schedules

Defeating Japan: Part I Island Hopping!

Homework: None, make up back work by Thursday

Ending the War in Europe

Tonight's Homework: Chap 24 Sect 4 Quiz.. "Winning the War"

America Wakes Up!!!!

World War II

Ok, Back to the blog and sorry about the absence! We finished writing our practice DBQ and we're moving on to the Second World War. On Monday we began by dissecting the different dictatorships that arose in Europe in the 1920's and 1930. We also look at the aggression that the Empire of Japan displayed in China and southeast Asia.

Today we are looking at one of the worst attacks in American History. The surprise attach on Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands on December 7th 1941. after reviewing the events and problems the U.S. had with Japan we starting watching the film Pearl Harbor from the start of the attack. We will continue this tomorrow.

Homework: Complete Worksheet Ch.24 Sect 1 Quiz

FDR and the New Deal

Today in class we are looking at the new presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Elected by a huge majority, FDR promised "relief, reform and recovery" to the American people. Using Stick Figure Theater we are looking at FDR's first term.

Project Day #2

Some Places to Start:
America in the 1930's
Timeline of the 1930's
American Culture Timeline
Science and Inventions Timeline
Years of Dog Breeds Recognized by the AKC
Fads of the 1930's
Games Invented in the 1930s
Lots of Things from the 1930s
Many facts and dates in the 1930's!!!
America in the 30's

Mini Project Day #1

Today's Goal: Begin researching events in the 1930's to include in your timeline project. You may also decide on a specific theme of events (Sports, Music, Science, etc) and look for events in these categories.

Search Tips:

You may want to use combinations of these words

1930's
30's
Timeline
Great Depression
America, American,U.S., American History
(include your theme) Yankees, Movies, Inventions. etc

Ideas for Themes
Science and Technology
Favorite Sports Teams
Movies and Music
Inventions
World Events
Art and Literature

Some Places to Start:
America in the 1930's
Timeline of the 1930's
American Culture Timeline
Science and Inventions Timeline

We Will be in the Lab again tomorrow for more research....

Quiz Tomorrow....

Tomorrow quiz will cover the following topics:
1)Economic problems at the start of the 1920's (Review Sect 1 Outline, txt 736)
2)The Red Scare and Limiting Immigration (Sect 1 Outline, text 739)
3)Flappers, fad and culture (Review notes from Tuesday, Text 742)
4)Prohibition in the United States 1920-1933 (Review Text 741-2)

Most of the questions should be easy if you have been paying attention in class, but i recommend reviewing the worksheets, notes and pages in the text

Flappers, Fad and Jazz

Today we looked at 1920's culture. Flappers were discussed again the both their appearance and attitude were compared with women in the previous generations. Jazz music was also examined to see the differences in tha style of music and why young people liked it so much!

Return to Normalcy

Today we looked at the influenza outbreak of 1918 as well as American right after WW1ended. The Influenza Pandemic killed well over 25 million people worldwide including close to a million in the U.S.
We also looked at life in the U.S after WW1 which included a small recession, fears of Communism and racial tensions in the U.S. The Presidency of Warren G. Harding was examined including the many scandals that surrounded his presidency and untimely death in 1923.

Homework: Finish Reading in Text 736-740

Web Link: Influenza 1918 (Great Program!!!)

I enjoy a good war movie every now and then, and THE LOST BATTALION fits the bill. Made for the A&E cable network, it’s based on the true story of an American battalion that gets cut off from the rest of the American forces during an advance into the Argonne forest during World War I. Almost completely surrounded by the Germans, the Americans resolve to hold their position until help arrives, which takes days. Outnumbered, starving, without medical supplies, the odds are against any of them surviving.

In classic war movie fashion, THE LOST BATTALION introduces us to about a dozen of the soldiers, most of them from New York but some from Texas and Montana as well. Most of them are “citizen soldiers”, who were either drafted or enlisted to fight, not career military. Their commander, a lawyer in civilian life played by Rick Shroeder, fits into this category, too, and struggles to become a respected leader. You know going in (at least you do if you’ve ever watched many war movies) that not all of them are going to make it, but this grim, gritty film directed by Russell Mulcahy makes their life-and-death struggle very interesting.

With its unrelenting air of doom, I’m not sure I’d say that THE LOST BATTALION is an entertaining film, but it’s very well-done (other than some shaky camerawork I didn’t like) and I think it’s a movie that’s well worth watching.

The End of WW1

Fun Link to Play: Flyboys in the Hood!!!!

Americ Joins the War, 1917

Quiz Tomorrow: Study the Following...
Map of Europe (not per 8)
Causes of WW1 “Stick Figure Theater”
Remember video or Re-read “Murder in Sarajevo”
Notes: Why We Joined WW1/Bubble Chart

Trench Warfare in WW1

Today we are looking at how World War 1 was fought. Trench warfare is examined and we looked at a PowerPoint slide show to see why the sides chose to fight in trenches, how the trenches are set up, and how attacks from the trenches were made.

Homework: Read "The U-Boat and the Lusitania" (WW1 Packet)

Assassination of an Archduke

Today we took in in depth look at the "spark" that started World War I, Gavrillo Princip's assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, Bosnia.

Homework for Tonight: Ch21 Sect1 "The Road to War"

Test Review Assignment

Today you are working to complete a review sheet for Thursday's Test. You will need to access the online text and complete both pages of the review.

If you do finish you should read the history comics that are in the Gibbons folder on the P: Drive. They are MS-Word files, so you may need to open up Word and then search for the file there.

Tomorrow I will give you the short answer essay questions and we will work to complete those in class. If you have not been doing well on my tests this year, staying after school today or tomorrow.

Summary of Expansion

We started class by continuing our look at the horrible Haitian earthquake. More footage is coming in and watching the rescue attempts and plight of the people is very shocking and sad. I also led a discussion about the history of Haiti as a former colony of France and later its problems with governments and corruption.

A chart was constructed showing the territories of the U.S. and how they were acquired. "We Bought, We Claimed, We Took and We Won".

Today and tomorrow we will finish the unit by looking at the construction of the Panama Canal. We will look at the history of constructing a canal, how the U.S. got the deal done, and the construction and operation of the canal.

Homework : Ch 20 Sect 3 Quiz (periods 1,2,3,8 only!!!)

The Spanish American War

Today we finished up movie clips from the film The Rough Riders. It dealt with the causes, build/training, and eventual combat in Cuba. We looked at heroes like Teddy Roosevelt, The Rough Riders, The Buffalo Soldiers and George Pershing (Later becomes The U.S. Commander during WW1)

Tonight's Homework is to skim the Section 2 in Chapter 20 and answer the worksheet questions that go with Sect 2 "The Spanish American War" Complete all questions and come ready to discuss you answers in class!!!

Trade and Territories in the Pacific

Today we are continuing our look into the time period in the late 1800's when America started to expand beyond our 48 state boundaries. Looking at Hawaii and some of the smaller islands in the Pacific we examined the need for ports alone the route to Asia. To do this a strong Navy would be required and we replaced our older "sailing ship" fleet with the more modern Great White Fleet.

Additionally, we took a brief look at our trade relationships with both China and Japan. The Japanese emperor, and more modern leaders, looked at the U.S. as a source for more modern technology and weapons.In China we, along with other outside countries, did experice terrorist like attack from a Chinese group known as The Boxers.

Homework: New Expansion Packet
Ch 20 Sect 1 Quiz Worksheet
DUE TOMORROW!!!

America Expands Overseas!!!!

Today we are start a new unit that focuses on America looking overseas for new places to trade and add to our territory. We discussed early trade with Japan, the purchase of Alaska, and the importance of having islands in the Pacific to use as places to refuel and resupply our boats in the Pacific. Tomorrow we will look at how we acquired the Hawaiian Islands and the importance of creating a large navy.

Homework: Please read in textbook 680-684

Period 8 Social Studies:

Using Google Earth
locate the following...
Guam
Northern Mariana Islands
U.S. Virgin Islands
Puerto Rico
Wake Island
Midway Islands
Johnston Atoll

When finished... click and watch...
Alaska 1
Alaska 2
Alaska 3

When finished you may start homework...
Go to Online Text and read 680-684