Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

Civics: Complete Vocabulary Review Sheet Link Here.
In the Civics Today textbook complete 1-15 on pg 92-93.
For 1-13, write out the question and the correct answer.

US History: Complete Vocabulary Review Sheet for Chapter 3 here.
In US History American Visions textbook complete 1-19 on page 117-119.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Civics: Today we are going to look at the 6 purposes for government. Here are the Notes and Presentation we are going to view.

Writing Prompt: (please complete on sheet of paper)
Why do we need Government?
What is the Purposes of the US Government?

For each of the following, tell what each means to you:
1. To form a more perfect Union…..
2. To establish Justice…….
3. To ensure domestic tranquility……
4. To provide for the common defense….
5. To promote the General Welfare…
6. To secure the blessings of liberty

When complete with this activity we are going to complete Guided Reading 3 individually.

US History: Today I am going to give back your graded test. I will discuss opportunities to make up the test with each student. Then we are going to work on Guided Reading 3 individually.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Civics:
The Constitution
Today we are going to over the Constitutional Convention. Taking Notes on this page.
We are then going to complete Guided Reading 3 in class.

US History:
Test today! I am going to give students 10 minutes to study for the test. Then students are going to take test. We will then go over the Articles of Confederation on Page 8 in the binder.

Friday, September 29, 2009

We have finally made it to Friday!!!
Civics: Today we will be looking at the Articles of Confederation and how those articles influenced future governments:

The learning goal for today is:

Students can identify reasons for the Articles of Confederation and why they were not the final rule of law for the new country.

Here is the presentation that we will be viewing today and taking notes on.
Processing Today:
Complete 1 of the following activities:
1. Create a small chart listing the major problems of the Articles and what their consequences would have been.
2. Create a graphic organizer showing the organization, strengths and weaknesses of the Articles. Look in Civics Today page 69.

US History: In Class today we will finish discussing The Patriot and then we are going to go over together the Revolutionary War Test Study Guide. Students will have 20 minutes to finish any of the questions the know and then we will spend the rest of the hour going over and making sure everyone has the answers. TEST MONDAY FOR US HISTORY!

Thursday, September 24th, 2009

US History and Civics: Today we will continue on Part 2 of The Patriot, Students are expected to view of the film with a eye towards historical accuracy. When the movie is complete we will be going over the questions on the sheet that were handed out. These questions will be extra credit.

With a few students back after suspensions, we will give these students time to make up work.

Wedsday September, 23rd 2009

US History and Civics Classes: Today, as a reward for good work in class, we will be watching the film The Patriot staring Mel Gibson. This film gives a portrayal of life before and during the American Revolution. Though it has some historical inaccuracies, as we will discuss, it helps to give us an idea of colonial life during the Revolutionary War.

While we watch the film we will answer the following Questions: HPS Link Google Docs Link

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Civics: At the start of class, we are going to have the real quiz on the 3 branches and 3 levels of government.
I realize I have not been giving students enough time to work independently, so I am going to give students a last chance to complete their Colonial Life Journal and Colonial Life Brochure.

After this, I am going to give out a Study Guide for a Test on the American Revolution. I am going to give students time to work on it independently, then hopefully we will have time to go over it.

Here are some excellent notes that could be useful on the test.

US History: I am going to give students another 30 minutes to complete all missing assignments and to look over Progress Reports for any missing assignments.

After this, I am going to give out a Study Guide for a Test on the American Revolution.

We are going to be having a test on the Revolutionary War by the end of the week.
Here are some excellent notes that could be useful on the test.
Remember Open House tonight @ CVHS @ 6.30!

Monday September 21, 2009

I hoep everyone enjoyed there weekend!
Tomorrow, their will be open house @ 6.30, here @ CVHS
Remember, that if a word is underlined, it is a link (CLICK ON IT!!!)

Civics: Today we are going to start with a Writing Prompt
Then we are going to have a short quiz . Making sure that students can write the 3 branches of government and the 3 levels of governemnt and tell something about each.

Then, we are going to take notes on Page 11 .

Because we did not have class friday, I am going to give students the rest fo the class period to finish and turn in their Colonial Life Brochures.

I am going to give out progress reports at the end of class.

US History:
We are going to start with a Writing Prompt on Classroom skills and Management.
Please write down the 3 things you need to do when you come into Mr. Grove’s Classroom.
What period in American History are we studying?
Why is this class important?
Please be Quiet while you complete this assignment. So that we can get started on time.

Secondly, we are going to play American Revolution Jeopardy. During this game students are expected to write all questions and answers.

When complete, I am going to give students a few minutes to complete anywork that they are missing. I am going to give out progress reports.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Today, we will only be having 1st and 2nd period. The next half day October 9th, will be 3rd and 4th period. You can find a copy of the 2009-2010 Hickory Public Schools Calender here(Html) or here(PDF).

US History- We will be using this shortened class period to finish up our colonial life brochures. When complete, students are to self-assess their brochures using the grading rubric that was provided.

I will be giving out Progress Reports on Monday for all classes.

Thursday September 17, 2009

US History, Civics: Yesterday each class got a good start on the Colonial Life Brochure. It has taken more time then I expected. I will give you each the whole period to complete your brochure and turn it in at the end of class. I expect quality from this assignment. I plan on hanging them up in the classroom.

This will be the last grade before Progress Reports which I will hand out tomorrow.

Wendsday, September 16, 2009

Civics:
Today, Students are going to work independently:
I am going to give students about 45 minutes to complete your colonial life Journal. I expect students to use the rubric to do a self-assessment into what they feel should be their grade.

When complete, Students are going to create:
We are going to create a Brochure Advertising the Colonies to the people of England.

Colonial Life Brochure:You are a travel agent working for the Colonial Travel Agency and your boss needs you to create a travel brochure to attract settlers to the New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies. This task is worth 100 points.

The assignment can be viewed here.

US History:
Today, Students are going to work independently:.

We are going to create a Brochure Advertising the Colonies to the people of England.

Colonial Life Brochure:
You are a travel agent working for the Colonial Travel Agency and your boss needs you to create a travel brochure to attract settlers to the New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies. This task is worth 100 points.

The assignment can be viewed here.
I am going to give students the whole class period to finish this assignment. If finished early I will allow students to complete missing assignments.

Tuesday September 15, 2009

Civics and Economics:
We will start with a quiz on the Branches of Government.
Students will need to complete the following Chart, using the image a guideline. They need to complete it on their own piece of paper.

Extra Credit will be given if the student can identify the 3 buildings on the image.

We are going to take notes on Page 11 in our binder. Independence Declared. A link can be found here.

After completion of the notes we are going to finish our Colonial Life Journal by the end of class. I expect that everyone should be complete by the end of class. (for information and links to this assignment, check yesterday's blog post)

US History:
We are going to start by taking notes of Page 7 in our binder. Revolutionary War Notes.

A link to the presentation is here.

After we finish the notes, students will have the rest of the period to finish their Guided Reading 2. It will be required to be turned in by the end of class. For a link to the Guided Reading 2, look at previous blog entries.


Remember this Friday is a half-day for all students!

Monday, September 14th 2009

As friday was September 11th. All the classes lessons were delayed due to our discussion on where they were on that day and how it affected them.

Civics:
Today we are going to take notes on Colonial Life on Pages 9 and 10 in binder. To see presentation, look at previous posts.

Then we are going to began a colonial Life Journal.
Assignment: Colonial Life Journal Rubric
Model Colonial Life Journal

Life in Colonial America
You are an 18th century English journalist who has spent a year living and learning about Colonial America. While in America, you kept a journal to record your thoughts and impressions of the regions, people, culture, and economic developments. You want your journal to be published so that people of England will better understand what life is like in Colonial America.
You will be expected to write at least 4 journal entries.
This task is worth a quiz grade.

Journal Format
Your journal should be typed or handwritten (if handwritten, the journal must be legible and neat.
Each journal entry must be at least one paragraph (5 detailed sentences).
Your entries should be dated (colonial time period).
your entries should be signed (use your real name or create a pen name).

US History:
We are going to go over page 5 and 6 in Binder and then we are going to work on Guided Reading 2

Friday, September 11, 2009

Civics:
Today, we are first going to discuss the events of September 11th, 8 years ago. How did those events effect your life??
We are going to look at the following writing prompt:

Everyone remembers this event:
•Write half a page telling:
–Where were you, when you heard the news?
–How did it make you feel?
–What does it mean to you to be an American?
–What are your responsibilities to your country?
–Make sure to use correct punctuation and grammar.

I am going to handback your graded quiz that students retook.

Then, we agre going to transisiton to Colonial Life.
We are going to take notes on Colonial Life.
Here is a link to the presentation.
The assignment is on the last page:

If Traveling across North American during the colonial period, one would notice that each region developed a distinct economic life.

• How did the economies of the Southern, Middle and New England Colonies differ?
• What led to the development of these differences:
• Explain:
  Each response should include:
  An Introduction Statement.
  
• A three-paragraph body; each paragraph within the body should include a topic sentence
• Include a conclusion paragraph with topic sentence
• Include appropriate grammar and punctuation usage
• Be neatly handwritten.

US History:

Today, we are first going to discuss the events of September 11th, 8 years ago. How did those events effect your life?? We are going to look at the following writing prompt: Everyone remembers this event:

•Write half a page telling:

–Where were you, when you heard the news?

–How did it make you feel?

–What does it mean to you to be an American?

–What are your responsibilities to your country?

–Make sure to use correct punctuation and grammar.

We are going to go over pages 5 and 6 in your binder.

I am going to give back your graded Test 1 and discuss the results.

Then we are going to work on Guided Reading 2.

Thursday September 10, 2009

Civics:
Today, we are going to watch the ideo on Jamestown: The Nightmare, to introduce ourselves to the problems the early colonists faced. We are going to have a short discussion after the movie.
After completetion of the questions, We will go over Page 8 in the binder. The presentation is located here.

US History:
We are going to first look over Page 5 in our binder. The presentation is located here.

After going over this presentation we are going to start working on Guided Reading 2.

Note to students: I now have a copy of the textbook on CD. Please ask me and I can provide this to you. It is alot lighter then carrying the textbook around.
Also, make sure to watch your absenses!!!

Wednesday September 9, 2009

Civics:

Retake Quiz
The revised Quiz is located here.
We are then going to finish Guided Reading 2. I expect it to be complete by the end of class.

NC SCOS Objective:
1.01 Describe how geographic diversity influenced economic, social, and political life in colonial North America.

If time, we should have time to check out the the History Channel Documentary: The New World: Nightmare of Jamestown. While watching the documentary we will answer the following questions. If you are at home, you should be able to use this link or this link to watch the show and answer the questions.

The documentary is described as:It's a story of bubonic plague, starvation, espionage and cannibalism -- and the founding of America's first colony. In 1607, a handful of English adventurers set sail across the Atlantic, expecting a paradise teeming with gold and riches. Now, 400 years later, the latest discoveries reveal the true story of Jamestown--as you've never seen it before. With exclusive access to forensics and archaeology, National Geographic reveals shocking new evidence of starvation and disease, secret plots and Spanish spies. Authentic recreations bring to life one of the most dramatic chapters in America's history.

US History:

TEST TODAY!

I revised the original test, just adding a few different items and clarifiying a few points.
The revised test is located here.
NC SCOS: Objective:
1.01 Identify the major domestic issues and conflicts experienced by the nation during the Federalist Period.

After we complete the test, which should take 20- 30 minutes we are going to began looking at the English Arrival in Jamestown.

We should have time to check out the the History Channel Documentary: The New World: Nightmare of Jamestown. While watching the documentary we will answer the following questions.
If you are at home, you should be able to use this link or this link to watch the show and answer the questions.

The documentary is described as:It's a story of bubonic plague, starvation, espionage and cannibalism -- and the founding of America's first colony. In 1607, a handful of English adventurers set sail across the Atlantic, expecting a paradise teeming with gold and riches.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

I hope everyone enjoyed their Labor Day Holiday.

Civics:
Today, we are going to watch the Presidents Address @ 12. If you do not want to watch it with the class, we will have other educational opportunities available. After the address, we will have a short discussion on the contents of the address.

I will give back the graded Quizzes from Friday, we will go over them and look at the possibilities of taking it over.

We will then begin working on Guided Reading 2


US History:
Test Tomorrow!!!!

We will be going over the test that we will be having tomorrow.
I will allow students to complete it independently then we will spend time to go over it.

A copy of the test can be found here. I will make sure students have the correct answers, so that they can study for the test tomorrow.

2nd Period-
We will finish our Colonial Era Maps:
Instructions:
We are then going to create our own map of the colonies. Using the template located here.The expectations for this assignment are for students to color each region a different color from its neighbors the following regions: New England Colonies, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies. Those can be found here. You can also use Page 32 in the Americas Visions (US History) textbook.

Also, locate the following places:The 13 Colonies. Proclamation Line of 1763, British Territory, the great lakes and the following cities: Savannah, Charleston, New Bern, Williamsburg, Annapolis, Philadelphia, Trenton, New York, New Haven, Providence, Boston, Portsmouth. That order is from south to north.

4th Period: Because you have competed your maps, we should have time to check out the the History Channel Documentary: The New World: Nightmare of Jamestown. While watching the documentary we will answer the following questions.

The Documentary is described as:

It's a story of bubonic plague, starvation, espionage and cannibalism -- and the founding of America's first colony. In 1607, a handful of English adventurers set sail across the Atlantic, expecting a paradise teeming with gold and riches. Now, 400 years later, the latest discoveries reveal the true story of Jamestown--as you've never seen it before. With exclusive access to forensics and archaeology, National Geographic reveals shocking new evidence of starvation and disease, secret plots and Spanish spies. Authentic recreations bring to life one of the most dramatic chapters in America's history.

Friday September 4th 2009

Civics:
We are going to start with the quiz. This should take about 20 minutes.
Next, we are going to take Notes of the "Beginnings of America." We will start to look at the founding of the United States, starting with the landing of Europeans in the New World.
Powerpoint Link Here
If time we are then going to start working on Guided Reading 2.

US History:
First, we are going to go over and grade Guided Reading 1. This should take approx. 20 minutes.
We are then going to discuss the North v. South Venn Diagram that we created yesterday. I have graded those that were turned in. We need to make sure to understand the differences in the development of the colonies.
I will return papers during this time.

We are then going to create our own map of the colonies. Using the template located here.
The expectations for this assignment are for students to color each region a different color from its neighbors the following regions: New England Colonies, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies. Those can be found here. You can also use Page 32 in the Americas Visions (US History) textbook.
Also, locate the following places:
The 13 Colonies. Proclamation Line of 1763, British Territory, the great lakes and the following cities: Savannah, Charleston, New Bern, Williamsburg, Annapolis, Philadelphia, Trenton, New York, New Haven, Providence, Boston, Portsmouth. That order is from south to north.


Have a great 3 day weekend!

Thursday September 3, 2009

Note: In the past I have put the Powerpoint presentations directly on the main blog page. It seems that this makes the front page very long to load. I am just going to put a link to each powerpoint to the Google Docs page.

Civics:




Tomarrow We are going to have our first quiz. You can find a link to the Quiz Below:
Google Docs Link Word File Link (.doc)

If you remeber one thing from Civics and Economics you must remember to be able to fill out this chart:

US History:
Today's Topic is Colonial Life

We are going to focus in how the Northern and Southern Colonies developed differently and how that development influenced their population. As a class, we are going to be able to identify the Middle Passage and describe what life was like for a slave in the South.

How the colonies developed would influence American History especially until the Civil War.

We will also discover how these early developments, especially in the north would influence ideas of self-government. (goal 1.02)

NC SCOS: Goal 1.01 - Describe how geographic diversity influenced economic, social and political life in colonial North America.

Today's PowerPoint: Link Here
Assignment:
Create a Venn Diagram:
Compare and Contrast the Similarities and Differences of the Northern and Southern Economies.
Have at least 4 Examples in each box.
If you are unsure what a Venn Diagram is Look Here.
Also, for some reason if you have not completed and turned in Guided Reading 1.

This is your last day!

Wednesday, September 2 2009

Civics:
Today we are going to start discussing Federalism and the System of Checks and Balances.
We are first going to take notes on the following presentation:
The Assignment is on the Last Slide.


Civics Assignment: We are then going to create our own charts highlighting the systems of Checks and Balances. Using the diagram in the textbook on Page 88.
We are going to be having a short quiz on Friday, which is going to be posted on the blog, so if you check the blog you will find the

Link to another Presentation on the same topic here.

US History:
Today is going to be the final day to fully complete Guided Reading 1.
This is expected to be turned in by the end of class for a grade.
If time, we are contine on Page 3 in our Binder, discussing Life in the Colonial Age.

Guided Reading on New Site

Civics and US History:
All classmembers are expected to complete the Guided Readings as they are due throughout the semester.
I had originally put them on Google documents but, you had to have a google username and password to download the original PDF. I have moved the Guided Readings for US and Civics over to Google Sites. You do not have to register with Google to download them in their original PDF format to print them.

US History Guided Readings Page
Civics and Economics Guided Readings Page

Tuesday September 1, 2009

Civics:
Today we are going to go over the following Powerpoints:
Today is the last day to turn in Guided Reading 1.
3-Duties and Responsibilities:


Page 4- Rights of Citizen:



Once we have completed these two PowerPoints we will go over page 2 of the INS quiz questions.


US History:

Today, we will continue with Guided Reading 1. (check earlier blog posts)