Quizzed Out

Well, we took the quiz today, and from walking around the room and monitoring, it looked like most people did fairly well.

Of course, if you don't think you did well you could always go to the blog to try to get some extra credit.  Ah.  There you go.  You're here.

We also worked on some reading comprehension.  I was impressed with how many students understood fact v. opinion v. opinion based in fact.

We read a story about a British Admiral who misgauged his longitude.  Two of the fact/opinion questions were pretty tricky:

Should the Admiral have listened to the unnamed sailor?

and

If the Admiral had listened to the unnamed sailor, the ship wouldn't have sank.

Historians LOVE playing this game: WHAT IF?  But we can't assert as fact that if we didn't bomb Hiroshima, WWII would have lasted forever, or if we stayed out of Vietnam, America would be Communist, or if Abraham Lincoln wouldn't have gone to see Our American Cousin he wouldn't have been assassinated, etc...  MAYBE some of those things would have happened.  And true a major axiom of history is that we should learn from our mistakes (and success and everything in between).  But we can't go back in time and switch things around.


At any rate.  I hope you did well on the test.  Tell your parents what happened in the bellwork story today.  And have a great weekend.  And a great Monday.

If you want the extra credit for reading and discussing the blog write a sentence about the discussion you had and have the adult you discussed with sign the paper.  Turn it in on Tuesday.

2 Out of 3

We took 2 little quizzes today.  One was actually a pre-test and won't count towards a grade.  The second was the continents and oceans retake - which could only improve a grade.

But we've moved the latitude and longitude quiz back to tomorrow.  I think everyone is ready for it, but in case you're not, look at the picture below:

(Photocredit: docstoc and enchanted learning)

See if you can tell me which states are located at the following locations:

A)  27°N, 82°W
B)  30°N, 100°W
C)  40°N, 90°W
D)  43°N, 85°W

Then, see if you can plot points for California, Indiana, and Maine.

If you do all that on a scrap piece of paper and have an adult sign it, you'll get extra credit.  Turn it in tomorrow.  Make sure your name, date and hour are on it.

If you CAN'T do that.  Yikes.  Looks like tomorrow's quiz is going to be tough.

YOU MADE IT TO THE BLOG!!!

Welcome to the blog!!!

You're probably here because I showed my students how to get to it.  And you know I post one everyday.  Well, every school day.

As I said on the paper I sent home, I offer unlimited extra credit.  One of the ways my students can get extra credit is by visiting this blog and reading and discussing the content with an adult.  ...I guess that's why you're here.

Hopefully it will help them do well in my class, and it will also let you know what we're doing.

And we tackle some controversial topics from time to time, so this affords you the opportunity to give you're input as well.  (For instance, should we get involved in Syria?)

Furthermore, the blog will often give some insights into what's coming up in class.  For instance, tomorrow we're going to (re)take the continents and oceans quiz.  If you're unsure of your skills, it might be a good idea to practice again.  And you can even get more extra credit by doing that!

Now, you have to actually discuss the blog too.  So, adults: ask your kid some questions.  How'd they do on the game today?  Can they show you how to get there?  (Concord Jr. High webpage, students, grade level resources, geography games).

If you've read and discussed the blog with an adult, get a piece of scrap paper and write the following sentence:  "I have read and discussed the blog with ______________________.  It was definitely worth it."

Have the adult sign their name on the line.  MAKE SURE YOU PUT YOUR NAME, DATE, AND HOUR ON THE PAPER BEFORE YOU TURN IT IN!!!

Fake Quiz

My students took a fake quiz today, and ACED it.  Seriously.  They aced it.  It was great.  After I gave it, I thought that I probably should have just given the quiz today - that they were ready for it.

The problem is, I'm moving at a quicker pace than I generally do - so I wanted to make sure they were prepare.  The good news is they are.  (This would be a good time to ask the child you're reading the blog with how they did on the fake quiz.)

We also read The Hunger Games.  I'm reading it at the beginning of the year this year for a number of reasons.  Mostly, I want to be able to use it as a reference point throughout the year, but also because the second movie is coming out in November.  I thought it would be decent of me to finish it up before then.  That way, it might give an added incentive to read the sequel.  I like to promote reading whenever possible.

However, it's backfiring on me a little bit.  I want to use it as a reference point, but when topics come up - I can't point out how they tie in with this class because we haven't studied them yet.  We've already had several concepts come up in the book: ethnocentrism, human rights, human capital, economic systems, etcetera.  And we've had several terms come up.  Today we read the word "decade."  It's a simple enough term, but one that a surprising number of students don't know.  And it's a 7th grade social studies word.

I stopped in a couple classes and asked if anybody knew how long it was.  Definitely worth it.

If you want extra credit for reading and discussing the blog today, read and discuss the blog with an adult.  Then, when you're done, find a scrap of paper and write the following phrase: "We're rocking out."  Have the adult you read the blog with sign the paper.  Turn it in tomorrow in the extra credit tray.

Maps and What Not

Today the students practiced their latitude and longitude skills a little more.  I'm feeling a little better about how they are doing.

They actually plotted points on a map now instead of just a grid.

Here's a little warning: we're going to have a quiz fairly soon.  I would guess it will be by the end of the week.  If you're still having trouble, please see me.

For now, if you want the extra credit for reading and discussing the blog, find a scrap of paper, let me know you were here, and have the adult you read it with sign the paper.