FRIDAY KCC

Students read excerpts from James Loewen's Chapter 7 "The Land of Opportunity" while taking notes (a lot) and adding questions (minimum of 5) onto their C.Q. pages -- finish for homework as needed (borrow the packet).  

FRIDAY World History

Ditto yesterday!

FRIDAY U.S. History

Students read excerpts from James Loewen's Chapter 7 "The Land of Opportunity" while taking notes (a lot) onto their E.Q. pages and questions (minimum of 5) onto their C.Q. pages -- finish for homework as needed (borrow the packet).  

THURSDAY KCC

Students read excerpts from James Loewen's Chapter 7 "The Land of Opportunity" while taking notes and adding questions (minimum of 5) onto their C.Q. pages -- this will be finished in class tomorrow.

THURSDAY World History

Lab time for working on slideshows as detailed yesterday -- remember -- due before the start of class Tuesday along with the highlighted packets of printouts.

THURSDAY U.S. History

Students read excerpts from James Loewen's Chapter 7 "The Land of Opportunity" while taking notes (a lot) onto their E.Q. pages and questions (minimum of 5) onto their C.Q. pages -- this will be finished in class tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY KCC

Students finished their collaborative group work on the Claim/Evidence (circles) work pages for the essay "A Little Milk, A Little Honey" as started yesterday in class -- finish for homework as needed.  Students were also given time in class to collaborate on the text reading of Chapter 20 they were to have finished -- for comprehension questions and to discuss possible E.Q. themes.

WEDNESDAY World History

Instruction pages for the slideshow element of the research project were distributed, read aloud, and discussed.  Then, score sheets for how the Research Project will be GRADED -- distributed, read aloud together, and discussed.  (Students will find the criteria matches perfectly with the instruction sheet they've been following for their research phase and with the instruction sheet they got today for the slideshow aspect; it simply puts into one, concise place the criteria for easy review when having the grade in mind.)  The DUE DATE is Tuesday, April 5th -- be ready to turn in the research/reading packets that have been highlighted/underlined/color-coded (w/ source credentials) and the slideshow should be shared with sherry.cluver@watsekaschools.org no later than 8:00am Tues am.  We spent the bulk of today's class time in the lab for the students to work on the slideshows.

WEDNESDAY U.S. History

Students finished their collaborative group work on the Claim/Evidence (circles) work pages for the essay "A Little Milk, A Little Honey" as started yesterday in class.  Borrow the reading packet to finish for homework as needed.

KCC

Students worked in collaborative groups to do a practice Claim/Evidence work page for the essay "A Little Milk, A Little Honey."

World History

Project work day -- today is the last day for focus upon the important RESEARCH aspect -- by the time class starts tomorrow you should have read and highlighted (color-coded for topics) your many printouts that address our five (5) assigned topics for your chosen empire.  (The equivalent of 10 pages, single-spaced, size 12 font, 1" margins is the MINIMUM benchmark.)  Tomorrow clear, easy instructions will be given for how to prepare your excellent, EXPERT research information into slides to make the sharing-with-classmates portion easy, comfortable, and interesting. 

U.S. History

We backed up to answer #1 on the Civil War Era Unit-Closure Work Pages (final exam study guide), as I forgot to have the students do so when their paragraphs on that topic were returned last week.  15 minutes of class time was given to finish the "Immigrant Voices" analyses (circles pages) -- for the few students who would like a bit of additional time, see me during Advisory today.  We began practice Claim/Evidence (circles) pages for a 2nd and final scholarly perspective on turn-of-the-century immigration -- this time, working in our groups.  Read aloud the excerpts from "A Little Milk, A Little Honey" while collaborating to complete the work page -- to be finished in class tomorrow.

KCC

We finished the Claim & Evidence page for "Immigrant Voices" -- see me for a pass to come in during Advisory on Tuesday to finish if needed.  Remember your homework reading, but we'll move the official due date back to Wednesday.  ; )

World History

Continued work on the research projects.  The target to finish for homework if not completed this far in class today is to have a minimum of nine (9) pages of information (see instructions for what "counts" as a "page") and information in your page collection that now addresses at least four (4) of the five topics.  BE SURE you've read and underlined/highlighted all of these materials (color-coding for topics).  We'll be back in the lab to find the remaining information needed to complete the rest of the research.  

U.S. History

We finished the "Immigrant Voices" Claim & Evidence work page.  If you've been absent, see me for a pass to come in during Advisory on Tuesday to finish.  The Civil War Era E.Q. paragraphs were returned with scores and students were encouraged to talk with me about their work and questions for future improvement as needed. 

KCC

Claim/Evidence work from yesterday is continued and finished in class today.  

World History

Research work day in the lab -- pacing target recorded into agendas or phones for a homework reminder = by the start of class tomorrow have the equivalent of six (6) or more (!) single-spaced, sized 12 font pages of information on your empire that covers at least three (3) of the five assigned topics. 

U.S. History

We viewed and discussed some handouts regarding the citizenship process and I shared some insights form a government official in DC with whom I spoke this past weekend.  A few research ideas/links were suggested, also, for CQ pages.  We began work on a Reading Claim & Evidence page ("circles page") for the scholarly introduction to the book Immigrant Voices -- to be finished in class tomorrow.

KCC

Students had the opportunity to collaborate on the Chapter 19 readings/notes.  Next HW assignment -- read all of Chapter 20 by the start of class on Tuesday.  Students began work on the new Claim/Evidence work page for the scholarly excerpt (book intro) to Immigrant Voices -- to be continued in class tomorrow.

World History

We reviewed all of the instructions for the research project and then spent most of the hour in the lab working.  I also showed a visual model for color-coding the highlighting according to topics.

U.S. History

A contemporary case study on immigration was presented -- add to your EQ notes.  (Email Mrs. Cluver and she'll reply with a Google share of the slideshow; you'll want to jot your questions, as the slides only explain so much, and then see Mrs. C to get answers to your questions).  Socratic score sheets were distributed to the students.

KCC

Follow-up discussion on the contemporary immigration case study, including 2 handouts regarding the citizenship process.  We began a claim/evidence work page for a core excerpt from Immigrant Voices -- to be continued in class on Monday.

World History

We reviewed instructions for your research projects, discussed color-coding the materials, and then had significant lab time for researching.  HW -- pick up the 2 instructional handouts, check-in with Mrs. Cluver on your choice of empire, and get started with finding research materials according to the instruction page.

U.S. History

Socratic discussion over I Came A Stranger.  Pick up a "Socratic Make-Up" work page if you were absent!

KCC

We had follow-up from yesterday's Socratic discussion.  Students had an opportunity to collaborate on the assigned reading due today -- comprehension clarity as well as big ideas for the E.Q. page.  The new homework reading assignment is to speed-read the following parts of Chapter 19 by Monday:  p.552-553 (Intro & New Met.), p.556 - top portion of p. 561 ("Newcombers & Neighborhoods"), and p.565 - end of p. 577 ("Governing The Great City").  We then began taking a look at a contemporary immigration case study by way of Mrs. Cluver's slideshow -- to be continued in class tomorrow.

World History

We finished our Socratic discussion follow-up and then began work on our new, case study projects.  Pick up a topics instruction page and then a research instructions page.  You should finish through research item #1.  We'll begin into #2 tomorrow.

U.S. History

I gave an overview of the instructional activities and topics for this unit, and then we finished our in-class reading time of the excerpts from I Came A Stranger -- finish for homework if needed.  The scored Socratic discussion is tomorrow.

KCC

Socratic discussion today!  

World History

Scored World Religion E.Q. paragraphs were returned to students along with an invitation (1/2-sheet handout) to see me to sign up for a quick Writers' Conference with me to go through your writing one-on-one.  Students completed #1 & 2 on the W.Rel. Unit-Closure Work Page.  Organize all of your many papers from the religions unit according to skill.  Socratic score sheets and scored Context/Lens work pages were both returned to the students and time allowed for group collaboration to make corrections.

U.S. History

I Came A Stranger reading day.  (Friday will be the Socratic discussion.)

KCC

We finished our reading and note-taking on "I Came A Stranger" -- Socratic discussion to be tomorrow.  Reminder: finish reading the assigned parts of Chapter 18 by the start of class Thursday.

World History

Socratic discussion on the textbook analyses work.  If you were absent be sure to pick up from the side bin a "Socratic Make-up" work page.

U.S.

We finished the Context/Lens work for "I Came A Stranger" (turned in for a score) and then began new notes on the core narrative while reading -- in preparation for a scored Socratic discussion.  We'll continue reading in class tomorrow.

KCC

Students collaborated for clarification as needed on their Chapter 17 notes and added themes to their E.Q. page as needed.  Next homework is to read these assigned parts of Chapter 18 by Thursday:  p.524-top of p.526, 533-top of p.541, and p.550 summary.  We then continued reading the narrative excerpts from "I Came A Stranger" -- to be finished in class tomorrow and discussed for a scored Socratic discussion on Wednesday.

World History

We finished work on the textbooks analyses work pages -- Socratic discussion is tomorrow; so, be sure to finish if needed as homework and come in ready for an active discussion.

U.S. History

Homework -- now complete through #14 on the Unit-Closure Work Page (finish the packet).  We continued work on the "I Came A Stranger" context/lens work pages -- to be finished in class tomorrow.

KCC

I provided a "Mental Map Timeline," which we then discussed together.  Homework reminder about the textbook reading to complete by Monday as detailed yesterday.  We continued our in-class, individual reading and notes from I Came A Stranger -- to be continued in class on Monday.

World History

We continued our textbooks analysis as detailed yesterday.  Finish through the Evolving Narratives section #2, finishing for homework as needed.  We'll pick up with the work at that spot in class on Monday.

U.S. History

Unit-Closure Work Pages should be completed through #7; for homework, finish at least through #11 by Monday.  We discussed (on our E.Q. note pages) the key points from Crash Course #26 (avail. on You tube) and then viewed and discussed with notes #27, & #28.  On Monday we begin the slow, in-depth study of details of this time period with exploration of what it was like to be an immigrant of that era.

KCC

Homework -- speed read and take notes on pp.498-522 in the new textbook -- by Monday.  Make a note on your "E.Q. Ideas/Themes" page to remember to see your "Crash Course" page, as it is full of big ideas!  We continued the Context/Lens work page from yesterday, and as time allowed, students began the reading of the actual novel excerpts while recording notes and questions onto the packet provided -- will be used in a scored Socratic discussion.

World History

I went over the plans for this unit to give the students the big picture trajectory that much of the unit will very soon be student-directed research on their choice of empire case studies.  Today we begin a second big-picture piece of work, using the textbook and copies of key excerpts from a 1930s textbook -- pick up a work page and let me know if you have any questions.  This work page will be used in a scored Socratic discussion.

U.S. History

In 1st hour I gave the last bit of extra help on the UCWP that remained for ?s 4 & 5.  For homework, finish through item #7 on the UCWP.  Revised, color-coded E.Q. paragraphs are due today with score sheets (and via turnitin.com).  An important handout -- Mental Map Timeline -- was distributed and discussed.  We set up our new C.Q. and E.Q. pages for out new unit, and on the E.Q. page we pulled some important, key ideas from quick Crash Course U.S. History videos (available on Youtube) -- #25 and #26.  We discussed/shared those big ideas via SMARTboard after each video.  We'll do the same with #27 & #28 tomorrow (no "circles" page, just identifying thesis parts onto the E.Q. page).

KCC

Research was returned -- remember you can improve, edit, or re-do if desired.  (Most scores were very good; just a reminder.)  We discussed the Crash Courses that we've already viewed as a review, then identified the thesis points in episode #28.  We began work on the Context/Lens work page for "I Came A Stranger" -- to be finished in class tomorrow.

World History

We finished the "Empire Overview Readings" individual, scored (context/lens) work.  Students who needed more time plan to come in during Advisory to finish.

U.S. History

We backed up and regrouped about the E.Q. paragraphs, as I am seeing an unfortunate number of students not following the directions on the score sheet, which are reiterated on the edit page, and should be clear from the same criteria on our previous, scored writings.  Please take the next 24 hours to follow directions, make improvements, and submit color-coded hard copies AND to turnitin.com.  Students re-did their Skills Breakdown pages for a self-evaluation.  The majority of the time was provided for students to begin work on their Unit-Closure Work Pages that will be studied for the May final exam.  Sadly, a large number of students insisted on wasting time despite repeated directives from me throughout the work session; so, no more class time will be given for this.  Please complete it as homework.

KCC

"Old" books were checked in and returned to the bookcase.  We continued our casual viewing of Crash Course U.S. History #26 & 27, discussing via SMARTboard the key themes for our individual note pages.  These are available on You tube.  (We'll view #28 tomorrow.)

World History

We began the individual, scored work on the "Empires Overview Reading" -- staple your page 1 onto the top of the rest of the questions packet I give to you today.  Use the reading packet already broken down over the past 2 school days to answer (individually, now) the questions in the new portion of the packet.  Pick up the tertiary source when indicated in the questions packet -- to be continued in class tomorrow.

U.S. History

2nd and final day of in-class writing on our E.Q. -- final hard copies are due by the start of class tomorrow with score sheet as well as submission to turnitin.com.  Scored Curiosity Research was returned to the students with a reminder that it can be clarified, added to, otherwise edited, or redone to improve scores as desired.

KCC

See me to get your two, new books numbered if you were absent.  We discussed the preview work they did yesterday, turning that page into a C.Q. page, then.  We established the official E.Q. for the unit, and set up an "E.Q. Themes" page.  We then began the unit by way of Crash Course videos, but without circle pages.  Instead, we did a challenge-screening -- one time each at full speed to see who could discern the best, most complete thesis for each.  This will be continued in class on Monday.

World History

Students picked up with the collaborative comprehension work on the "Empires Overview Reading" assignment, using dictionaries/phones to work together to pick it apart, making notes onto the packets as needed.  On Monday students will use the packets independently to answer Context/Lens questions on paper for a skill score. 

U.S. History

Research is due today.  Writing score sheet and helper outline/planning page were distributed and we began work in the lab.  We'll be back in the lab on Monday to finish with paragraphs due in hard copy and via turnitin.com by the start of class on Tuesday.

THURSDAY -- KCC

The sub went over the answers to the UCWP.  New books (2) were distributed and they leafed through them to brainstorm a good E.Q. for the new unit (Turn of the Century; ~1880s-1920s), record questions they have about the era, and topics that seem key/critical.

THURSDAY -- World History

Drop-in lesson -- students viewed a new episode of the cultural show "Bizarre Foods" while adding to the new C.Q. page.  (Back to our regularly schedule curriculum tomorrow when Mrs. C is back from illness.)

THURSDAY -- U.S. History

Lab time to complete Curiosity Research -- due first thing tomorrow.

KCC

Reminder -- essays are due at the start of class on THURSDAY -- via turnitin.com AND a hard copy.  One change -- this time, after you've used highlighters and the edit handout to make edits and to finalize, you will then use highlighters, also on the final draft so you can show to me your text structure.  In class today students worked on the Unit-Closure Work Page to review and wrap up while preparing the precise key material that will be studied for the final exam in May.  

World History

Students edited their "Skills Breakdown" self-evaluations that were originally completed by them in January.  We then began our unit on Urban Empires by visiting and reviewing our Mental Map Timeline and setting up our new E.Q. page.  We worked collaboratively to break down the meaning of select excerpts from a very challenging scholarly article -- write in quick definitions for terms directly on the packet.  You will, later, do a scored Context/Lens work page for this packet, but first we are working together, with phones, dictionaries, and assistance from Mrs. Cluver to break it down for clear comprehension.

U.S. History

Illinois connections -- a packet of IL Lincoln sites was given to each student, I showed on the SMARTboard images of the Lincoln-Douglas Debate Site and the Guiteau House in my hometown, Freeport, IL.  We read aloud together a news article about Watseka's connections to Lincoln.  We then went to the lab to begin our Research time -- pick up a NEW & UPDATED 1/2-sheet of score criteria.  Reminder -- expert credentials and evidence of time-on-task are the two most critical factors for the score.  We will have the entire class period tomorrow; so, your research should reflect a day and a half of focused work to earn a favorable score.

KCC

Today is our final in-class writing lab day.  Papers (in hard copy, color-coded per edit page AND via turnitin.com) are due by the start of class Thursday.

World History

E.Q. end-of-unit argumentative paragraphs are due today -- color-coded per the edit page and submitted via turnitin.com.  We viewed a commercial about religious diversity and then completed the Unit-Closure Work Page collaboratively.  We also edited our skills breakdown self-evaluations that were first completed when we returned from break.

U.S. History

We viewed the 2nd of 2 episodes of "The Presidents" DVD for this unit:  "Andrew Johnson to Arthur: 1865-1885."  Add to your E.Q., C.Q., and "Simplified History of Presidents' Political Parties" pages while screening.  (This film is available on You tube.)