Welcome to our first blog post of the 2017-2018 school year! For those of you who were unable to attend Open House my name is Steve Hartnett, and I will be teaching your student American History this school year. To say that I am excited to be teaching American History this school year is quite the understatement! If you were unable to attend Open House, I handed out a letter about an exciting development this year in American History Class: The Flipped Classroom! I have attached the letter to the end of this post. If you have any questions about the Flipped Classroom approach, please feel free to send me an email via the Contact Page of this website.
We have been very busy and productive these first few weeks of American History Class. One of the first activities that students participated in was the American History Scavenger Hunt. In this activity, students searched my classroom for hidden clues in order to complete the Scavenger Hunt. If you have not seen my classroom, I can tell you that it is covered in American History and sports memorabilia If you would like to see what my classroom looks like, please take a look at the short video posted below. Congratulations to the winners of the American History Scavenger Hunt from each class period! Students also teamed up with the other 8th Grade American History Class to participate in a massive Review Day Activity. During the Summer, students completed a Summer Assignment and were told that they could use the Summer Assignment on the first exam. While my colleague, Mr. Jourdan Englert, and I recognize the importance of a relaxing Summer vacation, we also wanted to be proactive this school year to avoid the “Summer Slide”. During the Review Day Activity, students used Quizlet Live to review vocabulary terms. Students then utilized the Kahoot platform to review key concepts. The following day, students took the Chapter One Exam, and I was very pleased with the results! Way to go everyone! Following the Chapter One Exam, I introduced each class to the Flipped Classroom approach. I told students that this year they would be in “driver-seat” for their learning. The Flipped Classroom promotes student-choice! This school year, students will have a choice on how they gain knowledge, apply that knowledge, and demonstrate mastery of the content. Please ask your student about their Choice Board to see how student choice is exemplified within the Flipped Classroom. One of my favorite aspects of the Flipped Classroom is that students determine the pace of their learning. Therefore, students who are ready to move on with content can explore the content at a pace that they are best suited for. Students who need additional assistance do not need to worry about falling behind as well! The Flipped Classroom uses videos, created by myself, as the primary way of instruction of new content. We viewed the first Flipped Video as a class in order to ensure that students understand how to watch the videos. Students have been working diligently on their Choice Boards. The Choice Board is broken up into three portions: Knowledge, Application, and Mastery. Students have chosen one activity from each category and receive feedback when they submit their work. My role in the Flipped Classroom is not only as the educator, but also the facilitator. Some of the student choices that I have witnessed are:
Today, students participated in a whole-class activity that focused on Christopher Columbus. Using Post-It Notes, students shared what they already knew about the famous explorer. We then read an excerpt from the book, Lies My Teacher Told Me about Christopher Columbus and his treatment of Natives. This led to a discussion, with more Post-It notes, on whether or not Columbus should have his own holiday. I really enjoyed the sharing of ideas that took place in today's class! This week, we will continue to investigate Early Exploration and also begin a group project on the Fall of the Inca Empire. Please feel free to leave a comment on the blog or to send an email with any questions, comments, or concerns! Thanks for reading!
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I hope that everyone has enjoyed their Summer so far! For those of you who do not know me, my name is Steve Hartnett & I teach 8th Grade American History at Elizabeth Forward Middle School. For more information about myself, please check out the About section of this website, or click this link! I wanted to share some information about American History class and provide a preview for the 2017-2018 school year.
I have embedded the 2017-2018 Classroom Syllabus for American History Class below. Please feel free to review the Syllabus at your leisure. If you have any questions or comments about the 2017-2018 Classroom Syllabus, you can send an email to [email protected]. The Syllabus provides a glimpse into Team 8-1 American History Class and some of the topics/activities that are covered throughout the school year! If you look at the 2017-2018 Classroom Syllabus, you will notice that this school year will feature Flipped Learning in American History Class! Flipped Learning or Flipped Classrooms are not a new idea in the realm of education, and I am very excited to showcase this teaching/learning technique. What is Flipped Learning & What are the benefits of Flipped Learning? I will attempt to answer these questions below: Flipped Learning or the Flipped Classroom moves the direct instruction away from the group space/classroom. This normally means that students watch & interact with an instructional video prior to coming to class. When students come to the classroom, they will engage in various types of activities that allow students to practice learned concepts and use higher-order thinking in class (Bergmann & Sams 2015). Shifting the direct instruction/lecture of class with activities has several benefits (Bergmann & Sams 2015):
With that being said, let me provide an example of what American History Class will look like for the upcoming school year. Mr. Jourdan Englert, the American History Teacher for Team 8-2, and I will be creating the video content for students. These videos will be relatively short in length and contain interactive features. All of the videos will be posted on eBackpack, Ed Puzzle, and our YouTube Channels. By using Ed Puzzle, Mr. Englert and I will know who has watched the video and who has not yet viewed the content. When students enter American History Class, a brief review of the video will take place and students can ask questions that they may have. From there, students will be provided choices on how to demonstrate their learning. Each student will have a "road map", where they will decide what activities to participate in. This will allow students who are struggling to grasp the material a chance to work on lower order thinking tasks, while students also providing challenges to students who are ready to perform the higher order thinking activities. I believe that the Flipped Classroom will bring positive change into my classroom. Each student moves at a flexible pace, which allows advanced students to get the challenges they need and provide extra support for struggling students. I also plan on making an XP Board where students will track the "experience points" they earn by completing certain activities. Students will have to earn a certain level of XP to take the exam at the end of each unit. As you can see, the 2017-2018 school year is going to be packed with a plethora of engaging activities for Team 8-1 & Team 8-2 Students! I am really looking forward to a productive and entertaining school year! I apologize for the lack of blog updates throughout the months of April and May! My wife and I are preparing for our first child (expected to make his debut any day now), so I have been a bit preoccupied with preparing for the responsibilities and expectations of being a first time dad! With that being said, students from Team 8-1 American History have been very busy and quite impressive since my last blog post. Below I will provide some of the highlights from the past few weeks, but I would first like to say THANK YOU to everyone who has reached out and wished my wife and I congratulations on our first child! We are so grateful for the many cards and gifts that have been sent our way, and we both really appreciate the generosity of the Elizabeth Forward community!
Smithsonian Learning Lab: Since my last post, students utilized the Smithsonian Learning Lab in a new activity that I created this school year. Each time that I access the Learning Lab, the more I fall in love with this awesome resource. If you have not check out the learning lab, please do yourself a favor and spend a couple of minutes on their website! Students used the Smithsonian Learning Lab to investigate the causes to the War of 1812. While the majority of students have some knowledge of the War of 1812, I created my collection of resources on the Learning Lab to take a deeper look into the causes of the conflict. Students were introduced to famous individuals like William Henry Harrison and Tecumseh. Students also spent tie becoming familiar with “War Hawks” like Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun. I am also in the midst of creating a Learning Lab Collection that will be used during a Breakout EDU activity. The collection will focus on the Age of Reform, specifically the Women’s Rights and Abolitionist Movements. I hope to debut this activity some day this week, but the amount of standardized & NWEA testing has resulted in a lack of time before the end of the school year. QR Code Gallery Walks: Students have also participated in a few QR Code Gallery Walks since my last blog update. I really enjoy the QR Code Gallery Walks because it allows students to explore a topic at their own pace. In addition, the QR Code Gallery Walks often include Ed Puzzle Videos and other “Ice Breaker” types questions that students respond to on a large sheet of bulletin board paper. This allows every student, even the most shy of students, to have voice in class. The images below are of the QR Code Gallery Walk that focused on the actual events of the War of 1812. Andrew Jackson Facebook Page: I have several posters within my classroom that show the Facebook Pages of the founding fathers. While these posters are quite humorous, they do include detailed information about the particular person that is beneficial for a student of American History. With this in mind, I created an activity where students created a Facebook Page for Andrew Jackson. A Prezi Presentation and an article titled The Nine Lives of Andrew Jackson first introduced students to Andrew Jackson. Students used a Facebook template on Google Slides to create their profile page for “Old Hickory”. The students really enjoyed this activity because it combined humor and history... which is normally a winning combination. Trail of Tears Weebly Website: Last school year I created a Weebly Website that focused on Native American removal via the Trail of Tears. After a few tweaks and changes, I shared the website with students and we began to “travel the Trail of Tears” together. As we navigated the website, students were asked to keep in mind a question that posed the following: Did the United States government commit genocide against the Native Americans? Students responded to the question on the blog forum on the Weebly Website as a closure to the website.. Please feel free to check out the Weebly website by clicking this link! Manifest Destiny Flip Grid Response: Prior to using the Flip Grid application, students examined two primary sources pertaining to the idea of Manifest Destiny. Students then utilized the Flip Grid application to respond to the following question: Was Manifest Destiny Justified? The Flip Grid platform is an awesome tool for students to use in order to convey their thoughts about a particular subject. Students respond to a question by recording themselves through the app. Students have the ability to watch and listen to what their peers have to say about the same topic. I really like including the Flip Grid app into my lessons because it allows students to share their opinions in a nontraditional manner. The Oregon Trail Video Game: After being introduced to the Oregon Country & the Oregon Trail, students played the 1990 version of the Oregon Trail video game. This is always a popular day in American History class. Congratulations to the students who were able to complete the difficult journey! To those who did not make the journey (maybe you perished due to a snake bite, measles, dysentery, etc.), you can play the game at this link! Independence for Texas Google Tours: A new activity that I created for this school year focused around Google Tours. Google Tours uses Google Earth & maps to make a customized “tour” for students. I focused this Google Tours lesson on the Texas Independence Movement. Students were able to visit places like the Alamo and Battle of San Jacinto Monument through the tour. While the students are exploring the different sites, I was able to add additional comments and a narrative for students to guide them as they moved from each location to the next. I definitely would suggest any teacher to look into Google Tours! Camp Guyasuta Field Trip: In addition to going to the Flight 93 Memorial, students also participated in the Camp Guyasuta field trip. This field trip allows students to participate in numerous team-building activities. In addition, students have the ability to challenge themselves on a ropes course that includes a rock climbing wall and zip line! Thanks to all the chaperones and staff members at the Flight 93 Memorial and Camp Guyasuta! Our students really enjoyed both field trips! This week we begin the United States Civil War. I am excited to use several amazing resources from the Civil War Trust, including animated maps and Virtual field trips to several battle fields. With the end of the 2016-2017 school year fast approaching, Team 8-1 American History students are still investigating major historical events leading up to our final topic of the school year: The United States Civil War. Following the creation of The Federalist iBook, students were introduced to the Jefferson Era. Prior to the start of the Jefferson Era, students concluded their investigation of the Federalist Era. This saw students completing an iBook that I created on the Whiskey Rebellion. This iBook contained the same interactive features that the students used within their own iBooks. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, students are always very interested in the Whiskey Rebellion because of the local historical ties to the event!
Following the Whiskey Rebellion, students were presented with “Early Challenges” that faced the Washington administration. In past school years, I ask students to assume the role as “Special-Advisor” to the President. In this activity, students are presented with the same scenarios that faced President Washington, including:
Students think about each situation that I propose and then offer their advice to the President. This year, I decided to incorporate the platform known as Flipgrid to this activity. Flipgrid allows students to record their responses to a question prompt and also view and respond to their classmates. Students were a bit nervous at firs to record themselves, but after I demonstrated Flipgrid, the enthusiasm and eagerness to participate became contagious! I definitely plan on using the Flipgrid application more in my classroom. Following our Flipgrid activity, students participated in a document analysis activity pertaining to Washington’s Farewell Address. Students focused on several key aspects of the Address, particularly focusing on the portions that warned about party faction and foreign affairs. We then held a debate pertaining to Washington’s advice about these two topics and what our First President would say if he was living today. Instead of an exam about the Federalist Era, I presented students with Mr. Hartnett’s March Madness Matching Competition. In this challenge, students were presented with sixty-eight key concepts from the Federalist Era. Each group of students were given a set of these matches, and students worked collaboratively with their classmates to form correct matches. Incorrect matches resulted in a time penalty for the class. To practice, students participated in a similar activity on Quizlet Live. Congrats to Period Four on winning the competition and a special shout-out to Period Five for completing the challenge without any mistakes! The Jefferson Era began with a look into the presidency of John Adams. Students were introduced to the following topics via a Near Pod presentation:
I admit that I would (and definitely plan) on focusing more time on the above topics in the future. Students then looked into the election of 1800 and really enjoy breaking down the lyrics to The Election of 1800 from Hamilton the musical. Students were also ecstatic to hear that the musical will be coming to Pittsburgh in the coming years! Students were also introduced to the early years of the Jefferson presidency via a presentation on Near Pod. The Louisiana Purchase was the next major topic to be discussed in class, and students participated in a What Would You Do activity. In this activity (similar to an activity I used during the American Revolution), students assume the role as President Jefferson. Utilizing their knowledge of Jefferson and his Republican beliefs, students navigate a series of scenarios and then compare their response to Jefferson’s actual actions. Students are often a bit critical of Jefferson by the end of this activity because of some of the contradictory movements taken by Jefferson, especially in purchasing the Louisiana Purchase. One of my goals this year was to do a bit more with the Lewis & Clark Expedition. In years past, I would normally introduce the Lewis & Clark Expedition and move onto Jefferson and the Embargo. However, after a bit more personal reading and research on Lewis & Clark, I felt compelled to spend more time on this expedition. I provided students with several journal entries from Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. Students performed document analysis on the journal entries, which included topics such as:
Students have become very impressive with their analysis of primary source material and this activity showcased this notion. From the primary source analysis students were presented with two options on bringing these sources “to life”. Students could:
Students were also given the opportunity to create a “project of their choosing” that related to the Hamilton – Burr Duel. Although I provided “suggestions” for students, I am very excited to see what students come up with. Students will be using the iBook that I created on the duel to aid them in this project option. As you can see, Team 8-1 American History students have been hardworking over the last two weeks. I am very excited to see how the above-mentioned projects turn out and I will be sure to post about the final products soon! Since my last post, students from Team 8-1 & 8-2 collaborated together to create an iBook on the Federalist Papers. Prior to any iBook construction, students were situated in collaborative groups and performed document analysis on Federalist Papers #1, 10, 51, & 84. Using the Apple TVs and giant wipe-boards within the iCreate Studio, students were able to create visuals that reflected their analysis of the above-mentioned Federalist Papers. From this point, students were assigned specific roles to aid in the design of the iBook. Several students worked within the One-Button Studio to create the Intro Media for the iBook. These students donned historical costumes and used their creativity to introduce the contents of the iBook. In these videos, students became news anchors, talk-show hosts, game show contestants, etc. and edited their final videos using iMovie! Other students were assigned the role of researching the authors of the Federalist Papers, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, and creating a biography section of the iBook.
The primary focus of the iBook was the chapters that specifically focused on the students’ document analysis. Students wrote these chapters on the Google Doc platform. Students were able to collaborate with one another on the same document and could share and provide feedback with one another in a timely and convenient fashion. These students also made the decision on what interactive features should be included within their iBook. Students selected from the list below and then worked on creating their features and including these features within the iBook:
When it came to actually building the entire iBook on iBook Author, I worked with the Editors from each group. The Editors were students, selected by their peers, who took the lead on this particular project. These students were given an introduction to iBook Author and then given free reign on designing the iBook. While Mr. Englert is currently working on the final touches for Periods 4 & 6 iBooks, I have finished Period 2 & Period 5’s iBook. Please take the time and download these iBooks by clicking on the links at the bottom of the page! Since the file size for both iBooks is rather large, the download may take a few minutes. Following the Federalist Papers iBook creation, students were introduced to George Washington’s presidency. Using Near Pod, students and I went on a virtual field trip to Federal Hall in New York City to explore the site of Washington’s inauguration. In addition, students were introduced to Washington’s Cabinet and spent some time examining Alexander Hamilton and his Report on Public Credit. Students enjoyed the rap-battle from Hamilton the musical as we investigated the ideas of assumption and a national bank! Currently, students are in the middle of exploring the Whiskey Rebellion. This event is often a student-favorite because most of the action takes place in the Pittsburgh region. Using Google Earth, students familiarized themselves with the locations associated with Whiskey Rebellion, and then began reading an iBook that I created on the event. Like the iBooks that the students created, the Whiskey Rebellion iBook contains various interactive features that help bring the event to life for students! I almost forgot to mention that last Thursday, Elizabeth Forward Middle School celebrated another Culture Day! The focus of this Culture Day was the country of Morocco. Students were introduced to some basic facts on Morocco through Quizlet and played several rounds of Quizlet Live. Then students used a Morocco Travel Guide application and designed their own itineraries as if they were traveling to the country. Students researched the history of Morocco, the sights to see, the major cities, wildlife, language, foods, sports, etc. and included these in their itineraries. Students used a variety of applications to design their itineraries, with Pic Collage, Prezi, Google Slides, and Keynote being the most popular. I would also like to say thank you to everyone who has said congratulations on my recent honor of being named a PBS Digital Innovator for 2017! Not only do I consider myself very fortunate to be the recipient of this award, but I also consider myself to be very lucky to work with some of the most talented and inspiring educators and students! Thanks again! Period 2 Federalist Paper iBook Period 5 Federalist Paper iBook Team 8-1 American History Students are well on their way with a brand new collaborative project that focuses on the Federalist Papers and iBook Author! Before I explain this new and exciting endeavor, let’s take a quick look at the past two weeks in Team 8-1 American History Class…
Following the investigation of the Articles of Confederation, students participated in a simulation based on the Constitutional Convention. Students were each assigned an actual member of the Convention, and performed a bit of research on their Convention member. Students were then presented with the “Burning Issues” that faced the fragile United States following the American Revolution. These “Burning Issues” included:
Acting as their assigned member of the Constitutional Convention, Team 8-1 Students used their knowledge of their assigned individual and that of the constituents that they represent to make decisions on the above mentioned “Burning Issues”. Once these decisions were made, our delegates worked with delegates from their region (New England, Middle, & Southern) to create official stances for these “Burning Issues”. A chosen delegate presented these official stances to our Convention in order to create compromises between each region in the hope to aid our struggling nation during the late 1780s. Once these compromises were created, students took time to investigate the real events of the Constitutional Convention and compared the actual convention with the Team 8-1 American History Convention. Unfortunately, I missed several days of school last week due to illness, but the show still continued for my students! While I was out sick, I recorded several lessons for my students outlining the key components of the United States Constitution. Using the Ed Puzzle application, students watched these videos (in some cases it took several tries to film the video due to my coughs & sneezing), and gathered pertinent information for an upcoming project. On the day before my return, students used an online tutorial to investigate the Federalist & the Anti-Federalists. The tutorial, created by CPALMS, included awesome practice activities for students to check their understanding! Thanks to all my students for the patience that they showed while I was out! For some time now, I have been contemplating a way for students to create with iBook Author. I have created several iBooks during my time as an educator, and have always enjoyed the research and thought that goes into each creation. Several weeks ago, I thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be awesome for my students to create with iBook Author?”…. and the following project began to come into fruition. Due to the popular Hamilton Musical, several of my students have acquired a deep interest in Alexander Hamilton. I have read the Alexander Hamilton biography by Ron Chernow (a great read!), and can understand why students find Hamilton to be a polarizing figure, with or without a musical that bears his name. Therefore, I took this idea of a student created iBook and began to develop ideas on how to include Hamilton. After narrowing down my list of ideas, I settled on focusing this new project on the Federalist Papers. If you are not aware, the Federalists Papers are a collection of 85 essays published in New York that gave support for the newly created Constitution. I wanted my students to look at a select few Federalists Papers and perform document analysis of these primary sources. From there, I thought it would be interesting for students to “translate” these essays into their own words and provide explanations on how these papers still apply to us today. With all of these ideas in my head, I began to design the Federalist Papers iBook Creation Project for my students. Team 8-1 American History students will be working with Mr. Jourdan Englert’s American History students on this project. In addition, students will be utilizing the collaborative iCreate Studio space! Students will be creating video introductions for their iBook within the One-Button Studio and also designing the iBook as a group. When I pitched this idea to my colleague, we both felt that it would be beneficial for students to make the majority of the decisions in terms of the actual contents of the iBook. This project will not only call for students to perform research, but will also put their primary source analysis skills to the task. Students will also show of their creativity because they will be the “editors” of their own iBooks. I cannot wait to display some of the student work that will come from this project! Thus far, students have analyzed Federalists #1, 10, 54, & 81 and have began brainstorming ideas on what to include in their iBook! Students on Team 8-1 American History have officially ended their investigation and exploration of the American Revolution! While this is always a poignant moment for myself, I am very proud and impressed by the level of effort and inquiry that each student put forth throughout this monumental event within our history. One of the more demanding tasks that each student performed was related to document analysis on the Continental Army’s winter encampment at Valley Forge. Students were provided with four documents that pertained to the trying winter that General George Washington and his army faced while staying at Valley Forge. The documents that the students analyzed were the following:
Using a slightly modified document analysis tools created by the Library of Congress, students performed document analysis on each of the aforementioned sources. Students were asked to identify key source material, context, and meaning for each of the documents. Students were also given the opportunity to compose a Document Based Question (DBQ) response relating back to the documents. I was overjoyed by the amount of students who not only participated in this DBQ response, but also by the number of students who showed vast improvement from prior DBQ responses! Following the Valley Forge document analysis, students turned their focus on the Southern theatre of the American Revolution. This school year, I decided to create a website (web-quest of sorts) that presented material based on the American Revolution’s southern campaigns. Students first looked at key naval battles, strategies, and individuals of the American Revolution. One of my favorite aspects of the website (and student’s favorite) was the 3D model of the Gunboat Philadelphia from the Smithsonian Learning Lab. This 3D model also comes with a narrative about the resource. Students were shocked to hear that the actual Gunboat Philadelphia can be seen in the American History museum within the Smithsonian! The Weebly website also included pages dedicated towards Native American involvement within the American Revolution, events and individuals for the western theatre, and battles and strategies used within the south. Students also were introduced to the Battle of Monmouth and enjoyed listening to the song dedicated to this battle from Hamilton the musical. Perhaps my favorite portion of the website that I created was the blog question at the very end. Using information that they gathered through their web-quest activity, students also utilized a collection created on the Smithsonian Learning Lab to answer a “putting it all together” blog post. To check out the website and responses made by students from Team 8-1, please click on this link! Students then moved to the finale of the American Revolution: The Yorktown Campaign. For this vital moment in our history, I enjoy employing the Google Earth application and a series created by George Washington’s Mount Vernon titled, Now or Never. As a class, students and I locate Yorktown on Google Earth and discuss why might British General Cornwallis choose Yorktown to station his army. From there we debate if this was a “smart” move by the general by looking at the pros and cons of the general’s choice. Now or Never is one of my favorite video resources to use in my class. Not only do I love this resource, but also my students take a survey at the end of viewing Now or Never and the overwhelming majority of students enjoy the series! I like to use the Ed Puzzle application when having students watch video files because I can add my own comments and questions for students to respond to while they are engrossed in the action. I have recently heard that George Washington’s Mount Vernon have also released a series relating to the Constitutional Convention, which I am ecstatic to watch and hopefully utilize within my instruction.! Following the end of the American Revolution, students were introduced to what I liked to call the “Now What Do We Do?” portion of American History. The Americans have won their independence, and now face the tremendous task of building a nation. To introduce some key happenings such as the Treaty of Paris 1783, why/how the Americans won, and the Northwest Ordinance, I ask students to partake in a QR Code Gallery Walk. I like to utilize this instructional technique when presenting new information because it asks for students to make educated predictions and also promotes reflection. Students navigate from station to station and first read a prompt that normally ask students to make a prediction. Using a sharpie marker, students respond to the prompt on the background paper (see images below) and then scan a QR Code to a wiki website that I have created. Often I incorporate other iPad Applications (such as Poll Everywhere) within the gallery walks. Students then answer concept-check questions based on the Wiki’s content. I like to conclude this activity by asking students to share their predictions and check for understanding based on the responses from the concept-check questions. Finally, students explored the Articles of Confederation via an iBook that I designed. The iBook contains several interactive features such as video media, interactive images, multiple-choice questions at the end of sections, and a 3D model. This year, I also expended the iBook to include Thinking Routines designed by Harvard University’s Project Zero. The Thinking Routines that I asked students to engage in were:
With the help of Ms. Alyssa Betz, I also incorporated Maps for Individualized Thinking (MITs) as students worked their way through the iBook. Using the iCreate Studio space, specifically the Apple TVs and giant wipe-boards, students responded to the Thinking Routines and MITs. More information about the Thinking Routines that I used (and others) can be found at this link! It is quite obvious that Team 8-1 American History students have been extremely diligent over the past few weeks and I look forward to sharing more about future events! The last two weeks have been very eventful and full of new activities that I have never implemented during my previous years of teaching. Since my last post, students have been investigating the American Revolution. The American Revolution, as a whole, is one of my favorite topics to study and to teach. When I have a free moment, I enjoying reading and attending events that coincide with the American Revolution. With that in mind, I like to investigate the individuals and events that make up the American Revolution in great detail. We started the American Revolution by participating in a QR Code Gallery Walk that focused on the combatants of the American Revolution. Students looked into the strengths and weaknesses of the Patriots and British. Students were also introduced to the German mercenaries, known as the Hessians.
From our Gallery Walk, students participated in a new activity that I called The Battle of New York: What Would You Do? In this activity, students used their iPads to answer a series of questions that asked students to think like George Washington, As students made their decisions as Commander of the American forces, students were also able to compare their decision making with what actually occurred throughout the battle. Following our Battle of New York simulation, students were introduced to a wonderful resource from George Washington’s Mount Vernon titled, The Winter Patriots. This video series portrays the Trenton & Princeton campaigns in amazing accuracy and detail. I have taken the video series and placed the videos on the Ed Puzzle application. On Ed Puzzle, an educator is able to trim, add concept-check questions, and place comments in a video. I often add questions and my own comments in these videos, which the students watch on their Apple iPads. Following the Winter Patriots, our class spent two days investigating Espionage and the American Revolution. Using a collection that I created on the Smithsonian Learning Lab, students examined the Culper Spy Ring. The students also examined the Culper Code Book and learned how to utilize the Culper Code Book. Following the Smithsonian Learning Lab collection, students competed in a Breakout Session that focused on the Culper Spy Ring. I was inspired by Breakout Edu, and created a series of challenges and clues that focused around the Culper Spy Ring. To introduce the competition, I donned one of my many costumes and portrayed Benjamin Tallmadge, leader of the Culper Spy Ring in a video that I filmed in the iCreate Studio . Students utilized the actual Culper Code Book on their iPad to decode clues and messages around the classroom. Students also used the codebook and UV Flashlights to unlock a series of locks to bring an end to the challenge. The Quizalize and Poll Everywhere platforms were also used within the challenge. Congrats to my Period Six class for completing the challenge in the fastest time! Following the Culper Spy Ring Breakout Competition, the students had the opportunity to showcase their acting skills. One of my biggest concerns in terms of history textbooks and curriculum is how many events are often glazed over in a sentence or two. For example, many pieces of American History curriculum, that I have seen, will state that the Battle of Saratoga was a turning point in the American Revolution. However, no explanation is often provided as to why Saratoga was so vital to the American Revolution. With this in mind, I designed an activity that presented the Battle of Saratoga as a performance. Students were introduced to the main “characters”, like Benedict Arnold, Horatio Gates, and John Burgoyne. Students then utilized the plethora of props that I have in my classroom to put on performances of different portions of the battle. I was highly impressed by the work that the students put into their performances! Finally, students took part in the festivities of Culture Day at Elizabeth Forward Middle School. Canada was the country of focus for the latest installment of Culture Day. Special “Canadian” cuisine was served in the cafeteria and students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade were introduced to different aspects of Canadian culture in their social studies classes. Students in 8th grade utilized the Quizlet Live and Kahoot platforms to acquire knowledge on all aspects of Canadian culture. Students also participated in a hockey “skills competition” that focused on shooting on a net with a “shooter-tutor”. Congratulations to Mr. Englert and Mr. Hartnett’s Period Five classes for winning the Canada Cup! I also wanted to give a shout out to my Discover History Class and the work they put in during their mock presidential election. The videos that were filmed and edited in the One-Button Studio were awesome! Nice work to all those who were involved! Welcome Back! I hope that everyone had a relaxing break and a very happy and healthy New Year. The week of January 2nd – 6th saw the students of Team 8-1 review concepts from Chapter Five: The Spirit of Independence and also the completion of the Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science NWEA Exams. I was very impressed with the diligence showed by all of the students at Elizabeth Forward Middle School during the three days of testing… Nice work everyone! To begin this blog post, I wanted to say how impressed I was with the Boston Massacre Mock Trials that occurred prior to the holiday break. The amount of work that each student put into the Mock Trial and the execution of the prosecution, defense, witnesses, and jury members was definitely inspiring. The Mock Trials took place in the iCreate Studio, and the students took their roles very seriously. Well done to everyone and I hope all enjoyed this activity! In American History Class, students returned from break by participating in a review of concepts from Chapter Five: The Spirit of Independence. The Quizlet Live Platform facilitated this review. Quizlet Live is a great resource that not only reinforces concepts taught, but also promotes teamwork and collaboration. In this rendition of Quizlet Live, students are placed into teams (this is done by Quizlet Live) and each student is provided a definition or concept. What makes this game engaging is that only one student has the correct answer on their iPad. The teacher displays the scoreboard for all the students to see. The gameplay is fast-paced, and the students really enjoy the nature of the game. The rest of the week was spent introducing significant topics and events that will direct the class to the American Revolution. Specifically, students became familiar with the following events:
At the end of the week, I introduced the Declaration of Independence to students. I like to introduce the Declaration of Independence as a break-up letter. Essentially the American colonies decided to “Call it quits” with Great Britain. To add an element of drama to this lesson, I tell students that I have found a break-up letter in my classroom and then read the pretend letter to the class. The reaction by the students while I read the letter is hilarious, but the reaction of the students when they find out the letter is a farce is even better. From there, I have students work in groups to compose their own break-up letters with Great Britain. This school year, students worked on these letters in the iCreate Studio. Students were able to utilize the Apple TVs to project their letters, promoting collaboration and feedback within the group. This upcoming week will bring a conclusion to Chapter Five and the beginning of the American Revolution. Look for an exam on Chapter Five sometime in the middle of the week. This week is also the Snowball Dance (Friday, January 13th)! It has been over a month since I have updated the Team 8-1 American History Blog, and what a busy month it has been. One of my New Years Resolutions will be to be more diligent in renewing the blog on a weekly basis. Since my last blog post, students in Team 8-1 American History have completed their first unit of the class and now have moved towards the American Revolution. Some of the highlights from the past month include the collaboration on several projects that focused on the growth of the thirteen colonies and George Washington’s participation in the French & Indian War. Students worked in their collaborative groups to design a brochure using the Google Docs platform that would advertise the thirteen colonies. The brochures described the colonies by region, and also focused on the different types of colonies. In addition, students included information on culture, religion, education, etc. within the colonies. The Google Docs platform allowed each student to contribute to the brochure simultaneously. I was very pleased with the level of creativity and cooperation that was displayed by the students throughout this project.
The French & Indian War (Seven Years War) is one of the major events that students investigate within American History class. Students enter 8th grade with a solid understanding of the global conflict from their 7th grade Pennsylvania History course. We begin the French & Indian War with a discussion on how the North American theatre is only one portion of the Seven Years War and we spend some time creating and labeling maps to showcase this point. Students are introduced to causes of the war and then move to a Project-Based Learning opportunity based on George Washington’s involvement in the conflict. Students are provided several journal entries from George Washington and work together to place these entries in chronological order and perform document analysis on each journal entry. Students begin to piece together the young Washington’s involvement, and construct meaning to the often-difficult relationships formed between the British, French, and Native Americans. From there, students worked together on the Google Slides platform to create a presentation on their learning. Students included the following items within their presentation:
Once again I was highly impressed with the work that each student put into this project. Document analysis is a difficult skill to master, but the students from Team 8-1 performed well and I was delighted by the final outcome of their presentations. One of the benefits from this project-based learning activity was that students were able to use the new iCreate Studio located within Elizabeth Forward Middle School. If you are not aware, the library within EFMS has been transformed to a studio full of the latest technology for students to use. For example, to work on this project each group was assigned a large screen high-definition television with an Apple TV connected to the television. This set up allowed students to project different aspects of their project, so the students could see one another’s contribution in real time. In addition, the students also had the ability to utilize the One-Button Studio. The studio, which was created by Penn State (WE ARE!), allows students to use high-end equipment to record video and audio files in front of a large green screen. Students simply insert a flash drive into a computer, press a button, and a camera begins to record. From there, students can use iMovie to insert different images for the green screen, and add effects to their movie file. Students used the One-Button Studio to film specific scenes from Washington’s journal entries. Finally, the other piece of information that I would like to share pertains to an amazing teacher institute that I had the opportunity to attend. The George Washington Teacher Institute held at George Washington’s Mount Vernon was an awesome experience that I will not forget. Educators from all over the United States came together to work with experts to learn ways to share Washington’s legacy with future generations. This four day experience included interesting lecture/discussion with scholars, demonstrations by historical interpreters, and one-of-a kind access to the grounds of Washington’s Mount Vernon. I want to thank the staff of Mount Vernon for putting the teacher institute together and for allowing myself the opportunity to learn from some of the best and brightest! I have already included different aspects from the institute into my lessons and cannot wait to share more with my colleagues and students. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday break & a happy new year! |
Mr. Steve Hartnett
Mr. Hartnett will update the Room 212 Blog with classroom updates on a regular basis. Be sure to follow me on Twitter @ MrHartnett212 Archives
July 2019
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