As Halloween approaches, the students of Team 8-1 were faced with a very scary issue this week: a chapter test! Students were also introduced to several new iPad applications and used the SMALLab to participate in a class vs. class showdown! I have to say that I was very pleased with the results of Friday’s exam! Well done everyone! The Judicial Branch was the topic of discussion in Discover History class, with students acting as lawyers on Friday! Great job everyone, and I hope you are ready for the Salem Witch Trials investigation this upcoming week! American History: Monday: Students were introduced to two new formative assessment tools during Monday’s class. First students were divided into two teams for the Socrative Space Race! Socrative is an iPad application that provides teachers with real-time feedback. I am sure that students have used the Socrative app before, but the Space Race feature appeared to be new to most students. The Space Race feature divides students into teams and students race against one another by answering questions. In most classes, students decided to race against one another as unicorns. The unicorns move across the screen as students answer questions correctly. It felt as if I was watching the Kentucky Derby as students willed their unicorns to the finish line! At the end of class, students used the Quizalize platform to review key concepts from Chapter Three. The Quizalize platform is also is a team game, and allows students to review content through multiple choice and unscrambling answers. The Quizalize platform is much like the Quizizz platform that has been used, but it was very entertaining to watch students work together in teams! Well done everyone! To view a Quizalize used in class, please click on this link. Tuesday: Students channeled their inner elementary school self to create a map of the early North American colonies. Students worked within their groups to correctly label each colony. Students then correctly categorized each colony as a New England, Middle, or Southern colony. Students then placed a product from each colony on their map, and finally color-coded their map. This map will come in handy for Friday’s exam, and it was a nice change of pace from technology integration within each lesson. Wednesday: Wednesday marked the first visit of the 2015-2016 school year to the SMALLab! Students competed against one another in a game of memory that focused on vocabulary terms from Chapter Three! Students worked in pairs and each class period kept track of the total matches made within the allotted time. Congratulations to Period Two for winning the SMALLab competition! Please be sure to check out the photos below to see some of the action from Wednesday’s activity! Thursday: Students participated in the Chapter Three Review Extravaganza! Students utilized the Kahoot platform to review key concepts from Chapter Three. Congratulations to each winner of the Kahoot! In addition, students participated in the Quizalize review to prepare for their Chapter Three exam. Students were asked several questions via Quizalize to gage their preparedness for Friday’s exam. One great feature of the Quizalize platform is that the teacher is alerted to students who are struggling and the teacher can address the content that the student may need extra help with. To prepare for Friday’s exam, students were provided with a study guide on eBackpack, two Brain Rushes, the links to the Kahoot & Quizalize games, and all of the class presentations and Near Pod slides. Friday: Friday was test day in American History! Students took the forty-question assessment on eBackpack and the results were very promising. I was very impressed by the overall results on this assessment. Following the exam, students took a survey on American History class and my performance. In addition, students download the Salem Witch Trials iBook for next week. If you missed out on the survey, you can take it by clicking on this link! If you did not score as well as you would have liked on Friday’s exam, please see me and we’ll develop a strategy for the next exam. In addition, I stay for tutoring every Thursday from 3:30-5:00! Discover History: Monday: Students in Discover History used Kahoot to review for the Executive Branch Quiz. Students were asked questions on content such as presidential powers, executive departments, and presidential history! To play this Kahoot, please click on this link. Tuesday: Students completed the Executive Branch quiz. I was once again very pleased with the results of this quiz! The quiz consisted of matching, multiple choice, and correctly identifying the executive departments! Excellent work everyone! Wednesday: Today marked the introduction to the Judicial Branch! Judge Judy and several other famous TV judges were discussed with a few laughs here and there. Students were introduced to the different levels of the Judicial Branch. Students discerned the difference between trial and appellate courts and the difference between criminal and civil court cases. Students used the Courts in a Nutshell resource from iCivics to introduce themselves to the Judicial Branch. Thursday: Students participated in a great discussion on the meaning of the word “Fair”. A video created by the Fair Voters Project was used that describes the role of the Judicial Branch in determining what is fair. Former Surpeme Court Justice, Sandra Day O’Connor narrates the video, and provides great examples of the power of the Judicial Branch. Students then correctly identified the meaning of impartiality and how it applies to the Judicial Branch through a Verso discussion. Friday: Students used the iCivics website to simulate a courtroom experience! Students played the Argument Wars game to put their argument skills to the test. Students picked court cases from a list of landmark cases and tried their best to win the case. I am pretty convinced that we have a few future lawyers in Elizabeth Forward! Monday marks the last day of this rotation and I must say I am so impressed with this group of students! I hope that you enjoyed your time in Discover History and keep watching Carl Azuz!
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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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