One Step Closer

This week we focused on the events leading up to the Civil War. Our guiding questions ask us to consider why countries engage in civil wars. What issues or differences are so extreme that fighting our own neighbor or even family member is the only way to “solve” a problem? We also looked at the war in Iraq and asked if this conflict was a civil war and if so does the presence of the United States help or hinder the peace process?

We started by designing a chart that compared the north and south in the mid 1800s. You looked at the political, economic, and social differences between these two regions. You should have found evidence to help answer the question raised by one of the titles in the Pathways text: were the north and the south starting to look like “Two Nations?” The north was becoming more industrialized with factories and extensive transportation and communication systems. Cities were growing. The south remained an agrarian economy relying on slave labor. The north was experiencing a series of reform movements aimed at providing a better quality of life while the south held on to its traditional ways.

We then moved on to look at specific events leading up to the war. You were given a list of 13 events that you had to put in chronological order. You then had to provide a brief description of how each event contributed to tensions between the regions. This should help you see the connections between events. The Compromise of 1850 contained the Fugitive Slave Act which required all citizens to help return slaves to their owners. This infuriated many northerners and abolitionists. One of the people most upset by this law was Harriet Beecher Stowe. She was so moved by the plight of the slave and this harsh new law that she wrote “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” a novel that greatly influenced people’s perception of slavery. Once you have identified the events and the role each played, take a moment and consider if this war was inevitable. Could there have been a point when this conflict could have been stopped? You need to consider this question and write a paragraph summarizing your thoughts. Make sure you have a clear thesis and supporting ideas.

We also considered the records of the presidents who served in the two decades leading up to the war. A country looks to its presidents for guidance and leadership, especially during difficult times. Could the pre-war presidents have avoided the conflict by providing better leadership, or were the issues so divisive that no political solution could have resolved the dilemma?

You have the packet of assignments for this new standard. You need to complete the Dred Scott assignment or the map assignment for our first class and then finish the remaining assignment for the next day.

Civil War Projects

For the past five years, students have had the opportunity to select a topic and a partner to work on a Civil War project that culminates in a public display. Time and again students have told me that this was the assignment that they will always remember from US I as it gave them the opportunity to study a topic they were interested in and to make their own work plan. On Monday we will start the process of selecting a topic, arranging for partners, and devising a work plan. You should try to pick a topic based upon your own interests. You can link just about any current day interest with the Civil War.

Keep in mind that you will be required to do critical thinking and analysis of your topic, which means going beyond just describing events or retelling the story. You will be given supporting material, time in the library, and class time to work on the project. You will also have to set aside time to work with your partner after school or on weekends.

You will also be writing a letter of invitation to a parent, guardian, or friend so that our entire community can hear your presentation and see your excellent work. It is a great time to celebrate thinking and acting like historians!

CIM Essay

The title of this week’s blog, “One Step Closer,” has a double meaning: we are one step closer to entering the Civil War, and you are one step closer to graduation with the completion of your CIM Freedom of Speech essay! Congratulations to all of you who met the deadlines and turned in your packet this week. You should be commended for your diligence. This essay will be scored by several readers and if you meet standard you may put this task into your graduation portfolio. The essay will also be considered a “test” grade for fourth quarter.

“Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?”

What early colonial leader defended the British soldiers who fired on the colonists during the Boston Massacre?

Congratulations and thank you to AM for bringing in this question and the correct response. It appears that the game show contestants were not familiar with this famous trial but AM was well prepared and answered correctly.

This person must have been a brave person to defend the enemy during a time of high tensions. This person must have believed that it was more important to do the right thing, that is, to provide counsel to the accused, than to think of how the public would react to his actions. I wonder how often leaders must weigh doing what is popular against doing what is right?

This person lived only 45 minutes north of Aquidneck Island and his homestead is now a national park. He went on to become our nation’s second president and the father of our 6th president. He also credited his wife, Abigail, as being his closest and most trusted advisor. Who is this man…should the correct response be given in next week’s blog or have you already put the clues together and figured out that we are talking about John Adams!

Who said Friday the 13th is bad luck?

Thank you to MLM and Associates for providing me with an analysis of the blog statistics that the counter provides. According to MLM, the blog experienced a significant increase in hits on the 13th and it has been followed by a high number of new visitors. So to all you new visitors, welcome to “1776 and More!”

Quote of the Week

“…of all the subjects we learn in school, history is more important and influential than anything, and most of all it stays in the heart.”

Time for a Pause

It was a pleasure reading your draft CIM essay this week. Read over my comments and suggestions, make your revisions, share your revised version with a family member or friend and be ready to hand in a final version on April 26. We will meet individually to discuss your final essay so you can check off all the required items on the criteria check list. You will need to hand in your signed research rubric, the draft easy, the final essay and the check list.

If you need to do additional research, please check out The First Amendment Center. This link first appeared on the blog on April 1 and we reviewed it in class. If you need help with formatting, check out the OWL site which will answer all your questions about MLA rules.

Women of the Past and Women of Today

This past week we continued our study of women of the 1840’s and their quest to improve their lives. In 1848, over 300 delegates gathered in Seneca Falls, New York for the first women’s rights convention. The group issued a Declaration of Sentiments that protested their lack of legal and political rights. In class you read the list of grievances issued by the convention and quickly saw that women had few rights and privileges.

Your women’s project will give you the opportunity to learn more about a woman from the 1800’s that made a significant contribution to society. For the second part of the assignment you will look at a contemporary woman who has made a significant and unique contribution to society. You have a task sheet and a rubric to help you complete this assignment.

Our history books are dominated by military and political history and thus are focused on the accomplishments of men. This project allows us to better understand the contributions that all groups make to our country. Howard Zinn, a historian who “writes from the perspective of the disenfranchised,” will be speaking at Salve Regina University on April 18 at 6:00 pm. This is expected to be a popular lecture so you need to reserve a seat by calling 341-2927. Attending this lecture will not only give you the chance to hear from a world class historian, it will also give you the chance to be on the Salve campus. It is none too soon to start thinking about college and looking at the many fine colleges in our area that you can chose from.

Compare and Contrast

As part of our study of abolition we read an excerpt from a slave narrative and a story entitled “The Wage Slave.” These two readings gave us the opportunity to compare and contrast the life of a slave and the northern factory worker. While many northerners criticized southerners for owning slaves, these same southerners were quick to point out the northern factory owners treated their workers worse than slaves. At the same time, we can see that southern cotton was instrumental in the success of the northern textile factories. The entire country was affected by slavery and there was ample blame to place on both the north and the south.

Steps leading to the Civil War

After our April break we will turn our attention to the events leading up to the Civil War. The Civil War period continues to fascinate historians and writers. In order to give you an opportunity to practice and apply all your historical thinking skills, you will be doing a project on a topic related to the war. This is a great time to start thinking about the type of project you would like to undertake. The key to a successful project is to select a topic you are truly interested in.

Honoring Our Past Today

Sixty years ago today, Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play for a major league team, the Brooklyn Dodgers. Branch Rickey, the general manager of the Dodgers, decide to hire Robinson because of his unique ball playing talents and his confidence that Robinson would be able to handle the insults and threats that were expected. Today, ball teams all over the county will take a moment to remind their fans of the courage and talent of Robinson. Number 42 has gone down in history as the man who broke the color barrier and opened the door for other players to follow regardless of their color. Thank you, Mr. Robinson and Mr. Rickey! Play ball!!!

A Time for Change

Writing is hard work! Most people struggle putting their thoughts on paper…remember Thomas Jefferson and the numerous drafts he went through as he wrote the Declaration! You have a challenging task as you grapple with your understanding of Constitutional rights for high school students and how to persuade your readers that the position you adopt (your thesis statement) is correct. You have had ample opportunity to research the rulings and resulting limits on freedom of expression in high schools. Do not get bogged down with this information but use it to support your point of view. Keep in mind your essay must also consider the other point of view. Congratulations to those who had their research signed off on time! Research rubrics should be signed off by Monday. The draft essay is due on April 11 or 12, depending which day your class meets. Do not wait to the last minute, as the sooner I have the draft, the more time you will have to revise it, as the rubric requires. I want to read every essay carefully to provide you constructive feedback. You have an outline that you may use to help you construct the essay. Finally, you must have your paper word processed and in MLA format. Take a minute to review what that means by consulting the OWL web site or reviewing the handouts you received in English.

Reform Movements

This week we also began reading about the numerous reform movements that arose in the early 1800s: temperance, education, women’s rights and the effort to end slavery (abolition). In Saturday’s Newport Daily News there was an article about the slave trade in Rhode Island, as Brown University has a new exhibit featuring primary source documents that show the history of the trade by the Brown brothers. Moses Brown eventually became an abolitionist. For movie buffs, you may enjoy seeing “Amazing Grace,” a film about the efforts to end the slave trade in England, headed by William Wilberforce and opposed by Lord Tarleton, who defended the rights of the shippers. It has an all star cast and a great sound track complete with bagpipes playing the title song.

This coming week we are going to take a closer look at the women’s reform movement and you will have time in the library to research a woman from the 1800s who made a significant contribution to society. We will take it a step further by looking at contemporary women and their unique contributions. We have already talked about Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senator Hillary Clinton and how they will go down in our history books as “firsts.” As good historians we want to look at a variety of resources to get a better picture of the past, as our text is only one point of view. You may have noticed that the text is dominated by political and military history and as such focuses on the accomplishments of men. One reviewer of text books estimated that only 3% of most American history text books talk about the contributions of women and minorities. Howard Zinn, a noted historian who writes about the silent people of history, will be speaking at Salve University on April 18. This is a great opportunity to hear from a professional historian who has made major contribution towards our understanding of our past. You can find more information on his presentation by going to this link.

Let’s have a laugh

On day 3 your current event must be an editorial cartoon from a newspaper or news magazine. In order to get a wide variety of cartoons, please do not use the Providence Journal or Newport Daily News. Cartoons can be found on news web sites and special sites devoted to cartoons. Once you have selected a cartoon that you have found amusing, use our cartoon analysis guide to help you write your two paragraph summary. What persuasive techniques did the cartoonists use: symbolism, exaggeration, labeling, analogy or irony? I have included a link to the Library of Congress web site that gives you additional guidance.

Three Down and One to Go

We have just finished the third quarter. Keeping your work folder up to date and maintaining your status of assignment sheet allows you to monitor your own work. There should be no surprises as you know your grade on a daily basis. Staying organized is a challenge for all of us but you have many support systems in place to help you: a class folder, a status of assignment sheet, a blog and time before or after school to get extra help. This is all part of the process of learning how to learn.

Good-bye John and Abigail; hello Matt!

A reminder to period 7, you will have your final assessment on the last two chapters of “John Adams” on Monday. You have an outline of what you need to know. As you turn in the book on Monday you should take great satisfaction in completing this lengthy Pulitzer Prize winning book. The book was on the best seller list for many weeks and has sold over a million copies. You may now want to read “1776” by McCullough or try his first prize winning book, “Truman.”

Matt Sheeley, a reporter for the Newport Daily News, is scheduled to visit our period 7 class on Monday. He wants to observe first-hand how you think and act like historians!

The "Task" Ahead

In order to graduate from MHS, you will need to complete the Certificate of Initial Mastery or the Performance Based Graduation Requirements that include a portfolio and the Capstone. This week we started a persuasive essay task that you may use for the portfolio. It is my goal that all of you will meet standard on the essay so that you will be one task closer to completing your portfolio. I know you will be successful if you use the rubric, plan, revise and meet the deadlines.

You have the task prompt and writing criteria. You have a folder of background information on freedom of speech in high schools and samples of persuasive writing. In addition to your folder, Mr. Fontain has done a great deal of preliminary research for you and that work is located on the Teacher Pub drive under Social Studies. If you feel you need additional sources, you may want to check out The First Amendment Center.

Use the research organizer and rubric to help you collect the evidence you will need to write the essay. On Friday you received an outline on how to do a persuasive essay. Keep in mind that you must have your research signed off no later than April 4 and your draft needs to be reviewed before April 12. The final essay will be handed in after our break and must be accompanied by the draft. Scorers will be looking to see what types of revisions you made. Your essay must be in MLA format and word processed. So get out your calendars and prepare a plan!

Political Cartoons

Political cartoons were first introduced in the colonies in 1754 with Ben Franklin’s “Join or Die” cartoon that featured a snake (a symbol of the colonies) cut into several pieces. This was Franklin’s way of urging the colonies to unite, against a common enemy, during the French and Indian War.

This week we looked at a cartoon of President Jackson, dressed and acting as a King, which was used in the 1832 campaign to discredit his actions. We analyzed the cartoon by using a guide that showed us the different techniques cartoonists use to make their points. We looked for symbols, labels, irony, and exaggeration. Modern cartoonists also like to use caricature to help convey their message. The cartoons in the UpFront magazine gave us the opportunity to look at recent cartoons that featured global warming, the increased cost of stamps, and the war in Iraq. For our next current events assignment, you will be asked to bring in an editorial cartoon to share with your fellow students. There are numerous sites that collect editorial cartoons from around the country and one of the best is maintained by Daryl Cagle, an MSNBC cartoonist. The cartoon that you bring into class must come from a paper other then The Newport Daily News. Let’s see how many different cartoons we can collect.

Third Quarter Coming to an End

The quarter is rapidly drawing to a close so take a few minutes to make sure your portfolio is up to date and in the bin. We have only a few more homework assignments left before grades close. You will need to add up your points and provide me with your percentage earned. I will then review your additional work (checks, portfolio, and classroom participation) to add extra points you may have earned.

Our final quarter will have fewer homework assignments, as you will spend much of your time on a Civil War project. This project gives you the opportunity to showcase all the skills and strategies you have learned this year on a topic of your choice.

Good-bye Abigail…Good-bye John

Students in period 7 should be finishing “John Adams” and preparing for the final assessment on the last two chapters of the text. The final assessment will have a variety of questions including quotation identification, short answer, and objective. While you read, you may want to keep a reading log which would be helpful as you review for the assessment.

Congratulations

Our hats are off to KC and CB for winning first place in the state tournament for Destination ImagiNation. They are members of the Llama Llama Duck team. They were awarded first place for their play about a “hero undertaking a personal challenge.” Let’s join in wishing them well as they move on to the next level of competition!