Unit 3 and 4 Review Guide

Pilgrims/Separatists vs. Puritans

Assignment for the week I will be out

Unit 2 Test 
Thursday and Friday, 10/11 and 10/12 
The multiple choice section will be on Thursday and the essay will be on Friday.  

http://prezi.com/matlhm5etc3i/explorers/

Use the link above to access the presentation given in class on the Spanish conquistadors.

Prezi on Explorers

Notebooks Due Monday!

Explorer's Notebooks Due Monday! 

Everyone has worked very hard on the project for Unit 2, the Explorer's Notebook.  I can't wait to see all the creative projects.  Below you will find the check list for the project make sure you include every part and you consult the rubric to see how each part will be graded. 

Unit 2 is posted

Look at the top of the blog page and you will see that Unit 2 is now posted.  If you need copies of any of the unit pages, you may print them from the blog.

Homework: 
Due Thursday, 9/20  Finish notecards in Assignment 1 
Due Friday, 9/21: Assignment 2 
Due Monday, 9/24: Assignment 3 

On Thursday you will choose your explorer for the notebook project.  

Hamburger Writing

Hurricane Isaac Finally Left Us!

Wow, what a week.  Most of us fled the heat and lack of electricity to places with an abundance of air conditioning.  Missing four days of school sure makes it seem like we are starting over.  Our class will move quickly to finish Unit 1 so we can stay on track with our schedule for the year.

Homework: 
Due Monday, 9/10: Assignment #8 
Due Tuesday/Wednesday: Assignment #10 
FRIDAY, 9/14: UNIT 1 TEST. 

Normally we will take tests during the 85 minute period so there is plenty of time for everyone.  Due to the missed days for the hurricane and the upcoming holiday for Rosh Hashana this will not be possible for Unit 1.  Therefore, all sixth graders will take the multiple choice portion of the test in class on Friday, 9/14.  Assignment #10 requires the students to write a paragraph from the perspective of the Taino tribe on the arrival of Columbus.  This paragraph will count as the essay portion of the test.  

Middle Ages

Our focus for Unit 1 will be the Renaissance, but we want to quickly take a few steps back into the Middle Ages to see how an increase in trade and the Crusades made the era possible.  (Notice the vocabulary words.)
Homework: 
Check your school email for instructions on how to complete your homework.  Answer the questions on your own loose leaf paper.  

Beginning Unit 1: Columbus - Friend or Foe?

All 6th graders survived their first 85 minute history class!  We talked about how to read a textbook which is a new task for the 6th grade.  Everyone should have an Active Reading Bookmark in their textbook.
Assignments 2 and 3 were completed, minus a few definitions we need to finish on Thursday.  The quiz on Monday will include the 13 items placed on the map and the 14 definitions.
I posted all of Unit 1 at the top of the blog.  If you misplace any pages from your unit, you may print them directly from the blog.

HOMEWORK due Thursday: 
Complete Assignment #5. There is a choice of two articles on the Black Death.  You are only required to read one of the two.  If you choose the first articles there are two questions that you should answer.  If you choose the second article, you will write a ONE paragraph journal entry as if you lived in an Italian town during the plague.  

iPads are awesome!

On Friday in 6th grade history we talked about the guidelines for using the iPads in our class.  iPads are great and we will be using them throughout the year.

We accessed a site using the iPads called todaysmeet.com:
You can look at the sites again at:
www.todaysmeet.com

Today we looked at Unit 1 and what we will be studying for the next two and a half weeks.  We completed Assignment #1 where students brainstormed about what they KNOW and what the WANT TO KNOW about the Age of Exploration.

Homework: 
Due Tuesday/Wednesday depending on which day you have class. 

1. Show your parents the unit and have them sign anywhere on the front page. 
2. Label your tabs: Current Unit, Tests and Quizzes, Notes, Other
3. Bring notecards to class.  You will need them on Tuesday/Wednesday.  

Welcome to 6th Grade History - 2012-2013!

Welcome to the first day of 6th grade history!  


Today we will spend some time getting to know each other and talking about what to expect as we study history together this year.  


You will always find lots of helpful information on this blog including an explanation of homework assignments.  Your homework for tonight is to read the class syllabus with your parents.  Both of you should sign the last page and return it to school on Friday, 8/17. You were given a copy of the syllabus in class but you can also access it in the Class Syllabus section at the top of this blog. 


Please participate in the poll to the right side of the blog!  


Quote of the week: 


Holidays are enticing only for the first week or so.  After that, it is no longer such a novelty to rise late and have little to do.  ~Margaret Laurence

Revolutionary War Battles

Suggested Timeline for Exam Review

Firebrands!

Give me liberty or give me death!

In class today we read the text of the famous speech made by Patrick Henry while we watched the video below.  See if you can find examples of treason to the British government in the speech and think about how dangerous it was for Henry to make a speech publicly to the Virginia House of Burgesses.

America - The Story of US and the history of invention

The link in this post is a video presentation at the Smithsonian's Museum of American History (my former employer).  It was a presentation for high school students on the history of invention in conjunction with the video America - The Story of US which we watched in class.  It is a very interesting presentation so watch it when you have a few extra minutes.





http://edg1.vcall.com/docs/EastCoast/EastCoast-FINAL-300k.wmv

The Death of James Wolfe

This painting by Benjamin West depicts the death of James Wolfe at the battle of Quebec. The Native American warrior has been analyzed in various ways.  Some feel that he has his chin on his fist to show deep thought and intelligence.  The man in the blue coat is Dr. Thomas Hinde who is attending to Wolfe.  He is is blue because he is a doctor, not a soldier.  The man in green is Simon Fraser a member of a unit called the 78th Fraser Highlanders, a British infantry regiment from Scotland.  Fraser was actually not at the battle, but was recovering from wounds received in an earlier battle.  

Unit 6 Test Review Guide

French and Indian War Powerpoint

Battles can be confusing because there are so many people, events, and places involved.  In class we, only covered a few battles that served as turning points in the war.  The Story Mapping - History Frame graphic organizer we used in class to keep the events straight is in the post below.  You may print more if you need them.

ERB's this week so we will not have homework until Thursday night.

The UNIT 6 TEST is Tuesday/Wednesday, 3/20-21. 

Writing Graphic Organizers

All sixth grade students are working diligently on their first five paragraph essay.  In class yesterday, we talked about how to compose an introduction.  We brought up the following points:

• The introduction is the hardest part of the paper to write.  We talked about several strategies for writing an introduction. 
• In a history paper, you must transport the reader from their own lives into your topic.  You must provide background and do not assume that the reader is familiar with the topic you are covering. 
• You have to "hook" the reader and then provide the evidence. 
• You must convey a tremendous amount of information in a short space including; your topic, why it is important, and you thesis statement. (A thesis statement is your answer to a debatable statement.) 
• Suggestions for an "attention grabber" opening sentence
• an intriguing example 
• a provocative quote 
• a puzzling scenario 
• a vivid or unexpected anecdote 
• a thought-provoking question 

THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE ESSAY IS DUE THURSDAY!  

Unit 6 - Was George Washington really a hero? You decide.

Unit 5 Review Guide

Unit 5 Test - Tuesday/Wednesday! 

Its a Comic Life in 6th Grade History Class

We've started unit 5 in 6th Grade history and will spend the next three weeks studying the Pilgrims and the Puritans.  Using a new App on the iPads called Comic Life, the students worked on comic strips portraying the migration of the Pilgrims from England, to Holland, back to England, and then on to Massachusetts.  More posts with comic strips to come so stay tuned to the blog.

Below you will find the schedule for the unit:


Homework: 

• Due Thursday, 1/12: Assignment #6 
• Due Friday, 1/13: Assignment #7 
• Due Tuesday/Wednesday, 1/17 or 1/18: Assignment #8 and MAP QUIZ 
• Due Monday, 1/23: Mayflower webquest.  This is the project where you will track a passenger on the Mayflower.  You need to work on this for homework Wednesday night, Thursday night, and over the weekend and turn in the completed project on Monday. 
• Due Tuesday/Wednesday, 1/24 or 1/25: Read entire play on Anne Hutchinson at least twice.  Review the part you have been assigned. 
• Due Thursday, 1/26: Assignment #11 

Tuesday/Wednesday, 1/31 or 2/1: UNIT 5 TEST

Happy New Year and Semester!