Saturday, September 25, 2010

September 27 to October 1






















Contact me by e-mail at: http://kbenoy@nvsd44.bc.ca

Things that are static -- not requiring regular change -- can be found at my website: http://sites.google.com/site/kbenoy/ However, I'm afraid I do not update this regularly. I spend most of my time keeping the blog up to date.

This blogsite will have all of the changing material -- lesson plans and links to assignments. I will try to ensure that all assignments are posted here. If you see something underlined, it means that you can click on the item to have it appear. I will do this for all pdf documents, PowerPoints, videos, and even some music.

My tutorial times are officially 3:10 to 3:30 on Mondays and Fridays, however I am available most days before school, at noon and after school. Drop by or make an appointment if you need guaranteed time. I will respond to e-mails within a day at worst.

Social Studies 8

The unit test for Geography will be next Monday, October 4. Expect it to be out of around 75 marks. You need to memorize some important information for the exam, but mostly it will involve answering questions using your Canadian Oxford School Atlas 7th edition. All material that we have covered so far, and will cover this week, is fair game for the test.

  • Monday, September 27 - Memory game - a variations on the countries list game. Watch GEG-103-OL: Latitude and Longitude. (If this video is a bit difficult for you, watch the following quick videos at home: What Causes the Seasons on Earth, Absolute vs Relative Location and Latitude & Longitude.) Demonstration of latitude and longitude using Google Earth. Complete the Longitude worksheet for next class.
  • Tuesday, September 28 - Memory game - another variation on the countries list. Take up the Longitude worksheet. Social Studies Latitude and Longitude Race - Join into groups of 3 or 4 people -- complete the handout before any other group in the class. Earth Grid worksheet - complete for homework.
  • Wednesday, September 29 - Take up the Earth Grid worksheet. Watch Longitude & Time Zones and The Remarkable Story of the Discovery of Longitude by Dr. Callahan . (If you have the time and interest, why not also look at Cambridge University's video The Longitude Problem.) Introduction to time zones. See Geographical Essentials, pp. 48-54 and watch this short clip on the International Time Zone. Time Zones worksheet. Complete for homework. If you get a chance, and want to get clearer about time zones, watch GEG-103-OL: Time Zones. A very helpful description of longitude and time zones can be found at this site from Iowa State University, which quizzes you as you work through it.
  • Thursday, September 30 - Take up the Time Zone worksheet. Watch World Time Zones and Why We Have Time Zones. Second time zone worksheet - This one for Block 1 and this one for Block 3. Complete for homework.
  • Friday, October 1 - Take up the second time zone worksheet. Geography Review materials. Do the first section and then any sections that gave you trouble as we worked through the unit. The Unit Test for Geography is on Monday, October 4.

    • Social Studies 11

    We just finished one unit, so it will be at least a couple more weeks until we test again. The next unit test will be on the Legislative/Executive/Judicial branches and will be similar in size to our last test. The mark breakdown will be posted in a week or so.

    No text-book can possibly be completely up to date, so keep current by using reliable websites.Be sure to look at the Parliament of Canada website. Download, read and study from the Guide to the House of Commons.

    • Monday, September 27 - Test post-mortem. Hand in your Best Electoral SystemParagraph assignment (from the end of the 4 page Elections handout. Take up #1-3 in the sidebar on p. 233. Reminder of the physical layout of Parliament. Video - Government in Canada; Citizenship in Action; Our National Parliament; the Inside Story and questions. Discuss the job of a Member of Parliament - within and outside the House of Commons. Go online to read On the Job With a Member of Parliament). Read 226-231. Do #1-3, p. 231.
    • Tuesday, September 28 - Take up homework, #1-3, p. 233. Introduction to the Senate – Pros and cons of present setup (Be sure to look at the Senate material at Mapleleafweb). Essay Writing. There will be an essay question on what shall be done with the Canadian Senate on the next unit test. Introduction to Essay Writing. Read pp. 47-54 in RedGovernment text. Do #1-4, p. 48 and #1-5 and 7 on p. 54. For homework, come up with a three column table listing: reasons to keep the Senate as it is; reasons to change it; reasons why we should get rid of it. If you have time at the end of the class, discuss it with people around you.
    • Wednesday, September 29 - Introduction to the executive branch. Role of the Queen, Governor General and Prime Minister. Read “Constitutional Monarchy” on p. 222-224 & "The GovernorGeneral" on p. 234. Identify points for and against getting rid of the Queen and Governor General. Should Canada become a Republic? Why or why not? Identify 3 reasons for and 3 reasons against doing so. Look at the Monarchist League of Canada and the Canadian Monarchist Online websites for arguments supporting the monarch; seeCitizens for a Canadian Republic for arguments against retaining the monarchy. There has also been an active debate in Australia and New Zealand on this topic. Web searches would yield useful information.
    • Thursday, September 30 - Take up homework. Discuss the role of the PM., Cabinet & the bureaucracy. Watch Yes, Minister episode. Read pp. 234-240. Do #1-4, p. 240. Assignment: Value 5 marks, Identify by name each member of the federal (national) cabinet and their department. This is an assignment, not a homework check, so accuracy is part of the mark.
    • Friday, October 1 - Take up #1-4, p. 240 and hand in the Cabinet assignment. Lobbying & Pressure Groups. Look at the list of institutionalized groups on p. 259 (Click here for an online list of federal lobby groups - interest groups and social movements). Explain what lobbying is and look at the activities of several lobby groups -- also describe Pressure Groups and their purpose. Divide into groups (with printed - or online --background information) Each group is to come up with a poster to make their group's case to the public. Poster Assignment - on a regular size sheet of paper -- 8 1/" by 11" is fine (due Monday) . Read pp. 258-267. Do #1-2, p. 264. Do #1-3, p. 267.

    History 12

    Your next exam is approaching. If you compare the original plan with what you see below, you can see that I think we will be a little ahead of plan and should, therefore, be able to plug in some video material before the unit test. It is still my intention to test on Tuesday, October 5. Expect the unit test to be structured roughly as follows: 60

    multiple choice items.

    (1 mark each), 10 map items (1 mark each), 5 definitions and names (I give you the term and you define it or say why the person is important - valued at 2 marks each), and 2 long answer questions (10 marks each). The total value of the test is, therefore, likely to be 100 marks.

    Here is the Plan for Topic #2.

    Here are the Topic #2 Questions.

    Here is a blank Map of Europe right after World War I. Neatly label the countries and submit it with your Topic #2 questions (10 marks).

    I now have the PowerPoint for World War I available online, click here.

    We do not have enough time to watch enough video material in class. I will post material for you to see on the blog and highly recommend that you watch as much as possible.


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