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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/.
Expect a unit test around Friday of next week (September 30), worth around 75 marks. It will be based on map reading and the use of Canadian Oxford World Atlas (7th edition). We will also have a number of quizzes worth from 5-30 marks throughout the unit. You will not always be warned ahead of time about quizzes -- so it is important to keep up.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.
Course outlines are posted in the material for the first class this semester - go to the Wednesday, September 7 posting.
Social Studies 8
National Geographic has some nice overview PowerPoints for this unit. See Map Elements and Map Skills.
We will complete the Geography unit this week. Be sure to get help for anything that gave you trouble. The unit test will be on Monday, October 3. Expect it to be 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.
We just finished a unit, so the next test is now a few weeks away. I will post the date and the exam breakdown as we get closer to it. The next unit test will be on the Legislative/Executive/Judicial branches and will be similar in size to our last test.
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.
Essay #1 is due on Friday of this week.
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.
The standard explanations of the origins of World War I are outlined in Origins of World War I - Part 1 and Part 2, or, try this 50 minute video World War I; To Arms 1914 -- then look at the rest of the series if you want to gain some real expertise. Watch Yale University Professor John Merriman's lecture on the Origins of World War I. He also has lectures posted on other aspects of modern history that a Google search would quickly lead you to. World War I film footage is in black and white and this "colours" our view of the conflict. Computer technology has allowed original film to be colourized. Watch World War I in Colour to see it as it has not been seen before (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7). Each film is about 40-50 minutes long.
We will complete the Geography unit this week. Be sure to get help for anything that gave you trouble. The unit test will be on Monday, October 3. Expect it to be 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 26 - 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.
- Tuesday, September 27 - 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, and NASA e-Clips; Real World Longitude and Time Zones. 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.
- Wednesday, September 28 - Take up the Time Zone worksheet. Watch World Time Zones and Why We Have Time Zones. Second time zone worksheet - This one for Block 2 and this one for Block 4. Complete for homework.
- Thursday, September 29 - 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.
- Friday, September 30 - Sign out new texts (return old ones after the test). What is History? Why study it? What will we study this semester? Introduction to History text and to SQ3R study method. 3 Timeline assignment - personal/family/world - 10 marks, due Tuesday.
We just finished a unit, so the next test is now a few weeks away. I will post the date and the exam breakdown as we get closer to it. The next unit test will be on the Legislative/Executive/Judicial branches and will be similar in size to our last test.
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 26 - 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 27 - 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 Red Government 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 28 - 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 29 - 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, September 30 - 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.
Essay #1 is due on Friday of this week.
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.
The standard explanations of the origins of World War I are outlined in Origins of World War I - Part 1 and Part 2, or, try this 50 minute video World War I; To Arms 1914 -- then look at the rest of the series if you want to gain some real expertise. Watch Yale University Professor John Merriman's lecture on the Origins of World War I. He also has lectures posted on other aspects of modern history that a Google search would quickly lead you to. World War I film footage is in black and white and this "colours" our view of the conflict. Computer technology has allowed original film to be colourized. Watch World War I in Colour to see it as it has not been seen before (part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7). Each film is about 40-50 minutes long.
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.
- Monday, September 26 - Introductory video & music. Complete Lecture material for 1914, The Opening Phases of the War (base notes) and PowerPoint. I expect we will also manage to get into Stalemate - 1915-1916 (base notes).
- Tuesday, September 27 - Introductory music - The Corries:The Green Fields of France and Callin Doon the Line by Alan Brydon. Complete any material from 1915-1916 (base notes) and look at Exhaustion; 1917 (base notes). With any time remaining, look at Mr. Benoy's summer of 2010 slides of the Western Front.
- Wednesday, September 28 - Introductory music: On the Road to Passchendaele andPasschendaele. Complete 1917 (base notes) if we did not do so on Tuesday. 1918 - War's End (base notes - 1918). Be sure to look at the BBC's animated map of World War I. Another very good summary of the war's events can be found at World War One: 1914 - 1918 Map - This provides a fine description of the big events of the war and is superb summary material.
- Thursday, September 29 - Introduction - a selection of First World War popular songs from Mr. Benoy's hard drive. Total War; the German Experience (base notes).
- Friday, September 30 - Essay #1 is due today. Introductory Music: I Vow to Thee My Country. The Paris Peace Conference PowerPoint. Base lecture notes. If time - AV material - The War to End AllWars - but note, the conference was held in Paris, not Versailles as the film indicates - this film is from a US perspective -- something I do not always present effectively in class (5 minutes), World War One: 1914-1918 Map - a multimedia summary of the war's main events. If you can manage the time, watch Secrets of the Dead; Killer Flu - which deals with the dangers of the flu pandemic that killed up to 30 million people at the end of the First World War.
