February 10-15

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

So you just want to see photos of Sutherland activities? Click here to see my Picasa Albums. 

Things that are static -- not requiring regular change -- can be found at my website:http://sites.google.com/site/kbenoy/. 

***Crucial news for History 12 students.  The promised fire drill did not occur, but, fully expecting it to happen in this block, I postponed the test.  It is now set for Tuesday, February 19.  The Topic #1 work is also due on that day -- but in class at the start of the exam and not at 4:30 p.m., as it would be ordinarily.

History 12 

You must be sure to visit The History Guide for excellent background material supporting this course.

Expect to write your first quiz on or Tuesday, February 19 - this is a postponement as a result of an expected fire drill. There will likely be 15 multiple choice questions (1 mark each), 10 definitions -- where I give you the definition and you give me the term or name (1 mark each), 5 definitions -- where I give you the term or name and you provide the definition or why the person is important (2 marks each), and one essay (worth 18 marks - with 6 for composition and 2x6 for content). The test will most likely be out of 53 marks.

All Topic #1 questions are due at the start of the Tuesday class.

We will set the due date for Essay #1 on Friday or early next week. (find the essay on the bottom of the Topic #1 plan.

Topic #2 Plan.

Topic #2 Questions.

• Monday, February 11 - No Classes.  Family Day Holiday -- so be sure to socialize with the parental units.
• Tuesday, February 12 - We did not complete the essay writing material last class, so we will see the MLA style PowerPoint, then move on to see  Themes and Topics in History 12.
• Wednesday, February 13 - Complete Themes and Topics in History 12. If there is time, we will begin  Imperialism & Social Darwinism PowerPoint (base notes) -- but note that this material will not be on the test next class.
• Thursday, February 14 - Imperialism & Social Darwinism PowerPoint (base notes).  Begin  Europe Before World War I - the Alliance system. Begin looking at the nations of Europe before the War. Base notes.  See what Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe has to say about Imperialism in Africa in this YouTube video. Interested in Social Darwinism?  Try these videos:  James Burke's Fit To Rule, which explains how a biological concept became a powerful political tool in the hands of extreme nationalists, or this interview with Frans De Waal, who is horrified by Social Darwinist notions held by neo-conservatives in modern America.  The horrific results of 19th century Social Darwinist ideas are described in Scientific Racism; The Eugenics of Social Darwinism. 
• Friday, February 15 -   Imperialism & Social Darwinism PowerPoint (base notes).  Begin  Europe Before World War I - the Alliance system. Begin looking at the nations of Europe before the War. Base notes. Work on Topic #2 Questions.

Social Studies 8

Block 2 will work with Mr. Wong, my student teacher from UBC for the first part of the course.  The plan below is for my Block 3 class.  When Mr. Wong finishes, the plan will apply to both classes.

Block 2 can link to Mr. Wong's blog at: misterwong.weebly.com 

We started with the Geography unit. Expect a unit test at the end of this, worth around 75 marks. This will be in roughly 2 weeks. 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.

If you are struggling, be sure to see me outside of class for extra help!

You will need the following material for the Geography unit: a ruler, pens, pencils, and coloured pencils, erasers, whiteout, a portable computer storage device (USB key, with at least 1 GB of space on it -- which you can use in all of your other classes too), and lined paper.

Keep all of your material in order in either a section of a bigger binder, with work from other courses, or a smaller Social Studies binder. The choice is yours. You should also have section dividers to separate units. Keep all work to study from for the final exam at the end of the course. After unit tests, you can take this work out and leave it safe at home if you do not want to keep carrying it around -- just don't lose it.

National Geographic has some nice overview PowerPoints for this unit. See Map Elements and Map Skills.

• Monday, February 11 - No Classes.  Family Day Holiday - Spend quality time with your parental units.
• Tuesday, February 12 - Hand in Canada; Political Map.  Take up Scale homework. Take up scale worksheet. Countries game - girls vs boys.  Direction on maps - points on a compass. -- introduction and video clip. Direction & Scale Worksheet. Struggling with figuring out how compass directions work? Use this simple elementary school explanation from the BBC in Britain.  
• Wednesday, February 13 - Take up Direction and Scale worksheet (I may or may not do a homework check, worth 3 marks for completion). Animaniacs countries song. Countries game -- individual lists -- compare your total to the first time we did this.  Introduction to map symbols.  Video clip on map symbols - colour.  Symbols worksheet - complete for homework.  For a really simple (elementary school level) explanation of map symbols, see this National Geographic site.  Rather more advanced, but quite cheesy, is this 1967 US Department of Defense educational video dealing with map symbols.
• Thursday, February 14 - Take up homework -- Symbols worksheet.  Naming countries contest - boys vs. girls.  More symbols review - Symbols 2 worksheet - complete for homework.  Also complete the assignment: Continents and Major Water Bodies map -- due next class, value: 10 marks -- based on completion, accuracy and neatness.  Completely unrelated to learning map symbols, but entertaining is this video clip - McGyver; How to Use a Map.
• Friday, February 14 - Hand in the map assignment.  Take up homework.  Quiz - Scale and Direction.  Introduction to grids.  Geographical Essentials, pp. 15-19. Activity #9 #1-3. Complete #4 and Activity 10 for homework. Map Assignment - School to Home - due Monday, Value: 10 marks -- based on having all the map basics, accuracy, neatness and usability.