Bold sections are current. Many assignments are located on Google Classroom
Unit 4: Asia (Currently Japan)
Lesson: Geography of Japan Students learn about the unique physical geography of Japan and the impact it had on Japan's development
Lesson: Cultural geography, Population density and Japan - Students create a simulation of the population density of Japan using limited desks to create scarce space. Class discussions reflect on the impact of proximity on the cultural development of Japan and the importance of civility and manners in tight spaces
Lesson: Belief system of Japan : Shinto - Students take notes through a video showcasing the primary elements of Shinto, shrines and Kami.
Lesson: Samurai and Bushido - Students research and analyze the primary elements of Samurai culture in Japan, including the honor code of Samurai: Bushido.
Cultural Activity: Kabuki Skit - Students work in groups of 5 to create 3 minute skits in Kabuki style to inform the audience of what they have learned this unit.
Lesson: Geography of China - Students study the natural land features of China and how they create barriers (stability) for
Lesson: Reading like a Historian - The Fall of Qin - Students analyze primary and secondary documents to answer questions about how the Qin dynasty fell. Included are differing points of view. Students are asked to reflect on
Lesson: Belief systems of China ( Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism/Taoism )
Lesson: Emperors, Dynasties and the growth of Neo-Confucianism - Students take part in a simulation acting as nobles, scholars, an Emperor and family members. Each group presents their arguments to the Emperor of who they feel should be placed in charge of the regions of China. Group discussions and reflections close on definitions of these governing styles (Nepotism/Aristocracy/Meritocracy)
Cultural activity - Students spend two days studying and practicing writing in Chinese Characters. Closing activity for the lesson includes writing out their names phonetically in Chinese characters using rice paper, paint and brushes.
Unit 3 : The Empires of West Africa
Lesson: Geography of Western & Subsaharan Africa
Lesson: Refresher on Ancient Western Civilization
Cultural Lesson: Griots and the art of storytelling - students listen to the folktale of Anansi the spider, view a video of a Griot performing and participate in class discussion Cultural activity: Creation of proverbs/folktales summary with visualization - Students locate an African folktale or two proverbs and create a one-page visualization summarizing the story and any moral it be trying to tell.
Document Based Question (DBQ) Packet: (Dec 6-13) - Students are guided through a number of primary and secondary sources detailing the impact of Islam on the development of Empires in Subsaharan Africa. Students are asked to analyze whether they feel the geography of the region or the introduction of Islam had a greater impact on the growth of the empires. At the end of the DBQ, students compile their answers into a pre-structured five paragraph essay.
Activity: creation of African Mask - Students are presented with several templates and examples prior to starting the creation of their own personalized mask. Using cardboard, dry beans/rice/grains, and elmer glue, students will create their own mask prior to winter break.
Unit 2 : The Origins and Spread of Islam (Weeks 7-12)
Introduction lesson focused on geography of Middle East & Northern Africa
Lesson: Background of Muhammad, introduction of core concepts of Islam
Students complete guided notes worksheet
Group Activity: Creation of group poster and presentation presenting in-depth learning of fundamentals of Islam - Graphic organizer to be completed while other groups are presenting
Open note test: Origins of Islam & Geography
Spread of Islam
Guided notes and readings for the Safavid, Mughal and Ottoman Empires - Slideshows available on Google Classroom
Three Muslim Empires Open Note Test
Unit 1: The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire (Weeks 4-6)
Introduction to PERSIAN chart - Students break into groups and study the Political, Economic, Religious, Social, Intellectual, Artistic and Near (aka Geographic) information about the Roman Republic & Roman Empire.
Group presentations, collaborative conversations and class discussions lead to building complete note charts. Completed versions are hosted on the Google classroom (ABOUT) tab.
Roman Unit Conclusion - Students have an option in how they would like to express their learning from the unit. Options include:
A summary poster - Students highlight significant elements of the Roman culture as if they were presenting to someone who has never heard of Rome before. Included in the summary is a reflection on whether the student feels that the Romans had a positive or negative influence on the world.
Cause and Effect chart with descriptions - Students choose a minimum of 6 causes & effects from a given chart and are tasked with developing a narrative describing the fall of the Roman Empire. The narrative should make sense (cause A realistically leads to effect B, etc., )
Eulogy for Rome writing - Students write a two paragraph eulogy celebrating the achievements of the Roman Empire and the causes of the eventual fall.
Introductory Unit: Geography
Mapping the Earth - Longitude & Latitude lecture and activities
5 Themes of Geography poster with presentation - Students (in groups) select a city or country and present detailed information to the class through the lens of geographical data.
First two weeks of school:
Getting to know you activities
Open Mind Project:
Open Mind Instructions—Beginning of the Year You will be creating an Open Mind, which is a visual form of expression in regards to a question. For this activity, the essential question is: What does it mean to be successful? Meaning, you need to come up with your own character traits to answer this question. A character trait is a quality that makes one person, animal, or thing different from another; defines who we are, not what we do or what we have (i.e. unhealthy instead of obese, athletic instead sports stars or talented instead of celebrities).
You will need to come up with at least 10-15 traits to answer the question (see examples)
Use the magazines as well as computer images to find symbolic representations of each trait you chose
You can only use 3 words maximum, which can be three separate words (i.e. small, medium, large) or a three-worded phrase (i.e. “I am bold”).
Type/handwrite and attach to your Open Mind, an explanation for each chosen characteristic that includes:
The identification of the characteristic and explanation of both:
Why you chose that characteristic?
How does your image represent that characteristic?