Monday, 28 April

Today's lesson was "The Story of Reconstruction: How Failure Felt"

The class began by reviewing the definition of "Black Codes." We then practiced note taking strategies (selecting key words) using history.com/topics/black-history/black-codes Students then wrote a brief description of what life would have been like for African-American's living in the south during reconstruction.

Next we reviewed the Nast cartoon on page 140 of the History Alive! after finding ways to translate the information students wrote a briefly reflecting the feelings that must have been prevelant among freed slaves.

Period 4 was able to study a passage about education on page 141 of History Alive!  Periods 5,6,7 will study this passage next class.

mispost

23/24 April

The class reviewed notes from the study of the chaper on Reconstrution.

Then the class broke into small groups to create work on identifying some basic information that would help tell the story of what was suppossed to happen during reconstruction. Information collected included: Who was involved? When? Where did events take place? How were things suppossed to happen? What happened? What was suppossed to happen? Why was this going on?

After developing this group pre-write, students wrote a story about what was suppossed to happen during reconstruction.

17/18 and 21/22 Apr

In order to facilitate forecasting students were assigned the following self-directed activity.

Study chapter 11 "Reconstruction" in History, Alive! (begins on page 133)

Focus questions to consider during the entire chapter include:
What was the goal of Reconstruction (according to the US government)?
What was the actual result of Reconstruction?

While reading the chapter write at least two (2) responses to stories, facts, or events in "dialogue journal" style. Write a brief note about what prompted your response and include a page number.

Also create a response for either the photo of African-American Senators on page 138 or the bar graph depicting African-American members of Congress during the period on page 140 Be sure sure to copy the graphic that you choose to respond to into your notes.

The follow vocabulary / concepts are key. Find a definition or explanation for each, and also illustrate two of the terms; create a written or visual symbol for two; and compare two to other events, people, or ideas you know.

 Tenant Farming
Share Cropping
Carpet Baggers
Freedmans' Bureau
Compromise of 1877
Plessy v. Ferguson
Black Codes
Jim Crow Laws

After students finished self study Mr. Zartler shared photos and prints illustrating some of the concepts, and there was a discussion and short lecture on tenant farming, share cropping, and bondage dept.

Monday, 14 April & Tuesday/ Wednesday 15-16 April

The class began focusing on the topic of Civil Rights.

Civil Rights are those rights gauranteed to all members of a society.
The class wrote about and discussed Justice.

The class spent some time writing about how each of us and other feel when they are "aggrieved". We discussed apologies and retribution.

The class identified groups that have been harmed by the United States over time including: Native Americans, Enslaved Africans, Enslaved African-Americans, Americans of Japanese Descent, and Japanense legally living on the West Coast of the United States during WWII, GLBTQ people.

The class began studying the 13th, 14th, and 15th Ammendments to the Constitution: "The Reconstruction Ammendment." Students should obtain an handout from Mr. Zartler.

Vocabulary so far:
Civil Rights
Reparations
Apology
Executive Order 9066
Constitution

On Thursday and Friday students will be forecasting during part of US History class.

Monday - Thursday 7-10 April

The week was topsy turvy.

The class worked on reviewing the Foreign Policy and Wars Unit to prepare for the test on Wednesday and Thursday.

New seats will be assigned at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

Per an agreement among the Grant staff, each student will be allowed three uses of the hall pass during fourth quarter; this will be discussed and explained in class on Monday.

Thursday/ Friday 3 / 4 April

We continued studying the Vietnam War.

There were mini-lectures on the history of european colonialism in Vietnam. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and the USS Maddox.

We discussed the chart analyzing whether the United States was the agressor or responding to agression in Vietnam.

There was a mini-lecture on Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon and Ford.

We reviewed images of Maya Lin's Vietnam War Memorial in Washington DC.

On Friday (5,6,7) and Tuesday 4 we will study for a unit test that will be on Wednesday and Thursday.

Tuesday / Wednesday 1 /2 April

Class began with the writing prompt: "What would I die for? What would I kill for?"

Students shared and compared answers.

Next the class considered the question, "What would I tell others to die for?"

Mr. Zartler gave a brief lecture on the history of French Indochine / Vietnam, and the "Golf of Tonkin Resolution."

The class viewed the remainder of the documentary.

Monday, March 31

Students were reminded that they should have turned in their Progresive Era Essay before break.

Their was a lecture introducing the Vietnam War.

Some key vocubulary terms included:

Conventional Warfare = "set piece" warfare = tanks; battleships; aircraft carriers; big armies

Unconventional Warfare = guerilla warfare= "little" war = asymetrical warfare

The lecture included how Vietnam was part of the nightly news; Vietnam was pivotal in that it foreced the United States to recognize that it had lost a war.

Some classes began viewing a History Channel documentary on the war. All students were advised that some of the documentary was disturbing and were offerred an alternative written assignment.

Students were asked to view the documentary with an eye to answering the following:

Historically who had goverened in Vietnam?

What was the "causae belli" of American involvement in Vietnam?

What evidence is there that the US was the aggressor ? responding to aggression? acting as "world police"? in Vietnam.

What was the US strategy in the Vietnam War?

Was this strategy effective?