Monday, April 29, 2013

4/26-4/29

On Friday in class we had a shark tank type of invention sharing process. There was a panel of three judges that each group had to present their "invention" to. The inventions were farming tools and supplies such as barbed wire and the steel plow that would have helped with life on the prairie. After each group presented their ideas, the judges voted on which ones they would invest in and which ones they did not think worth their money.
Today Mr. Boyle was out and we started the old Western movie Red River and worked on our scratch projects.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

4/23-4/24

Yesterday in history we went around and experienced different aspects of soddie life. We had to smell a bag of sod to know what it smelt like in a soddie, we had to sit still for a minute taking a picture because that's How long it took in the frontier, and we had to sit/stand in a soddie sized section of the classroom. After doing that and trying out the different parts of soddie life, I think that I would have been able to make it in a soddie, but I would have had absolutely no desire to.
Today I went on an a rt field trip to the Peabody Essex museum and got back in time for only the last 15 minutes of class. Everyone else was working on the computer, but Jess, who had gone on the field trip as well, and I just sat and talked until the bell rang.

Monday, April 22, 2013

4/12-4/22

On Friday, before vacation, we watched a Sophia tutorial on the push and pull factors that influenced the decision to move out west. We then split into two groups and made an inner circle with one group and an outer circle with the other. The inner circle discussed the push factors while the outer circle listened and took notes and then we switched circles and the new inner circle talked about the pull factors while the outer circle took notes.
Today in history we went to the computer lab and started the Triton 16% program. We picked which badges we wanted to earn and started completing the quests needed to earn them.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Erie Canal

Today in class we broke up into groups with someone assigned to represent the pioneers, someone to represent pioneers, merchants, and New Yorkers. My group had four people and therefore two pioneers. In our groups, we read from small cards different situations that whoever we were representing. We then decided what each of those things meant for the Erie Canal and whether they were positive or negative effects.
All in all, I think that the Erie Canal was a positive thing. It created jobs while it was being built and to run it. It also promoted trade in the country and moved people out west cheaper and faster. It helped boost the economy in the towns on the canal and in the west. There were a few cons that came with the canal such as the spread of cholera and the loss of land from the Indians, but the pros greatly outweigh the cons.

Monday, April 8, 2013

4/5-4/8

Friday was a half and we dropped history. Today in history Mr. Boyle was out and we had Mrs. Jones as a sub. She gave us a bunch of papers to read and write diary entries about.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Takeaway/Reaction 4/2

Today in history we were put into groups based on which event we thought was the most influential in causing the War of 1812. I was originally in the Chesapeake Affair group. The Chesapeake Affair was when the British shot at American ships, which eventually led to Thomas Jefferson signing the Embargo Act. The three other possible causes of the war were Impressment, the Orders in Council, and Incitement. After coming up with reasons why the Chesapeake Affair was the main cause of the war and listening to other groups argue that their event was the most important, I decided that Incitement was the main cause. Incitement refers to the British arming and organizing American Indians and inciting violence in them against colonists moving west. This was the only one of the four that was happening on American soil and posing a real threat to the colonists. Impressment and the Chesapeake Affair were threatening to the colonists, but not in the same war-like manner as Incitement. I did not think that the Orders in Council were the main cause, because they were designed to mainly hurt France, not the U.S. It was not something Britain did in an attack on America.