Nov. 24th - Nov. 28th

This week in World History students are continuing their study of Africa. On Monday, students took Cornell style notes on a PowerPoint presentation of the empire of Ghana - an area of trans-Saharan trade. Tuesday students were broken up in to "caravan" groups and were asked to trade with other caravans in order to get neccessary goods - and of course they had to pay a tribute tax to the king of Ghana (Mr. Sheridan) as well! Students were able to see the importance of the salt and gold trade and learned about the trading of slaves for goods as well. Wednesday is a minimum day and we will take a small break from Africa - students will learn a short history of the true story of Thanksgiving and then be excused to the field to watch this years Turkey Bowl - GO GOLD!!

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving weekend - there is no school on Thursday the 27th or Friday the 28th. When students return on Monday, we will continue our study of Africa, focusing on the emergence of the empire of Mali.

Today in World History students became more familiar with the specific areas of Africa. Students then watched a video on the kingdoms of east Africa. While watching the video students were asked to answer the following questions:

- Explain two reasons why Africa's history is hard to figure out.
- What are some regions in Africa where early civilizations developed?
- What does "Swahili" mean and how does the meaning relate to the location of the Swahili civilization?
- Why did Archaeologists originally believe that the Swahili were not African?
- Give two theories (guesses) for the mysterious decline of Great Zimbabwe.

Tomorrow our weekly assignment is due. It is a map of the continent of Africa - refer to yesterdays post for specific information on how to complete the assignment. Also tomorrow is "casual Friday' students may be out of uniform, but must conform to the dress code found in their agenda binders.

Nov. 17th - Nov. 21st

Hello everyone - sorry for the lack of posts. I could not get online on campus last week, but we are back in business. This week in World History we are studying the continent and kingdoms of Africa. On Monday, students discussed the importance of cultural myths and their transmission from person to person orally. Oral tradition and history are very important in the study of Africa. On Tuesday students did vocabulary and summarized text passages in pairs. Wednesday students were given history binders and were asked to label and color specific areas of a map of the continent of Africa. This map is the weekly assignment and must be completed by Friday. The areas of the map that must be colored and labeled are:

- Ocean bordering Africa to the west
- Ocean bordering Africa to the east
- Sea bordering Africa to the north
- The vegetation zones of Africa
- Egypt, Ghana, Songhai, the Nile River, the Senegal River, and the Sahara Desert

Use the maps on pages A28 and 158 to help you find this information.

One quick reminder: This week is Spirit Week - Wednesday is twin day, Thursday is crazy hair day, Friday is casual Friday (dress code will be enforced).

Welcome back. I hope everyone had a restful Veterans Day holiday. Today in World History students filled out a part of their study guide for Fridays quiz. Tomorrow we will finish our study guides - focusing on the 5 pillars of Islam and the lasting contributions of the Muslim world. We will then play a short review game. Students are to study for the quiz - which will be on Friday.

Next week is Spirit Week - starting on Wednesday students will participate in "theme days" including twin day, crazy hair day, casual Friday, mix-match shoe day, and jersey day. I will post more information on these days as they get closer.

Once again, the 10 week progress report will be arriving soon - keep an eye out for it. Any students or parents who are concerned about grades earned in the class, can feel free to contact me to discuss what is required to improve.

Nov. 10th - Nov. 14th

On Friday we continued our study of the rise of Islam. Students listened to a reading of the life of the prophet Muhammad while taking notes on a PowerPoint presentation. On Monday, we will finish up the story of Muhammad and learn about the spread of Islam after his death. Tuesday is Veterans Day, there is no school. On Wednesday, we will conclude our study of Islam by looking at the lasting contributions of Islam in the areas of medicine, language, math, and the sciences. Thursday we will finish the unit with a small assessment and on Friday we will begin to look at the cultures and civilizations of Africa.

One quick reminder that the 10 week progress report will be sent out in the next few days - keep an eye out for it.

Once again, Tuesday the 11th is Veterans Day - there is no school. If you enjoy your rights and freedoms, thank the people who fought to keep them safe, thank a Veteran!

Nov. 3rd - Nov. 7th

This week in World History we will continue our study on the rise of Islam. On Monday students were asked to write a journal on morality and its effects on behavior. Students then read together in whole group and answered questions based on the reading. Here were the questions:

- What are some ways that Muslim's beliefs effect their daily lives?
- Why did Muhammad spread Islam?
- How did Muhammad show leadership?
- Why would acceptance of non-Muslims be important to the expansion of the Muslim Empire?
- What do Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have in common?
- What is the importance of the Sunnah to the Muslims?