Regions Research 2011

Enjoy the winning  Animoto videos from the two classes.







 
Th links beloware  to all other videos you created. I saw some wonderful creativity on this project. Well done to all of you!
 
http://animoto.com/play/rRRhvtM7ZJHBQ9OS15A1oA  - The Southwest
http://animoto.com/play/jnNNU9gmznBKl04rwtSYwQ - TheTV Show Debate
http://animoto.com/play/qTWqSXTkSqK1HHW6YjJODA - Jebidiah's Journey
http://animoto.com/play/dhlkFVExaVrztc9qdEOIFA - We're All in This Together
 http://animoto.com/play/1t05WpclQwSh6BMl7CLcWA Amazing Race 

http://animoto.com/play/FKGLMWORKxRIZbk1cFs9rg  Man -v- West
http://animoto.com/play/8I20uCypVvs06US81z5Drw Judge Judy
http://animoto.com/play/8q8BdZStJy70qXjnIpTlAw Run for the Cure
http://animoto.com/play/9adKDktkLmu2ApPZC2zFfA Iron Chef
http://animoto.com/play/lS1WvPf2XQ5KNAvhmkMDOA Deal or no Deal

Poetry Parties

Poetry Parties will take place on Monday morning. These will be a celebration of language, music, and literature. I expect passionate performances and powerful deliveries from ALL of you.  Each of you will have to come prepared to deliver TWO performances.  You will also need to turn in your completed, decorated poetry books containing at least 8 of the 9 poems we have done in class from the list below. You may choose NOT to include any one poem from the list below: (you are welcome to include all 9 if you decide)

Personal Poem - Describing an emotion

Narrative Poem -  Relating the world event

Inside/Outside Poem - The Fruit

Inside/Outside Poem - About yourself.

Published Poem - The poem you recited in class

Midwest Group Perform

Road Less Taken -Interpretation

Beatles song - Interpretation

Free Choice - Show your creativity here!

Side note. I am so proud to observe your brilliant creativity with respect to the regions inquiry based assignment. A perfect example was what Lilly said in class this morning,

"Mr Buxton, can I make my timeline the Brooklyn Bridge? I also want to use different cars (forms of transport) to represent the historical events that occured over time in my region."

Bravo Lilly! How will the rest of  you, 'think out of the box?'

Impressive 'elevator pitches' today  from the Buxton class for your Animoto movies. I am excited to see your finished versions next week.

Thinking Out of the Box?

Are you making sure you are being creative with your ideas for the Regions project and thinking 'out of the box?

Recap. Joint the 9 dots with four lines without taking your pen off the paper.

Regions Research

Use the appropriate videos below to collect further facts on your regions. I have also attached some links for online reserach too. The stronger your research, the easier your written portion becomes.

The West

The Southwest

The Northeast

Midwest Test

Due dates +3!

Interesting video. Worth watching for background information for Midwest test.

H/W Sheet Week 8 2011

Click on link above for your H/W sheet.

For the new year, I've redesigned the blog a little. Do you like it?

We will hit the ground running. Be prepared to learn more than you thought you ever could. Coming in the first couple of months of 2011:

• Poetry Recitals and Poetry Party
• Grammar Review of 1st trimeter
• GRAAB(s) - Advanced non-fiction writing techniques
• Midwest Region test
• The Regions -Inquiry based research learning
• 50 States and Capitals test
• The State Report

Homework Week 1 Trimester 2

Click the link above to get the H/W sheet for this week

Welcome to the start of a new trimester. Everybody starts with a clean slate. You will be expected to continue to apply your reading,  writing, and grammar skills from the first trimester into your work in addition to the new skills we will learn this trimester. This means my expectations increase a little! Who's ready for the new challenge?

We hit the ground running with a short review of:

• Types of nouns
• Rules for making nouns plural
• Difference between singular and possessive nouns

These will be tested on Monday 8th November. Watch out for Noun practice on the blog early next week.

We will also begin our tour of the different regions of the U.S. beginning with the Southeast.

Don't forget that you descriptive piece is due Tuesday.

Mentor Text - U.S. Tourist attractions

For Tuesday. Make sure you bring as many notes on CONSERVATION  as you can find for Tuesday's in class writing test. You will be able to use your notes  to help you with this writing. YOU DO NOT NEED A SOCIAL STUDIES TEXTBOOK. No other Humanities H/W tonight.

Look below to see a further example of an effective advanced parargraph. /will yours read like this tomorrow?

Tourist Attractions Across America

As Robert ventures down into the Grand Canyon, he begins to picture all of the other beautiful destinations in the USA. The variety of tourist attractions across the US can appeal to residents an visitors alike. The United States contains a multitude of tourists’ favorite national parks. From a plethora of Geysers, to boiling hot springs, and boiling mud pots, Yellowstone National Park is a wonderful place to visit. To travel to the Grand Canyon, one of the seven wonders of the world, is a spectacle visitors will never forget. In addition, Big Bend is yet another national park that lies on the border of Mexico, and it attracts thousands of tourists every day. A vast amount of mountain ranges spread throughout the US. The Appalachian Mountains, one of the most famous mountain ranges, runs through the Southeast and the Northeast Regions. On the other hand, The Rocky Mountains, or the Rockies are located in the west. The Cascades, another breathtaking mountain range, runs straight through California making it tangible to tourists that this is the perfect destination. The pacific States, a minute region in the west, has an assortment of tourist attractions. Containing some of the country’s tallest mountains, the Pacific States are lined vertically on the west coast. Hollywood is a city where most of America’s movies are shot, and it is also a popular tourist destination. Spanning across the golden gate, the opening of the San Fransisco into the pacific ocean, the golden gate bridge attracts visitors from all around the world. The United States contains thousands of tourist attractions, such as Yellowstone or the Cascades, and they can appeal to everyone. As Robert ascends back up to the top of the canyon, he decides that there are thousands of wonderful destinations to see in the US. His only question is, “Which one will I visit next?”

Mentor Text - U.S. Terrain

Enjoy reading the paper written by Thomas on U.S. terrain. Why did I choose to put this paper on  the blog? comments encouraged

As the Smith family piles into their car, they head out to embark on an exciting adventure to national parks, mountain ranges, and coastlines all across the U.S. To begin with, the impressive terrain across the U.S. is both vast and varied. A multitude of tourists’ favorite national parks are right here in the U.S. From Big Bend to Yellow Stone and Glacier national park, these are some of the largest outdoor attractions in the U.S. Furthermore, Yellowstone national park, located in Colorado, is filled with bubbling hot springs and spitting geysers. Big Bend is located in the Southwest, yet it is on the boarder of Mexico and the U.S. A vast amount of  picturesque mountain ranges are spread across the United States. Stretching across the Southeast region is the Appalachian Mountains. The Rocky Mountains, located in the Southwest and West, crosses two regions. In these two mountain ranges is where outdoor adventurers might find the best skiing in the nation. The U.S. is outlined with a numerous amount of coastlines. Beaches of Los Angeles and Florida are some of the most popular destinations in the U.S. The latter was recently affected by an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil spill kept an extremely large amount of people from coming to the coastlines that were affected, but now that the spill is clogged, so people are starting to swarm in again. From national parks to coastlines and mountain ranges these fantastic features make the U.S. a popular destination. After a long day of breathtaking sightseeing, the Smith family parks their car and they stagger into the hotel to take a break and sleep for the night.  

• Words in black are ones I added to avoid word repetition
• Tomorrow, we will work on effective restate sentences

Next Tuesday, you will write an essay in class under exam conditions as part of your Lesson 3-5 Test.

Civility - Compassion - Empathy

What did you learn about Civility - Compassion - Empathy that you will remember for the rest of your life?

How will you 'make a difference?'

Enjoy our class song on 'others first' again. Think about the message it portrays. Comments are appreciated

Next Week

•  State Report Information

Work on your 2nd Component (If you chose History, leave this until your 3rd component)

Make sure you are able to group your Research into P2s. Examples of possible P2s for the different components are below:

e.g. Tourist attractions
(Examples below- don't just copy these. Devise your own based on your state)
-Historical Importance, Family Actvities, Recreational Opportunities, Outdoor destinations etc...

eg. Commerce and Indusry
-Service Industries, Manufacturing Industries, Major Companies, Industrial Regions, Tourism, Major Products etc...

e.g.Natural Resources+ Crops
Mined Resources, Renewable or Nonrenewable Resources, Scenery, Agriculture Resources, Major Crops etc...

Target Stickers: Between 8-9

You must have all your information collected and written down in order to type out the following:
Next Computing Class: Paraphrased notes for Fun Facts (Fri 5th Feb)
Next Library Class: Gra. Group (This Fri) Bux. Group (Mon 8th Feb)

•  Fifty States and Capitals Test

This will take place on Feb 11th. Use links on the blog to help you with your 50 States Studying. You will need to know each state and capital, its location, the three major bodies of water that border the U.S., and the two major mountain ranges in the U.S. Spelling is not counted; however, you will be expected to spell as accurately as possible.

Brag Sheet - Midwest Region Essay

Below is one of the few essays that scored the highest grade in the recent class writing assignment. Read this essay 'very' carefully and look how effectively it introduced a variety of 'unique' facts about the Midwest in an engaging and interesting way. Also note the use of GRAAB and SSS. I did make a few changes in red as examples of how you can all avoid repeating the name of the region continually through your essays and the word 'many'.(Hint Hint nudge Nudge...This is an excellent example of  the type of answer that will be required for Thursday's Midwest Test essay!)

Explain why the Midwest is referred to the "Unique region" in the US

By Ryan Ensor

As the glaciers melt away, in time the hairy buffalo slowly trot onto the plains with Nomad Indians close behind onto what will soon become one of the most distintive regions of a new country. There are a variety of reasons why the Midwest is referred to as the “Unique Region” of the US. Impressive historical monuments can be found nestled across this part of the nation. The Midwest may not be home to New York’s Statue of Liberty, or Arizona’s Grand Canyon, but Mount Rushmore is known throughout the world and has become South Dakota’s claim to fame.  Mount Rushmore portrays George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt. It attracts a plethora of tourists everyday to stare at the carved faces in the side of the Mountain. The Crazy Horse Memorial is as important to Indian heritage as Kitty Hawk in the Southeast is to the Wright Brothers. The Crazy Horse Memorial is a huge statue of a horse and rider, although this marvel is not yet complete. The Sand Hills, located in Nebraska, are three hundred feet tall. These monuments are just some of the many marvels in the Midwest.

Sports teams, hot air ballooning, and winter sports are all popular hobbies in the Midwest. The Minnesota Twins are as important to Minnesota as the Red Sox are to Boston. The Ohio State Buckeyes and Wisconsin Badgers are popular college teams from Ohio and Wisconsin respectively.  Alternatively, multi colored hot air balloons filled the sky as they soar during a typical midwestern summer festival. Hot air ballooning is a popular pastime for  residents and visitors to the area alike and is also enjoyed nation wide! In most places, hot air ballooning is scarce, and this is one of the reasons the Midwest is so unique. Additionally, ice fishing, ice hockey, and ice skating are very fun for winters in across the land areras bordering the Great Lakes. In fact, ice fishing is as uncommon for other regions as a blizzard hitting the Florida coastline would be.

The history of the Midwest is as interesting as the history of the whole country. Glaciers, huge frozen blocks of ice, once covered the entire Interior Plains flattening mountains and trees. When the glaciers cleared away, buffaloes and Indians came on to the now settle in the Plains. Soon the French came into the Midwest exploring and looking for land to take for their own. In 1803, The US concluded the Louisiana Purchase.

To conclude, the Midwest is unique in many ways.  Mount Rushmore, Minnesota Twins, and hot air ballooning are just a few resons. As the red, white, and navy blue Minnesota Twins compete in the World Series foreign tourists gape at the granite faces of Mount Rushmore. The crowd roars in triumph when the Twins win the World Series making their mark on history, and the tourists realized what a unique region the Midwest truly is.

Southeast Region - Essay Question

See how Robert was able to incorporate so many precise facts that we had learned about the Southeast  region in his essay test answer.  This is an exact example of HOTS in practice. You will have three more regions tests and similar questions. Set this as a standard for  your own essay writing.

Question
Explain how the regional specialties served at a traditional Southeast meal might be different to food served in restaurants in other areas of the country.
Time limit: 30minutes

The warm gumbo bowl steams heavily. Its captivating scent gestures diners to dig in. The Southeast has a litany of enchanting food. Fortunately, several cultures have heavily influenced Southeastern cuisine. A long time ago, the French sailed to Louisiana to settle; therefore, giving the Gulf Coast delightful eating. The Spanish journeyed to Florida, while bringing a cornucopia of Spanish recipes. Slaves from Africa brought their own cooking styles. Coincidentally, the Southeast grows a multitude of crops. From pecans, to peanuts, and peaches, the 180-day growing season helps grow copious foods. In Florida, the citrus capital of the world, one can always find a tasty tangerine. Rice is very popular in the Southeast, so it might be on the menu. Luckily, numerous Southeast animals will be on this plate. There is an assortment of farms in the Southeast, and they provide steak, pork, and chicken. The Mississippi River, Atlantic Ocean, and Gulf of México combine to always have a fresh catch. Fish, shrimp, and crab make seafood an enormous possibility. To reiterate, the recipes of early settlers, plentiful cash crops, and several Southeast animals to make the Southeast a popular eating region. As the customer leaves the restaurant, he is satisfied, for the unique Southeastern cuisine fills his stomach.

Coming Next Week

-Overcoming Adversity - The Life of Nelson Mandela

-Comma Rules (C.O.M.M.A.S.)
-Fragments and Run Ons (Fused and Comma Splices
-Writing a Character Sketch
-Regions Study - The Southeast


You will be tested on your knowledge of fragments, run-ons, and comma rules at the end of the week, so use the blog effectively to watch the videos and do the practice  exercises before Friday.

 

(+1... Which comma rule did I use  in that last sentence?)

 

 

ERBs start week beginning Nov 9th. No H/W in any subject at all that week.

Coming Next Week

Sentence Fluency Test
Can you write advanced simple, compound, and complex sentences?
Do you know the characteristics of compound and complex sentences?
Can you punctuate compound and complex sentences effectively?
Do the practice exercises on this blog to help you prepare for the test

Prepositions and Prepostional Phrases
What is a preposition?
Why do we use prepositional phrases?

Social Studies Textbook - Lesson 4
Land and Regions

Evaluating Text - Speeches
What criteria would you use to evaluate President Obama's speech to school children?