Wednesday, September 25th

ELA -- Ms. Smith taught a continuation lesson about sentence types.  She went over simple, compound, and complex sentences.

Social Studies -- We continued discussing the causes of the Civil War through the line of inquiry: conflict can lead to change.  We spent a good amount of time discussing the Fugitive Slave Act, what it was like for African Americans during that era, Harriett Beecher Stowe, and the effect of Uncle Tom's Cabin on different groups.  We had informative discussions in both classes and one student asked if some people were so mad with her because she was a woman. That question sparked another discussion about what rights (or lack thereof) that women had at the time.  I informed that some at the time felt that it wasn't her "place" to speak out against a topic as controversial as slavery.  Additionally, when I told students about how women were expected to act they couldn't believe it... especially when I asked them to compare those expectations to their own mother's behavior.  : )  Tomorrow we will finish our note-taking and discussion about the causes of the Civil War.

Upcoming Assessments:  Civil War Causes essay assessment, Vocabulary Assessment (both Friday)

Students should take home their journals on Thursday to study since we will be done with all of the notes.  For your reference, I've allowed them to take them to take them home all week to study.  On the assessment, students will be asked the following question:

Why did our country go to war with itself?

Choose at least 2 of the following and describe, in detail, how they contributed to causing the American Civil War.

Dred Scott Decision      

Kansas-Nebraska Act     

Missouri Compromise     

Uncle Tom's Cabin     

State's Rights        

Election of Abraham Lincoln       

Fort Sumter     

Slavery       

Population differences          

Economic differences         

Fugitive Slave Act
John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry

Since I'm providing the essay question in advance and we have been discussing these topics all week, I expect student answers to be detailed and factual.  I have been clear about what types of answers will receive which grade; consequently, students who have paid attention in class and read over their notes should perform well.