The Holocaust, Day 4 - Class Recap

A quote on the wall of the Miami Holocaust Memorial. Our discussion today in class had a large part to do with whether or not we believe something like this could happen again. Photo taken in 2011.

Dear class,

This was a somewhat challenging day for me as a teacher, to try and give control over to student discussion. Although there were points where it was quiet and awkward, I still think almost everyone did well and that the conversation was productive. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 17: I can explain how and why world societies organize themselves and how power is established and maintained.
Behavior LT 1:  I can manage my responsibilities as a student.
Behavior LT 2:  I can self-direct my learning.
Behavior LT 3: I can communicate and work effectively within a team or group.

Soundtrack: "Talk" by Coldplay. Selected for today because most of the class was made up of students talking about the rise of Hitler and whether or not it could happen again. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/31/17:
News Brief – Oliver
Socratic Seminar
Ladakh Readings
Ancient Futures, Part 1

Homework: Read the blog. Prepare for finals (see below)! Next news brief: Olivia.

News Brief: Oliver selected an article about this story for the news brief today: BBC.com - Quebec mosque shooting: Police arrest a suspect and a witness. We found Canada on our world maps and noted that we talked about it. I also read a quote from Elie Wiesel's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech at the start of class. Related to that, we had a good discussion about the weekend and what has happened as a result of President Trump's executive orders banning people from Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Yemen, Libya, Sudan, and Syria from the country.

Olivia was selected to do the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

Socratic Seminar: This was the first time we have attempted to do this in class, and I think it went really well! I was proud of everyone participating.

This was the reading that we were discussing in class:

Google Drive - Rise of Hitler Reading

The questions and answers that I wanted the class to do in preparation for the discussion on this were:

1) What happened so that Hitler could get power?

2) Make three discussion questions (not yes or no answers) about the reading. Try to base your questions on specific quotes from the reading.

I explained that I wanted the discussion to be student led and directed, and then I tried to get out of the conversation as much as possible. Overall, I was pleased with the conversation and I think you touched on some really important issues and questions! Thanks for being willing to participate. We will talk more about this next class. Of course, there were times when I wanted to jump in and provide more information or bring up a question, but that was not my role! Important for me to remember, too.

The Holocaust unit will be graded as a Behavior assessment - thanks for your focus here as we wind down the semester!

Ladakh Readings: As I have been explaining in class, your final will be based on a case study of what happened in Ladakh, which is an region in India. Students will be asked to write about many different aspects of the Ladakh, using almost all of the learning targets we have been through this semester.

To start, here is the reading packet I passed out. Students are taking notes on the back page during the documentary that we will start next class:

Google Drive: Intro to Ladakh Readings

Please treat this as homework. There will be time next class to finish this, and it would also be great to have ready, so you can study after the documentary finishes.

Next class, we will watch the documentary and I will give students final prep time. I look forward to seeing everyone then! Almost there to the end of the semester!

The Holocaust, Day 3 - Class Recap

The Boston Holocaust Memorial was one of the most powerful I have seen. As you walk through the glass, steam comes up from the grates, and names of people that were killed in various concentration camps are on the sides of the glass. Photo taken in 2013.

Hi everyone,

We are getting closer and closer to finals! A couple of more days of learning about the Holocaust, and then  Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 17: I can explain how and why world societies organize themselves and how power is established and maintained.
Behavior LT 1:  I can manage my responsibilities as a student.
Behavior LT 2:  I can self-direct my learning.
Behavior LT 3: I can communicate and work effectively within a team or group.

Soundtrack: "Pride (In the Name of Love)" by U2. Selected for today because the song is in large part about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and because today was PRIDE Friday at Westview! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/27/17:
News Brief – Alex
Finish Group Activity
Rise of Hitler

Socratic Seminar Prep

Homework: Read the blog. All late work or revisions due today. Finish reading the Rise of the Nazis article and making 3 discussion questions for next class. Next news brief: Oliver.

News Brief: Alex selected an article about this story to bring in: BBC.com - Beware hate speech, says Auschwitz Holocaust survivor. We found Poland on our world maps and noted that we talked about it. It also is International Holocaust Memorial Day today, in memory of the liberation of Auschwitz in 1945. A powerful reminder of why we are studying it in our class and next door in Lit and Comp.

Oliver was selected to do the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

Finish Group Activity: After the news, we finished the group activity from last class. Instead of just giving students a reading, I though this was a more interesting way for everyone to learn (and move around, and talk with each other) about some key figures and events in Nazi Germany. Here is the assignment that students filled out:

Google Drive - Nazi Group Activity Assignment

And here is the document of different events and people that students were learning about, in terms of their importance in helping the Nazi government establish and maintain power (the knowledge target for the unit):

Google Drive - Nazi Group Activity Roles

Thanks for doing a good job with this activity!

Rise of Hitler: I asked how the Holocuast was possible, and if we could consider something like this happening to us - either as the Nazis or the persecuted people. I think it is hard to consider ourselves capable of such horrific acts. Which is why the Stanford Prison Experiment is so famous. Basically, it was a psychological experiment based on assigning roles to Stanford students (really smart people) - either as "prison" guards or prisoners. The prisoners were taken and not allowed out for six days (until the experiment ended early). The prison guards turned into awful, terrible people. Here's the clip we watched in class (there are many others out there - do a search if you want to learn more):

After the clip, I came back to the idea of wondering if something like the Holocaust could happen again. It's a difficult question for historians, and for people in general. We want to believe that people are good. If we aren't careful about learning the history and psychology to combat it, I think there is a better chance of something like this happening again.

With that idea, I passed out this reading, which has to do with how the Nazi political party and Hitler came to power in Germany:

Google Drive - Rise of Hitler Reading

The questions and answers that I wanted the class to do in preparation for a discussion next class on this were:

1) What happened so that Hitler could establish power? Could this happen again?

2) Make three discussion questions (not yes or no answers) about the reading. Try to base your questions on specific quotes from the reading and grounded in reality (NOT: what if World War II never happened?).

Socratic Seminar Prep: Next class, we will have a graded (on the behavior targets) discussion on the Rise of Hitler reading, so I wanted to go over how that will work.

Two blog exclusive items that will help in this:

Google Drive: Socratic Seminar Self-Assessment

To go along with the preparation, here are some tips on how a good Socratic Seminar works (it is my hope to sit back and let students run the discussion, so that it is more authentic with participation):

Google Drive: Socratic Seminar Tips

The rest of class was devoted to reading the article and preparing discussion questions. Next class, I am hoping that we can have an interesting, student led discussion on the article and the questions it generates - specifically about if this could possibly happen again.

Thank you for your hard work, everyone! See you next class.

The Holocaust, Day 2 - Class Recap

The barbed wire around Auschwitz I in Poland. Photo taken in 2013.

Hi everyone,

Today was another day looking into more depth on the Holocaust genocide. I showed some of my pictures from visiting Auschwitz in 2013, we finished the textbook work, and began  Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 17: I can explain how and why world societies organize themselves and how power is established and maintained.
Behavior LT 2: I can self-direct my learning.

Soundtrack: "So What" by Miles Davis. A bit of jazz (no lyrics) to start the day! Selected because I wanted to explain the answer to "so what?" in regards to the Holocaust.

AGENDA 1/25/17:
News Brief – Sophia
My Photos
Finish Textbook Work
Group Activity

Homework: Read the blog. All late/missing/revised work is due this Friday! Check your updated grades and know what to do to improve! Next news brief: Alex.

News Brief: Sophia had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about: BBC.com - Prince among seven prisoners executed by Kuwait. We found Kuwait in the world map packet (a new one!) and discussed this story, as well as a bit about the death penalty in general. We also had a good discussion in class about what is happening within our own country right now, too.

Alex was selected for the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

My Photos: After the news brief, I showed students photos from my visit to Auschwitz in the summer of 2013. I wanted everyone to see what it actually looks like, and explain what it was like to visit there. Hopefully this was interesting! I would highly encourage anyone interested in history to visit at some point. Incredibly powerful.

Textbook Work: We finished going through the Modern World History textbook and what it has to say about the Holocaust on pages, 502-505. The assigned work in class was:

Summarize the two sections: The Holocaust Begins + The Final Solution

Write out vocab definitions (words in blue)

Complete questions 1-8 at the end of the Chapter (page 505).

After about 15 minutes of work, we went over the answers together, as I randomly called on students. Keep these papers - they will help you with understanding the vocabulary in the unit and in our upcoming discussion!

Group Activity: This is a teaching activity where students take on the persona of a historical figure or event. In this case, there were eleven different people or events to talk about. I asked that students go around the room talking about their person or event. Here is the worksheet that goes along with this:

Google Drive: Nazi Tea Party Assignment

The directions were to:
1) Write the event or name of the person you were interviewing down on the left column.
2) Write the top 3 most important elements of the story on the slip of paper.
3) Write how you think the Nazis used the person or event to establish or maintain power.

We did not completely finish this in class, so next time, we will talk about where we ended up and go over the events and people together. Thank you for treating this activity with respect. See you next class!

The Holocaust, Day 1 - Class Recap

Auschwitz II in 2013. The chimneys are the only remainder of much of the camp.

Dear class,

Since everyone is reading "Night" in Mr. Puterbaugh's class, I thought it was especially important to go over some of the basics of the Holocaust in class. Today was our first day looking more in depth at what happened. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 17: I can explain how and why world societies organize themselves and how power is established and maintained.
Behavior LT 2: I can self-direct my learning.

Soundtrack: "Rebel Rebel" by David Bowie. Selected for today because of the women's marches over the weekend. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/23/17:
News Brief – Juan
The Holocaust
Textbook Work
Grade Checks

Homework: Read the blog. Check your updated grades and know what to do to improve by Friday! All late or missing work is due then! Next news brief: Sophia.

News Brief: Juan had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about: Nature.com - 'Zombie Volcano' slowly grows beneath New Zealand. We found New Zealand in the world map packet and noted we did a story there. Thanks, Juan!

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

I also asked about the weekend and what people were up to, before moving on.

The Holocaust: Again, I think it is really important that I not gloss over the history here (especially with Mr. Puterbaugh teaching Night next door), so we began looking at the Holocaust in depth today. To begin, I asked students to make the Cornell Notes template on a blank sheet of paper (if they wanted to), then went through this PowerPoint:

Google Drive: The Holocaust Overview PowerPoint

All of the pictures in the PowerPoint are from my own travels. I made sure to try and explain each slide in depth and I was happy to try and answer all of the questions from the class.

Along with the PowerPoint, here are two extra resources for the blog. A map of the concentration camps and death camps in Europe, along with some statistics about the Holocaust:

Google Drive: Concentration Camp Map and Holocaust Statistics

And, a timeline of the Holocaust and a "Pyramid of Hate":

Google Drive: Holocaust Timeline and Pyramid of Hate

All of these are resources that should help you better understand the Holocaust and what Mr. Puterbaugh has been teaching you through "Night."

Textbook Work: Near the end of class, we started looking at the Modern World History textbook and what it has to say about the Holocaust. A mere four total pages, 502-505! That said, it does have a quote from Night at the end, and I did use it to reinforce the vocabulary terms and concepts. The assigned work in class (we will finish next class and go over it together) was:

Summarize the two sections: The Holocaust Begins + The Final Solution

Write out vocab definitions (words in blue)

Complete questions 1-8 at the end of the Chapter (page 505).

That was where we ended for the day. Next class, you will finish the work in the textbook, go over some more information about the Holocaust and how it relates to our lives today, as well as learn about how the Nazi party rose to power.

Grade Checks: At the end of class, I went through everyone's grades on a 1-1 basis, so you should know exactly where you are at in the class. Please make sure you are working on any missing or late work that you need to revise! This Friday will be the last day I accept late work! Let me know if I can help with anything!

Genocide in Rwanda, Day 9 - Class Recap

A photo I took of the MAX train on the Steel Bridge in downtown Portland in 2008. It's nice to have the city moving again!

Dear class,

Welcome back to school! Today was spent finishing Hotel Rwanda as we closed down the unit. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 20: I can identify the critical components of imperialism.
Behavior LT 2: I can self-direct my learning.

Soundtrack: "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice. Selected for today because of the obvious connection to the snow and ice storm that closed down school for a week! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/19/17:
News Brief - Jimmy
Rwanda Speech Grades
Hotel Rwanda
Movie Assignment
Make Up/Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Work on any late or incomplete work for the semester, which is due by next Friday at the latest. Next news brief: Juan.

News Brief: Jimmy had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: CNN.com - 2 killed, others feared dead after avalanche buries Italian hotel. We talked for a bit in class about this tragic event in Italy and found it in the world map packet, before continuing on.

Juan was selected to do the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

Rwanda Speech Grades: Since I had so much free time on my hands over the snow/ice break, I graded all of the Rwanda speeches and I am entirely up to date with student grades! In essence:

1) If you did not address imperialism in Rwanda at all, you received a score of 1 on that target.
2) The communication target was the score for your actual speech in front of the class, as well as how well your individual paper followed the format we talked about in class. I included my notes as well as everyone else at the table listening, so you can see what I wrote about how you did.
3) The critical thinking/multiple perspectives target was for talking about the United Nations own definition of genocide, and talking about the perspective of the people of Rwanda during the genocide in your written speech.

If you have individual questions, I would be happy to answer them in person. As with any assignment, you can always revise it (or resubmit it, if you haven't turned it in) to demonstrate a higher level of proficiency, if needed.

Hotel Rwanda/Movie Assignment: We finished the movie today, finally. About a month after it as scheduled to be done! Here is the worksheet of questions to answer as we watched:

Google Drive: Hotel Rwanda Questions

I enjoyed going through the answers together in class - this was a good discussion! Thank you! In wrapping up the unit, I told the class that if they were interested in continuing to talk about issues such as race and ethnicity, they should consider forecasting for my new Diversity and Social Justice class here at Westview. It will be .5 elective credit, team teaching with Ms. Labossiere! If the course happens as we want it and you get it on your schedule, you would be guaranteed (we think!) of having me as your teacher for it, along with Ms. Labossiere. Here is a flyer to check out more information!

Google Drive - Diversity and Social Justice Class Flyer

Consider it as a part of your forecasting for next year! Forecasting will start in early February. :-)

Make Up/Work Time: Grades have been updated on StudentVUE. Please know what you need to be working on to improve your grade. I tried to conference with students who need to turn in more work to me by next Friday! Keep working hard! We are almost at the end of the semester!

Genocide in Rwanda, Day 8 - Class Recap

The sun is setting on the Rwanda unit! Hopefully it had a great impact on you. Next week, we will move on to the last (shorter) unit before finals! Photo taken in Washington, 2009.

Dear class,

Today was spent continuing to watch Hotel Rwanda as we close down the unit. Just one more day left! Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 20: I can identify the critical components of imperialism.
Behavior LT 2: I can self-direct my learning.

Soundtrack: "Million Voices" by Wyclef Jean. Selected for today because it is a powerful song from the Hotel Rwanda soundtrack. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/10/17:
News Brief - Sammy
Hotel Rwanda
Movie Assignment
Make Up/Late Work

Homework: Read the blog. Work on any late or incomplete work. Next news brief: Jimmy.

News Brief: Sammy had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: NYTimes.com - Bombings Near Afghanistan’s Parliament Kill Dozens on Day of Assaults. We talked for a while in class about Afghanistan and found it in the world map packet, before continuing on.

Jimmy was selected to do the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

Hotel Rwanda: We stopped about 1:31 in today. Here is the worksheet of questions to answer as we watched:

Google Drive: Hotel Rwanda Questions

Next class, we will finish watching the movie and prepare for finals!

Make Up/Late Work: We didn't have time in class to check in about grades on a 1-1 basis. I will try to find time to do so soon! Grades have been updated on StudentVUE, as well. Please know what you need to be working on to improve your grade.

Genocide in Rwanda, Day 7 - Class Recap

We played the Sporcle country game today as welcome back after the pressure of the Rwanda speeches last class!

Hello everyone,

An official welcome back from break and to 2016! It was so great to see everyone and check in about break, after we had all of last class dedicated to the Rwanda speeches! Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 20: I can identify the critical components of imperialism.
Communication LT 1: I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing
Behavior LT 3: I can communicate and work effectively within a team or group.

Soundtrack: "Welcome Back" by Ma$e. Selected for today because it was great to welcome everyone back from break! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/6/17:
News Brief - Ranger
Winter Break
Speech Debrief
Hotel Rwanda

Homework: Read the blog. Work on any late or incomplete work - make sure to submit your individual Rwanda speech on Google Classroom if you have not already! Next news brief: Sammy.

News Brief: Ranger had the news brief today and chose this story to talk about: BBC.com - Syria conflict: Russia 'withdrawing aircraft carrier group'. We found Russia in your world map packets and talked for a while about the ongoing situation in Syria and Iraq with ISIS. Lots of good questions here - thanks!

Sammy was selected to do the next news brief.

We also watched the one minute BBC World News update. Here's the link to see the latest one minute update, at any time of day (it will probably be different from what we watched in class):

BBCNews.com - One-minute World News

Break: After the news brief, I gave students some time to check in about how break was and what they were up to with the class. I talked a bit about my break and my experience with going to France and England with my wife!

Speech Debrief: I did not talk about this in class, but this is how I will be grading the Rwanda speeches over the weekend. In essence:

1) If you did not address imperialism in Rwanda at all, you received a score of 1 on that target.
2) The communication target was the score for your actual speech in front of the class, as well as how well your individual paper followed the format we talked about in class. I included my notes as well as everyone else at the table listening, so you can see what I wrote about how you did.
3) The critical thinking/multiple perspectives target was for talking about the United Nations own definition of genocide, and talking about the perspective of the people of Rwanda during the genocide in your written speech.

If you have individual questions, I would be happy to answer them in person. As with any assignment, you can always revise it (or resubmit it, if you haven't turned it in) to demonstrate a higher level of proficiency, if needed. I will hope to get these grades to you next class.

Hotel Rwanda: Before the movie, we played a surprise Sporcle "name the country" game, as evidenced by the top of this post. The rest of class was spent watching the movie Hotel Rwanda (2004). I normally do not show entire movies in class, but this one is SO good and relevant to the Rwanda unit. Here is the worksheet of questions to answer as we watched:

Google Drive: Hotel Rwanda Questions

We watched until 32:24 in class, and will watch most of the rest next class

It was so great to see everyone again! Have a great weekend!

Genocide in Rwanda, Day 6 - Class Recap

A look at the view from the podium in our room for the United Nations speeches about Rwanda!

Hi everyone,

You all did such an amazing job today! I am so proud of you and your effort in these speeches! It was an inspiration to be able to see how well you communicated about the genocide and the learning targets for the unit. Here's what happened in class today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 20: I can identify the critical components of imperialism.
Communication LT 1:  I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing
Behavior LT 3: I can communicate and work effectively within a team or group.

Soundtrack: "Heroes" by David Bowie. Selected for today because you got to be heroes for the people of Rwanda. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/4/17:
News Brief - Mr. Fritz
Setting the Stage
United Nations Speeches
Debrief

Homework: Read the blog. Turn in any late or incomplete work, and the individual copy of your United Nations speech ASAP on Google Classroom. Next news brief: Ranger.

News Brief: Since it had been forever since our last class, last year, I had the news brief and talked about my time in France over the break.

Ranger was selected to do the next news brief. We did not watch BBC World News today, due to the time with speeches, but here it is to watch, if you want to.

Setting the Stage: Right after the news brief, I went over exactly how the speeches would work in class, and talked specifically about a tie that I brought in for students to wear if they wanted, which a friend who went to Rwanda brought back for me. The tie was made by survivors of the genocide, so I thought it was pretty important symbolism as we were talking about needing to prevent it!

After the introduction, I gave about 10-15 minutes for groups to get ready and organized, then we started.

United Nations Speeches: I LOVED these! Again, the vast majority of students did such a good job with this! The basic set up was to have a group come up and line up behind the podium, do their speech in order, then listen as the panel at the front (for your class, it was Vice Principal Aki Mori and your counselor, Yoonwa Saechao along with myself) gave positive feedback about how your speeches went.

I really appreciated your effort and willingness to speak up about Rwanda! I know that the panel was impressed. I also wanted to make sure and publicly thank Mr. Mori and Mr. Saechao for being willing to give their time to come see you speak. What a cool community we have at Westview!

After the speeches were done, there was not enough time to start Hotel Rwanda, so we will do that next class.

At the end of class, I had everyone (who had not already done so) turn in their individual speeches (five paragraphs) with the rubric attached.

Here's the assignment sheet again, if you are needing it to find the rubrics to turn in with your revised paper:

Google Drive: Individual United Nations Rwanda Speech Assignment

Thank you all so much again for your hard work today and in the build up for it! You totally rock! I am very proud of everyone. See you next class! :-)