Period 2: World War I, Day 4 - Class Recap

Today's talk about writing essays included a bunch of pictures of Alcatraz Island, in San Francisco. Here's a picture of the city from that trip (Spring Break in 2011).

Dear class,

I loved the energy today in class! I think teaching the same thing three straight times this week helped me out as well. You got my best effort so far! I realize that there has been a lot of me standing and talking to the class this last week! I apologize - hopefully it will not stay that way. In any case, I appreciated your effort today during our final class of Semester 1! On to the recap:

Essential Question: Why do wars happen? - There was an obvious connection between this question and what we worked on in class.

Soundtrack: "Waiting on the World to Change" by John Mayer. Lyrics here. Picked because it is a good song and mentions war.

AGENDA 1/31/13

News Brief/Blog Recap
The Most Important Skill
Graphic Organizing
Why Did World War I Begin?

Homework: Check the class blog and post a comment if you have not already done so! Good luck on finals!
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News Brief/Blog Recap: Kyle Ucar had the news brief today, and he chose this article to bring in: CNN.com - French-led forces in Mali take Timbuktu airport, enter city. I mentioned the connection to what we have learned about in Rwanda with European imperialism - this is a direct result of that today! There is an obligation that France feels to Mali, after being the colonial ruler for 65 years. This was known as French West Africa. Now France is trying to help the Malian government defend itself from rebels. Super interesting! Thanks, Kyle! Traevon, you have the next news brief for Tuesday. Any article about something going on around the world, outside of the United States.

We talked a bit about the Blazers comeback win over Dallas last night, as well. :-)

The Most Important Skill: I said this in class and I really believe it: the ability to write (especially a good essay) is the most important skill that you will need in order to be successful in high school and college. Thus, this lecture was something I hope you paid very close attention to. Please see the PowerPoint below (remember that if the text doesn't show up in Google Docs, click "File" then "Download" and it should when you have a copy on your own computer):

Google Docs: Writing Easy Essays in Social Studies PowerPoint

The basics: every essay needs to start out with a "thesis statement" in the first paragraph (the introduction). Each of the three paragraphs after that should contain one main point you are trying to make. The format (or recipe) for those "body" paragraphs are like this: topic sentence, concrete detail/fact, concrete detail/fact, commentary/opinion, and then a concluding sentence. Finally, after the three body paragraphs, you will write a conclusion that restates the thesis. This is a LOT of information to try and learn, I know. That is why I am having you practice in class before I ask you to write me a real one at the end of the World War I unit.

Graphic Organizing: Based on the essay question on the last slide of the PowerPoint, I gave three different examples of "graphic organizing" your essay. I asked you to use one of these examples to start up your essay. If you missed class, here is one of the examples that you can use to start thinking about your essay:

Google Docs - Graphic Organizer for Writing Essays

Along with this, I gave the class a good format for writing a thesis (and even included one on World War I to start you off, if you were having trouble):

Google Docs - Thesis Statement Formula and Example

Hopefully this made sense. It is okay if it does not right away. That is why we are practicing!

Why Did World War I Begin? For the rest of class, I had you start up your essays using your graphic organizers - then the actual writing if you finished that. Here are the prompts that we were using (the last slide of the PowerPoint): 

Question: Why did World War I start and what happened at the beginning of it?

Words to use: militarism, alliances, imperialism, nationalism, Franz Ferdinand, Sarajevo, Triple Alliance, Triple Entente, June 28th 1914, trenches, Eastern Front, Western Front.

Use your notes! Cite my presentation as (Fritz Lecture) for any concrete details directly from me. You can also use the textbook, if you like.

Again, we will continue working on this in class. The essay is not homework - I want to help you through each step this time. Next time, it will be an actual assignment/test. You will be including your work here with that final assignment - so it is not like this work will not count.

Phew! I know that is a lot. Please let me know if you have any questions! See you next week - enjoy the Super Bowl!

Period 2: World War 1, Day 3 - Class Recap

My Great-Grandfather, Joseph Herbert "Bert" Frank, who was a medic for Great Britain during World War I. Photo courtesy of a conversation with my grandmother in 2007!

Hello everyone,

Thanks for another great class! I thought it was a good mix of new content and reflecting on what we have learned so far. I appreciate your willingness to listen and follow your own ground rules.

Essential Question: Why do wars happen?

Soundtrack: “The War Was In Color" by Carbon Leaf. Chosen because the song directly relates to learning about World War I. This was not just some old black and white documentary. I felt like it is probably what my great-grandfather would say if he were still alive and I asked him what it was like. Lyrics here. A sample I love: This black and white photo don't capture the skin/From the flash of a gun to a soldier who's done/Trust me grandson/The war was in color.

AGENDA 1/28/13:
News Brief/Blog Recap
Sparks Into Fire
My Connection
Life in the Trenches
Grades/Make Up Work

Homework: Check the blog and post a comment if you have not done so! Have a great weekend!
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News Brief: Ana presented this article about the awful fire in a Brazilian nightclub. Here's the link to her article. ABCNews.go.com - Brazil Nightclub Fire Kills More Than 230 People. This is such a terrible event, and it is great that we now know about it. It reminded me of this famous Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in New York City in 1911, which killed 146 people.

Other news topics that were brought up included the possible assassination attempt in Bulgaria (video in link): Time.com - Was Bulgarian Politician Really Target of "Assassination Attempt"? and Iran threatening to attack anyone that tries to intervene in Syria (remind anyone of the World War I alliances?): LATimes.com - Iran issues threatening warning against attack in Syria.

You can always count on having at least some discussion on what is currently going on around the world in this class! Kyle Ucar, you have the news brief for next class, please!

Blog Recap: Thank you to everyone that has commented already. Also, if a PowerPoint does not display correctly when you click on the link, please download the file in Google Docs.

Sparks Into Fire: During this section, I showed the class the map animations slideshow for the start of World War I here: PBS.org - Europe in 1914 and here: PBS.org - The Great War. I asked the class to take general notes about what the maps dealt with - especially in regards to the "Western Front" and "Eastern Front" relating to Germany. These are two very famous terms that you will hear about later in life, I am sure. It is important to learn about all of the different "dominoes" that fell in terms of alliances at the start of the war, as well.

My Connection: This section was a short and sweet (I hope) presentation about my great-grandfather's involvement in World War I as a medic. I did not ask the class to take notes. In case you missed class, or wanted to see the pictures again, here it is:

Google Docs - Mr. Fritz's Connection to World War I PowerPoint

I hope it was interesting, and I hope that you ask about your own family history! It was fascinating for me to learn about it from my grandmother over tea. :-)

Life in the Trenches: This section consisted of two parts. First, I showed the class a few minutes of a documentary on World War I (in color!) that talked about how awful the war was from the perspective of those who fought in it. That video can be found here (I started it at 7:49 and stopped it about 11:30 or so into it): YouTube.com - World War I in Color, Episode 2: Slaughter in the Trenches.

After watching the video clip, I talked a little more about conditions in the trenches, which were long lines dug out in the ground, not far away from each other. Over the course of the war, not much progress was made in the battles, since any advance by the opposition was fairly easy to stop. I believe I called the whole idea "stupid" quite a bit in class. It totally was. Someone asked about soldiers literally using dead bodies as "meat shields" to cover themselves. I could not find anything about that specifically. Here's some similar terms: Wikipedia - "Cannon Fodder"

I said that World War I was way different from wars in the past (like the Revolutionary War), especially because of the difference between machine guns and muskets. military.discovery.com - Revolutionary War Flintlock Musket. Twenty seconds and 13 steps per shot. Obviously a machine gun that fires multiple rounds per second is much more deadly to large armies.

I handed out a worksheet of letters home from soldiers on in the trenches, and then had the class imagine they were in the same position. This was what the work was for the rest of the class - making up your own letter on the back of the worksheet. If you missed class, you can download the worksheet and create your letter here:

Google Docs: Life in the Trenches - Letters Home Worksheet

Thank you for your work on this. It should be fairly easy points for me to give you. I am trying to help you out if you are close to that next letter grade!

Grades/Make Up Work: The rest of the class was devoted to me checking in with everyone about exactly where they stand and what you need to make up, if there is anything.

If you want to turn in any late work or revise your Rwanda speech, you need to have it into me as soon as possible. As in, if you are reading this at home, it is probably already too late - but ask/send them to me anyway. You also need to include the original graded copy of the speech, so I can see the changes you made. Sound good?

Good luck on finals! Please remember we do not have a final in this class, but we will definitely be working hard.

Period 2: World War I, Day 2 - Class Recap

The current background on my phone (it has been for a while). Dreaming of warm and sunny days! Picture taken on Waikiki Beach in Hawaii, September 21, 2011.

Hello everyone,

Thanks for another great class! I really enjoy days like today. Some great learning going on, I think! I appreciate your willingness to listen and follow your own ground rules. On to the recap!

Essential Question: Why do wars happen?

Soundtrack: “Eleanor Put Your Boots On” by Franz Ferdinand. Chosen because of the band name - after the Archduke of Austria-Hungary who we talked about being assassinated to start World War I. This is definitely my favorite song of theirs - they are a band from Scotland that is sort of indie rock. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 1/24/13:
News Brief
Blog Recap
Ominous Beginnings PowerPoint
Murder of the Archduke
Grades/Make Up Work

Homework: Check the blog and post a comment if you have not done so! Have a great weekend!
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News Brief: Kevan led off the first ever student news brief for the class by presenting and talking about this article: GlobalPost.com - Latin America takes action to decriminalize abortion. As I said in class, there was no way we were going to have an open debate or discussion about abortion at this time, for many different reasons. It is interesting to hear about other countries struggling with the issue as well. Earlier this week marked 40 years since the US Supreme Court decided in Roe v. Wade that abortion was legal in all states. Polling on the issue typically finds that Americans are highly divided on the question. In any case, thank you for leading us off with the news brief, Kevan!

Ana, you are up for next class on Monday. Please remember to bring a news article about an event outside the United States. Thanks!

I also talked about the United States military saying that women can now be on the "front lines" of combat. Here's an article about that: LATimes.com - Military to lift ban on women in combat. Finally, I mentioned North Korea threatening the United States, especially in regards to their nuclear weapons program (which is somewhat frightening, living here on the West Coast): NYTimes.com - North Korea Issues Blunt New Threat to United States. You can always count on having at least some discussion on what is currently going on around the world in this class!

Blog Recap: I wanted to make sure that everyone saw again how much effort I put into the class recaps, and why it is so important to check in here! Thank you to everyone that has commented already. Easy points!

Ominous Beginnings PowerPoint: I went over the definition of "ominous" and used the example of music in a scary movie: you know something bad is about to happen. The rest of the PowerPoint was about the M.A.I.N. causes of World War I, which you learned about last class. The class took notes on each slide - which will come in handy at the end of this unit. Please review the presentation if you missed class, or did not have enough time to finish up your notes:

Google Docs - World War I: Ominous Beginnings PowerPoint

Thank you so much for your focus during this part of class! You all seemed to really be getting what I was talking about, which is great to see. If you were at all interested in what I was saying about the genocide in the Belgian Congo that nobody ever talks about, check out: Yale.edu - Genocide Studies Program: Belgian Congo. A quote: "From 1885 to 1908, it is estimated that the Congolese native population decreased by about ten million people."

Murder of the Archduke: I passed this document around, and read it aloud to the class - Borijove Jevtic: The Murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo, 28 June 1914. This is the story of how World War I started. I had the class answer some questions about the document in writing. It is such an important event in history - all set up by the MAIN causes of World War I. Here are the questions to answer, if you missed the class or need to finish up:

1. Describe the plans to kill Franz Ferdinand.
2. Describe the scene at the time of the murder.
3. How does the author justify the events?
4. Who is the "oppressor" that Franz Ferdinand represents? Why is Franz Ferdinand called the "new oppressor"?
5. Why is the date, 28 June, an unfortunate date for Franz Ferdinand to visit Sarajevo?

Thank you for your work on this. It should be fairly easy points for me to give you.

Grades/Make Up Work: Speaking of points, I posted your current grades in the classroom (except if you did a blog comment after 4:00 yesterday) and gave back your Rwanda speeches that Mrs. DeFrance Gilman graded before having her baby. If you want to turn in any late work or revise your Rwanda speech, you need to have it into me as soon as possible. Definitely by Monday at the absolute latest. You also need to include the original graded copy of the speech, so I can see the changes you made. Sound good?

Have a great weekend!