Cowboys, Indians, Competition, and...Railroads?

Sounds like a good week to me! As we head into Homecoming Week, students are undoubtedly excited about the 11:30 Spirit Day on Friday...so another big plus!

Illinois History: We're going to keep plugging away on our History Fair projects. Students have been researching potential topics, and I've been impressed with what they've got so far! The next step is important though: doing the research, designing the project, and so on. We've got tons of talent to do the job.

US History I: A Colonial Life Simulation is underway Monday, followed by a video on Tuesday and prep for the test on Thursday. We will play "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire- US History Style to review for the test on Wednesday!

US History II: Farmers, ranchers, cowboys, Indian wars, and railroads- one of the most exciting units of the year! We're planning on a spirited Ranchers vs. Farmers Debate, analysis of the Indian wars, and moving on to daily life in the Gilded Age.

World Geography: A video, "America's Heart and Soul," on Monday-Tuesday; followed by an introduction to mind-boggling statistics about the good ol' US of A. We hit the ground running by starting with the Pacific Northwest (California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho) for our first mini-section.

Economics: Competition abounds this week, as we discuss how competition makes a market economy work! We have a test Thursday, so another round of "Millionaire" will definitely be in order!

Looking forward to a great week, as always. A couple things that are in the works and very much in the "planning" stage:

1) IL Youth and Government Day, spring 2011. I'm looking into the program and thinking of how we could make this work. Students would travel to Springfield and be legislators for a day, taking up a number of projects and bills in the House chamber. It sounds like a great time.

2) Extending History Fair opportunities for juniors/seniors. Trying to figure out what would be the best course of action on this front as well.

3) Stock Market Game. Getting ready to kick off this competition soon for Economics!

4) WWII Interview Project with the senior class, interviewing veterans and uploading these interviews onto the Library of Congress website.

Have a GREAT week!!

-Mr. B