Winter weather day 5 of the past two weeks.  Tomorrow will be 6 and there's a good chance Thursday will be 7.  Today is the first day off that I don't have any essays to grade, I'm going to try and finish a Lewis and Clark book that I've been picking away at for months.  Did you know that the people on the Lewis and Clark expedition ate quite a bit of dog?  They actually found it quite tasty.  Gross.  Or maybe not, maybe dog is delicious.  When they could, they ate upwards of 10 pounds of meat a day, they were burning so many calories from the work they did everyday they needed a crazy amount of food.  So while they preferred deer, buffalo and other traditional sources of protein, they would definitely get down on horse and dog when they needed to.

So logistics for the week.  Whenever we have school next, that is the day I'm staying after for test make ups.  Even if it's on Friday.  We need to get all the Long Essays and Multiple Choice tests made up.  I need you to make it an after school priority.  I'll hand back the LEQ's next time I see you but I do want to take a look at them together, I want to dedicate a few minutes of class time (probably on Monday) to have you specifically look for a couple of things in your writing.  So I trust that everyone can have them with them on Monday, I don't want to hold them until then.  And it also is important that everyone has the multiple choice test done before we go over it, so that will likely be on Monday too.  So we need to get them all done this week.

Regarding content, Chapter 23 should be done already and Chapter 24 should be done by Friday.  Expect Type 2's and notebook checks.  As I've said before, maybe some of you will use this as an opportunity to dig into the reading in a way you haven't before.  When you hear about the students that are setting the curve for our multiple choice tests and they are getting back 'A' essays, I'm pretty confident part of their approach to the material is a thorough reading and engagement of these chapters.

Some things to pay attention to for Chapter 23.

• Much of the chapter is about the end of Reconstruction which we have talked about in class.  Those developments (including Sharecropping) continue to be important.
• Panic of 1873 - this is the first specific instance of serious economic instability we've come across this year.  This represents the boom and bust cycle the American economy has gone through, the most significant example will be the Great Depression.  We'll see other examples of economic instability and we'll want to keep an eye on the impact on American society.  The Panic of 1873 was something that really hurt support for Reconstruction.  It basically was a mini-depression that went on for most of the 1870s.
• Plessy v. Ferguson - this is a crucial Supreme Court decision.  It ruled that segregation did not violate the Constitution.  It was overturned by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.  It shows us how two different Supreme Courts can rule differently on the same issue in different eras.
  
• Americans are getting frustrated and agitated - pay attention to the rise of the Populist movement as farmers increasingly bore the brunt of economic difficulties and felt like the two major parties weren't representing them.  And in the Homestead Strike we see labor starting to organize and push back against the low pay and difficult working conditions of the 19th century.  We will be keeping an eye on organized labor from here on out.
  

So that's it for me today.  Stay safe and warm and let me know if you have any questions.

If we have school tomorrow, remember that you are supposed to have Chapter 23 done.  While there is a good chance tomorrow is cancelled, don't bet on it and be ready to go.  There won't be a ton of snow on the ground when school starts, they might try to get it in. 

Tuesday at this point looks like we will sneak a day in between the snow and the brutal cold.  I am going to plan on staying after on Tuesday and I expect that all Long Essays and Multiple Choice tests will be made up after school.  There has been quite a spike in absences on these last two test days, I guess it's just a coincidence.  That being said, I'm putting in Z's in Tuesday morning for all tests that have not been taken.  It is your responsibility to get it done after school on Tuesday.

Right now, Wednesday/Thursday are supposed to be historically cold.  Right now the wind chills for Wednesday morning are in the -35 range and I think Thursday is supposed to be similar.  So those two days look doubtful.  Friday should be fine.

So the most probable scenario right now seems to be a Tuesday and Friday week, but don't sleep on tomorrow.  My plan is for the first day we have school this week to discuss Chapter 23 and to give an overview of the period known as the Gilded Age.  And then since all tests will be made up on Tuesday, on Friday we will take a look at your essays together and go over the multiple choice test.  So if it's a two day week one day will be focused on content and the other will largely be focused on developing AP skills.  If we have more days than that, great, we'll keep moving forward.

It is vital that you are on top of the reading this week.  Chapter 24 needs to be finished by Friday.  The guided reading is online.  Read, think, and study, you have plenty of time on your hands.  Expect multiple Type 2's to assess your understanding of the content.

I graded 20 LEQ's yesterday, 10 so far today, and I'll do 10 more later.  If we don't have school tomorrow, I'll finish 4th period and let you know.  Stay safe and warm and I'll see you when I see you.

Apparently, we just don't have school anymore. :)  I hope this third snow day this week and the start of a three (or possibly four) day weekend finds you rested and maybe ready to do a little work.  As I said in class, if we are going to end up cumulatively losing a week or two of school because of weather, you tackling the reading at home is even more important than ever.

The multiple choice tests are in.  The average was a 22/38 and the high score on the day was 32/38 (there were two of those).  For these Stimulus-Based tests, which are meant to replicate the AP Exam, the process for the curve is a little different.  As I've said in class, if you can get 60% of the M.C. questions right on the exam, you'll be in line for a 3 on the exam overall.  Getting 70% has you positioned for a 4 or 5 and 80% right puts you firmly on track for a 5.  With that in mind, I set the curve at 28, with each question being worth two points, it went in the grade book as a 56 point test.  So if you take your score and divide it by two, that's how many you got right. People that got 29 and above earned extra credit.

There were a lot of really strong scores, yet also some serious issues on the other end of the spectrum.  As you have some time this weekend, ask yourself what you can do to change your approach to the material.  Is it paying attention in class?  Should you start actually doing the reading?  Should you change your studying?  Figure out a way you can change up the equation so you can maybe get a more favorable result.  I know I"ll be thinking of things I can do to better reach those that are struggling.

Next up for me today is finishing 5th period's Long Essays and I'm going to put a dent in getting 3rd period's done so I can hopefully get those done tomorrow  I'll send out a Remind when essays are done. Stay warm.

The bulk of today's class was spent reviewing Periods 4/5 for tomorrow's test.  Review books were assigned.  I've included the Chapter 23 Guided Reading below, you'll have pages due on Thursday.

Class time today was spent writing a Long Essay.  Remember that you need to have the chapter done by Monday.  Have a great weekend!

We started today by finishing the Reconstruction notes from yesterday, the PowerPoint is included below.  We then read/discussed a primary source illustrating the obstacles to Reconstruction.  The source of the words omitted and students came up with their hypothesis of the speaker.

We then focused on contextualization for Friday's Long Essay.

Remember that you need to read p. 465-480 by Thursday. 

Also included below is an overview of the 19th century that hopefully will help with chronology. Enjoy.

Today's class started with a Type 2 on assigned readings and discussion.  We then analyzed the Gettysburg Address.  Remember that you have two Short Answer Questions tomorrow.   The chapter and guided reading should be done by Monday.  

Today's class started with a discussion of Lincoln's 1st Inaugural.  We analyzed how it responded to S. Carolina's justifying secession.  We then watched a couple of clips from the movie Lincoln.

Remember that you have pages due tomorrow.  Also, changes are coming in how I manage cell phones. I just bought a hanging pouch system that we will use.  Enough with these phones.  You will live even if you have to go 70 minutes without Snapchat.    

​

Today's class started with a discussion of Chapter 20, time was then spent analyzing/discussion S. Carolina's explanation of their secession.  Remember that you need to read the first half of Lincoln's 1st Inaugural for tomorrow.  See you then.