April 26-May 2, 2008 Mon-Friday

Posted on April 29, 2008 by Paul Bogush.
Categories: Uncategorized.

Just a quickie…

Mr. B has taken over all four classes and is finishing a unit on immigration this week.

I am still working with the small groups that were listed in the previous post. All groups will be done by this Friday.

All groups have a blog post due by this Thursday. The question is on the previous post. Leave your answer on that post, and make a post with your answer on your blog.

Any questions? Please contact me through email or wiki mail, not by leaving comments on the blog. PBogush@wallingford.k12.ct.us

April 20, 2008 Monday-Friday (45 days left…)

Posted on April 20, 2008 by Paul Bogush.
Categories: Daily Plans.

First, here is the question for Hawkesdale and MMS:

What is the most precious item in your life? The one thing that you cannot do without. The thing in life you value the most. This question does leave some room for interpretation. There is no wrong interpretation. Please answer with what pops into your head first. Please do not over think it!

Please post your answer on your own individual blog with a image of the item. The image can be of an item just like yours. So if your turtle is the most precious thing and you don’t have a picture of her, find a copyright free image from the net that looks like your turtle to use. 50,000 bonus points for images that you have created. Then copy and paste your answer to a comment on this post with a link to your blog so that we can view the image.

As promised, this week Mr. B takes over all the classes so you will see me periodically popping in and out of classes. Today he will be starting a unit on immigration that will last for two weeks. There will be four groups of students working outside of Mr. B’s classes. This post will give some insight into what they will be working on for the next two weeks.

First is a group that will be working with Mr. Means’ AP Psychology Class from Lindbergh High School in St. Louis, MO. Mr. Means’ description: “Groups of students will use multi-media instruments to communicate with each other in order to research 19th century psychological treatment theories and institutions. Each group will be responsible for different aspects of the culminating project. The psychology students will assume the responsibility for educating others on the diagnostic approaches and treatments of mental illness during the 19th century, while the social studies students will examine many of the institutions that were constructed during this period, particularly in the New England region.” This will be a real fascinating trip into the changing mindsets of nineteenth century Americans, specifically those living in CT.

The second group will be creating children’s books on 19th Century American Immigration(there titles will be more interesting) for Ms. Callahan’s three second grade art classes from Kennerly Elementary school. We will be doing the research and text, they will be doing the illustrations. It just so happens that her classes are also in St. Louis, MO. We should look for a third school to send them to for review. Would any visitors to this like some? Let me know!

The third group will be working on a project with Young American Heroes. A TV show and 2 websites about Frederick Douglass are being produced this spring and summer in Connecticut. The websites will be launched in September 2008. The television show will be broadcast statewide on CPTV in September 2008 and nationwide on PBS stations in February 2009. The producers are looking for student input and involvement in all aspects of the content for TV and the Web. Our students will be able to join their educator production team and give them creative input on the script, the characters, the curriculum and Web designs, and suggest locations.

The fourth group will be working on a project about Harriet Tubman. This actually came out of a conversation with a student a couple of months ago. There are many historical figures whose names are well known to students. They are so well known that if a student does not know what they accomplished they are embarrassed to ask because they think everyone else knows. It came up that Harriet Tubman was one of these figures. Everyone knows her name, but why? This group will create a 15 minute extravaganza to present to out team on May 2, 2008 in the Auditorium. They will also create a wiki that would allow any visitor to know what impact Harriet Tubman made. A visitor must be able to navigate through everything on the website in 10-15 minutes.

Phew…I think that’s it. A reminder…if you are in one of the above four groups you will be meeting in the library every day during class time starting tomorrow.

April 14, 2008 VACATION!! Howdy Hawkesdale!

Posted on April 13, 2008 by Paul Bogush.
Categories: Daily Plans.

Hope everyone on 8-2 is having a great vacation.  I wonder how many of you are crazy enough to check in during  your week off.  Just a reminder — The other Mr. B is taking over all classes when we get back from vacation.

I just wrote to our new mates(do I sound Australian?) from Hawkesdale College in Australia and told them that they could leave their questions on this post and we could figure out how we would like to answer them.  Please check you wiki mail.  I wrote everyone with a few suggestions.  If you are visiting from Hawkesdale, please leave your questions below in the comment discussion.  Depending on how many of our students check in we may be able to figure out how to answer them this week, or will do it next Monday in school.

April 7, 2008 Monday

Posted on April 7, 2008 by Paul Bogush.
Categories: Daily Plans.

This week all classes will start to collaboratively blog with Hawkesdale College (podcast) in Victoria, Australia. Please see the assignment below — it is due by Thursday.

Hawkesdale College meets Collaboration Nation

April 6, 2008

Hello from Hawkesdale, Victoria, Australia

Hello, I am Anne Mirtschin, an information technology(computer studies) teacher in Hawkesdale, Victoria, Australia. It is now autumn and any deciduous trees are starting to colour and lose their leaves. We are a small school of 250 students from prep to year 12 (5yrs – 18 yrs). We are hoping to work together, on blogging, with a school from the USA. Their blog page is entitled “Collaboration Nation”.

In order to get to know each other a little better and thereby, evaluate similarities and differences between our two countries, schools and cultures, I would like to ask you two questions.

1. What is the best thing about living where you do?

2. Tell us why your school is unique?

Please write a post answering these questions. Then add them as a comment to my blog. Students from both schools are to do this.

Next week, Mr Bogush will write the question for next week’s post and it is then hoped that one student per week from alternating schools will write a question for posts.

Pretty cool huh?

Ruby will finish up their business plans for the Oregon Trail. Everything must be posted to the wiki by Thursday.

Amethyst, in one last unit before vacation and before Mr. B takes over, will answer a single question this week — What was the greatest invention of the 19th Century?

And a last reminder, make sure you get the images to me for our three word video with Alabama and post them to your blog!