Hopefully today you rocked your l0th CE and have a hundred in that gradebook. If not, we will still have 2 more questions next week.
y'all, i'm assuming
After our CE today we went over your Classical Age Map Check. For those of you keeping track at home, here is what your homework situation looks like now...
Classical Age Map Check - 10/3
WHAP Pages 81-84 & 178-185 - 10/4
Words for Nerds - 10/6
Epic Project - 10/13
Religions Chart HANDWRITTEN - 10/26
Today, we also did a practice SAQ. I was concerned by the number of people who apparently do not remember any part of the day we spend practicing SAQ's. While this one was edited by your peer and you had a redo, there will come a time when you have to be able to bust out some quality work the first time around. Starting next 9-weeks, we will be doing several of these, that you can fix for a higher grade. Please do! And if you are confused, see your teacher! We can help!
Tomorrow, onto Chinese Philosophies!!!!
I'm sleepy today so I'm tapping out w/ no this day in history. My biggest apologies.
Sorry no post yesterday, I was at training and then my brain hurt from knowledge, so I didn't post.
Yesterday, however, you compared the flood in the Judeo-Christian Old Testament to the flood in Gilgamesh. Baller. Floods for everyone.
Today, we introduced you to the Classical Age, which we are gonna put from 600 BCE - 600 CE even though your book apparently says 500-500. Bentley's dead, what's he gonna do about it?! We will start with Key Concept 2.1 and cover religions, but remember for basically the entire rest of the semester, we are chillin in the Classical Age.
check those crossfit abs
THIS IS TOTALLY RELEVANT, we get democracy in the classical age
Remember, you have some things that are due coming up:
Next Thursday, October 6: Words for Nerds
10/13: Epic Project
10/26: HANDWRITTEN religions chart
Uh seems good for now. Onto this day in history...
1920: Eight Chicago White Sox players were indicted for fixing the 1919 World Series.
1939: A German-Soviet agreement divided Poland between Nazi Germany and the USSR.
1972: Japan and Communist China agreed to re-establish diplomatic relations.
1989: Former Philippine President (Dictator?!) Ferdinand E. Marcos died in exile in Hawaii. His wife, Emelda Marcos was famous for her massive shoe collection.
goals.
1991: Jazz great Miles Davis died.
2003: Althea Gibson, the first African-American tennis player to win at Wimbledon died.
In honor of the fact that it's almost Halloween ... I mean October, for the social media to follow I bring you the instagram of photographer Gina Lee. Every year she dresses up her ADORABLE daughter in a bunch of costumes and it is glorious. Enjoy because toddler/baby + costumes = GOLD.
Do you know this song by the Carpenters? NO?! Well, you must listen...
I always kind of thought young my mom looked like Karen Carpenter....
Anyway, today in Humanities, we did a little more with the epic Epic of Gilgamesh. You should be able to answer the following questions based on your reading and our discussion today.
Based on what we know of Gilgamesh from this excerpt, what is his flaw? How does this flaw hinder his quest? Be sure to justify it with evidence from the text.
It is often said that the Epic Hero always achieves his goal. Is this true in the Gilgamesh excerpt? Why or Why not?
Gilgamesh was ⅔ god and ⅓ man. What conflict might derive from such a combination?
Many students mentioned that an Epic has a message or moral. What central message do you see in this excerpt?
Do you think most people today share the feelings Gilgamesh has regarding death? What evidence do you see in people’s behavior to support your answer?
Is immortality possible? Is it desirable?
Still feel like you can't?! SEE YOUR TEACHER! We will wrap up our conversation about good old Gilgy tomorrow!
You have some homeworks coming up...starting to feel a little more like Humanities up in here.
CE (with two questions) tomorrow
WHAP pg. 128-29 is due Wednesday
Words for Nerds is due 10/6 (this is a week from Thursday and the day after Stanton's birthday)
Epic project is due 10/13 (this is two weeks from Thursday - closer than it sounds)
This day in history? Let's.
1789: Thomas Jefferson was appointed America's first Secretary of State.
TJ, and also Me in my Saturday training on Islamic Art.
tenuously related at best, but made me LOL
1820: Frontiersman, Daniel Boone, died in Missouri. Well, Missouri/Misery whatever.
this feels Texan to me...
having lived there for 12 days....accurate
1950: The UN recaptured Seoul, the capital of South Korea, from the North Koreans.
1960: Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy took part in the first televised presidential debate. And now, 56 years later, the first debate of this election airs! How exciting!
1986: William H. Rehnquist was sworn in as the 16th chief justice of the Supreme Court. Our current chief justice is Justice John Roberts and is only #17.
For this week's social media to check out...I take us back to tumblr. Check out http://roricomics.tumblr.com/ - she is doing comic illustrations of 100 historically important women in 100 days and honestly, it's pretty awesome. And some are people we will definitely cover in this course!
Finally, in case you need some here are some humanities experience ideas:
GO TO THE SISTINE CHAPEL! At the Fair! So your fair ticket was free, and tickets to the Sistine Chapel exhibit are only $8. Totally worth it. Remember, fair alone, while awesome, doesn't count.
How'd you enjoy Gilgamesh, friends? I think itbrings up some cool themes, like strong male friendships and the inevitability of death, as well as enjoying life on Earth. Love it or not, Gilgamesh is an incredibly important epic, as well as being one of the oldest. Today we began our discussion of Gilgamesh by analyzing how this epic specifically can give us a window into Sumerian values. We'll continue and extend that idea tomorrow.
AUTUMN IS HERE. Best season of the year! Time for cold weather, coziness, coffee, football games, Thanksgiving, and PIE. All of my favorite things tied up into three glorious months. I know we live in Texas, so I have to pretend that it looks like this outside:
When Harry Met Sally...teaching all of us that girls and guys can never be "just best friends"
To get you in the autumn mood (and to help you pretend that it's 60 degrees outside), here are some helpful links:
Along with fall comes some great new music. Listen to Bon Iver, one of my favorites, whose chill indie-rock is perfect for this time of year! Plus he has a new album coming out September 30. Maybe read this article about him too; he's a weird, cool dude.
Watch these movies set in fall! (Except ask Mom and Dad first because some are rated R). So many leaves, so little time. Plus You've Got Mail and Dead Poet's Society are on this list, and those are two of my favorite movies of all time.
Sufjan Steven's song "Chicago" also puts me in the fall mood. Listen to it and then listen to this stunning cover by The Staves.
So many epics, so little time. Are you now evaluating all of your favorite films and books on their epic-ness now? Today we dove into our first literature unit with a discussion on epics and epic heroes. If you missed it, an epic is an extended story in poetic form, giving us insight into the culture and values of the culture it's coming from. That's why we study Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, Beowulf....they're teaching us about the society that created these stories.
Shia makes such a great epic hero.
An important element of an epic is its epic hero. Think Frodo, Harry, Batman, Rey, Odysseus, Achilles, and SO MANY MORE. Epic heroes tend to have many of the same characteristics: they're mysterious, usually from a difficult background, with "larger than life" or almost supernatural qualities, whether that's strength and/or superior intellect. They are probably going to face temptation, but also have some sort of spiritual guide or mentor (shout out to my man, Gandalf, the sassiest wizard in Middle Earth). Epic heroes are also a good representation of what is highly regarded in the society, through a physical embodiment of their values.
Think Kite will give you extra credit for this?
Was looking through Stranger Things memes and saw this. MIND BLOWN.
Goodness, there are so many epic-related memes that I almost couldn't handle it. Tomorrow we are CE-ing and then getting into Gilgamesh, so make sure you've read that for tomorrow! Get pumped.
Speaking of getting pumped, tomorrow is the first day of AUTUMN. Did you get my pun? Did ya?
But seriously, this is the BEST SEASON OF THE YEAR. Break out the sweaters tomorrow, people (Just kidding, it's like 90 degrees still). But pretend it's cold and drink coffee with a nice book or friend for an intentional conversation. And bake this and bring it to us tomorrow!
You guys rock. Have an amazing last day of summer.
Grading essays can be hard, amIright? Today you had a taste into what it feels like to be a teacher. As I walked around during your peer editing I heard things like "they wrote this...what the heck are they saying?!" or "Uh, what do I do if they have, like, no evidence?". But I also saw lots of awesome comments going around for beautiful thesis statements, clear organization, and great papers. Sometimes the best way to grow in your writing is to step into the shoes of your teacher (Too bad I wore heels today guys... not the most comfortable shoes. Okay. Bad joke. Sorry. I'll stop. Maybe). We'll keep working on LEQs and general writing skills throughout the year, so more practice to come! Also, we will work on grading these LEQs as soon as we can, but essays can take a while, so give us a little time...we promise they'll come soon!
Tomorrow we will be heading into the world of Gilgamesh, starting with an introduction to epics. Make sure and read your excerpt from the Epic of Gilgamesh by Thursday. Gettin LIT-y up in this joint (this post is sounding more like a 40 year old mom wrote it by the minute).
Also, I'm so sorry I didn't have time to put fun stuff today but I PROMISE tomorrow will have some cool stuff. Love you guys, and I am going to leave you with this video.
Hey Humanitarians, Virdin here. Hope your weekends were fan-stinkin'-tastic.
Honestly, the only reason this is on here is because I can't stop laughing at this old lady's face.
SO MANY PANCAKES. No regrets.
Today we took our first leap into writing for realz with an LEQ. How'd you feel? Do you have more of a handle on LEQs? Our hope was that today gave you a sense of what writing one of these essays entails by actually getting your hands dirty and diving into them. Remember, with ANY kind of writing, the best way to improve is to practice, practice, practice. Tomorrow, we will work on peer editing these essays to give you a better beat on how to improve your essay. So if you aren't feeling that great about today, tomorrow will be a great chance to rework the essay and learn from your friends about how to improve.
Because it's Monday and sometimes Mondays are hard, here are a couple of things from the interweb to make you smile and brighten your day
Also, this year I decided that I wanted to share more of the awesome books out there in the world, because books are awesome, and there are SO many great ones out there. So...this week's book is Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, a story that weaves together the stories of two half-sisters and their lineage, as one sister is sold into slavery and the other marries a British leader in the slave trade.
The story is powerful (I've already cried like five times, just being real) and provides an interesting take on the effect of slavery in both Africa and in America. If you're a big fan of historical fiction, you'll probably like this book. Be careful, there are a couple more mature themes in the book, so ask Mom and Dad first. Plus, the cover is pretty, and I would be lying if I said that wasn't a factor in my initially picking up a book.
You made it through Monday, guys! Have a fabulous fabulous day.
Sorry about the SAQ puns... I'll got ahead and put them away... in this SAQ! BOOM!
Oh man. That's awesome. Puns. THE BEST!
I'm sorry about not posting anything yesterday. I figured there wasn't much to say about a major grade quiz that took the whole period. By the way, we hope you felt nice and prepared for the quiz. We'll be putting those grades in soon.
SAQ, LEQ... SOS!
Today in class we went over another type of AP writing; the SAQ. Personally, I don't even really consider it writing. It's more of a multiple choice question without the choices. It reminds me of the math questions on the STAAR where you write in the answer and then bubble below.
Anyway, we hope you found today at least informative. We'll be practicing SAQs throughout the year on a variety of topics. Garafola has been puttin' in work! Hopefully, after a while, it won't even feel like "AP writing", but just something we do in here. Be sure to see your teacher if you have any questions.
Looking ahead -
Remember that on Monday, we are writing a LEQ. Be sure to bring your rubric packet to remind you of what we're looking for. Just make sure that there isn't any content related material on your packet. We'll write your essay on Monday, do some peer editing on Tuesday, and then we'll launch into epics! Gilgamesh, Achilles, Krishna! Yee haw!!
ALL THE WEEKENDS!!!
Soundtrack of the Week:
I know that Friday calls for more up tempo jams, but after the partying is over, you need to take it down a notch and relax. So, in that spirit we'll wrap up our chill vibes relaxation week.
Where do I even begin with The Flaming Lips? I don't even know...
If you don't know about this band, you need to acquaint yourself IMMEDIATELY. These guys are a thousand miles of weird in the most awesome way possible. Their live shows are legendary (look some up on YouTube). Their music is impossible to categorize. In short, they are amazing. Here is one of their best, a nice slow jam... "Do You Realize?" (this video is crazy)
Who's got two thumbs and is ready for their Humanities quiz?? YOU! That's who! (this works better if you point at yourself with your thumbs while you say that phrase)
We know that you might be a bit stressed at this point.
I've seen y'all doing this.
Don't be stressed! You are going to dominate... maybe... I mean, I'm pretty sure... it could happen... maybe... everyone gets lucky some time, right?
No, seriously. You got this. Use your study guide. It is the gateway to everything you need to know. Remember, don't just focus on the terms; use the terms to respond to the questions and statements on the rest of the guide. Therein lies the key to your success!
So very true
Please come on out to tutorials if there are any questions you need answered! We'll be here both before and after school.
Study tips
Everyone can always improve their study skills and techniques. Remember, it's not just how much time you study, but how effective that time is for you. Don't stay up all night consuming large quantities of caffeine. It's not healthy!
I've been to this place... it is not a good place to be.
Take breaks; eat a snack; get plenty of sleep. Another good study strategy is to exercise a little bit during your study breaks. It keeps the blood flowing and actually gives you energy.
If you are looking for a nice workout, here is one that Ms. Virdin HIGHLY recommends! She and her friends work out to these videos all the time. Get some!
Soundtrack of the Week
After all that studying and exercising, you're going to need to relax before you hit the bed. We're going to go OLD SCHOOL today. Time for some sweet sounds of the 70's. There are few humans on the planet cooler than Lionel Richie. The guy is the definition of smooth. You can't even deal with his awesomeness. For today's track, we're going to go with his band The Commodores and their 1977 hit "Sunday Morning". Let the groovy vibes of the 70's easy your troubled mind. Enjoy.
Yeah, this whole thing makes social media much less appealing.
You get a question and you get a questions... everybody gets a question!
So, how's Current Events going for you? Are you dominating it? Crushing it? Some other inappropriately violent verb? Excellent! We're almost at the halfway point, so you should have a pretty good feel for this now.
If CE's are going well for, we couldn't be happier. Keep it up. Just always remember to refine your process. You shouldn't be spending too much time on it.
Now, if CE's are not going so well for you, what's your plan? If you're still not reading the articles consistently, there's your problem. FIX IT. If, however, you are putting in the work, but you're not getting the results you want, then it's time to talk to your teacher. Don't be afraid. Oftentimes we can fix the problem with a small tweak to your preparation process. We want you to be successful, so please get us involved. Help us help you!
If you have not seen this movie, remedy that situation immediately.
L.E.Q. means I love you!
It is our sincerest hope that you were paying attention in class today. We know that going over an essay rubric may not be the most exciting lesson you've ever dealt with, but it is crucial to your success.
Students traditionally lack self-confidence when it comes to writing. To be honest, it seems like most of you would rather appear on American Ninja Warrior in the nude than write an in-class essay. It is our goal to change this. We are hoping that we can build your confidence in your writing ability by breaking down the process step by step. First step... going over the evaluation tool! This is the very rubric we will use to assess your writing. It's like giving you a map to find the buried treasure.
Hee hee... Mr. Krab
Soundtrack of the Week
If you ever needed some chill tunes, it's after a day spent learning about AP writing. For today, we'll go back a few years for a nice little chillwave electronic gem. Our band today is Zero 7 with the track, "In the Waiting Line". This song is off their 2001 debut album Simple Things. It probably rose to most people's awareness from its inclusion on the soundtrack to the movie, Garden State. This whole album is a must have for some seriously great relaxation vibes. By the way, if the vocals on this track sound somewhat familiar, you're not crazy. That voice you're hearing is the one and only Sia. She was a member of this group early in her career! Enjoy.
Nothing like a little ancient art to get the week started off right. What was your favorite? Me? I'm a big fan of anything involving Mesopotamian deities. They are so off-the-rails awesome that I cannot even deal. Check this out:
Now this is a party!
Also, I am digging on the ancient Chinese gods as well.
I seriously doubt this is historically accurate, but who cares. IT IS AWESOME.
We started class today talking about what makes something art and what role art can play in society. This conversation is fundamental to our class. No one has claimed that artistic expression is required of human existence. But, across all of history, no matter where or when, humans have created artistically. We seem to be drawn to express ourselves in ways that go beyond simple problem solving or practical invention. Ask yourself, why do I consume or create art? If you want to read a little more about this idea here is a stellar writing to think about.
Welcome back to our week long playlist. I am thinking that you are all firmly entrenched in the stress of being back to school. So, to help you cope, I thought we'd use this week to listen to some music to chill out to. Just some sweet, sweet tunes to lower the blood pressure. Sit back, relax, and take a load off...
We'll start with one of my favorite chill songs of all time, "Detlef Schrempf" by Band of Horses. If this song doesn't mellow you out after a rough day, there's really no hope for you. This is off their outstanding album, Cease to Begin. You really can't go wrong with any of this band's catalog; including their newest album, Why Are You OK? Enjoy.
Wow - so plenty of discussion with the Current Event today! A lot of really cool things were shared and it was really nice having an open, honest, positive, and meaningful conversation about things like cultural appropriation, systemic racism, and political correctness.
So after the CE (which tbh took like more than half the period in some classes), we answered any questions you might have had over your charts. Don't forget - a key was uploaded to the website. You'll be assessed over this information next Thursday, so you have quite a bit of time to get any more questions out of the way. We'll also chat with you next week about the format of the quiz.
We used whatever time we had left in class to talk about migrations in the Ancient time period. Migrations occur throughout history and even to this day. In a nutshell, people migrated for FOOD. Hanger can make people do many things...including moving to the other side of the world. The following migratory patterns were discussed (the corresponding handout is already on the website):
Southeast Asians into Oceania
Indo-Europeans into Europe and South Asia
Bantus into the southern part of Africa
How do we know these migrations occurred? Archaeological evidence and the spread of language.
Tomorrow we're going to work on some writing practice and looking at some primary sources.
If you're looking for something different to do this weekend, Klyde Warren Park in Dallas is playing Captain America and there is also a Chocolate Festival going on (wut?). Neither of these count as a Humanities Experience, but they sound fun. But if the Map Check didn't go so well, you can:
Check out the Pocket Sandwich Theater and throw popcorn at the actors!
Watch a performance at the Cox Building Playhouse in Plano
Listen to a free lecture about the history of Jews in China at UTD
Since I'm super excited about seeing Death Cab for Cutie in concert for like the 5th time next week, I'll leave you with Codes and Keys from their album of the same name. How can you not melt at the sound of Ben Gibbard's hauntingly beautiful voice??
SO MUCH INFORMATION. BRAIN CAN'T EVEN. So on day 2 of all things chart related, we tried to cover each others civilizations. Most of y'all got pretty close to finishing, but we'll give you some time in class tomorrow (after the CE) to finish up and ask us questions for clarification.
Some general notes:
We gave you a heads up that we would be completing these charts over two days, so our expectation is that you come prepared to class with your chart to class.
As was mentioned yesterday, we uploaded a copy of the chart to our website, so should you have misplaced yours, it's online for your convenience.
The Ancient civilizations were dominated by powerful kings, colossal architecture, slave labor, and some pretty sketchy laws. Here are some fun facts about the Ancient world:
The Egyptians loved board games. There are even paintings depicting Queen Nefertiti playing such games and some pharaohs were buried with their favorites
Remember those Aryans that showed up in ancient India and created the caste system? They came from Persia - Iran translates to "Land of the Aryans". The Aryans are an example of Indo-Europeans
The Babylonians believed that brewing bad beer was unacceptable - so much so that the punishment was drowning (punishments for other crimes included impaling, mutilation, and burning alive)
Speaking of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the world, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, was built by the king Nebuchadnezzar II for his wife, but there is a lack of sufficient evidence to confirm its existence
In the 1970's Lady Fu Hao's tomb was discovered in China...in addition to hundreds of trinkets, she was buried with 6 dogs and 16 slaves
Below is the intro to one of my favorite 90's game shows on Nickelodeon, Legends of the Hidden Temple (disclaimer: it has nothing to do with the Olmecs).
