Nothing says "America" like L.E.Q.'s and pneumonia.

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. 

Pazuzu standing on an Olmec head while on top of an Egyptian pyramid with a Shang food food vessel while worshiping Anubis! Boom!

sadly, this is wildly accurate

Alright, alright, alright...

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. 

Why do we create art?

Soundtrack for the Week:

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. 

Hey y'all (not "guys")

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??

Some Internet lols...

We know who you are

Seriously, banana, you're gross...go home

I legit need this dog in my life

Totally my cats

- Ms. Siddiqui

Hammurabi, Hittites, Harappa, and Horses

Silly Hammurabi

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).

And now for some lols from the Internet:

Chopped is like the best show

Always a prob in the Siddiqui house

Maybe Michael Stanton, too?

Seriously, what more do you want from me, phone?!

- Ms. Siddiqui

SPICE (but not pumpkin spice)

A felicitous Tuesday to you all! Ordinarily I think of Tuesdays as the worst day of the week (Mondays are to bask in the glow of what was the weekend and Wednesdays signal the halfway mark of the week...Tuesdays are just...Tuesdays), but this particular Tuesday signals the beginning of a short week, and I think we can all hang with that.

Today we finally issued WHAP textbooks to you.  There are a few things to note about this textbook.

1. It comes with a pretty nifty companion website with chapter summaries and practice questions.
2. You can access it completely online as well using your PISD login information.

I know some of you are on a "wait list" until you receive your physical copy, but we are working our hardest to make sure you're taken care of soon!

We also began working on our SPICE charts.  Hopefully you've gathered that this has little to do with spices (although I'm quite partial to cayenne pepper...I put it in like everything I make), and everything to do with the characteristics of civilizations.  Our expectation was that each group developed a basic understanding of their assigned civilization.  You're in good shape if you can answer the following questions:

• What was the role of women? What limitations were placed on them? Did any exceptions exist? Which social classes existed and was there a known hierarchy in place?
• What type of government(s) emerged? Who ruled and how did they justify their rule? Was this a hereditary position with a known family in charge? Were there any attempts at expansion or were there conflicts with other civilizations? 
• Which geographic features played a role in shaping the civilization? What kinds of innovations developed in the area? 
• What examples of artistic expression was the civilization known for? What religious beliefs and practices were associated with the civilization? Did the civilization have a written language? 
• What kinds of jobs did people have? Did the civilization trade with other peoples? What kinds of commodities were produced and/or exchanged? 

Tomorrow we'll be in new groups so that we can learn about all of the core civilizations in the Ancient World.  

Reminder: Map Check tomorrow! Look online if you still haven't reviewed for this.

Already caught up with all of your school work? Try the following:

• Double check that you're using the right words!
• Create a new melody here.
• Learn a new language for just a few minutes a day.
• Watch a techno violinist perform.
• Want to see how people in the 90's viewed the Internet? 
• How well do you know Disney films?

Here's my first S.U.P.E.R. of the school year (Siddiqui's Unbelieveable and Prepossessing Eating Recommendation): The Caribbean Cabana located in the Dallas Farmers Market.  They have delicious jerk chicken, macaroni pie (uh...what?!) and chana (for my brown peeps).  And for those of y'all with dietary restrictions - it's kosher! Their Mango Sunrise juice is pretty amazing. 

- Ms. Siddiqui

Friday, Friday, Gotta Get Down on Friday

Humanitarians,

You've made it! Two weeks down, boom! So far, so good.

A couple of reminders for things you should be working on!

1. You have a map check next Wednesday in class! Learn your map this weekend!
2. You have Words for Nerds to be working on; while it isn't due until 10/6, hopefully you are finding a cornucopia of words you can use.
3. There is NO CE on Tuesday since we don't have school this Monday! YAY!

Today in class we discussed SPICE in relationship to some 21st century nations. Hopefully you feel comfortable with this acronym and also now know something you didn't know about Andorra or Fiji.

but actually? 

On Tuesday we will be applying SPICE to our Ancient Civilizations. You will also be receiving the first of your textbooks YAY!

Since you have a three-day weekend, one thing you could do is knock out the humanities experience! Here are some ideas!

• Go to the Nasher - this weekend it is free from 10-5 on Saturday!
• Go see Legends! at the Garland Civic Theater.
• Go see Constellations at the At&T Performing Arts Center!
• Go check out the exhibition at the Kimbell on painters in 17th century France. 

A humanities experiences that are coming up, but not this weekend: 

• There is a sistine chapel exhibition at the State Fair this year. It looks AMAZING and includes close up recreations of some of the panels. Tickets go on sale on 9/8, so maybe pencil this in!

To close out this week, and my 1.5 weeks blogging before I hand it over to Siddiqui, a final today in history:

• 1666: The great fire of London broke out, destroying much of the city, including St. Paul's Cathedral. YALL THERE IS A GREAT FIRE OF LONDON GAME GO PLAY IT IMMEDIATELY 
• 
• 1789: The US Treasury Department was established. THANKS HAMILTON!
• 



honestly, i haven't listened to any of this, but yay anything that makes history cool

• 1901: Vice President Theodore Roosevelt gave his "speak softly and carry a big stick" speech regarding foreign policy. 



i feel like this isn't what he meant

• 1945: Japan formally surrendered ending the final front of WWII. 
• 
• 
• 1963: Alabama governor George Wallace prevented the racial integration of Tuskegee High School by encircling the building with state troopers. 
• 

For social media to follow, check @DeathStarPR on Twitter. I love a good lol because of Star Wars.

star wars + notting hill = hilar

Finally, in case you didn't believe how strong my love for PSL's were....that's what i was for Halloween last year. 

lol poor Peter

Have a fantastic long weekend!

- cbg

Let's get civilized, civilized. You know I wanna get civilized, civilized

Humanitarians,

First, let me thanking you for being super awesome when our fellow teachers were away! Siddiqui and I very much appreciate you!

Today, as many of you may know, is Pumpkin Spice Latte Day. The day were women like me everywhere rejoice as our favorite fall beverage is back to both keep us caffeinated and help us pack on weight before the cold winter months.

so, Virdin??

me, this morning, in starbucks

Today, in class, after I was thoroughly awake, we discussed civilizations! Be thinking about the characteristics of civilizations we talked about (SPICE!) (LIKE PUMPKIN SPICE, OMG) and how they apply to our own civilization. Tomorrow - next week we will be looking at our SPICE characteristics in action. 

Social

Political

Interaction (w/ the environment)

Culture (we probably spend the most amount of time on this one)

Economic 

last one, promise

This day in history time!

• 1864: Atlanta, Georgia fell to General William Tecumseh Sherman and the Union during the Civil War. 



used this last year; still funny



• 1939: WWII began when Nazi Germany invaded Poland
• 
• 1969: A coup in Libya toppled the monarchy of King Idris and brought Muammar al-Qaddafi to power. Qaddafi is the dictator who was toppled in the Arab Spring. 



Qaddafi

• 1985: A joint US-French expedition located the wreck of the Titanic 560 miles off the coast of Newfoundland. 
• 
• 
• 
• 2004: Chechen terrorists took about 1200 schoolchildren and others hostage in Beslan, Russia. COmmandos stormed the school on Sept. 3. 
• 

For social media to follow today, I'm keeping with my theme of lattes....

I bring you: @yoyoha on instagram. It's an account where Josh, the owner, draws pictures on coffee cups and posts them. I love coffee. I love art. What a combo.

Enjoy your Thursday! Here's a little #tbt action for ya: 

PUMPKINS EVERYWHERE. Also we were cute kids

- cbg