7th Grade GSS Weekly Update
Week of 4/27-5/1
Classroom Happenings
Election:
My goal for this and next week is for the kids to broaden and deepen their understanding of the election process.I find that students at this age often don’t know the vocabulary of politics; terms like conservative, liberal, right, and left. And the concept of the Electoral College doesn’t always make sense, even when you know what it means.
What’s the difference between the Republican and Democratic parties?
What do political parties do?
Why are there only two major political parties?
As you can guess this was difficult, but I think most have more understanding than they started with.
Budget: We will revisit their budgets next week to review my notes about their budgets and consider revisions when needed. It will be a short activity for only one day.
Upcoming Due Dates
Recording History:
The students’ 6th entry in their journal/blog/vlog/etc. is due at the end of the week on 5/1
They will have another entry due every Thursday during distance learning.
Political Parties: 80% or better on Quiz over political parties and the way they affect the government is due this week.
Third Quarter work: All projects from 3rd quarter, when we were in “regular school,” should be turned in so they can be included as part of their semester grade. Last week I posted an assignment to all students whose Preserving Community History project still needs to be turned in. I’ll also be checking in them and contacting parents if I have concerns
Parent Resources
The students have been using iCivics, a website with games and other resources about government and politics. I’m telling you ahead of time, that even though the games are a little slow and confusing, they really enjoyed them and learned a lot about the three branches and the process of making laws
I created a class called “distance Learning” so that parents and sibs can join and play. To join, go to www.icivics.org and in the top corner click to “log in.” When prompted, enter the class code Marshall61409
Besides learning about how elections and government work, the games on the site also provide families a chance to talk about their own political values. When it comes to political issues, it’s important for them to know how to think for themselves and the values of their family and community..
General Information
This Week: Distance Learning for Gifted Social Studies
This file has contact information and a weekly overview of what we will be working on. It also has slides from the previous weeks.
Contact:
You can call or text me at 314-384-9940. I established this new number specifically for communicating when I am not in the school building. I will check it frequently and get back to you within 24 hours.
My daily office hours are from 12:30-1:30 for immediate support.
My email hasn’t changed and is always convenient.
Catch up on GSS-7: If you would like to review a past weekly update, please go to our webpage to catch up on the archived updates.