Haiti Disaster

As our class focuses on the historical and contemporary culture of Latin America my students have learned and discussed a little about the recent tragedy in Haiti. Students found facts about the country and discussed how the recent events affected the people there and all over the world, including ways in which they could help.

For extra credit I would like my students to develop a brochure covering what happened and how people can contribute to the rebuilding of Haiti. Brochures should be tri-panel and include text as well as pictures. They may use a computer program like Microsoft Publisher or they can make them by hand, drawing or gluing on the pictures.

Brochures should include at least one panel with background info on Haiti, two panels on the devistation of the earthquake, and two panels discussing aid agencies and other organizations that people can donate money or materials to help those in Haiti.

Projects will be due February 5th by the end of the school day. They will count towards a major grade that will be averaged in with the others. If you have any questions feel free to reply on this blog or email me directly.

Thanks,

Mr. Hanson

Half Way There!!

As we come back after the Winter Break it brings an exciting time into our classroom. For starters, your student is half way to 7th grade. Emphasis starts to be placed on the all important TAKS tests coming up after Spring Break. You will see your student using more reading and math strategies in all classes, including Social Studies.

Second, it means that we are going to take all of the vocabulary and theories we have learned and see how they play out in the rest of the world. We will start with Latin America. This culture region starts at our neighbor, Mexico, and encompasses all of the countries in Central and South America. These countries share some unique culture traits that allow us to learn about them simultaneously.

Here are some website links that will help when learning about Latin American geography and ancient cultures:

Geography

Countries and Capitals

Mayans

Aztecs

Incas

Stay tuned for extra credit opportunities and more helpful websites!

Mr. Hanson