Remember the Alamo!!!

One of the more famous battles in Texas history, if not American history, the Alamo was a courageous battle of a few Texans versus a vast Mexican army. With little hope of success, the men battled until every one of them died with honor.

Or was it simply pride? Could all those lives have been spared if they simply would have retreated from the Alamo? Would they have been better served joining up with Sam Houston's army up North?

Questions like these plague all events in history. In a 200 word essay, explore the following hypothetical situations of the Battle of the Alamo.

• What if the men at the Alamo would have abandoned the mission?
• What if Fannin's reinforcements would have made it to the Alamo?
• What if Santa Anna would have avoided the Alamo, therefore keeping his massive army at full strength?

Papers are due Wednesday, December 14th. Let me know if you have any questions.

Here are some cool links about battles during the Texas Revolution. These will also help with the booklet we are making next week.

The Battle of Gonzales
Alamo 360 degree picture
The Alamo Official Website
The Alamo (movie)- Final Battle
The Goliad Massacre
The Battle of San Jacinto(youtube)

Happy Thanksgiving!

For the most part we had a very successful Thanksgiving culture day. Thank you, and your parents, for making that happen.

I've received countless compliments on your Road to Revolution posters and can't tell you how proud I am of the job y'all did. My students continue to go above and beyond my expectations and it makes me very proud as a teacher. Keep up the good work.

Enjoy the break, but if you get the itch, feel free to complete the last extra credit assignment based on the Republic of Fredonia. I had zero turned in, but I know many of y'all want extra credit. So, get it done.

See you in 10 days!

Mr. H

Extra Credit- due by Friday 11/18!

After several requests for extra credit I decided to put some on before Thanksgiving Break. I'll put another assignment on for during the break for those interested.

For this week:
Research the Republic of Fredonia and do a 200 word essay on it. Include a hand drawn/constructed flag of Fredonia on the back.

This small, short lived republic is a launching point for what will become the Republic of Texas. It illustrates the lack of understanding between the Mexican government and the Anglo settlers at the time.

Essays WITH flags need to be turned in on Friday by 3:30.

Mr. Hanson

Halloween Extra Credit

Happy Halloween! But you wouldn't say that in every country or culture. Right below the border in Mexico they are about to celebrate Dia de los Muertos with carnivals, offerings and incredible art.

For extra credit this week design a Dia de los Muertos skull or other art and include a short description on the back. You can use paper or anything else you can get you hands on, as long as it is light enough to hang on the wall with tape. Here are some guidelines:

• It must accurately depict Dia de los Muertos Art.
• A short description of Dia de los Muertos must be on the back.
• It must be larger than 6 inches by 6 inches.
• It must include at least two other colors than black and white.

Here are some links to get the information and for examples of art.

http://www.dayofthedead.com/
http://www.palomar.edu/multicultural/DiadelosMuertos/

All art is due by Monday, November 7th. Have fun!

Mr. H

Weekend Extra Credit

As talked about in class, you have an extra credit opportunity this weekend that will get you ahead for the new 9 weeks. This Sunday marks the final game of the rugby world cup. As y'all know, I not only play rugby, but actively promote the sport and it's growth in America. It's truly a fun and exciting sport and has great potential for popularity here in America.

NBC will be airing the game at 2:00pm this Sunday. For extra credit, supply me with a 150 word report on the game Monday. Include who played, what happened, the score at half time and full time (end), important players and your opinion of the game of rugby.

Have a great weekend, and I'll see you Monday.

Mr. Hanson

NEW EXTRA CREDIT

As we have started studying the events that lead to and the actual Independence of Mexico from Spain your extra credit will be based on that. It must be turned in by next Wednesday, 10/19.

Assignment:

Design a promotional poster for the revolution. You must include the following.

• A relevant illustration.
• A large, motivating title about "Revolution Against Spain".
• Descriptions about why the revolution is happening, how to help, and where to meet.

For an extra touch you may write your poster in Spanish, as this was the language they would be writing in. Please make posters bigger than a regular sheet of paper. You can ask the front office for large paper sheets.

Buena Suerte!

Spanish Colonial Texas

This week we are finishing up our exploration of Spanish rule. We've gone from Aztec rule to the creation of San Antonio, and next week we'll explore Mexico and it's rule over the land we now call home.

This week we are researching San Antonio from it's creation in 1718 to the tourist mecca it is today. Use these links to find out more about this fun town.

Visit San Antonio
San Antonio Riverwalk
San Antonio vacations for Kids

For Extra Credit:

Create a three day vacation itenerary for San Antonio including:

• What you would do.
• Where you would stay.
• Where you would eat.

Provide a day to day description of your stay there including how much it would cost. At the end of your itenerary include waht your cost would be for the trip in three catagories (hotel, food, fun).

Extra credit is due by Friday. Happy travels!!!

Mr. H

EXTRA! EXTRA!

This week for extra credit you may complete a newspaper article that tracks one of the famous explorers on their journeys. To get an idea on how to write a newspaper article go to the following website:

How to Write a Newspaper Article

IN your article you must include three specific accomplishments of the explorer, make believe quotes from the explorer, and another interview with one of the explorers crew. Articles should be around 250 words. Including a picture would be a great touch.

Articles will be worth one replacement daily grade or 10 additional points on your last project grade.

Computer Lab 9/20

Today we will be completing our notes on the "Age of Contact", focusing specifically on the conquistadores Cortes, Cabeza de Vaca, and Coronado. Use the following websites to complete your notes on these famous explorers:

PBS - Conquistadors
Cabeza de Vaca - Texas Journey
Cabeza de Vaca
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado


Remember, you need to find:

• Important dates and events.
• Areas visited.
• Influence.

For homework tonight you need to do 4 questions on your Cornell Notes from yesterday and a three sentence summary. That will be due first thing tomorrow, as well as your completed notes. 

When you are done you can go to the following websites for fun Texas and US games:

Texas City Quiz

Helicopter Texas USA

50 States Game

Texas State Activities

Computer Lab 9/14/11

For today's assignment you will need to visit:
www.texasindians.com

To find information for the worksheet simply navigate around.

Also, because I'm feeling nice, I'll open the last extra credit project up for submissions worth either a replacement daily grade or 10 points on your last project grade. They'll be due on Friday.

Mr. H

DECK THE WALLS!

It's time to get some decorations up in the halls and my classroom, so for our next extra credit project we'll be getting a little creative...

Create a representation of the state of Texas created from recycled material that can be hung on the wall or from the ceiling. When choosing materials make sure they are durable and light enough that they won't rip tape off or the ceiling tiles down. Use items like cardboard, tissue paper, old pictures, recycled cans, or whatever else you can find. This will earn you two free homework passes or one replacement daily grade redeemable in my class at any time.

Texas with Recycled License Plates.

• It must be in the shape of the state of Texas.
• Materials must be recycled; do not buy new materials.
• It must be able to be hung with tape or string (light).
• It must be at least the size of a sheet of paper.

Projects are due no later than Friday, September 9th.

Don't forget important upcoming dates:

• Monday, September 5th- Labor Day, no school.
• Wednesday, September 7th- Maps and Reports due for Regions project.
• Friday, September 9th- Advertisements due for Regions project; extra credit due.

Week One, Done...

We're one week in to what is already shaping up to be a terrific year. I have already been impressed with the quality of work and level of questioning displayed on our assignments so far. I already am feeling the challenge to be more challenging. That is really exciting as a teacher, and extremely rewarding for the students.

Did someone say extra credit?
For a replacement 100 you need to create a list of universities found in the cities on our map from Thursday. You can use the Internet, your brain, your friends...whomever. Here's and example:
1. Austin- The University of Texas at Austin
2. Waco-....
Remember, it's due Monday.

We'll start our next project on Monday over t four regions of Texas. If you'd like to get a head start you can do some searches on them in your spare time. They are:

• Coastal Plains.
• North Central Plains.
• Great Plains.
• Mountains and Basins.

Remember to include "Texas" in any search. Or you could search "Texas Geographic Regions".

To get to Evernote for board notes and resources, click here.

See you Monday!

Mr.H

New Year, New Subject

Welcome to 2011-12 Texas History!

I am very excited to be teaching Texas History this year and following many of my students from 6th to 7th grade. It will be a year full of changes for us all, but many things will be familiar.

PBL- My class will still be based in Project Based Learning, incorporating traditional teaching methods and student collaboration to create and synthesize information. There will be more of a focus on historical figures and events, but this works very well within the PBL format.

Cross-Curriculum- While we won't have our A and B teams in 7th grade, teachers will still be collaborating to emphasize themes throughout the day. More of an emphasis will be placed on writing skills as you will be producing two different writing samples for the STAAR testing program.

Positive Incentives- Rewards are an important part of doing the right thing and we will continue to supply you with fun activities and privileges for living up to our expectations. Look out for some fun trips at the end of each semester for those students that earn it.

I'm looking forward to a great 2011-12 school year!

Conflict, Hardship, and Revolution

It has been quite the roller coaster ride in class lately learning about the hardships and conflicts and in Africa. We began learning about apartheid in South Africa, traveled to a tribal conflict in Rwanda, and ended discussing the atrocities that are occurring in the Darfur province of Sudan.

Many students were shocked and touched by the images they saw of the suffering in Darfur. The more people know about what has gone on there the sooner it may stop. The more we learn about others mistakes the less likely we are to repeat them. Here are some links you can check out that gives more info, news, and ways to help in Darfur.

Daily Darfur News
Save Darfur
New York Times- Sudan

Our next project will focus on the current social and political revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. There are exciting changes that have recently taken place and are currently taking place and we will be researching news articles, first hand accounts, and video footage online.

As these revolutions were said to have been organized via social media we will be blogging about the experience on a new program to Manor Middle School called gaggle. The service will be open to students as long as we have it and allows students to email, blog, video search, and social network. There are also other features such as online document storage that we will be exploring over the next couple of months.

I'm very excited to explore these changes in the world and try our new online tools. Here are some links if you want to check out the news on your own.

Tunisia Revolution
Egypt Revolution
Libya Revolution/Conflict

Viva la Revolucion,
Mr. Hanson

We are moving along with our new culture region, Africa. Last week students learned about South Africa and it's oppressive apartheid history through assignments and watching the movie Invictus. I hope students enjoyed the experience, and learned a little more about world history.

This week we will finish out our government type presentations (sorry about the delay) as well as a map showing some physical features on the continent of Africa. Following that we will research some conflicts in the history of Africa which will lead in to some current conflicts in the Northern region.

To get a background on what is currrently going on in Northern Africa and the Middle East you can research the following links.

Dogo News for Kids

Time News for Kids

The people in these countries have either overthrown their dictators and monarchs or are demanding their government be changed. The people want to be in control; the people want democracy and a limited government.

Stay up on your news, and I'll see you in class.

Mr. Hanson

Welcome Back!!! Semester 2 is under way!!!

Greetings, and I hope the winter break treated you well. We made it through our first day back and made some changes in class:

1. Points are now under a strict system and should work great with student reminders.


2. Bathroom permission is now given through the mighty whisk.


3. Class managers will be explained this Friday and change once a week.


4. Wednesday tutorials are make-ups or extra help only. No 'hanging out' or 'computer games'.

I was very impressed with the grades from most of my students this first semester and anticipate only improvement in the next. Keep up the good work!

Our next culture region is Europe. Here are some websites to check out:

European Geography

European History Quiz

Good Luck!!!

Mr. Hanson