February Update

Happy Friday! Here are the exciting activities that have been happening in social studies this month. 

5th: Over the last two weeks the 5th grade has been discussing the Southwest Region, along with Native American cultures found in the region. We have learned about the Grand Canyon, the Battle of the Alamo, and the Four Corners. With each region, I become more and more impressed with the amount of traveling you all have done. It makes for great conversation in class! 

Last week we did a classroom scavenger hunt with clues around the room. The students had to find answers to questions using the clues. They enjoyed being able to move around the room! Currently we working on the Amazing Race Project. They are LOVING it. The conversations are hilarious! For example, "Miss Quigley does the $140 plane ticket cover all four of us or just one?" or " No, we cannot buy a stuffed animal sloth; we are going to be broke!" and finally, "Can't we just drink water from the stream?" All in all, they are truly learning how to use money and plan an itinerary! I am definitely looking forward to seeing their final projects! 

6th: The sixth grade has been learning about Africa. We have touched on so much in just a few weeks! They are now informed and understand that Africa is a continent filled with so many countries. We discussed physical features in Africa. Each student was put with a partner and they had the task of researching a feature (ex: the Great Rift Valley, the Sahara, or the Serengeti). After putting together a presentation for the class, they led their classmates in Virtual Reality. We are currently in the middle of stations for Ancient Egypt. By rotating through six stations, students are practicing their reading comprehension and analysis while learning about mummies, pharaohs, and the Nile River. Moving forward, we will be building pyramids and mummifying apples! 

7th: The seventh grade recently finished a chapter on the Articles of Confederation and Anti-Federalists/ Federalists. The short chapter was filled with a lot of information dealing with the foundations of our government. We discussed the Articles of Confederation and why they failed. Following the discussion, we played an activity that split the class into groups representing the newly formed states. They had the task of building a fort from blocks and using money to buy more blocks. Different states had different advantages based on their population, which was one key reason why the articles failed. They enjoyed the hands-on aspect of building forts using blocks. We finished the chapter with a new review game, that was similar to a relay race using social studies knowledge! Currently we are on Chapter 8, dealing with the different structures of our government and elections. I am so excited for this chapter because it will teach the 7th grade how the electoral college works! Hopefully, it will help them understand the upcoming election.  

January Update

Happy Catholic Schools Week All! This week has been so much fun. I have thoroughly enjoyed seeing all the different costumes and positive energy throughout the hallways this entire week. Below is what has been happening in social studies over the last month!

5th Grade:
The 5th grade finished the Midwest Region, our third region of the United States! Throughout the month we discussed different capitals, customs, and historical landmarks. The 5th grade started the unit with an online scavenger hunt trying to find random facts about the region. It ended with connecting our knowledge about Mount Rushmore into ELA with Mrs. Orsatti. They took their knowledge about the presidents on Mount Rushmore and were able to create their own Mount Rushmore with four of their heroes on it! Right now they are working on a project for the region. They will pick six of the twelve states and research a bit about each of them. Next, we are going to dive into the Southwest Region and learn about different Native American cultures!

6th Grade:
Throughout the month of January the 6th grade has been discussing the beginnings and history of Russia. They were eager to dive into the USSR and Cold War, since we touched on it with the unit on Europe! The discussion we had about Stalin and the transition to Putin was one of the best we have had all year. It was beyond awesome to see them connect current events to what has happened in Russia's past. Right now, the 6th grade is partnered up with a classmate and they have the task to make a board game based on their Russian knowledge. When all the projects are finished, we will be having a day to play everyone's different board games. Next, we are going to jump into Africa and Ancient Egypt!



7th Grade:
The 7th Grade is working on their final project for the American Revolution. They are in the process of completing a choice board where they have eight small scale items and they have to choose to complete at least 5 of them. Over the last month, we have learned the key battles, people, and outcomes of the American Revolution. It was amazing to see how they have better understanding of the freedoms that we originally fought for! Two of the highlights taken from this chapter were the Break Up Text Message with King George and the Capture the Flag simulation. The Break Up Text Message with King George was a project which allowed the 7th grade to "text" King George III and warn him that the 13 Colonies were breaking away from him, similar to the Declaration of Independence. The Capture the Flag Simulation dealt with splitting the grade into three teams: one representing the Patriots, one representing the British, and one representing the French. At first, the British thought they had it in the bag, but as the game went on, more went in favor of the Patriots. This eventually ended up in a Patriots' victory with the help from the French. Next, we are going to learn about how this country was formed!

November Update

Happy Thanksgiving all! Below is an update about Room 15 for the month of November. 

5th Grade

Over the last few weeks, the 5th Grade has finished their Amusement Park Projects, where they created rides and food stands based on states in the Northeast Region. They also started to explore the Southeast Region by studying the climate, landmarks, history, and natural resources. We also completed a puzzle map of the Southeast where they had to cut out states and glue them in the correct spot. Moving forward, we have our test on this region Wednesday, December 4. 

6th Grade

The 6th Grade finished their unit on Ancient Europe. Following the test, they completed a One-Pager on World War I, World War II, the Cold War, and the European Union. Their projects turned out awesome, as the creativity was out of this world! Currently, we are learning about modern day Europe. We started by covering European geography and types of government. Yesterday, the 6th Grade was tasked with building a tower using straws and tape. Each student was put into a group based on a type of government. Each group had specific rules to match how each government runs. For example, in the democracy group, each group member had a say; whereas, in the dictatorship group only one person was in charge. We had so much fun seeing each group construct their towers!

7th Grade

The 7th Grade concluded their Colonization Unit. We studied each section of the 13 colonies. We have rotated taking notes, analyzing texts, and group work! After we studied the colonies, the 7th Grade created their own paper coin with a slogan and two pictures representing one of the colonies. The last activity we did in the chapter was on mercantilism, or the concept of restrictions on trade between the colonies and other countries. The 7th Grade was split into six groups. Three groups represented the colonies and three groups represented countries. The colonies and countries had the opportunity to trade goods with each other in exchange for "gold." By the end of the activity, England had the most money because of trade restrictions! Moving forward we are tackling the 7 Years War and taxes on the 13 colonies. 

October Update

Happy Fall! Here are a few things that have been happening in Room 15 over the last few weeks.

Grade 5:
The 5th grade just had a test on the Northeast Region. We practiced taking notes and learning about the states in the region. To begin, the 5th grade participated in the famous backpack game! This game includes items in a backpack from all of the states we are covering in the region and groups guessing which items match each state. We always have so much fun doing this introduction to the regions! Discussion was great, as a majority of the fifth grade has traveled to the states we talked about! We colored in our first map and created a booklet which encompassed the main resources, landforms, and landmarks in this region. Moving forward, the 5th grade will be working in groups to create amusement parks with the theme being the Northeast Region!

Grade 6:
The 6th grade is about to finish their unit on Ancient Europe. There has been so much to learn with the history of Rome, Greece, the Byzantine Empire, and the World Wars. We have covered the first humans and even made cave drawings of our own! The 6th grade also researched Greek Mythology and created their own monsters. Finally, they made posters about the Byzantine Empire and learned about the Great Schism! With a combination of taking notes, reading the textbook, and activities we are coming to an end of this unit. Our test is scheduled for the end of next week.

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Grade 7:
Last week, the 7th grade concluded their chapter on Colonization. We discussed the Columbian Exchange, the Protestant Reformation, Jamestown, and Thanksgiving! We had a debate on whether or not Columbus Day should be a national holiday, and if so should it change its name. The 7th grade had some great ideas and opinions! Also, we created comic strips for the Columbian Exchange. Every student had an item and created a story for its journey. We are moving on to the 13 colonies which sets the scene for the American Revolution, whoo hoo! Finally, the 7th grade is looking forward to walking in the Halloween Parade because our costumes truly look fabulous!