Nicole's Social Studies Adventure

A Growing Nation: Abolitionists- Frederick Douglass Sojourner Truth President Andrew Jackson Indian Removal Act Trail of Tears Bad Weather Disease President John Quincy Adams Monroe Doctorine 5 Major American Indian Groups Seminole Creek Chocktow Cherokee Chicksaw Seneca Falls Convention Lucretia Mott Elizabeth Cady Stanton Industrial Revolution Eli Whitney Robert Fulton Technology National Road Canal Erie Canal Peter Cooper Samuel Slater Railroads Manufacture

This project was based off the 5 themes of geography. Each group was given a Native American tribe and had to use the 5 themes of geography to present that tribe. These themes and information about the tlingit are in the presentation in the right. This was a fun project because we were able to be learn about all these different Native American tribes. It was a very collaborative assignment. Each member of my group was assigned a different theme of geography to search for the Tlingit tribe. We presented the history of the tribe, went in depth about their culture and lifestyle. Known as the “People of the Tides” because they lived off produce from the coastal areas. The Tlingit were a seafaring people, skilled fishers, traders and hunters-gatherers, who were located in southern Alaska and British Columbia and the Yukon in Canada. The Tlingit Indians are original people of the Pacific Northwest Coast. In Canada, each Tlingit community has its own reservation. Each Tlingit tribe--known ...

I had the pleasure of attending the Wasted Conference on campus. I have always tried to be conscience of my waste, but this conference was such an eye opening experience. I learned so much about the environment from this conference. There are so many ways to stop food wasting and no one knows about them! Supermarkets and restaurants waste so much food everyday, and when 1/3 of the population in America is hungry. There is even a law in place that if restaurants and supermarkets donate the leftover food that they would rather waste to nonprofit organizations, and someone gets sick, they cannot be sued. This protects the supermarkets and restaurants from getting sued. Most places don't know this and are still nervous about giving away food that could be seen as spoiled, even though most of the time the food isn't spoiled yet. There is a hierarchy of food recovery which explains how food waste should be used. New York State also gives tax credit to farmers who donate harvest. As...

This semester I had to work on a full unit plan. While in Science last semester we had to do something similar. This semester however was a little harder. For some reason that extra cooperative lesson is so intimidating. I think it's because this is the first time I've had to do one in my whole career at the Mount. The unit plan was called "A Growing Nation" and it was super fun to teach. I think over all working with my group was a great experience. Everyone had a lot of great inputs on the unit plan and I'm glad I was in the group I was.  The students will understand the facts and terms in red on the PowerPoint (listed under academic vocabulary) of the Growing American Nation.The students will be able to respond to the questions given by the teachers and work in groups to build on their knowledge and each other’s ideas. That was the central focus of the unit plan and I think that the students did gain this knowledge.

The artifact bag project was group project I did with my fieldwork group. We each had to bring in 3-4 items that related to our unit plan. We then presented them to the rest of the class and they had to figure out how they connected to the unit plan. Then the other groups would present their bags and we would do the same. It was so much fun and everyone was so creative! There are so many different things people cam up with and it was so nice to see all these different ideas.The artifact bag project was such a fun project and I can't wait to use it someday in my classroom. I would love to see the ideas the students come up with in the future! Below I have posted pictures of my groups artifacts that we each put in separate bags.

It's so important for teachers to have a philosophy. Without a philosophy of teaching, how can one even call themselves a teacher? My views have built through years of personal experience as I imagine most peoples are. In classrooms throughout my early education inclusion never seemed to be a focal point. Yes, the special education students came to specials and classroom parties, but not all the students wanted to interact with them. As I went to middle school and high school I saw even less inclusion and I couldn't figure out why. Then, when my younger brother moved school districts I finally realized why. At my brother's school inclusion was a must for a every student. The general education students had no problem interacting with the special education students. It's almost strange to even describe. My brother has Down syndrome, and happens to be almost 7 years younger than me. Throughout the years I went to many events at our home school district, and it always made ...

There is so much to reflect on this semester and thanks to this course I feel as though I've grown so much. I was able to learn by watching my peers teach and reflecting on their work. Then I was able to use these reflections to improve my own work. I like receiving feedback no matter if it's positive or negative. It's important to understand that negative feedback is only in place to help me and this. It helps improve my future work and that is super beneficial to me as a teacher. Throughout fieldwork I left feedback for my peers in way fieldwork reflections and three pluses and a wish. They did this for me as well and I was able to fix my work based off their comments. I'm a strong believer in learning through mistakes. I loved with working with my group! It was tough this semester trying to come up with the perfect lesson plan, but my group was able to bring it at every step. We each brought important ideas to the table and I’m so glad they went through all of this w...

Group 4 began their lesson with a direct instruction lesson. The teachers introduced themselves. They introduced the game where they had to collect gold.The students were given green, yellow, and red cards to check for understanding.They transitioned through a word art. The teachers then started the direct instruction.The students had a flip notebook to take their notes as they went along.They had stop and review sections during the lesson to make sure they understand. They then continued with the lesson and then showed a video. They then played a vocabulary game.They have to use a fly swatter to hit the right term that matches the definition.They were given a matching column for the independent practice. During the next lesson the teachers taught an inquiry-based lesson. They reintroduced themselves and went over the rules and gold game. They then introduced a Word art. They’re given worksheets to work on their webquest on a historical figure.The student then shared their information ...

Group 2 began their unit plan with the direct instruction lesson.They started by introducing themselves. They used SWAG acronym for their classroom rules. They used 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 to get the students to quiet down. They used swag dollars, and that’s how the students earn their prize. They used a word art for their pre assessment.There wasn’t really clear direction as to how the students were taking notes.I liked that they highlighted their notes when the students needed to write it made it easier to see. They used “a quarter for your thoughts” to check for understanding. They used a quill to show when the students need to write notes.They brought up notes from the lesson throughout the whole lesson. They used a match for their check for understanding. They showed a video about the war of 1812. They had to match the terms and definitions with each other.They then had to separate and find each other. They were given worksheet with emoticons and they had to circle how they felt about the...