The Judicial Branch, Day 7 - Class Recap

I hope everyone enjoys their Winter Break! I will be heading back to Mexico for the first time since I took this picture at Chichen Itza in 2011. Cabo, here we come!

Hi everyone,

Our last day together before 2015! As such, it was a relatively easy day. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Reelin' in the Years" by Steely Dan. Selected for today because the next time class meets, it will be a new year. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/19/14:
News Brief – Luke
12 Angry Men

Homework: Read the blog. Turn in any late/incomplete work. Have a great, safe break! See you in 2015! Next news brief: Mr. Fritz

News Brief: Luke was not in class at the start of the day, so I just talked about these two stories:

We talked about: CNN.com - Anger over the end of 'The Interview'. What an interesting story about so many different aspects of the world! Technology, movies, spies, hacking, world leaders, money, etc. North Korea seems to have "won" this, since Sony isn't going to distribute the movie after being hacked and threatened. Pretty crazy!

President Obama announced a prisoner swap and better diplomatic relations with Cuba. Here is that story: CNN.com - Historic thaw in U.S., Cuba standoff.

I will be doing the next news brief, since there is such a long time between classes! I love following what is going on in the world, so it will be easy for me. I hope everyone continues to follow the news over break!

12 Angry Men: We kind of skipped around a bit, in order to finish the movie in one class and have time to write about it. Here is a link to the questions:

Google Drive - 12 Angry Men Film Questions

 If you want to see the whole movie (or watch the parts we missed), here it is on YouTube:

Such a classic movie! Rated in the Top 10 all time for a reason. A great way to end the class before break! Thanks for your focus. See you next year! :-)

The Judicial Branch, Day 6 - Class Recap

The exterior of the Colosseum in Rome. At the end of gladiator fights, the loser would famously be judged by the emperor. Photo taken summer 2014.

Dear class,

A lot packed in today - but we got through it all and I hope the tests reflected it! Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Heroes" by David Bowie. Selected for today because you were able to study up and take the Judicial Branch test in one day. Heroic! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/17/14:
News Brief – A-b
Juries
The National Judiciary
Judicial Branch Test

Homework: Read the blog. Turn in any late/incomplete work. Next news brief: Luke (just find an article - no write up needed).

News Brief: A-b had the news brief today and talked about this story: CNN.com - Pakistan militants: Children's massacre was to avenge army strikes. We talked about the United States foreign aid to Pakistan, which is around a billion dollars a year.

Luke was assigned to do the next news brief (after the test).

Juries/The National Judiciary: We did have the time to go through both of these in detail today - thoroughly reviewing the main concepts of the unit, before the test:

Google Drive: Reading on Juries for Judicial Branch Test

Google Drive: The National Judiciary Readings and Questions

Judicial Branch Test: Most of class was spent going over many questions about the judicial branch. I also passed out this study guide for preparation:

Google Drive: Judicial Branch Test Study Guide

Students did take the test at the end of the class - it was 25 questions, multiple choice. Thanks for your hard work on this! If you did not take the test, you will when you next are in class.

Next class, we will be watching 12 Angry Men (1957), which is rated at the #7 best movie of all time by IMDb users. See you then!

The Judicial Branch, Day 5 - Class Recap

The flag of the United States, before the Holiday Bowl football game in 2008. Today, we had an interesting mock trial on saying the Pledge of Allegiance in class.

Hi everyone,

Although the mock trials today took much longer than I expected, I really enjoyed the discussions and debates they brought up, and I had the sense that most students did, too. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Man in the Mirror" by Michael Jackson. Because you have to make the change you want to see in the world. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/15/14:
News Brief – Manuel
Mock Trials
Juries
The National Judiciary

Homework: Read the blog. Study for Judicial Branch test (possibly next class). Next news brief: A-b.

News Brief: Manuel had the news brief today and talked about this story: CNN.com - Gunman, two others dead in Sydney siege, police say. This was a breaking news story when we were talking about it in class!

A-b was assigned to do the next news brief.

Mock Trials: As I previously mentioned, the majority of class was taken up by doing the mock trials for the three cases we had left from last class. We had a really excellent discussion on the issues: school segregation, drug searches at school, and saying the Pledge of Allegiance in class. Please complete the rest of your mock trial packet! Searching for the case summaries on Google might help you understand the cases in greater detail.

Juries/The National Judiciary: We ran out of time at the end of class, but I did pass out these two handouts, so students could read and review them to prepare for the upcoming test. I will see how it goes next class with going through these, but the test will be on these readings, as well as the Supreme Court cases that we have been studying.

Google Drive: Reading on Juries for Judicial Branch Test

Google Drive: The National Judiciary Readings and Questions

As I said in class, it would be good to go over these, but we will have class time on Wednesday to go over them as a class, before the test. My guess is that this might take half the class, and then the rest of class would be taking the Judicial Branch test (25 questions, multiple choice).

Sound good? Let me know if you have any questions I can answer! Thanks again for an enjoyable class this morning! :-)

The Judicial Branch, Day 4 - Class Recap

Looking down the National Mall, from the top of the Washington Monument. The United States Supreme Court building is behind and to the left of the Capitol Building. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

Whew, what a complicated day it seemed like today! I'm glad we finally made it on to doing the mock trials. We will finish them up next class and then learn more about the Judicial Branch. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "I Shot the Sheriff" by Bob Marley. Selected for today because if Mr. Marley had shot a sheriff, he would be in big trouble with the judicial branch. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/11/14:
News Brief – Gaby/Keegan
Mock Trial Prep
Trials
Juries

Homework: Read the blog. Next news brief: Manuel.

News Brief: Gaby had the news brief today and talked about this story: DailyCaller.com - Sessions On Executive Amnesty: Obama’s ‘Entirely New Immigration System’ A ‘Stunning Event’. We talked about this, as well as the new federal budget. Here are some specifics: WashingtonPost.com - What’s in the spending bill? We skim it so you don’t have to.

Manual was assigned to do the next news brief.

Mock Trial Prep: I know this was confusing - I will have to reassess how I teach this! Basically, I split everyone up into different cases. Each case had lawyers (for the petitioner and respondent), judges (representing the Supreme Court), and observers (to take notes). Most of class was spent preparing for the trials and organizing the notes on the cases.

Trials: We did get to do one of the mock trials today: about the famous "Bong Hits for Jesus" case. Although the justices in the room found unanimously in favor of the student, the real case found in favor of the school district. Here it is, if you want to check it out:

USCourts.gov - FACTS AND CASE SUMMARY: MORSE V. FREDERICK

Basically, the court said that schools have a right to stop promotion of illegal drugs, while students are under their care. While the student was on a public sidewalk, he was still under the care of the district, apparently.

We will keep going on these, next class! Please finish your legal briefs for your side of the case you were assigned (the first page in the cases packet), and your justice form for the second case in your packet.

See you next week!

The Judicial Branch, Day 3 - Class Recap

This past weekend, the Oregon Ducks won the Pac-12 Championship! So I will be going to the Rose Bowl again, with my mom and brother, on January 1st! :-)

Hi everyone,

We finished looking at the Supreme Court landmark cases today, then I passed out Mock Trial prep materials. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Black" by Pearl Jam. Selected for today because it was the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack over the weekend. Pearl Jam/Pearl Harbor. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/9/14:
News Brief – Alfredo
Landmark Case Reading
SCOTUS Overview
Mock Trial Prep

Homework: Read the blog. Next news brief: Keegan and Gaby.

News Brief: Alfredo was late and missed the opening part to class, so we moved on after a quick introduction.

Keegan and Gaby were assigned to do the next news brief.

Landmark Case Reading: We had a lock in drill to start the day, then kept working on these. Here was the reading:

Google Drive: Landmark Supreme Court Decisions Handout

The assignment that went along with the reading is here:

Google Drive: Landmark SCOTUS Cases Assignment Sheet

We went over the cases as a class - the assignment should be used as a study guide for the upcoming judicial branch test before the break.

SCOTUS Overview: We did not get to this, because of the interesting conversation about the cases, but here's the information! I might go over it next class (second time in a row that I have said this):

Google Drive: Supreme Court Information

Mock Trial Prep: Near the end of class, I passed out different court cases for students to review. Coming up (probably next week), we will have a mock trial in class. This is a somewhat complicated process, which I explained in class. If you missed class, you need to come and ask for a packet - there are four different options. Be working on your lawyer and judge briefs, those of you that were in class!

Thanks - see you on Thursday!

The Judicial Branch, Day 2 - Class Recap

Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, which was a prison for federal criminals. Photo taken in 2011.

Dear class,

Today was another deep dive into various different Supreme Court cases, to see how the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government impacts our day to day lives. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "My Generation" by The Who. Selected because we talked about various different Supreme Court cases that our generation should know about, with students being impacted. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/5/14:
News Brief – Jerick
Finish Teen Cases
SCOTUS Overview
Landmark Case Reading

Homework: Read the blog. Next news brief: Alfredo

News Brief: Jerick had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: CNN.com - 12-year-old with air gun dies in Cleveland police shooting. This is yet another tragic story about use of deadly force by police officers. We talked about it, and also the protests last night here in Portland, which resulted in the Trail Blazers game being impacted. A very interesting, important discussion to be having about our government right now!

Alfredo was assigned to do the next news brief.

Finish Cases Teens Should Know: This was from last class - we finished and then went over the answers:

NYTimes Upfront - 10 Supreme Court Cases Every Teen Should Know

The assignment was to, on a separate sheet of paper, read and write the answers to the following questions for a minimum of five out of the ten cases.

1) What was the issue?
2) Describe the judge’s decision and explain their reasons why.
3) Do you agree or disagree with the judge’s decision? Explain your reasons why or why not.

SCOTUS Overview: We did not get to this, because of the interesting conversation about the cases, but here's the information! I might go over it next class:

Google Drive: Supreme Court Information

Landmark Case Reading: This was definitely a reading and work heavy day. That's kind of what the Supreme Court is all about, though - lots of legal papers and decisions to look at, in order to understand the law. Here was the reading:

Google Drive: Landmark Supreme Court Decisions Handout

The assignment that went along with the reading is here:

Google Drive: Landmark SCOTUS Cases Assignment Sheet

That was it for the day! Thank you so much for your focus and hard work! Next class, we will finish up the Supreme Court landmark cases, then start looking at conducting a mock trial. :-)

The Judicial Branch, Day 1 - Class Recap

The United States Supreme Court building, in Washington, D.C. Photo taken in 2010.

Hi everyone,

Welcome back! Now we have a fast paced dash to Winter Break for the next few weeks. We have a lot to pack in, for sure! Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Confessions, Pt. 2" by Usher. Selected for today because we are beginning the judicial branch unit, which involves looking at the courts. One part of a good court case might be a confession! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 12/3/14:
PRIDE Lesson
News Brief – Simzaid
Review Tests/Grades
Judicial Branch
10 Supreme Court Cases

Homework: Read the blog. Next news brief: Jerick

PRIDE Lesson: We started the class off (as every class at Westview did) by looking at what makes a community. I showed a clip from the movie Freedom Writers, then we brainstormed what a community is made up of. At the end I said again how thankful I am for the community here at Westview, especially after my dad was killed. Thank you all for being there for me! :-)

News Brief: Simzaid had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: CNN.com - Michael Brown's stepfather sorry for outburst in Ferguson protests. We talked a bit about this (being a major story right before break, too), and how it might be related to the U.S. government.

Jerick was selected to do the next news brief.

Review Tests/Grades: I passed back literally everything that has been turned in, meaning I am totally up to date with grades. We went over the Executive Branch test, as well as your cabinet project grades. Be sure to know where you are at and what you can do to improve your grade, if needed! Generally, people are doing okay, it seems like.

Judicial Branch: To start out our look at the judicial branch, I showed this video to the class:

I thought this was a good overview of the structure of the federal court system in the United States. Next, I led students through a fill in the blank overview of the judicial branch. Here it is again, if you want to go over it to study for the test:

Google Drive: Judicial Branch Overview

10 Supreme Court Cases: After going over the introduction to the unit, I passed out this reading:

NYTimes Upfront - 10 Supreme Court Cases Every Teen Should Know

The rest of class was devoted to reading the cases, and following these directions: On a separate sheet of paper, read and write the answers to the following questions for a minimum of five out of the ten cases.

1) What was the issue?
2) Describe the judge’s decision and explain their reasons why.
3) Do you agree or disagree with the judge’s decision? Explain your reasons why or why not.

Next class, we will finish this, discuss, then move on to some more case studies.

Thanks! See you next time! :-)