Declaration of Independence - Class Recap

The Parthenon, which is a part of the Acropolis in Athens. We learned today about Greek democracy influencing the United States government! Photo taken in July, 2014.

Dear class,

Even though it was more of a work day today, it was nice to see everyone and learn a bit more class content! Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 4: I can explain how different ideological movements and philosophies shape politics.

Soundtrack: "Tom Sawyer" by Rush. Selected for today because it was one of my dad's favorite songs, and he was killed one year ago today. Thank you, everyone, for being so kind and understanding that this was a very difficult day for me. Lyrics here. Memorial tribute that I wrote last year and delivered at my dad's memorial is here (it talks a little about Tom Sawyer).

AGENDA 9/24/15:
News Brief – Katie
European Influences
Declaration of Independence
Study for Philosophy Quiz

Homework: Read the blog. Study for philosophy and European influences quiz next class. Next news brief: Ian.

News Brief: Katie brought in the news brief today and selected this article to talk about: CNN.com - Women embrace, criticize #ShoutYourAbortion. This brought up a very interesting discussion about how Planned Parenthood has come under more scrutiny, especially from Republicans, after the release of some edited videos recently that appeared to show the organization selling fetus parts. We also talked about how the United States government may shut down next week over this issue, because Republicans do not want to vote for any funds for Planned Parenthood (even though, by federal law, no federal funds go towards providing abortions). President Obama will almost certainly veto any attempt to block Planned Parenthood funding, because of all the other women's health services the organization provides. Lots going on here!

A very interesting and relevant article! Thanks, Katie! Ian has the next news brief.

European Influences: In order to progress up to the Declaration of Independence, we first had to look at some of the key ideas that influenced the foundation of our country. This was a four page reading and some associated questions, that I gave work time in class for, then we talked about it together. If you missed class, or lost your copy, here they are again to see:

Google Drive - European Influences on the United States Government Reading

Google Drive - European Influences Reading Questions

Use this reading and your answers to study for the upcoming quiz!

Declaration of Independence: This was pretty fun. We looked at the Declaration of Independence (which is what started the United States) and tried to put the first couple of paragraphs of it into our own words, like a break up letter. These were pretty funny - thanks for your effort! Next time, we will look into the document with more detail, check out the Articles of Confederation, then try and create your own new country, using the information that you've learned about so far in class.

Study for Philosophy Quiz: At the end of class, I provided some time to study for the philosophy quiz next class. You will need to know the ideas of the four philosophers we talked about in class, how their ideas influence the U.S. government, and the three European influences that impacted our government.

Thanks for your work and effort in class, and for doing your homework in reading the blog! :-)