Bill of Rights Test and Legislative Branch Overview - Class Recap

Please note: there will be no class recaps posted for the week of March 20-24, as most juniors in class will be taking Smarter Balanced assessments. As such, the rest of class was more of a study hall. Have a great Spring Break, everyone! See you after!

The United States Capitol Building, which is where Congress (the Legislative Branch of the US) meets. Photo taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Another quiz today! I hope it went well for everyone. Thanks again for your hard work! We also got started with a unit on the legislative branch. Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments.
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "At the Beginning" from Anastasia. Selected for today because we are the start of a new unit: the Legislative Branch. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/17/17:
News Brief - Logan
Bill of Rights Quiz
Legislative Branch Overview
Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Study how a bill becomes a law handout! Next news brief: nobody.

News Brief: Dylan had the news brief today and selected an article about this story: NYTimes.com - Rex Tillerson Rejects Talks With North Korea on Nuclear Program. We talked about this story for a bit at the start of class, including why it is a big issue for people in Asia and a test for the Trump administration. I am visiting South Korea for Spring Break, so it will certainly be interesting to see the mood there!

Thanks, Logan! Nobody has the next news brief, as it is SBAC testing next week for the vast majority of students in class.

We also checked in about the weekend and what people were up to, before moving on.

Bill of Rights Quiz: We prepared for this the past few classes, as well as a bit during class today, before the quiz. Thank you for giving your best effort on this! We will go over the results together next class (after Spring Break - wow!).

Legislative Branch Overview/Work Time: This was a handout that went through some of through some of the specifics of the legislative process, like what the legislative branch does and who makes it up. Please review the flow chart on page two, specifically. You will eventually be tested on that and we are going to work through that process together in a simulation later this week:

Google Drive - How a Bill Becomes a Law Handout

Before we did some review, I showed this old Schoolhouse Rock classic:

I also showed a Washington, D.C. license plate and talked about "taxation without representation."

We kept going with the handout until we stopped at trustee and delegate styles of legislators. Please make sure to review this handout! Thank you! Have a wonderful Spring Break and I will see you after!

Bill of Rights Review - Class Recap

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C. FDR was named as one of the Presidents in Final Jeopardy today!

Dear class,

I had a lot of fun reviewing the Bill of Rights with you today! Please be studying the content for the quiz next class, along with the structure of the U.S. government. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “American Pie" by Don McLean. Selected for today because we were talking more about American government, and this song famously contains lots of references to American culture. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/15/17:
News Brief - Kyla
Crash Course Rights
Jeopardy Review
Study Time

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for the quiz next class (be able to write down what each Amendment in the Bill of Rights is, and an example, as well as checks/balances/powers of the federal government). Next news brief: Logan.

News Brief: Kyla selected this article to talk about for his news brief today: OregonLive.com - 5 homemade explosive devices found across from elementary, middle schools in Hillsboro. We talked about this article for a while, and how it relates to our government. We also talked about what we were up to outside of class.

Logan was assigned to do the next news brief. Thank you!

Crash Course Rights: To finish up with reviewing in class for the Bill of Rights test, I showed this Crash Course video (with captions on - I know that the narrator talks very quickly):

Some good information here (and familiar Supreme Court cases)!

Jeopardy Review: I always really enjoy this, and today was no exception. I split the class into two groups, and then we played this version of PowerPoint Jeopardy to review the material we have learned so far in class:

Google Drive - Constitution/Bill of Rights Jeopardy Review

This probably will be difficult to replicate on Google Drive, but you can at least see the questions to study from. We will do this later in the year, too!

Study Time: The rest of class was used for studying and/or retakes of tests or quizzes. I think this was used productively in class, so we may continue to do this. Thanks for your focus today!  One question from the quiz, for checking the blog, is: What is one power of the judicial branch listed in the Constitution? 

Be ready for the quiz next class, please! See you then!

The Rest of the Bill of Rights - Class Recap

Rays of the sun streaming through the flag of the United States, over the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Picture taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Welcome back from your weekend! We had a good time going through the rest of the Bill of Rights today in class. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “99 Problems (Clean)" by Jay Z. Selected for today because it discusses the various protections that the Bill of Rights offers. Lyrics (which are decidedly NOT clean, but Rap Genius does offer some interesting interpretations of what they mean) here.

AGENDA 3/13/17:
Wildcat News Brief - Tanner
Fourth Amendment
Pleading the Fifth
Bill of Rights Review

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for upcoming quiz (on Friday). Take the Political Spectrum test if you want. Next news brief: Kyla.

Wildcat News Brief: Tanner had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: OregonLive.com - Gunfire, arrest after fight at dinner in the Pearl District. We talked about this story for a bit and how it relates to the Second Amendment and gun rights (which we discussed in detail last class). We also checked in with what people were up to outside of class.

Kyla was assigned to do the next news brief.

Here's Wildcat News today as shown in class, if you missed class or wanted to see it again:

Fourth Amendment: Because I want to get done with the Bill of Rights, today we looked through the details of Amendments 4-10 We continued going through a packet of individual U.S. Supreme Court cases that helped set the scope of the Fourth Amendment. That packet is here:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Handout

We finished the case on the last page today (Illinois v. McArthur), which basically said that police can have time to get a search warrant while a suspect is waiting.

Pleading The Fifth: I showed this clip to introduce the Fifth Amendment:

This led to a more in depth look at the Amendments,

Bill of Rights Review: At the end of class, I showed the TIME overview videos for Amendments 5-10, since we were wrapping up rights of the accused today in class. During this time, I had students write down the Amendments in their own words, for future use in class. Here's a link to the Fourth Amendment one:

Time.com - Your Fourth Amendment Right to Privacy

I thought these did a nice job of explaining the history of each amendment, as well as how they are relevant today. Watch the other ones, if you want to go over them all again! See you next class!

Rights of the Accused - Class Recap

Inside the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

Thanks for checking in on the blog! We continued looking at the Bill of Rights together today, and diving into what the main ones mean.

Here's what happened:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay. Selected for today for the philosophy of government because the song talks about a king. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/8/17:
News Brief - Veronica
Review Constitution Test
Gun Nation
Rights of the Accused

Homework: Read the blog! Next news brief: Tanner.
--
News Brief: Veronica had the news brief today but was not in class, so I filled in and selected this story to talk about with the class: CNN.com - Obama irked and exasperated in response to Trump's wiretapping claims, sources say. We discussed this story and the process for wiretapping. I also fielded some questions about the new healthcare plan offered by the Republicans in the House of Representatives.

We also talked a bit about the upcoming weekend, before moving on.

Tanner was selected for the next news brief.

Review Constitution Test: This was from last class. I passed back the tests, which had the grades marked on the top of each side. If this test went poorly, never fear, because there will be a retake in a few classes on the Bill of Rights and the branches of government. Please make sure to review the material!

Gun Nation: This was the "Gun Nation" episode of the "30 Days" documentary series. I asked students to note Pro and Con arguments for gun rights, as well as what students thought should happen now with gun rights in America. I think this episode does a really good job of looking at both sides of the debate, and is pretty powerful. I enjoyed our conversation afterwards. Thanks for your participation with this, everyone!

Rights of the Accused: To end class, we started looking at the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. I then passed out this packet (or students accessed it on Google Classroom), which was about various different cases regarding privacy and rights:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Packet

Before the end of class, we finished the 8 cases. We ended there for the week, and will pick back up next time there. Thanks, everyone. :-)

The Constitution, Day 2 - Class Recap

Fireworks over Niagara Falls, in 2009. 

Hi everyone,

Thanks for continuing to work on getting to know the Constitution better! I know it may not be the most fun part of class, but it is so important for knowing the foundations of how our government works! Here's what we did today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed: 
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Don't Speak" by No Doubt. Selected for today because we were talking about the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is partially about freedom of speech. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/2/17:
News Brief - Sam K./Bryce
Review Constitution
Bill of Rights
The First Amendment

Homework: Read the blog! Prepare for Constitution test on Monday by studying the handout answers (as well as reviewing the philosophers and European influences)! Next news brief: Priya.

News Brief: Sam K. started us off with this today, and shared about this story: WashingtonPost.com - Trump says he is open to immigration compromise including legal status. We discussed this for a while in class and also watched this 90 second recap of President Trump's address to Congress on Tuesday: CNN.com - Trump's Speech to Congress in 90 Seconds.

Next, Bryce had his news brief, since he missed last class. Here was the article he selected: WWeek.com - A Multnomah County Judge Allegedly Helped an Undocumented Immigrant Escape ICE Through Her Courtroom Door. What a super fascinating story. We talked for a bit in class about sanctuary city policies, whether or not the judge committed a crime, and the relation to the immigration debate.

We also checked in for a bit about the upcoming weekend, before moving on.

Priya was selected for the next news brief.

Review Constitution: We continued looking at the Constitution packet I passed out last class, which had the Bill of Rights as a part of the last couple of pages. Please make sure to study the Constitution portion done for the test on Monday. If you missed class the last two times, here it is to download and fill out by reading the Constitution:

Google Drive: Understanding the Constitution Handout

As I said, here's the reward for checking the blog: a (tough, because I did not specifically ask you this in class) question from the Constitution test:

All of the following are included in the Preamble to the Constitution EXCEPT _____________.
a. establish justice c. the pursuit of happiness
b. provide for the common defense d.  promote the general welfare

The answer would be C.

Bill of Rights: As far as the Bill of Rights, I showed this clip from The Daily Show, looking at what some people working for FOX News had to say in regards to the Bill of Rights and the Boston Marathon bomber:

The Daily Show
Daily Show Full Episodes,More Daily Show Videos,Comedy Central Full Episodes

Clearly, this is a more liberal perspective on the Bill of Rights. I think the video does a good job of going through many of the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution!

The First Amendment: We ended by looking at how the First Amendment impacts students at school. With that, we went through this PowerPoint, as we discussed each case:

Google Drive - First Amendment Case Study PowerPoint

We looked at some specific examples of cases where students had questions about how far their rights go. We ended by looking at the famous "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" case, which we will continue to discuss next class. Thanks, everyone!

Bill of Rights Test and Legislative Branch Overview - Class Recap

The United States Capitol Building, which is where Congress (the Legislative Branch of the US) meets. Photo taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Another quiz today! I hope it went well for everyone. Thanks again for your hard work! We also got started with a unit on the legislative branch. Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments.
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "At the Beginning" from Anastasia. Selected for today because we are the start of a new unit: the Legislative Branch. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/17/16:
News Brief - Dylan
Bill of Rights Quiz
Legislative Branch Overview
Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Study how a bill becomes a law handout! Next news brief: Kenny.

News Brief: Dylan had the news brief today and selected an article about this story: WashingtonPost.com - Clinton campaign chairman ties email hack to Russians, suggests Trump had early warning. We checked in about this story, and made some guesses as to why Russia would want Trump to win the election, if this were truly the case.

Thanks, Dylan! Kenny has the next news brief.

We also checked in about the long weekend and what people were up to, before moving on.

Here's Wildcat News for the day:

Bill of Rights Quiz: We prepared for this the past few classes, as well as a bit during class today, before the quiz. Thank you for giving your best effort on this! We will go over the results together next class.

Legislative Branch Overview/Work Time: This was a handout that went through some of through some of the specifics of the legislative process, like what the legislative branch does and who makes it up. Please review the flow chart on page two, specifically. You will eventually be tested on that and we are going to work through that process together in a simulation later this week:

Google Drive - How a Bill Becomes a Law Handout

Before we did some review, I showed this old Schoolhouse Rock classic:

I also showed a Washington, D.C. license plate and talked about "taxation without representation."

We kept going with the handout until we stopped at trustee and delegate styles of legislators. Please make sure to review this handout! Thank you!

Bill of Rights Review - Class Recap

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C. FDR was named as one of the Presidents in Final Jeopardy today!

Dear class,

I had a lot of fun reviewing the Bill of Rights with you today! Please be studying the content for the quiz next class, along with the structure of the U.S. government. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “American Pie" by Don McLean. Selected for today because we were talking more about American government, and this song famously contains lots of references to American culture. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/12/16:
News Brief - Keane
Jeopardy Review
Crash Course Rights
Study Time

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for the quiz next class (be able to write down what each Amendment in the Bill of Rights is, and an example, as well as checks/balances/powers of the federal government). Next news brief: Dylan.

News Brief: Keane did not bring in a news brief today, so I filled in and just talked about the latest presidential election forecast from FiveThirtyEight.com again. Interesting times, for sure! Dylan was selected for the next news brief.

Jeopardy Review: I always really enjoy this, and today was no exception. I split the class into three groups, and then we played this version of PowerPoint Jeopardy to review the material we have learned so far in class:

Google Drive - Constitution/Bill of Rights Jeopardy Review

This probably will be difficult to replicate on Google Drive, but you can at least see the questions to study from. Our big winners today were Group 2. We will do this later in the year, too!

Crash Course Rights: To finish up with reviewing in class for the Bill of Rights test, I showed this Crash Course video (with captions on - I know that the narrator talks very quickly):

Some good information here (and familiar Supreme Court cases)!

Study Time: The rest of class was used for studying and/or retakes of tests or quizzes. I think this was used productively in class, so we may continue to do this. I also put this link to see where you stand in regards to major issues that Clinton and Trump have taken a stand on:

TheEconomist.com - US Political Majority Builder

Thanks for your focus today!  One question from the quiz, for checking the blog, is: What is one power of the judicial branch listed in the Constitution? 

Have a great weekend and be ready for the quiz next class, please!

Rights of the Accused and Rest of the Bill of Rights - Class Recap

Rays of the sun streaming through the flag of the United States, over the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Picture taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Welcome back from your weekend! Lots of grading and work for me to do, but I am still looking forward to it, of course. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “99 Problems (Clean)" by Jay Z. Selected for today because it discusses the various protections that the Bill of Rights offers. Lyrics (which are decidedly NOT clean, but Rap Genius does offer some interesting interpretations of what they mean) here.

AGENDA 10/10/16:
Wildcat News Brief - Liam
Fourth Amendment
Pleading the Fifth
Bill of Rights Review

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for upcoming quiz (next week). Take the Political Spectrum test if you want. Next news brief: Keane.

Wildcat News Brief: Liam had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about: OregonLive.com - Possible PERS fix: Borrowing money. This is a really interesting story (as evidenced by the 800+ comments on the article online) about what Oregon should do in regards to the Public Employees Retirement System. PERS is a system that many people who work for the government (including public school teachers) get to use to help save for retirement, so this is an especially interesting story for us. Thanks, Liam!

Keane volunteered to do the next news brief.

We also talked about the weekend, including what happened with the second presidential debate last night. Wow, was there a lot to try and go over with this weekend. I showed this debate recap in class:

CNN.com - The scorched-earth debate in two minutes

What a time to teach and learn about government! :-)

Here's Wildcat News today as shown in class, if you missed class or wanted to see it again:

Fourth Amendment: Because I want to get done with the Bill of Rights, today we looked through the details of the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th Amendments. We continued going through a packet of individual U.S. Supreme Court cases that helped set the scope of the Fourth Amendment. That packet is here:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Handout

We finished the case on the last page today, which basically said that police can have time to get a search warrant while a suspect is waiting.

Pleading The Fifth: I showed this clip to introduce the Fifth Amendment:

This led to another handout, going through the rights of the accused in the United States. I know it was a heavy day of handouts and readings, so I appreciate your focus and effort in looking at these together!

Google Drive - Rights of the Accused Handout

We went over the case studies and had some more good discussion about various student questions.

Bill of Rights Review: At the end of class, I gave some time for students to review the Bill of Rights and put them in their own words on the Understanding the Constitution worksheet in Google Classroom. See you next class! We will have some fun with Jeopardy!

The Second Amendment - Class Recap

Inside the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

Thanks for checking in on the blog! We continued looking at the Bill of Rights together today, and diving into what the main ones mean.

Here's what happened:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay. Selected for today for the philosophy of government because the song talks about a king. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/6/16:
News Brief - Xavier
Review Constitution Test
Gun Nation
Rights of the Accused

Homework: Read the blog! Watch the Second Presidential Debate on Sunday at 6! Next news brief: Liam.
--
News Brief: Xavier had the news brief today but was not in class, so I filled in and selected this story to talk about with the class: CNN.com - Next debate prep: Clinton's light schedule, Trump stays on trail. With this, we talked about how, before the last debate, polls were showing Trump and Clinton as pretty much even, but since then, polls have shifted towards Clinton. Perhaps this second debate will be another important turning point?

We also talked a bit about the upcoming weekend, before moving on.

Liam was selected for the next news brief.

Review Constitution Test: This was from last class, and we also had students who missed last class complete this while the documentary was ongoing. I passed back the scantrons, which had the grades marked on the side, and we went through the whole test together. If this test went poorly, never fear, because there will be a retake in a few classes on the Bill of Rights and the branches of government. Please make sure to review the material!

Gun Nation: This was the "Gun Nation" episode of the "30 Days" documentary series. I asked students to note Pro and Con arguments for gun rights, as well as what students thought should happen now with gun rights in America. I think this episode does a really good job of looking at both sides of the debate, and is pretty powerful. I enjoyed our conversation afterwards. Thanks for your participation with this, everyone!

Rights of the Accused: To end class, we started looking at the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. I then passed out this packet (or students accessed it on Google Classroom), which was about various different cases regarding privacy and rights:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Packet

Before the end of class, we tried to finish the 8 cases, then read over the case on the last page (we didn't get to the questions at the end, or have time to talk about the cases in detail). We ended there for the week, and will pick back up next time there. Thanks, everyone. :-)

The Constitution, Day 2 - Class Recap

Fireworks over Niagara Falls, in 2009. 

Hi everyone,

Thanks for continuing to work on getting to know the Constitution better! I know it may not be the most fun part of class, but it is so important for knowing the foundations of how our government works! Here's what we did today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed: 
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Don't Speak" by No Doubt. Selected for today because we were talking about the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is partially about freedom of speech. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 9/30/16:
Wildcat News Brief - Ellie R.
The Constitution
The Bill of Rights
The First Amendment

Homework: Read the blog! Prepare for Constitution test next class by studying the handout answers! Next news brief: Asher.

Wildcat News Brief: Today's article was brought in by Ellie R, who selected this story: NYTimes.com - Angered by 9/11 Victims Law, Saudis Rethink U.S. Alliance. We discussed this interesting look at checks and balances in the United States government at work, as President Obama vetoed this law, then, for the first time in his time as President, he had his veto over ridden by the Legislative Branch. Lots to talk about with this story, Thanks Ellie R! We also checked in about the upcoming weekend and Asher volunteered to do the next news brief.

We also watched Wildcat News for the day:

The Constitution: We continued looking at the Constitution packet we started working on through Google Classroom and Kami last class, which had the Bill of Rights as a part of the last couple of pages (we will work on that section more next week - just focus on knowing the answers to the first two pages).

Please make sure to study the entire packet for the test next class. If you missed class the last two times, here it is to download and fill out by reading the Constitution:

Google Drive: Understanding the Constitution Handout

As I said, here's the reward for checking the blog: a (tough, because I did not specifically ask you this in class) question from the Constitution test:

All of the following are included in the Preamble to the Constitution EXCEPT _____________.
a. establish justice c. the pursuit of happiness
b. provide for the common defense d.  promote the general welfare

The Bill of Rights: The first ten amendments to the Constitution are called the Bill of Rights. To start this part of class, I showed this clip from The Daily Show, looking at what some people working for FOX News had to say in regards to the Bill of Rights and the Boston Marathon bomber.

We ran out of time after this, so we will come back to looking in depth at the Bill of Rights next class. See you then!

Bill of Rights Test and Legislative Branch Overview - Class Recap

The United States Capitol Building, which is where Congress (the Legislative Branch of the US) meets. Photo taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Another quiz today! I hope it went well for everyone. Thanks again for your hard work! We also got started with a unit on the legislative branch. Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments.
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "At the Beginning" from Anastasia. Selected for today because we are the start of a new unit: the Legislative Branch. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/10/16:
News Brief - Lexi
Bill of Rights Quiz
Legislative Branch Overview
Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Study how a bill becomes a law handout - be prepared to write your own bill next class! Next news brief: Vivian.

News Brief: Lexi had the news brief today and selected this article: CNN.com - Marco Rubio says he's not 'proud' of Donald Trump attacks. We discussed the ongoing presidential campaign and how Rubio really needs a win in his home state of Florida next Tuesday, due to a lot of bad results recently for him (possibly attributed to the attacks on Trump).

Thanks, Lexi! Vivian has the next news brief.

We also checked in about the weekend and what people were up to, before moving on.

Bill of Rights Quiz: We prepared for this the past few classes, as well as a bit during class today, before the quiz. Thank you for giving your best effort on this! We will go over the results together next class.

Legislative Branch Overview/Work Time: This was a handout that went through some of through some of the specifics of the legislative process, like what the legislative branch does and who makes it up. Please review the flow chart on page two, specifically. You will eventually be tested on that and we are going to work through that process together in a simulation later this week:

Google Drive - How a Bill Becomes a Law Handout

Before we did some review, I showed this old Schoolhouse Rock classic:

I also showed a Washington, D.C. license plate and talked about "taxation without representation."

We finished going over the handout, including trustee and delegate styles of legislators. Please make sure to review this handout! Thank you! Have a great long weekend!

Bill of Rights Review - Class Recap

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C. FDR was named as one of the Presidents in Final Jeopardy today!

Dear class,

I had a lot of fun reviewing the Bill of Rights with you today! Please be studying the content for the quiz next class, along with the structure of the U.S. government. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “American Pie" by Don McLean. Selected for today because we were talking more about American government, and this song famously contains lots of references to American culture. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/8/16:
Wildcat News Brief - Vanessa
Crash Course Rights
Jeopardy Review
Study Time

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for the quiz next class (be able to write down what each Amendment in the Bill of Rights is, and an example, as well as checks/balances/powers of the federal government). Next news brief: Lexi.

Wildcat News Brief: Vanessa selected this article to talk about for his news brief today: CNN.com - 5 takeaways from the Democratic debate. We talked in class about this recent debate, held in Michigan, which votes today as a part of the presidential nomination process. We looked at a few issues that Clinton and Sanders have tried to use against each other, as well.

Lexi volunteered to do the next news brief. Thank you!

We also watched Wildcat News today. Here it is:

Crash Course Rights: To finish up with reviewing in class for the Bill of Rights test, I showed this Crash Course video (with captions on - I know that the narrator talks very quickly):

Some good information here (and familiar Supreme Court cases)!

Jeopardy Review: I always really enjoy this, and today was no exception. I split the class into three groups, and then we played this version of PowerPoint Jeopardy to review the material we have learned so far in class:

Google Drive - Constitution/Bill of Rights Jeopardy Review

This probably will be difficult to replicate on Google Drive, but you can at least see the questions to study from. We will do this later in the year, too!

Study Time: The rest of class was used for studying and/or retakes of tests or quizzes. I think this was used productively in class, so we may continue to do this. Thanks for your focus today!  One question from the quiz, for checking the blog, is: What is one power of the judicial branch listed in the Constitution? 

Be ready for the quiz next class, please! See you then!

The Rest of the Bill of Rights - Class Recap

Rays of the sun streaming through the flag of the United States, over the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Picture taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Welcome to your weekend! Lots of grading and work for me to do, but I am still looking forward to it, of course. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “99 Problems (Clean)" by Jay Z. Selected for today because it discusses the various protections that the Bill of Rights offers. Lyrics (which are decidedly NOT clean, but Rap Genius does offer some interesting interpretations of what they mean) here.

AGENDA 3/4/16:
Wildcat News Brief - Julia and Emma
Fourth Amendment
Pleading the Fifth
Bill of Rights Review

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for upcoming quiz (next week). Take the Political Spectrum test if you want. Next news brief: Vanessa.

Wildcat News Brief: Julia had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: LATimes.com - Bernie Sanders is waging war on outside political groups, but they're backing him anyway. We talked in class about what Super PACs are, and why Bernie Sanders is against them.

Emma also brought in a news brief about this article: CNN.com - Republican debate turns dirty. With this, we talked about the Republican debate last night on FOX News and some of what happened it it. What a time to be in government class, right?

Vanessa volunteered to do the next news brief.

Here's Wildcat News today as shown in class, if you missed class or wanted to see it again:

Fourth Amendment: Because I want to get done with the Bill of Rights, today we looked through the details of the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th Amendments. We continued going through a packet of individual U.S. Supreme Court cases that helped set the scope of the Fourth Amendment. That packet is here:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Handout

We finished the case on the last page today (Illinois v. McArthur), which basically said that police can have time to get a search warrant while a suspect is waiting.

Pleading The Fifth: I showed this clip to introduce the Fifth Amendment:

This led to another handout, going through the rights of the accused in the United States. I know it was a heavy day of handouts and readings, so I appreciate your focus and effort in looking at these together!

Google Drive - Rights of the Accused Handout

We went over the case studies and had some more good discussion about various student questions about what is and is not legal in terms of searches.

The cases we discussed were: Gideon v. Wainwright and Mapp v. Ohio.

Bill of Rights Review: At the end of class, I showed the TIME overview videos for the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments to the Constitution, since we were wrapping up rights of the accused today in class. Here's a link to the Fourth Amendment one:

Time.com - Your Fourth Amendment Right to Privacy

I thought these did a nice job of explaining the history of each amendment, as well as how they are relevant today. Watch the other ones, if you want to go over them all again! See you next class!

Rights of the Accused - Class Recap

Inside the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

Today, we continued looking at the Bill of Rights together, and diving into what the main ones mean, though some specific cases.

Here's what happened:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay. Selected because I related it to the philosophy of government because the song talks about a king. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 3/2/16:
News Brief - Alex B.
Finish Gun Nation
Freedom of Speech
Rights of the Accused

Homework: Read the blog! Next news brief: Julia.
--
News Brief: Alex B. had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about with the class: NPR.org - Super Tuesday: Here's What You Need To Know. Alex did a good job of recapping what happened with the big primaries yesterday, and what that means for the presidential nomination process. To go with that, I showed this delegate tracker, so we could see where statistical analysis has the candidates as far as being on track to win the nomination: FiveThirtyEight.com - Who’s On Track For The Nomination?

Very interesting to keep following, for sure!

Julia was assigned the next news brief.

I also went over the Political Compass test again and asked for student results. Take it if you want!

Finish Gun Nation: This was the "Gun Nation" episode of the "30 Days" documentary series. I asked students to note Pro and Con arguments for gun rights. I think this episode does a really good job of looking at both sides of the debate, and is pretty powerful. I enjoyed our conversation afterwards. Thanks for your participation with this, everyone!

Freedom of Speech: This was a return to the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" case we learned about a couple of classes ago. The idea was to inform students about how their First Amendment rights are impacted by being at school. The presentation that goes along with this lesson is here:

Google Drive - First Amendment Case Study

Rights of the Accused: To end class, we looked at the (clean version) lyrics from 99 Problems by Jay Z to see how the song is related to knowing our rights, especially those from the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. I then passed out this packet, which was about various different cases regarding privacy and rights:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Packet

Before the end of class, we went through the 8 cases listed in the handout. Next class, we will read over the case on the last page and talk more about the Bill of Rights. Thanks, everyone!

The Constitution, Day 2 - Class Recap

NOTE: There will be no blog recap for the 2/25 class meeting, since most students were preparing for the Smarter Balanced assessments in the Computer Lab, so we did not have a regular class.

Fireworks over Niagara Falls, in 2009. 

Hi everyone,

Thanks for continuing to work on getting to know the Constitution better! I know it may not be the most fun part of class, but it is so important for knowing the foundations of how our government works! Here's what we did today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed: 
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Don't Speak" by No Doubt. Selected for today because we were talking about the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is partially about freedom of speech. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 2/23/16:
Wildcat News Brief - Emma
Review Constitution
The Bill of Rights
The First Amendment

Homework: Read the blog! Prepare for Constitution test on Monday by studying the handout answers! Smarter Balanced preparation for most juniors is next class, then forecasting. Next news brief: Quinn (Monday).

Wildcat News Brief: Emma was not in class today, so my news brief was an update about what is going on in the presidential nomination process. For this, I showed these links:

NYTimes.com - 2016 Primary Results and Calendar

RealClearPolitics.com - Clinton vs. Trump Head to Head

We talked about the ongoing process and today's Nevada Republican caucus. Quinn was selected for the next news brief.

We also watched Wildcat News for the day:

Review Constitution: We continued looking at the Constitution packet I passed out last class, which had the Bill of Rights as a part of the last couple of pages. Please make sure to study the Constitution portion done for the test on Monday. If you missed class the last two times, here it is to download and fill out by reading the Constitution:

Google Drive: Understanding the Constitution Handout

As I said, here's the reward for checking the blog: a (tough, because I did not specifically ask you this in class) question from the Constitution test:

All of the following are included in the Preamble to the Constitution EXCEPT _____________.
a. establish justice c. the pursuit of happiness
b. provide for the common defense d.  promote the general welfare

The answer would be C.

Bill of Rights: As far as the Bill of Rights, I TRIED to show this clip from The Daily Show, looking at what some people working for FOX News had to say in regards to the Bill of Rights and the Boston Marathon bomber:

The Daily Show
Daily Show Full Episodes,More Daily Show Videos,Comedy Central Full Episodes

After this froze, we skipped forward and looked at First Amendment. Sorry about the technology fail today!

The First Amendment: We ended by looking at how the First Amendment impacts students at school. With that, we went through this PowerPoint (helpfully created by Mr. Schmidt, who is student teaching in Period 6), as we discussed each case. Students also had a packet (pick up one in class only):

Google Drive - First Amendment Case Study PowerPoint

We looked at some specific examples of cases where students had questions about how far their rights go. We ended by looking at the famous "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" case, which we will continue to discuss next class.

Bill of Rights Test and Legislative Branch Overview - Class Recap

The United States Capitol Building, which is where Congress (the Legislative Branch of the US) meets. Photo taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Another quiz today! I hope it went well for everyone. Thanks again for your hard work! We also got started with a unit on the legislative branch. Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments.
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "At the Beginning" from Anastasia. Selected for today because we are the start of a new unit: the Legislative Branch. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/19/15:
News Brief - Keir (Natalie)
Bill of Rights Quiz
Legislative Branch Overview
Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Study how a bill becomes a law handout - be prepared to write your own bill next class! Next news brief: Lizette.

News Brief: Keir had the news brief today and selected this article: OregonLive.com - Oregon House committee holds first hearing on GOP ethics fixes. Though this is not all that recent (the article is from April), it still is about important aspects of our own state government, and how it is reacting to the resignation of Governor John Kitzhaber.

Natalie brought in a great news brief today, as well, which was about this story: CNN.com - Top al Qaeda leader Sanafi al-Nasr killed in U.S. airstrike, Pentagon says. It seems like this story has played out dozens of times in the last decade or so. We talked about how the Executive Branch of the U.S. government has the power to act in this way (some would say questionably).

Thanks, guys! Lizette has the next news brief.

We also checked in about the weekend and what people were up to, before moving on.

Bill of Rights Quiz: We prepared for this the past few classes, as well as a bit during class today, before the quiz. Thank you for giving your best effort on this! We will go over the results together next class.

Legislative Branch Overview/Work Time: This was a handout that went through some of through some of the specifics of the legislative process, like what the legislative branch does and who makes it up. Please review the flow chart on page two, specifically. You will eventually be tested on that and we are going to work through that process together in a simulation later this week:

Google Drive - How a Bill Becomes a Law Handout

Before we did some review, I showed this old Schoolhouse Rock classic:

I also showed a Washington, D.C. license plate and talked about "taxation without representation."

We kept going with the handout until we stopped at trustee and delegate styles of legislators. Please make sure to review this handout! Thank you!

Bill of Rights Review - Class Recap

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C. FDR was named as one of the Presidents in Final Jeopardy today!

Dear class,

I had a lot of fun reviewing the Bill of Rights with you today! Please be studying the content for the quiz next class, along with the structure of the U.S. government. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “American Pie" by Don McLean. Selected for today because we were talking more about American government, and this song famously contains lots of references to American culture. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/15/15:
News Brief - Reilly (Natalie)
Jeopardy Review
Crash Course Rights
Study Time

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for the quiz next class (be able to write down what each Amendment in the Bill of Rights is, and an example, as well as checks/balances/powers of the federal government). Next news brief: Keir.

News Brief: There was sort of a lot going on with the news brief section today. First off, we had a new student (Ashley) in class, so we welcomed her as I talked a little about how the class works. Secondly, Reilly selected this article to talk about for his news brief today: CNN.com - U.S. Deploys Troops to Africa. This prompted me to turn into a Global Studies teacher again, as we talked about Boko Haram and why President Obama is sending troops to Cameroon. It is important to know how the Executive Branch has the authority (as Commander in Chief) to direct the U.S. military.

We also talked with Natalie, who humorously did a current event article on a story from Kenya, that had pretty much nothing at all to do with the United States government. So, she graciously agreed to do another one. Thanks, Natalie! I will treasure the write up you did already. :-)

Keir volunteered to do the next news brief. Thank you!

Finally, we checked in about the upcoming weekend. I am off to St. Louis with my girlfriend for her dad's 60th birthday. I'm very excited, as I have never been before!

Jeopardy Review: I always really enjoy this, and today was no exception. I split the class into three groups, and then we played this version of PowerPoint Jeopardy to review the material we have learned so far in class:

Google Drive - Constitution/Bill of Rights Jeopardy Review

This probably will be difficult to replicate on Google Drive, but you can at least see the questions to study from. Our big winners today were Group 1. We will do this later in the year, too!

Crash Course Rights: To finish up with reviewing in class for the Bill of Rights test, I showed this Crash Course video (with captions on - I know that the narrator talks very quickly):

Some good information here (and familiar Supreme Court cases)!

Study Time: The rest of class was used for studying and/or retakes of tests or quizzes. I think this was used productively in class, so we may continue to do this. Thanks for your focus today!  One question from the quiz, for checking the blog, is: What is one power of the judicial branch listed in the Constitution? 

Have a great weekend and be ready for the quiz next class, please!

The Rest of the Bill of Rights - Class Recap

Rays of the sun streaming through the flag of the United States, over the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Picture taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Welcome back from your weekend! Lots of grading and work for me to do, but I am still looking forward to it, of course. Here's the recap for the day:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: “99 Problems (Clean)" by Jay Z. Selected for today because it discusses the various protections that the Bill of Rights offers. Lyrics (which are decidedly NOT clean, but Rap Genius does offer some interesting interpretations of what they mean) here.

AGENDA 10/13/15:
Wildcat News Brief - Natalie
Fourth Amendment
Pleading the Fifth
Bill of Rights Review

Homework: Read the blog! Keep reviewing the Bill of Rights for upcoming quiz (next week). Take the Political Spectrum test if you want. Next news brief: Reilly.

Wildcat News Brief: Natalie S. had the news brief today, and was unfortunately not in class, so we just checked in about the weekend, and then moved on.

Reilly was randomly selected to do the next news brief.

Here's Wildcat News today as shown in class, if you missed class or wanted to see it again:

Fourth Amendment: Because I want to get done with the Bill of Rights, today we looked through the details of the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th Amendments. We continued going through a packet of individual U.S. Supreme Court cases that helped set the scope of the Fourth Amendment. That packet is here:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Handout

We finished the case on the last page today, which basically said that police can have time to get a search warrant while a suspect is waiting.

Pleading The Fifth: I showed this clip to introduce the Fifth Amendment:

This led to another handout, going through the rights of the accused in the United States. I know it was a heavy day of handouts and readings, so I appreciate your focus and effort in looking at these together!

Google Drive - Rights of the Accused Handout

We went over the case studies and had some more good discussion about various student questions (one really good one was about if pirating music penalties are cruel and unusual punishment because they are excessive).

Bill of Rights Review: At the end of class, I showed the TIME overview videos for the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments to the Constitution, since we were wrapping up rights of the accused today in class. Here's a link to the Fourth Amendment one:

Time.com - Your Fourth Amendment Right to Privacy

I thought these did a nice job of explaining the history of each amendment, as well as how they are relevant today. Watch the other ones, if you want to go over them all again! See you next class!

Rights of the Accused - Class Recap

Inside the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

Is it just me, or has this week felt incredibly long? Tiring end to a four day week of classes for many of us - thank you for your effort today! We continued looking at the Bill of Rights together, and diving into what the main ones mean.

Here's what happened:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay. Selected for today by Finn, who related it to the philosophy of government because the song talks about a king. Nice! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/8/15:
News Brief - Ellimay
Finish Gun Nation
Review Constitution Test
Rights of the Accused

Homework: Read the blog! Next news brief: Ellimay.
--
News Brief: Ellimay had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about with the class: CNN.com - Obama apologizes to Doctors Without Borders after deadly Afghanistan airstrike. This prompted me to move into Global Studies teacher mode and I mentioned that our family elected to have people give money to Doctors Without Borders instead of flowers and other condolences after my dad was killed last year, because my dad was a doctor and cared a lot about people. So, this is a really awful story, and important to figure out what happened.

We also talked a bit about the upcoming weekend, before moving on.

Natalie S. volunteered for the next news brief.

I also went over the Political Compass test again, and showed my score compared to Lindsay's on the board.

Finish Gun Nation: This was the "Gun Nation" episode of the "30 Days" documentary series. I asked students to note Pro and Con arguments for gun rights. I think this episode does a really good job of looking at both sides of the debate, and is pretty powerful. I enjoyed our conversation afterwards. Thanks for your participation with this, everyone!

Review Constitution Test: This was from last class, and we also had students who missed last class complete this while the documentary was ongoing. I passed back the scantrons, which had the grades marked on the side, and we went through the whole test together. If this test went poorly, never fear, because there will be a retake in a few classes on the Bill of Rights and the branches of government. Please make sure to review the material!

Rights of the Accused: To end class, we looked at the (clean version) lyrics from 99 Problems by Jay Z to see how the song is related to knowing our rights, especially those from the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. I then passed out this packet, which was about various different cases regarding privacy and rights:

Google Drive - Fourth Amendment Protections Packet

Before the end of class, we went through the 8 cases listed in the handout, then read over the case on the last page (we didn't get to the questions at the end). We ended there for the week, and will pick back up next time there. Thanks, everyone. :-)

The Political Spectrum - Class Recap

The African American Civil War Memorial in Washington, D.C. The soldiers are carrying guns, which relates to the Second Amendment! Photo taken in 2010.

Hi everyone,

We had another good day in class today about the Second Amendment to the Constitution and looked at the political spectrum. Here's what happened:

Learning Targets Addressed:

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

Soundtrack: "Paradise" by Lighter Shade of Grey. Selected for today by Hector, who made the case that it related to class by governments hoping to help create paradise, and his "Creation of a Nation" activity. Listen to the song here.

AGENDA 10/6/15:
News Brief - Madelin
Constitution Test
Political Spectrum
Second Amendment

Homework: Read the blog! Next news brief: Ellimay.
--
News Brief: Madelin had the news brief today and selected this story to talk about with the class: NYTimes.com - California Legislature Approves Assisted Suicide. We had a discussion in class about how Oregon was the first state to approve assisted suicide for terminally ill patients who did not want to continue living with excruciating pain. We talked a little about this - a very interesting debate question. As Madelin noted, California is the fifth state to have authorized assisted suicide.

We also talked a bit about the weekend, before moving on.

Ellimay was selected for the next news brief.

Here's Wildcat News for the day, which we watched in class:

Constitution Test: As promised! I hope that this went well for everyone. I will try to have them graded and entered later today. The first 10 questions were about the philosophy of U.S. Government, the second 10 questions were about the branches of government/checks of power, and the last 10 questions were about the Bill of Rights.

Political Spectrum: I went over the political spectrum in class, which was most of this PowerPoint:

Google Drive - Political Spectrum PowerPoint

Please be familiar with the various different philosophies on the political spectrum, and where they are on the line from left to right, in relation to each other!

Here's the link to the Political Compass test I showed at the end of the PowerPoint. Try it yourself!

Second Amendment: To continue our look at the Bill of Rights, we started watching the "Gun Nation" episode of the "30 Days" documentary series. I asked students to note Pro and Con arguments for gun rights. We will finish watching this next class, and move on to looking in depth at some of the other amendments.