Thomas+Thornburg

Preamble Questions

Mason HS, Mrs. Pierce

Hi there I'm Tom Thornburg. I'm originally from Corunna Michigan, which is about half way between Lansing and Flint. I'm a senior this year at Michigan State, majoring in history and minoring in geography with the RX endorsement. I've always loved history, and I'm very excited to share my interest with students in the (not too distant) future. Between school and work i don't have too much free time, but when i do I like to spend it reading, running, or poorly attempting to cook. . Above: Me and some friends decided to finish out the summer by backpacking through the sleeping bear dunes. The trip was planned at the last minute, but was a great experience.

My other major passion is music. I love listening to music, talking about music, thinking about music, you name it. I've been playing guitar for about a decade now, and i still enjoy learning new things and making up new stuff with friends whenever possible. Above: A bunch of my guitar junk

I'm looking forward to another great year of TE!

__**9/11 Lesson Plan**__

__Events leading up to 9/11:__

Activating prior knowledge: Ask students what they know about 9/11, what caused the attacks and what has happened since then. Construct a rough timeline showing key events, with 9/11 /2001 in the center.

Use discussion to work into a summary of the events, (students in secondary schools would have been between 2 and 8 when 9/11 happened). Backtrack briefly and discuss key terms: Al Quaeda, ’93 bombing, FEMA, and others who played a large role in the attacks and their aftermath.

__Aftermath:__

Was there good reason for us to enter Afghanistan? Is there anything we could have done to prepare? (read excerpts from December 1998 issue of //Time// [] ) Discuss the Patriot Act; was it appropriate and/or necessary in the context of early post-9/11 America?

Take home assignment: What was the lasting impact of the 9/11 attacks? Did the terrorists succeed in their goals or was America’s response contradictory to their plans?


 * Ancient Egypt (Microteaching)**

Day 1: 3150 bc Beginning of Egyptian civilization. Use KWL to find out what students are interested in in the region. Use responses to guide further discussion. Discuss early Egypt, and why the civilization started in that particular area. Day 2: Agrarian society: The nile river flooded annually, leaving behind rich soil that allowed early Egyptians to grow food. Agriculture allowed the early Egyptian civilization to grow. Explain that in ancient times more food allowed for a myriad of new opportunities. Day 3: This growth led to early political organization. Egyptians began working together on irrigation systems that allowed them to produce even more. This cooperation led to political organization, and early cooperation led to the building of the pyramids. Describe differences between kingdoms, and intermediate periods. Discuss in class how Egyptian society was structured, from the Pharaohs and nobility down to slaves. Day 4: Fall of Egypt. Explain why the civilization fell to the Romans in 30 bc, and what effect this had on the lives of Egyptians. What led to the shrinking of Egyptian kingdom and army? What other outside influences changed the way the Kingdom functioned? Day 5: What we’ve taken from the Egyptians. Why mathematics and architecture have changed (due to Egyptian influence). How hieroglyphics advanced communication, and what we can learn from them today. What significance did the afterlife play in Egyptian society?


 * Lesson Plan Study guide (Instructional Strategies, pages 67-88)**

__Components__ 8 parts to a lesson plan (listed on page 67) __Reflection__ Plan, act, observe, reflect <--> create meaning, decide. Repeat Work with other teachers, don't just identify problems Action research- learn by doing
 * Note what materials will be needed
 * Experienced teachers may not need lesson plans
 * In action- How is it going?
 * On action- How did it go?
 * For action- What needs to be changed?

__Planning/Motivation__ Intrinsic and extrinsic
 * Extrinsic- prizes, etc. Effective, but doesn't promote internal value of lessons
 * Intrinsic- "Flow" learning. Students know what needs to be done, and how to do it.
 * Varies based on difficulty of task and sill level of students
 * Effects students' self-efficacy

__Classroom Management__ Closely linked to instructional strategy used
 * Management- proactive
 * Discipline- reactive
 * Relational teaching- "with it" in classroom
 * 10 truths- page 81

__Approaches__

Behaviorism-behavior modification/reinforcement Assertive discipline- expectations for classroom, **choices** for students Dreikus/Albert- Democratic/cooperative approach Ginott- congruent communication, address situations constructively Glasser- High expectations for students Jones- Nonverbal cues set the tone of class. Spend even time between students Kounin- Avoid misbehavior by engaging students
 * Dreikus' 4 reasons for misbehavior

Keep a positive learning environment


 * Modern History.** (elective course description)

__Course description:__ Modern history is concerned with more recent historical events that have a larger impact on our lives today. The focal point for this course would be what is happening in the world today. Most events have a historical pretext, and understanding this story is often the key to fully understanding why certain results came to be. This course will not only explain chains of events, but also political, logical, and cultural reasons behind them.

Although similar to current events, “Modern History” takes a more inquisitive approach to the subjects at hand. By researching an event and then backtracking to find out how it happened, students will be able to more completely grasp current issues. This will also allow students to see how events could possibly unfold in the future, and what this means with regards to responsible citizenship and decision making in the present.

__Units__ One unit would cover the “Arab Spring” of last year. Students would research how events like the self-immolation of a Tunisian merchant, and the education policies in the area could lead to such turmoil and change.

Another unit would be about the wars America is currently involved in. We aided Afghanistan (for example) in the late 80’s in fighting the Soviet Union, which had lasting effects on the country. We would look through causes of the war, and the results of certain actions. Within the topic of American combat operations, we could also go back and look at similarities with past wars like Vietnam, and the Korean War.

Global warming is another topic I would like to cover. This again provides a great example of the general theme of the class. Students would look at weather and pollution trends over the past several decades, and decide what they think personally about global warming based on the data they uncover. By taking a historical approach, students could “watch” these trends over the past few decades.

__Texts__ The texts for this course would consist of relevant articles (Newspapers, scholarly articles), late 20th/21st century history books, and documentaries on specific topics covered in class. Since the focal point of this class is essentially the present, all texts would have to be as up to date as possible. I would want the class texts to be more supplemental in the way the class would function. Discussion would be my main goal for the class, and texts would be a starting point for students.

__Assessment__ I want the class to be more discussion based, so debates and presentations would be a large part of assessment. Papers would also be a good way for students to let out some ideas, and show what they have learned in class. Several quizzes could be useful for basic information about the events, which would be necessary before hosting a serious discussion in class.

Unit Plans: My friend Mike teaches at Fowler High School, about 20 minutes northwest of Lansing. He told me that this early in his teaching career, he mainly sticks to content standards, and groups them based on his departments guidelines. Many of his lesson plans are prepared with help from colleagues, and are based pretty strongly around the content standards. I think that Mike’s response was reflective of his time teaching. This early, he said that much of his planning is simply figuring out how to get by, and find footing in his school. After our work over the past few weeks, I think that the most important part of lesson planning is revolving around a general theme, place, or time period. This provides continuity between lessons, and gives the unit a sense of direction.

Portland Lesson Plan 2) SSU when early human communities populated major regions. 3) SSU how early human communities adapted to different environments. ||
 * **CLASS: Portland Middle School Social Studies ** || **DATE: N/A ** || **UNIT: Beginnings of Human Society **
 *  LESSON: Peopling the Earth ** ||
 * **ENDURING UNDERSTANDING: **What will my students be able to do or understand by the end of class? ||
 * 1) SSU how human communities populated major regions.
 * **ESSENTIAL QUESTION: **What 1-2 major themes/ideas do I want to explore with students in this unit? ||
 * 1) What made early humans move across the globe?

2) What needs drove people to certain regions of the world? || 1) W1.1 2) G1.1 3) ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">MICHIGAN GLCE: **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">Which three state standards does my plan address?


 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">HOOK/INITIATION: **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">What will you do to get the students invested in the lesson? ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Ask students to explain their answers to bellringer activity. Why are these items necessary to live? ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">TEACHER ACTIVITIES: **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">How will I convey the knowledge/skills of the lesson to help my students understand? ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Brief Lecture on what items are necessary for life (Food, shelter, clothing) and how these would force early humans to move around the world.

<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Explain how nomadic food sources were mobile, early humans needed to move around with their food. <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">What other ways could early humans get food?

<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Foraging: what does this term mean? <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Show Man vs. Wild “Tastes Rancid” clip. What does Bear Grylls have to do to survive in the wild? ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">STUDENT ACTIVITIES **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">What will the students do to demonstrate their understanding? ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Divide class into groups of 4-5, and give each group 2 world maps, one showing average temperature, the other showing food sources available to nomadic peoples.

<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Have students identify where (based on this information) people would be able to live more comfortably, and why. Pass out post it notes for students to place on the map. Notes should include information about climate and available food sources, and a brief student interpretation of why the location they chose is appropriate. || <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Ask students to consider how agriculture and domestication would change how nomads lived. ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">CLOSURE/SHARE BACK: **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">How will the students share/interpret knowledge for others in the class? ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">Students will share their maps with the class and briefly explain why they identified certain areas as better for early nomads to reside.


 * **<span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">BELLRINGER: In journals: What do you need to live? One paragraph **


 * <span style="font-family: 'Garamond','serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">TICKET OUT THE DOOR: Turn in maps completed during student activity ** ||  ||

10/31 Halloween lesson plan

History: We all know Halloween is a fun time to dress up, go trick or treating, or hang out with friends, but what is the larger significance of the holiday? Every country has several holidays aimed at remembering lost relatives, and celebrating a successful harvest before winter sets in. Halloween takes bits and pieces of many of these holidays to form one that is unique to our culture. There are several major tenants that make up the way we celebrate Halloween today.
 * festivals of the dead, “scary” side of Halloween (skeletons, ghosts, and other scary Halloween items)
 * Preparation for winter/trick or treating for candy (similar to medieval harvest celebrations, also where Halloween symbols like pumpkins come from)
 * Similar events in other countries (Dia de los Muertos, remembering dead relatives)
 * Trick-or-treating- the idea of beggars disguising themselves, and in early days scaring people.

Current events view: How does your costume reflect current events? (Lady gaga, vampires, current movies, etc.) []


 * Lecture: The Renaissance**

Period in Europe, Started after the black death in Italy but soon spread throughout Europe. Renaissance=rebirth, (in the 4th column of the worksheet, think “rebirth of what?”) Five major areas
 * Rebirth of classical ideas.
 * Started looking to classical Greece and Rome (In Italy, where the renaissance started) for “new” ideas
 * 1) Literature. After the black death people started thinking about life in a different way, and people started to write about it. The invention of the printing press allowed ideas to spread much faster than ever before
 * Classical writers called humanists
 * Wrote about philosophy
 * Looked to the past for ideas (Socrates, Aristotle)
 * 1) Art.
 * Sculptors, painters, and architects (Ninja turtles, Brunelleschi)
 * Painted pictures, sculpted, and used classical architecture to build new buildings
 * Roman forum, sculptures all over Europe
 * 1) Religion. The church was very powerful, and had its influence all over Europe.
 * The pope was the leader of the church
 * Started to recognize the value of this “new thinking” from the renaissance
 * The other four fields (which were influenced by classical thought)
 * 1) Politics.
 * The Medici family were bankers in Florence Italy
 * They financed much of the early Renaissance (Brunelleschi)
 * Enjoyed classical ideas, wanted to revive them
 * 1) Science. Development of the scientific theory (Renaissance man)
 * Leonardo da Vinci, Gallileo, people all over Europe
 * Started using the scientific method (Hypothesis, test, results, repeat results, conclusion)
 * Influenced by classical philosophy (proving everything)

__**Geography Concept**__

It is pretty easy to dumb down geography to facts and generalizations. Many classes focus exclusively on facts, and rely on naming countries, capitals, and landforms as the foundation of geography. Generalizations, on the other hand go a little deeper. but still only scratch the surface of many more important ideas in geography. Concepts make up the "why" in geography. Through conceptual learning students can come to understand how the worlds physical and human landscapes came to exist as it is today, and also learn about the factors that constantly shape them. As Segall points out, one of the most important concepts commonly overlooked in cartography is bias. Maps can be produced for specific purposes to show certain pieces of information in a different light. To help students understand this concept, i would show examples of past maps that were made to serve a specific purpose, and also older maps that were taken as accurate, even though knowledge of the world was very limited.

A 16th century map by Dutch cartographers, does it look accurate?

Another way to think about maps (as presented by Schmidt) is how they actually effect our everyday lives. A major concept i would like to cover in a geography or history class is the idea of national boundaries. Boundaries drawn after the British empire have been to blame for countless problems. I would ask students what the function of a boundary is, and whether they are "real" or created in response to physical and human landscapes. When you drive across a state border for example, is there any major change in the landscape?