Middle School Social Studies

Welcome back for the 2022-2023 school year at St. Augustin School! The middle school students are off to a great start again this year, and we have been very busy in Social Studies class. I am looking forward to the opportunity to work with you and your children. During the course of the upcoming school year, the students will be learning more about many different topics in my class, such as American history, American government, world regions, world cultures, contemporary global studies, civic ideals, current events, global interdependence, and global crises. This school year is the beginning of the new Iowa Core Curriculum for K-12 schools, so we will be focusing on many new elements of curriculum in my classes this year as well. Please use this website for information about class content, activities, events and assignments, curricula, and course enrichment. Please email or call me if you have any questions about Social Studies class. Let's make it another successful year!

Week of January 9-13

Week of January 16-20

6th Grade

Latin America Unit; History of Latin America

THE AZTECS; Kids Discover Magazine: The Aztecs; "The Aztecs" JS article, with questions; development of Aztec civilization, daily life, Aztec society, the city of Tenochtitlan, calendars, agriculture, medicine, Aztec religion, sculpture, weaving, writing system, warfare, arrival of the Spanish and the Spanish Conquest; Iowa Core 6.13, 6.17, 6.20, 6.22

Aztec Study Guide; Aztec Sun Stone

The Aztecs: Engineering an Empire; History Channel documentary via YouTube

Hernando Cortes- Hero or Villain? (with class questions, justifications, and article posts)

7th Grade

Australia/Oceania; nations, landforms, bodies of water, major cities

Antarctica; major landforms, geographic features, major bodies of water, scientific research stations and claimed territories; Antarctica content articles; Iowa Core 7.16

Survival! The Shackleton Story History Channel documentary, with article in class from Junior Scholastic Magazine; Iowa Core 7.26

Tour the World video on YouTube

8th Grade

Kids Discover Magazine: The Constitution; Iowa Core 8.23, 8.24

Civics In Action: A Citizenship Handbook; The Constitution, Federal Government, Citizens' Rights and Responsibilities; Iowa Core 8.24

A More Perfect Union: George Washington and the Making of the Constitution

Checks and Balances of the U.S. Government

Links

Junior Scholastic Current Events Magazine

Junior Scholastic classroom password: juniorscholastic2223

The Fight Over the Constitution

Civics in Action: A Citizenship Handbook (Section 1- The Constitution)