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Welcome to 7th grade Social Studies. I look forward to meeting many of you during our What To Expect Night!. I invite you to write me an email about any assignment, unit, or student event that you have questions about, at afairchild@hcsdk8.org
HERE ARE SOME SAMPLE POSTINGS FROM LAST YEAR'S CLASS, TO GET AN IDEA OF WHAT WONDERFUL EVENTS AWAIT US IN 7TH GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES!
JAPANESE FOOD DAY is at the end of January!
SEE OUR WONDERFUL CLASSROOM PICTURES BELOW, AT END OF SCROLL OF PICS!
Families, thank you SO much for all the wonderful contributions of the foods of Japan! We loved every bite! Our donation list:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XA9B5up24zfbh-W0nzyqepG-rBRa-cXo4-TqyKzuX7g/edit?usp=sharing
HAKONE GARDENS , Saratoga, CA
Thank you, everyone, for joining our 7th grade Social Studies students from Ms. Fairchild and Ms. Dumpis’ classes, on this special opportunity to visit an authentic, traditional JAPANESE TEA HOUSE, and participate in a TEA CEREMONY, take a docent-led, hour-long tour of the Japanese gardens this Saturday, January 30th.. We met in front of the MPR to carpool/caravan together at 10am. After our tea ceremony, we toured the Japanese gardens at Hakone, and then stopped off at the Mitsuwa Japanese Grocery Mall and Japanese Bakery nearby, for a delicious lunch. Please see our group pictures at the bottom of this webpage. We recommend you visit Hakone and explore it on your own!
HAKONE GARDENS
21000 Big Basin Way
SARATOGA, CA
(408) 741-4994
SOME TIPS FOR A VERY SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL YEAR!
1.) Check our PowerSchool Portal at least once a week, to ensure that your child is not missing any
assignments.
2.) Check our weekly calendars (distributed in class on Mondays, and posted on my webpage, under
the current unit during that week) This will help anticipate test dates and large project deadlines.
3.) Check out My Classroom Expectations so that you and your child share the same understanding.
4.) Ask for a parent conference, either with or without our student, if you have any concerns or want
to tell me important things about your child's learning preferences.
5.) Look over the Syllabus for our year. It includes the grading policy, homework policy, and
lists the 10 civilizations we will learn about in 7th grade.
6.) Offer to come speak at our Cultural Assembly days, if you have special insight or information
about the places and people
we will study this year.
7.) Look over some of the webpages on this website, to preview what units are coming next!
SO, WHAT ARE WE LEARNING THIS MONTH!?!?
In October, students learned about Islam, and went on a simulation pilgrimage to Mecca, called a "hajj"
Here are some pictures of our students interacting with other "student travelers" to Mecca!
In our Islam/Middle East Unit students learned about the history and practices of Islam. In addition students explored how Islam spread throughout the world. Over several days students researched a particular city that was impacted by Islam and created an iMovie trailer to show their understanding of Islam in that particular city. Students were also asked to write in Arabic calligraphy, learn the 5 Pillars of Islam, prepare for, and participate in a simulated “Hajj” or pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, and compare that to current day readings about modern Muslims who travel to Mecca, and how technology helps them to maneuver around the crowded ka’aba and mosque during Ramadan. During our simulation, students sampled falafel, medjool dates, hummus, figs, pita, goat, goat cheese, and mint tea, as typical foods of the people in the middle east.
We sampled medjool dates, goat, goat cheese, figs, and falafel and pita.
And we had a guest speaker from the ING organization, Ms. Maha Elgenaidi, speak to all 7th graders in our assembly.
We served some authentic foods from Arabia, and served mint tea.
This month, we introduced Chromebooks to our classrooms. We dove in immediately and began creating GoogleSlide presentations about many different cultural aspects of Africa (food, sports, music, politics, health crises, diving, safari tourism, surfing, Cricket, Rugby, Soccer, and dance, to name a few)
We also researched and designed tribe reports on the hundreds of regional tribes in the continent of Africa, and learned about the geography and climate of Africa's many, varied zones.
THIS NOVEMBER, WE TURNED OUR RESEARCH FOCUS TO CHINA !!!!!
THIS IS OUR STRUCTURED ACADEMIC CONTROVERSY. IS THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA AN ARCHITECTURAL MARVEL, OR A TESTAMENT TO THE SADNESS AND SUFFERING OF MILLIONS PUT TO WORK, AND DEATH, AND BURDEN ON THE PEOPLE OF ANCIENT CHINA?
OUR TWO DEBATE SIDES PREPARED CAREFULLY FOR OUR EXCHANGE THIS WEEK:
December, rainy weather and delicious food recipes! Students are busy in room 15 designing, acting in, and video-taping their own Cooking Show about authentic Chinese food dishes! Using our Chromebooks and WeVideo tools, students are busy taping and editing their own "Rachel Ray" or "CupCake Wars" format cooking show. They will also post their group recipe in our Electronic Cookbook in their Google Drive. Hmmmm, these new cooking skills may be very helpful at home, too!
PICTURES OF OUR ZEN SAND GARDENS, REAL AND VIRTUAL!
PICTURES OF OUR ORIGAMI KIMONOS
PICTURES OF OUR WONDERFUL JAPAN FOOD DAY ON LAST YEAR ON JANUARY 28TH in Room 15 and Room 17!
Students used their Chromebooks and their tastebuds to research and sample Japan's foods at ten different food stations, traditional of Japan's extensive snack food industry! Stations: Rice, Ramen, Sushi, Miso Soup, Macha and green tea, Japanese soda, Japanese candies, Mochi, Japanese crackers and chips, and seaweed (nori). A delicious lesson indeed!
Here are some pictures of our group at Hakone Gardens, Saratoga, celebrating the ancient Japanese tea ceremony:
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