US Government
It's your Senior year! Finally, US Government! This will probably be one of the most relevant and useful courses you will take in your high school career (the other is Economics). How can I make this bold claim? Well, we live in a democracy. And keeping a democracy requires the constant work of citizens and communities. This course provides a framework for understanding the basic tenets of American democracy, practices of American government as established by the United States Constitution, and basic concepts of American politics and citizenship. Basically, a bunch of stuff you will use every day of your life before and after your graduate if you hope to be a productive member of society! Get excited! This is some useful stuff!
I expect all my students to put forth maximum effort into everything they will be asked to do for this class. I want you to utilize all the skills it takes to succeed...in short, look at your path, change direction if things are not working, and never stop moving forward no matter how tough it gets! And since we all love a good football metaphor...watch this video of a quarterback putting forth maximum effort. I expect all my students to tackle my course with the same motivation as that quarterback! Reading, writing, defending your opinions with evidence, asking for help when needed, and truly taking the time to review and study...you will get out of the class what you put in!
Class Syllabus and Course Detail
US Government deals with topics affecting you everyday. Your government is in EVERY aspect of you life, do not believe me...check out A Day in the Life. What surprises you the most? ...yep, it is something that will be a part of the rest of your life!
US Government is a conceptual course as well as a historical course. That is, it deals with many concepts about government and economics relating in many ways to many different historic events (not to mention events yet to come in your lifetime)! I am super excited to be teaching this to you!
For more details about the course this semester, click on the Course Syllabus button.
Skills Needed for Mr. Strachan's Class
1) FOCUS your attention on all aspects of this class. ATTENTION is what helps you learn...not interest. But believe me, the more you learn, the more interesting things will get! Who knows, this may end up being your most favorite class! Want to know some ways to stay focused? Watch this video for some brain training tips.
2) READ for understanding. In today's easy to access info world, videos and skimming may seem like the easiest way to get through your high school years, but that will not help you build skills you need. Don't believe me? Take a few minutes to, yep, read about the advantages of improving your reading comprehension skills.
3) DELAY GRATIFICATION. The ability to do the challenging things, the boring things, the less interesting things while delaying those things you would rather be doing is a skill you must build in order to be successful. Don't believe me? Watch this video on the classic Marshmallow Test and think about why kids who can delay gratification go on to have more academic success and higher levels of happiness.
4) Find your INTERNAL MOTIVATION. Do you "know your why"? Watch Michael Jr explain and then think about what is YOUR "why". People who can self-motivate by focusing on internal incentives (or your "why") are FAR more successful in life than just “smart people”. Having motivation drives you to do your best and enjoy the challenging tasks more. Here's more about why intrinsic motivation helps lead to success. So when I ask you for YOUR "why" (your intrinsic motivation), what are you going to say?