Hi all!
I CANNOT believe it's midterm already! That feels nuts. This year has truly started off better than any other year so far-- and it's going fast!
Sorry I was delinquent on my post last week; I was out of town for quite a few days in a row for a wedding, my 10-year high school reunion, and a bridal shower...
Here's the update:
7th Grade:
In 7th grade Social Studies we continue to learn about the late 1800s; this includes the Gilded Age with such figures as Carnegie and Rockefeller (the "Robber Barons") and such issues as monopolies and the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, and the Spanish-American War era, which includes the Cuban Independence movement. We are about halfway through The Surrender Tree; we have been doing lots of Listen-and-Draw activities along with this novel, as well as written summaries and reactions. Students are being tested this week over countries in the Caribbean (including Cuba and Puerto Rico, which we are studying as part of the unit); we have been reviewing for the quiz this Friday by practicing Geography Choreography, which seems to be going really well and helping to solidify the kids' mental maps of the region. We have been working through our 4-Source Comparison Packet, examining four different sources on the same topic (Topic: Late 1800s) and analyzing those sources for perspective and bias by asking the following questions: Whose voice is heard in this source? Whose voice is not heard? Who or what is made out to be the hero? Who or what is made out to be the villain? This exercise is challenging for students at first, but eventually they get the hang of it and I believe that it really sticks with them as a tool for historic (and contemporary!) analysis. Next week we will begin discussing the Spanish-American War, the sinking of the USS Maine, Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders, the Anti-Imperialist League, Cuban Independence, and the U.S. war with the Phillipines, among other things. We have been examining some PBS websites about Andrew Carnegie and the Spanish-American War; in the next week or two we'll be watching some documentaries about the late 1800s. We're also in the process of writing to our pen-pals in Honduras!
8th Grade:
In 8th grade Social Studies we continue to learn about the U.S. government; after taking more time to study for our first vocab quiz, 99% of the students nailed it! I'm glad we slowed down and worked at solidifying the definitions and concepts some more. More government-related vocab quizzes to come...
We also continue to read through the novel, Year of Impossible Goodbyes; we're on Ch. 4 right now. We have been studying the Declaration of Independence this week, as well; students will be assigned to write a break-up letter to England and King George III, which is generally a fun assignment for them. We also got our new issues of Upfront Magazine, which the kids absolutely go bananas for! As we wrap-up our Declaration of Independence activities and begin our study of the U.S. Constitution, we'll be using the Upfronts to learn vocab terms by doing a text scavenger hunt. Next week we'll talk more about the Constitution and have a brief discussion comparing it to the Articles of Confederation; we'll also look into the influential works of Thomas Paine, John Locke, and Jean Jacques Rousseau, among others.
As always, if you have any questions, concerns, or constructive feedback, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me.
Thanks for reading!
Leah Hood
P.S. Thanks so much to our fabulous student teacher, Lisa Schmid! We miss her already, but we wish her well as she begins her teaching career!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Second Week Success!
Hi all!
Only week two and we're well underway! I'm so pleased with how focused we have been so far this year; we are really moving through content, and it feels like the students are learning. All of my classes have a positive class dynamic; every single student is respectful and ready to learn.
7th Grade:
In 7th grade Social Studies this week, we wrote about and discussed journal assignments such as, "What might be some causes of a revolution? Why might people want to revolt against their leader or government?" And, "Why do you think the author chose to write this novel entirely in poetry form, rather than prose? What effect do you think it has on her readers?" I continue to be impressed by the quality of student responses to these daily journal entries! Typically students write independently for 3-5 minutes, share their responses with classmates in pairs or small groups, then come back together as a whole class to take some responses on a volunteer basis. During this sharing time we practice respectful listening skills, as well. Most days we compile our shared responses on the white board (and in students' notes) in a graphic organizer. (Students are expected to write 5-8 complete sentences about the assigned topic in the time given.)
7th graders also tried their hands (and arms... and legs... and feet...) at Geography Choreography, a kinesthetic study tool for map quizzes. Since it was the first time they had practiced this learning strategy they needed quite a bit of structured guidance, but I know from past experience that after a few times students get the hang of it and many really look forward to it! Our first map quiz was today, over the provinces of Canada.
We did some listen-and-draw activities with our novel, The Surrender Tree, which is helping us to learn about the Cuban Independence movement; we also used multiple strategies to clarify and solidify the 5 Elements of Fiction (Characters, Point of View, Setting, Plot, and Theme) in students' minds early on in our reading-- we don't want anyone to be confused! Students were especially impacted by the descriptions of how the Spanish authorities treated runaway slaves. Just today (after testing), students worked for the first time with the "4 Source Comparison Packet", which we will complete for each unit of historical study; in this activity (which spans several days) students read four different sources about the same topic and record "Whose voice is heard in this source? Whose voice is not heard? Who or what is made out to be the hero? Who or what is made out to be the villain?" This activity aims at building awareness of perspective and bias in sources-- historic or contemporary. It is often a challenging concept for students at first, but we helped each other through it and I could tell that it was becoming more clear in their minds as we moved through the lesson.
Next week we will continue to read on in The Surrender Tree, take a map pretest over countries in the Caribbean, read some textbook chapters about the Spanish-American War era, and listen to some History Tunes.
8th Grade:
In 8th grade Social Studies this week we did a lot of vocabulary building work. We were planning to take our first vocab quiz today, but by the end of class yesterday it had become clear to me that-- while the students were truly trying to understand the terms and the concepts they embody-- they simply needed more time, practice, and guidance before being tested. We will take the quiz next week instead to ensure student learning and success. Students made mini-posters of Examples and Non-Examples of each vocab term; we added to our Frayer Model packets (which we started last Friday); students built, drew, or acted out the vocab terms, and wrote crossword puzzles, haikus, word associations, or short stories that correctly used each of the six vocab terms. The 8th graders also read Chapter 1 of the novel, Year of Impossible Goodbyes, by Sook Nyul Choi, which is about the start of the Cold War in Korea. We created a graphic organizer to help map out key elements of the book, and students wrote reactions to Ch. 1 and predictions about Ch. 2 in their journals.
Next week we will finish up with our first set of vocabulary terms about government, read on in the novel, and discuss key documents such as the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, and the U.S. Constitution.
Please remember to check Twitter (@MsHoodsHoodlums) for homework assignments and due dates, and please do not hesitate to contact me with questions or concerns.
Thank you and take care,
Leah Hood
Only week two and we're well underway! I'm so pleased with how focused we have been so far this year; we are really moving through content, and it feels like the students are learning. All of my classes have a positive class dynamic; every single student is respectful and ready to learn.
7th Grade:
In 7th grade Social Studies this week, we wrote about and discussed journal assignments such as, "What might be some causes of a revolution? Why might people want to revolt against their leader or government?" And, "Why do you think the author chose to write this novel entirely in poetry form, rather than prose? What effect do you think it has on her readers?" I continue to be impressed by the quality of student responses to these daily journal entries! Typically students write independently for 3-5 minutes, share their responses with classmates in pairs or small groups, then come back together as a whole class to take some responses on a volunteer basis. During this sharing time we practice respectful listening skills, as well. Most days we compile our shared responses on the white board (and in students' notes) in a graphic organizer. (Students are expected to write 5-8 complete sentences about the assigned topic in the time given.)
7th graders also tried their hands (and arms... and legs... and feet...) at Geography Choreography, a kinesthetic study tool for map quizzes. Since it was the first time they had practiced this learning strategy they needed quite a bit of structured guidance, but I know from past experience that after a few times students get the hang of it and many really look forward to it! Our first map quiz was today, over the provinces of Canada.
We did some listen-and-draw activities with our novel, The Surrender Tree, which is helping us to learn about the Cuban Independence movement; we also used multiple strategies to clarify and solidify the 5 Elements of Fiction (Characters, Point of View, Setting, Plot, and Theme) in students' minds early on in our reading-- we don't want anyone to be confused! Students were especially impacted by the descriptions of how the Spanish authorities treated runaway slaves. Just today (after testing), students worked for the first time with the "4 Source Comparison Packet", which we will complete for each unit of historical study; in this activity (which spans several days) students read four different sources about the same topic and record "Whose voice is heard in this source? Whose voice is not heard? Who or what is made out to be the hero? Who or what is made out to be the villain?" This activity aims at building awareness of perspective and bias in sources-- historic or contemporary. It is often a challenging concept for students at first, but we helped each other through it and I could tell that it was becoming more clear in their minds as we moved through the lesson.
Next week we will continue to read on in The Surrender Tree, take a map pretest over countries in the Caribbean, read some textbook chapters about the Spanish-American War era, and listen to some History Tunes.
8th Grade:
In 8th grade Social Studies this week we did a lot of vocabulary building work. We were planning to take our first vocab quiz today, but by the end of class yesterday it had become clear to me that-- while the students were truly trying to understand the terms and the concepts they embody-- they simply needed more time, practice, and guidance before being tested. We will take the quiz next week instead to ensure student learning and success. Students made mini-posters of Examples and Non-Examples of each vocab term; we added to our Frayer Model packets (which we started last Friday); students built, drew, or acted out the vocab terms, and wrote crossword puzzles, haikus, word associations, or short stories that correctly used each of the six vocab terms. The 8th graders also read Chapter 1 of the novel, Year of Impossible Goodbyes, by Sook Nyul Choi, which is about the start of the Cold War in Korea. We created a graphic organizer to help map out key elements of the book, and students wrote reactions to Ch. 1 and predictions about Ch. 2 in their journals.
Next week we will finish up with our first set of vocabulary terms about government, read on in the novel, and discuss key documents such as the Articles of Confederation, the Declaration of Independence, and the U.S. Constitution.
Please remember to check Twitter (@MsHoodsHoodlums) for homework assignments and due dates, and please do not hesitate to contact me with questions or concerns.
Thank you and take care,
Leah Hood
Friday, August 12, 2011
GREAT First Week!
Hi all!
What a fantastic first week back! Truly, this has been the best start to a school year I have ever had. The class dynamics of each one of my class periods is focused and positive; the students are so precious and polite, and we are off and rolling! It feels good. We're actually well into content and it feels like we've been together for longer than one week.
7th Grade:
This week in 7th grade Social Studies we discussed The Gilded Age, which is the time period at the end of the 19th century, following the U.S. Civil War. The Gilded Age is defined by big, unregulated business (laissez-faire economics, the Gospel of Success, the Gospel of Wealth, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act) and robber-barons/tycoons such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller.
We start each class period with a 3-6 minute writing assignment that leads us into the day's topic and lesson. Some examples from this week were: "What might these images tell us about The Gilded Age? Describe what you see. Compare and contrast this set of images and analyze what they might symbolize about the era." And, "In your opinion, what might be some positive effects of imperialism? Some negative effects? Is the U.S. imperialistic today? In the past?"
7th graders also did some reading from Flocabulary, and performed sections of a hip-hop song about The Gilded Age.
Today (Friday), 7th graders took a map pretest over Canada; the quiz is one week from today, Friday, August 19th; the quiz will cover the Canadian provinces. Students have two Study Guides for reference, and I'll be sharing with them some other study tools early next week.
8th Grade:
This week in 8th grade Social Studies we jumped right into learning about the U.S. government. Students wrote and shared journal responses to questions such as, "What words, phrases, facts, opinions, or images come to mind when you think of the term, 'Government'?" And, "Write down anything and everything you know (or think you know) about the U.S. government." I have been so pleased at the high level of student participation in our group discussions, as well as the high level thinking the kids have been bringing to the table about this topic!
8th graders did some reading from Flocabulary about the American Revolution and performed a hip-hop song that summarized the reading; we're not going to spend any more time covering the Revolutionary War (because our unit is really about U.S. government), but I think it's extremely important (if not necessary) to review and discuss the basic historic context from which the key documents (the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights) arose.
There are a TON of vocabulary terms that go along with this unit; because of this we will be laying aside our regular map quizzes and temporarily replacing them with vocab quizzes. 8th graders took a pretest today over six terms: Government, Politics, Anarchy, Ideology, Sovereignty, Federalism; the quiz will be next Friday, August 19th.
Please be aware that I am continuing to post homework assignments and upcoming quizzes and due dates on my class Twitter account: @MsHoodsHoodlums
This week was truly one of the best weeks of teaching I have ever had! I am so looking forward to the year-- I can tell it's going to be a positive and productive one!
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Have a great weekend!
Take care,
Leah Hood
What a fantastic first week back! Truly, this has been the best start to a school year I have ever had. The class dynamics of each one of my class periods is focused and positive; the students are so precious and polite, and we are off and rolling! It feels good. We're actually well into content and it feels like we've been together for longer than one week.
7th Grade:
This week in 7th grade Social Studies we discussed The Gilded Age, which is the time period at the end of the 19th century, following the U.S. Civil War. The Gilded Age is defined by big, unregulated business (laissez-faire economics, the Gospel of Success, the Gospel of Wealth, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act) and robber-barons/tycoons such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller.
We start each class period with a 3-6 minute writing assignment that leads us into the day's topic and lesson. Some examples from this week were: "What might these images tell us about The Gilded Age? Describe what you see. Compare and contrast this set of images and analyze what they might symbolize about the era." And, "In your opinion, what might be some positive effects of imperialism? Some negative effects? Is the U.S. imperialistic today? In the past?"
7th graders also did some reading from Flocabulary, and performed sections of a hip-hop song about The Gilded Age.
Today (Friday), 7th graders took a map pretest over Canada; the quiz is one week from today, Friday, August 19th; the quiz will cover the Canadian provinces. Students have two Study Guides for reference, and I'll be sharing with them some other study tools early next week.
8th Grade:
This week in 8th grade Social Studies we jumped right into learning about the U.S. government. Students wrote and shared journal responses to questions such as, "What words, phrases, facts, opinions, or images come to mind when you think of the term, 'Government'?" And, "Write down anything and everything you know (or think you know) about the U.S. government." I have been so pleased at the high level of student participation in our group discussions, as well as the high level thinking the kids have been bringing to the table about this topic!
8th graders did some reading from Flocabulary about the American Revolution and performed a hip-hop song that summarized the reading; we're not going to spend any more time covering the Revolutionary War (because our unit is really about U.S. government), but I think it's extremely important (if not necessary) to review and discuss the basic historic context from which the key documents (the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights) arose.
There are a TON of vocabulary terms that go along with this unit; because of this we will be laying aside our regular map quizzes and temporarily replacing them with vocab quizzes. 8th graders took a pretest today over six terms: Government, Politics, Anarchy, Ideology, Sovereignty, Federalism; the quiz will be next Friday, August 19th.
Please be aware that I am continuing to post homework assignments and upcoming quizzes and due dates on my class Twitter account: @MsHoodsHoodlums
This week was truly one of the best weeks of teaching I have ever had! I am so looking forward to the year-- I can tell it's going to be a positive and productive one!
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Have a great weekend!
Take care,
Leah Hood
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
7th & 8th Grade Curriculum Maps for 2011-2012 School Year
7th Grade:
This year in 7th grade Social Studies we will cover as much as we can of early 20th century U.S. and world history, as well as some basic physical and human geography. The 7th grade curriculum spans from The Gilded Age in the U.S. (late 1800s) to the end of WW2 (1945). We will start off the year by reading the book The Surrender Tree, by Margarita Engle; this piece of historic fiction is a book written entirely in free verse poems, about the Cuban Independence Movement (from Spanish colonial rule), told from the perspectives of a traditional Cuban nurse, her husband, the Spanish General Weyler ("The Butcher"), and his son. We will use this novel as a pivot around which we will discuss the decline of European colonialism, Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders, Yellow Journalism, the Panama Canal, and American Imperialism/Expansionism (take your pick). Roughly the second half of First Quarter we'll be covering WW1; along with this we'll read some excerpts from All Quiet on the Western Front, and we may even watch a movie or documentary about the Christmas Truce; we'll also be learning about the Russian Revolution (which took place during WW1), and that's always a good time to go over the basics of capitalism, communism, and socialism.
Second Quarter we'll be learning about the Roaring 1920s! There's a lot to this era, including the Women's Suffrage Movement in the U.S., Prohibition, the Labor Movement, and the Harlem Renaissance. The more years I teach this decade, the more I love teaching it. It is such a rich subject area. (Last year's 7th graders enjoyed learning to dance The Charleston!) We'll be reading the book The Truth About Sparrows, which will transition us into learning about the 1930s.
Third Quarter we'll be focusing on the 1930s, including the Dust Bowl, Great Depression, and New Deal. Along with this unit we'll be reading the book Out of the Dust, as well as some excerpts from On Hitler's Mountain, a memoir by Irmgard Hunt. We'll listen to FDR's Fireside Chats and watch the original movie version of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. Depending on our pace at this point in the year, we may or may not begin studying WW2 toward the end of Third Quarter...
Fourth Quarter we'll delve pretty deeply into WW2, learning about the infamous conflict from the perspectives of the U.S. Homefront, the European theater, and the Asian/Pacific theaters. Students will have the choice between three books about WW2: The Diary of Anne Frank, When My Name Was Keoko, and A Farewell to Manzanar.
8th Grade:
We'll begin 8th grade by learning about the history and processes of U.S. democracy and government. We'll study the First Continental Congress and Articles of Confederation, the Constitution and Bill of Rights, the three branches of U.S. government, and some landmark Supreme Court decisions; this will take us to about midterm. After we wrap up our unit on U.S. government, the 8th grade curriculum picks up right where we left off at the end of 7th grade (the end of WW2). We'll start off right away reading the book, Year of Impossible Goodbyes; this historic fiction novel set in Korea does a great job of transitioning us from the end of WW2 to the (simultaneous) beginning of the Cold War. While we read through the book we'll be learning about the decline of European colonialism, which was occurring at the same time as the early Cold War. We'll learn about Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian Independence Movement, Partition, Nelson Mandela and Apartheid in South Africa. (The kids always enjoy watching the film, Gandhi, with Ben Kingsley!)
Second Quarter we'll be learning about the Communist Revolution, the Soviet Union and its early leaders (Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin); we'll also learn about Mao's China and McCarthyism in the United States. Along with this unit we'll read the allegorical classic, Animal Farm (always one of my favorites!). These subjects will definitely take up the whole quarter!
Third Quarter we'll learn about the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in the U.S., but working in some world history wherever possible. We'll cover the Korean War, the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, Environmentalism, JFK's presidency and all that came with it, the counterculture... this unit continues to resonate strongly with students of all ages and is always a favorite! There are lots of famous speeches and songs from this time period, which we will examine.
Fourth Quarter we'll study the Vietnam War, Watergate, the Carter and Reagan presidencies, and work as far up to the present day as time allows! We'll read excerpts of The Things They Carried and read the classic American play, A Raisin in the Sun, readers' theater-style.
In both 7th & 8th grades we'll take regular map quizzes, work on geography skills, discuss current events issues, write to pen-pals in Thailand, China, and Honduras, and work on a year-long research project that is centered around a country (students can choose the country from a pre-determined list). More information about these activities to come...
Whew! And that's just the outline version! We're going to be really smart by the end of this year... :)
This year in 7th grade Social Studies we will cover as much as we can of early 20th century U.S. and world history, as well as some basic physical and human geography. The 7th grade curriculum spans from The Gilded Age in the U.S. (late 1800s) to the end of WW2 (1945). We will start off the year by reading the book The Surrender Tree, by Margarita Engle; this piece of historic fiction is a book written entirely in free verse poems, about the Cuban Independence Movement (from Spanish colonial rule), told from the perspectives of a traditional Cuban nurse, her husband, the Spanish General Weyler ("The Butcher"), and his son. We will use this novel as a pivot around which we will discuss the decline of European colonialism, Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders, Yellow Journalism, the Panama Canal, and American Imperialism/Expansionism (take your pick). Roughly the second half of First Quarter we'll be covering WW1; along with this we'll read some excerpts from All Quiet on the Western Front, and we may even watch a movie or documentary about the Christmas Truce; we'll also be learning about the Russian Revolution (which took place during WW1), and that's always a good time to go over the basics of capitalism, communism, and socialism.
Second Quarter we'll be learning about the Roaring 1920s! There's a lot to this era, including the Women's Suffrage Movement in the U.S., Prohibition, the Labor Movement, and the Harlem Renaissance. The more years I teach this decade, the more I love teaching it. It is such a rich subject area. (Last year's 7th graders enjoyed learning to dance The Charleston!) We'll be reading the book The Truth About Sparrows, which will transition us into learning about the 1930s.
Third Quarter we'll be focusing on the 1930s, including the Dust Bowl, Great Depression, and New Deal. Along with this unit we'll be reading the book Out of the Dust, as well as some excerpts from On Hitler's Mountain, a memoir by Irmgard Hunt. We'll listen to FDR's Fireside Chats and watch the original movie version of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. Depending on our pace at this point in the year, we may or may not begin studying WW2 toward the end of Third Quarter...
Fourth Quarter we'll delve pretty deeply into WW2, learning about the infamous conflict from the perspectives of the U.S. Homefront, the European theater, and the Asian/Pacific theaters. Students will have the choice between three books about WW2: The Diary of Anne Frank, When My Name Was Keoko, and A Farewell to Manzanar.
8th Grade:
We'll begin 8th grade by learning about the history and processes of U.S. democracy and government. We'll study the First Continental Congress and Articles of Confederation, the Constitution and Bill of Rights, the three branches of U.S. government, and some landmark Supreme Court decisions; this will take us to about midterm. After we wrap up our unit on U.S. government, the 8th grade curriculum picks up right where we left off at the end of 7th grade (the end of WW2). We'll start off right away reading the book, Year of Impossible Goodbyes; this historic fiction novel set in Korea does a great job of transitioning us from the end of WW2 to the (simultaneous) beginning of the Cold War. While we read through the book we'll be learning about the decline of European colonialism, which was occurring at the same time as the early Cold War. We'll learn about Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian Independence Movement, Partition, Nelson Mandela and Apartheid in South Africa. (The kids always enjoy watching the film, Gandhi, with Ben Kingsley!)
Second Quarter we'll be learning about the Communist Revolution, the Soviet Union and its early leaders (Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin); we'll also learn about Mao's China and McCarthyism in the United States. Along with this unit we'll read the allegorical classic, Animal Farm (always one of my favorites!). These subjects will definitely take up the whole quarter!
Third Quarter we'll learn about the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in the U.S., but working in some world history wherever possible. We'll cover the Korean War, the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, Environmentalism, JFK's presidency and all that came with it, the counterculture... this unit continues to resonate strongly with students of all ages and is always a favorite! There are lots of famous speeches and songs from this time period, which we will examine.
Fourth Quarter we'll study the Vietnam War, Watergate, the Carter and Reagan presidencies, and work as far up to the present day as time allows! We'll read excerpts of The Things They Carried and read the classic American play, A Raisin in the Sun, readers' theater-style.
In both 7th & 8th grades we'll take regular map quizzes, work on geography skills, discuss current events issues, write to pen-pals in Thailand, China, and Honduras, and work on a year-long research project that is centered around a country (students can choose the country from a pre-determined list). More information about these activities to come...
Whew! And that's just the outline version! We're going to be really smart by the end of this year... :)
Welcome to the New School Year!
Paideia's Vision:
We envision a new generation of engaged, productive global citizens.
Paideia's Mission:
The Mission of Paideia Academy is to challenge and inspire learners by providing a rigorous, content-rich, classical education incorporating languages, music, and the arts while nurturing positive character development.
Welcome back, everyone!
I hope you had a restful and rejuvenating summer break! I felt like my break went by very quickly, with a number of weddings, trips, and classes all crammed into six weeks. I went to Philadelphia, Duluth, and Milwaukee for weddings; Aruba with my former college roommate; Montana with my family. Some highlights for me were the National Constitution Center in Philly, the beach in Aruba, and Yellowstone National Park in Montana. (I so wish I could take all my students to the National Constitution Center!) As much as I thoroughly relish each break, though, I always look forward to seeing my 8th graders and picking right up where we left off, and getting to know my new 7th graders!
Since many of you are just getting to know me, I'll start this post with some general information about my classes and myself as a teacher:
I grew up on a farm in Northeast Iowa; my dad is a hog/corn/soybean farmer (and an engineer), my mom a 9th and 10th grade U.S. History teacher at my high school in Independence, Iowa; I have one "little" sister (who is now 22) at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (she's studying to be a Physical Therapist). I moved up to the Twin Cities in August of 2001, just after graduating high school, to start my undergraduate career at Macalester College in St. Paul; there I double majored in Geography and History, minored in Educational Studies, sang in a women's a cappella ensemble, and generally had a ball. I graduated from Mac in 2005, and immediately began working on my teaching license and Masters of Arts in Teaching at Hamline University; in 2008 I was hired at Paideia into my first real job as a teacher, and I've been here ever since! Paideia has been a truly ideal place for me to learn about contemporary public education, as well as to work my way up the steep, steep learning curve that is teaching.
I have a sincere passion for what I teach. At a "micro" level, what I think is important about teaching is to help young people develop a sense of self (and self-worth), a sense of the world around them, and their important and often challenging roles within that wonderful, confusing, diverse world. I want to help my students to become informed, thoughtful, active citizens; I want my students to be able to think for themselves, to analyze and evaluate information, and to synthesize their own set of beliefs based on thorough analysis and respectful discussion and debate. In short, I want my students to be critical thinkers! I genuinely enjoy working with middle school students because they are just on that threshold of starting to realize what's going on in the broader context of the world around them; they are so eager to formulate opinions and to express themselves in their own ways! I enjoy how middle school students understand, appreciate, and respond to humor, and how information and issues that most adults take for granted is/are new to my students.
At a "macro" level I think teaching is important because I believe the education of each individual betters our society as a whole. Education can create and reveal opportunities for each individual; education can challenge and reshape the status quo, moving us forward as a whole; education can preserve and strengthen our shared values, and promote our shared goals. If I let myself I can get pretty emotional just thinking about how lucky I am to live in a society that allows me to get up in front of others every day and share ideas and information freely; not everyone has that right or that privilege, even in 2011 and beyond.
I use as much literature in my history classes as I can. Although I teach Social Studies, we will do a lot of reading and writing in my classes. I believe literature can bring to life the people, places, and events of history so much better than most other teaching/learning tools, and those characters and plots tend to stick in peoples' minds forever. In many ways I think history is mostly a bunch of stories, and who doesn't like a good story?! It's common for people to think about history as people, places, events, or lessons from the past. That is certainly not untrue, but to prompt my students to think a bit outside the box, I tell them that "History is a collection of recorded perspectives." For each unit we will examine at least four different primary or secondary sources, analyzing each for perspective and bias. We will ask the following quesitons of each source: Whose voice is heard in this source? Whose voice is not heard in this source? Who or what is made out to be the hero in this source? Who or what is made out to be the villain in this source? Then we will discuss what information seemed to be shared between all the sources, and what information seemed to be unique to a particular source or perspective. The final step in this exercise is for each student to evaluate the information and ideas that we consider and to decide for herself/himself what they agree with, what they disagree with, or perhaps what they just aren't quite sure about yet!
I see some truth both in President Bill Clinton's quote, "There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America," and in Barry Switzer's quote, "Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple." I want my students to be aware of how human institutions are set up, how they function, how they (sometimes invisibly) impact peoples' lives, and how they can be changed or adapted to meet new challenges and to solve or alleviate long-standing, age-old problems. The subject matter I teach is, I would argue, inherently controversial, and although one of my main goals as a teacher is to present my students with as many different perspectives as time will allow, I could never possibly cover it all! (Walt Whitman said, "Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I am large. I contain multitudes." I think social sciences are like that.) But I want my students to learn to question, to think, to communicate respectfully, and to develop opinions and beliefs that are based on holistic research and consideration. I want them to be prepared to be part of the solution, not part of the problem; I want them to, as Gandhi said, "Be the change [they] want to see in the world."
I look forward to the year ahead, and I welcome your ideas, respectful feedback, and conversation. Please never hesitate to contact me with questions or concerns.
Take care,
Leah Hood
We envision a new generation of engaged, productive global citizens.
Paideia's Mission:
The Mission of Paideia Academy is to challenge and inspire learners by providing a rigorous, content-rich, classical education incorporating languages, music, and the arts while nurturing positive character development.
Welcome back, everyone!
I hope you had a restful and rejuvenating summer break! I felt like my break went by very quickly, with a number of weddings, trips, and classes all crammed into six weeks. I went to Philadelphia, Duluth, and Milwaukee for weddings; Aruba with my former college roommate; Montana with my family. Some highlights for me were the National Constitution Center in Philly, the beach in Aruba, and Yellowstone National Park in Montana. (I so wish I could take all my students to the National Constitution Center!) As much as I thoroughly relish each break, though, I always look forward to seeing my 8th graders and picking right up where we left off, and getting to know my new 7th graders!
Since many of you are just getting to know me, I'll start this post with some general information about my classes and myself as a teacher:
I grew up on a farm in Northeast Iowa; my dad is a hog/corn/soybean farmer (and an engineer), my mom a 9th and 10th grade U.S. History teacher at my high school in Independence, Iowa; I have one "little" sister (who is now 22) at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (she's studying to be a Physical Therapist). I moved up to the Twin Cities in August of 2001, just after graduating high school, to start my undergraduate career at Macalester College in St. Paul; there I double majored in Geography and History, minored in Educational Studies, sang in a women's a cappella ensemble, and generally had a ball. I graduated from Mac in 2005, and immediately began working on my teaching license and Masters of Arts in Teaching at Hamline University; in 2008 I was hired at Paideia into my first real job as a teacher, and I've been here ever since! Paideia has been a truly ideal place for me to learn about contemporary public education, as well as to work my way up the steep, steep learning curve that is teaching.
I have a sincere passion for what I teach. At a "micro" level, what I think is important about teaching is to help young people develop a sense of self (and self-worth), a sense of the world around them, and their important and often challenging roles within that wonderful, confusing, diverse world. I want to help my students to become informed, thoughtful, active citizens; I want my students to be able to think for themselves, to analyze and evaluate information, and to synthesize their own set of beliefs based on thorough analysis and respectful discussion and debate. In short, I want my students to be critical thinkers! I genuinely enjoy working with middle school students because they are just on that threshold of starting to realize what's going on in the broader context of the world around them; they are so eager to formulate opinions and to express themselves in their own ways! I enjoy how middle school students understand, appreciate, and respond to humor, and how information and issues that most adults take for granted is/are new to my students.
At a "macro" level I think teaching is important because I believe the education of each individual betters our society as a whole. Education can create and reveal opportunities for each individual; education can challenge and reshape the status quo, moving us forward as a whole; education can preserve and strengthen our shared values, and promote our shared goals. If I let myself I can get pretty emotional just thinking about how lucky I am to live in a society that allows me to get up in front of others every day and share ideas and information freely; not everyone has that right or that privilege, even in 2011 and beyond.
I use as much literature in my history classes as I can. Although I teach Social Studies, we will do a lot of reading and writing in my classes. I believe literature can bring to life the people, places, and events of history so much better than most other teaching/learning tools, and those characters and plots tend to stick in peoples' minds forever. In many ways I think history is mostly a bunch of stories, and who doesn't like a good story?! It's common for people to think about history as people, places, events, or lessons from the past. That is certainly not untrue, but to prompt my students to think a bit outside the box, I tell them that "History is a collection of recorded perspectives." For each unit we will examine at least four different primary or secondary sources, analyzing each for perspective and bias. We will ask the following quesitons of each source: Whose voice is heard in this source? Whose voice is not heard in this source? Who or what is made out to be the hero in this source? Who or what is made out to be the villain in this source? Then we will discuss what information seemed to be shared between all the sources, and what information seemed to be unique to a particular source or perspective. The final step in this exercise is for each student to evaluate the information and ideas that we consider and to decide for herself/himself what they agree with, what they disagree with, or perhaps what they just aren't quite sure about yet!
I see some truth both in President Bill Clinton's quote, "There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America," and in Barry Switzer's quote, "Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple." I want my students to be aware of how human institutions are set up, how they function, how they (sometimes invisibly) impact peoples' lives, and how they can be changed or adapted to meet new challenges and to solve or alleviate long-standing, age-old problems. The subject matter I teach is, I would argue, inherently controversial, and although one of my main goals as a teacher is to present my students with as many different perspectives as time will allow, I could never possibly cover it all! (Walt Whitman said, "Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I am large. I contain multitudes." I think social sciences are like that.) But I want my students to learn to question, to think, to communicate respectfully, and to develop opinions and beliefs that are based on holistic research and consideration. I want them to be prepared to be part of the solution, not part of the problem; I want them to, as Gandhi said, "Be the change [they] want to see in the world."
I look forward to the year ahead, and I welcome your ideas, respectful feedback, and conversation. Please never hesitate to contact me with questions or concerns.
Take care,
Leah Hood
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