Big picture essential questions:
•What did freedom mean to the nation's founders and how did it change over time?
•How and why did the United States expand?
•Who is considered American?
Let us hope for another great year. We Matadors are still using Common Core strategies, the Four C’s [critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity], and thinking maps school-wide to improve writing across the curriculum. In my class, we are also using the AVID: THE WRITE PATH strategies for social studies for the third year at SVJHS. We will be creating a product we call the interactive student notebooks. Watch for the syllabus coming home in the coming week to be clear about expectations and policies for history class to make learning positive for everyone.
Everyone is Living History. Students will be interviewing relatives and family members to learn more about their own context to understand space, place, and time. Our Social Contract is also in effect just like every year in school, and we will be practicing those philosophies. We like to think of our scholarly path as readying you for high school, and we want you all to be life-long learners.
Please utilize this site as a resource as much as you can in class and at home. We will espeically be using this for our Wayback Wednesdays. We will be referring back to this site each week and all year. Let’s have all our Baldwin Park families work together to make a great learning community. We’re making history!
Please be mindful this entire year, giving a scholarly effort at all times. Usually only 15-20 minutes is needed for Homework. Students who use time well in class will have less homework. And one of the most important things: sleep a minimum of 8 hours per night for the healthiest brain ready for learning. We should also mention the agenda check with parents; every Thursday you should receive handwritten initials from your parents. In the agenda you will be writing, Monday=muddiest point, Tuesday=exit card, Wednesday=annotation, Thurs/Friday= choice, and these are written in the specific place we talked about today.
SVJHS has introduced a new school rule on intellectual usage of technology. When you come into class your devices are to be away and off. After the bell rings you may use the device for CNN only. We will use the technology accordingly. in the last 3-4 mins while you work on your agenda you are to turn your devices off. Also if you are found to misuse the devices there is a new form of turning the devices into the front office. You get 2 chances then your device will go to the front office for your parents to pick up.[The class will talk about other consequences and timelines as a class] You may lose your ability to use technology in the classroom if you are unable to follow the social contract.
Our social contract that should be followed everywhere in our lives [use your pre-frontal cortex & executive function]. We will discuss the interactive notebooks and explain inputs and outputs. Most important you should tell your parents that there is never a time when you do not have homework for Mr. Culbertson’s class. Only a few students ever get so far ahead of the class, so their interactive notebook is ready to turn in early for grading. Many elements of a great notebook are usually unlikely to be completed early. It can be said, we always have something new to learn and study to remember, this is what we might call academic scholarship!
Let us all have a great year Matadors.
Take care, and peace, love, and happiness.
Mr. Torey Culbertson
History Dept. Chair
p.s. Please consider writing your opinion about these quotes for homework:
“When history repeats itself the price of the lesson goes up.”
“History as a disciplined enquiry aims to sustain the widest possible definition of memory, and to make the process of recall as accurate as possible, so that our knowledge of the past is not confined to what is immediately relevant.”
Please read more about your community and history, click on read more....