New challenges

Hi everyone,

It's good to see students taking responsibility for their own learning. Right now, students have split into two groups after some deep class discussion. About half the students are working on independent projects that deepen their understanding about an aspect of the Middle Ages - something they wanted to learn about or explore a little more. Some students are working alone, and some are working in small groups. I look forward to project presentations on Friday the 21st! Students will be evaluating their own work in consultation with me. On that same Friday, we'll also wrap up with a little Middle Ages Christmas party. Traditional Christmas music and treats will be in order.

The other half of the students are doing a mini-unit on feudal Japan. They have been given a list of vocabulary and concepts that someone who has a solid, general understanding of feudal Japanese culture would know. Using that sheet, the students are reading their textbook and other resources and watching films to discover more about the topic. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we'll be discussing how we want to evaluate the learning from the unit.

When we return from the holidays, we'll be working on a Renaissance project. It will culminate in a Renaissance fair and we will also do two lessons around career planning, to meet the Ministry of Education requirements in the area of Career and Health for grade 8.
More information will be coming about the Renaissance project over the holidays and on the first day we return.

Keep up the good work!