February 1st

The semester is over and we're about to start another. I am wrapping up my work, submitting marks and getting prepped for my Grade 10 and 11 Geography classes.

I really enjoyed teaching Western Civ this semester. I wish everyone well on the remainder of their Grade 12 year.

See you at Grad!

Mrs. T.

Week of January 7th

This was a busy week. Everyone wrote the Provincial Standards Test in English. In Western Civ, we learned about the Industrial Revolution. We began by examining the term "revolution" and discovered that it need not involve a violent overthrow, but can be a fundamental change in society. The Industrial Revolution fits this definition because the basic structure of society changed from being agricultural and moved toward becoming industrial. This was an abrupt departure from centuries of agrarian societies.

We did a number of assignments to learn about the Industrial Revolution. These reviewed the Agricultural Revolution and then the Industrial Revolution.

We spent two days examining the topic of child labour during the Industrial Revolution. We looked at original documents that were connected to the British Parliament's study on the topic which ultimately resulted in the Factory Act of 1833 - and subsequent legislation that extended the rights of workers.

On Monday, we will be writing the test for this unit.

Study hard,
Mrs. T.

Thursday, December 20th

Today we did an essay response to the question: "One of Napoleon's greatest achievements was his Civil Code. Assess its importance to Western Civilization." This wraps up our unit on the French Revolution and Napoleon.

No homework tonight,
Mrs. T.

Wednesday, December 19

Today we examined the differences between civil code and common law. They are considerable. It is important to think about the implications for countries using either of these. Tomorrow we will do a written response exercise (for marks) wherein students will express reasoned opinions about the two systems. A question will be posed for you to answer in essay format.

Take a look at your notes on the Napoleonic Code and related materials.

Mrs. T.

Monday, December 17th

Today we looked at the Code Napoleon. We learned about the reasons why the code was created and about its content.
Then, we engaged in a simulation game wherein members of the class divided into groups and became judges. Using modern day scenarios, groups acted as judges and used the Code Napoleon to decide cases. It was interesting to see how groups sometimes decided cases differently.

No homework tonight,
Mrs. T

Week of December 10th

On Monday, we continued our review of the Scientific Revolution.
On Tuesday, we wrote the test. It turned out that we did really well on these concepts!
From Wednesday to Friday, we examined the French Revolution and started to learn about Napoleon.

Time is flying by as we approach the holiday!
Mrs. T.

Friday, December 7th

Today, we took up the crossword on the Scientific Revolution. After reviewing it briefly, each student was given another crossword and we had a race to see who could finish it first - with the most accuracy. Mark won the contest. Way to go, Mark!

We began playing Jeopardy but ran out of time at the end of the class.

Don't forget to study this weekend,
Mrs. T.