Let's get jazzy.

Yesterday we started by discussing the two people from the other day, DuBois and Booker T. Washington. Once we finished with that, we got into larger groups to learn more about another influencal black figure, Garvey, who started the Black Star Line and the UNIA in both the United States and Jamaica.

Today we finished talking about Garvey and moved onto to the flight of African Americans to the cities and the Harlem Renaissance. We got to read poems, see paintings, and listen to music from this period.

Let's start a new unit.

All the way back last Friday before vacation, we dedicated ourselves to finishing - or in our case, working on - our projects. We got all of the filming done, drawing on Mr. Boyle's whiteboard, and plan to record our voices next Wednesday after school.

Today we started a new unit on Civil Rights, where we read essays of two prominent figures for African American rights. Our group had W.E.B. Dubois, who spoke out against the thoughts of Booker T. Washington. Mr. Boyle said we would continue with this tomorrow.

Let's squiggle with Expo markers.

At least, that's what it looks like to someone on the outside. Instead of a test for this unit, we're making videos of us drawing out and narrating the ten steps of Reconstruction and answering whether or not it was successful overall. Yesterday we got time to do a rough draft and decide what we were doing, while today three groups got to embark on filming their final drafts.

Let's assume time goes in a line.

I know, a pitiful Doctor who reference. Time doesn't really go in a line, it's more wibbly wobbly.

Let's make everyone equal!

Notes. Lots and lots of notes. This is what our past two History classes have been comprised of. Yesterday we took notes on the Civil Rights Act of 1875, and the events that followed, like the formation of the Klu Klux Klan. We discussed as a class whether or not the Civil Rights Cases were constitutional or unconstitutional.

We started off class today by taking notes on Jim Crow laws, before moving into talking about our upcoming animation project and were left to decide on what our ten steps were going to be in our groups.

Let's make loopholes.

That's exactly what plantation owners did, we learned today. Since slavery was outlawed, they just tricked former slaves into signing deals with the devil, giving them a long list of things they had to do in return for half the crops. Essentially, they were blackmailed into becoming in debt, and therefore slaves to the land owners. Again. Not so great for them, eh?

Yesterday we spent the first half of class reading a eulogy of the president Andrew Johnson, and then later discussing what he did after the death of Abraham Lincoln, his political views, and his motivations against the radical Republicans.