Category Archives: Washerstein Social Studies – Grade 7

Grade 7: The Great Canadian Electricity Map

Today the Grade 7 students spent time analyzing the various sources of energy that are utilized throughout Canada. They examined both renewable and non-renewable energy sources. They were also able to both estimate and calculate the amount of megawatts that each energy source produces.

  

The Great Canadian Electricity Giant Floor Map, codesigned in partnership with Electricity Human Resources Canada, highlights the diversity of energy sources in Canada and the complexity of energy production and transmission across the Canadian landscape. The Giant Floor Map also contains information about innovative careers in the electricity sector, from generation, transmission, and distribution, to energy efficiency, smart systems, manufacturing, and all levels of the supply chain (Canadian Geographic). 

Grade 7: Trip to Algonquin College to Learn About Sustainable Building

The Grade 7 class has been learning about sustainable building for the last month. They have been working on a cross-curricular project in Math and Social Studies focusing on researching, designing, and creating a budget for a tiny home.

6 Tiny Houses In Ontario That Can Be Yours For Under $60,000 - NarcityBy engaging in real-world problems, students have begun to understand the relevancy of learning, while developing essential life skills such as creativity, collaboration, experimentation, research, and perseverance.  

Click here to learn more about the Tiny House Project.

Students were invited to tour Algonquin College and learn about their sustainable building programs. Our class learned about the various efforts that Algonquin College takes to build sustainably and reduce its Carbon footprint. Students took a tour of the college campus and had the opportunity to learn about ethical building practices.

Algonquin Colleges’ Green Roof – our prime visible manifestation of sustainability

“At close to 4,000 m2 the Green Roof on the ACCE building is one of our prime visible manifestations of sustainability that sets this building apart and gives it its striking, iconic presence. It consists of sedum drought-resistant plants that grow in a sand medium, requiring little maintenance or irrigation once established, and it is part of a high-performance building envelope, achieving an R-50 insulating value. This growing vegetation also absorbs and controls rainwater runoff, which creates less strain on the building’s storm sewer drainage systems” (ACCE Program).

 

Students will display their final project in a blog post on their blogfolios. Look out for their super sustainable showcase!

Tiny House Blog Post Requirements

Grade 7: Geography Essentials

Last week we began our first geography unit. We examined a case study that focused on the infringement of indigenous rights in Brazil. Our class has discussed the importance of studying geography along with the various components of the geographic inquiry process. We will now shift gears and dive into the topic of landforms. Students will uncover the various physical features that shape the world as we know it.

The following slideshow will be used to access our daily notes and do nows:

 This is a live document that will be updated regularly!

Students spent time today reading and discussing various landform types.

Click here to see the Landforms Guided Reading Assignment

Grades 6-8: Black History Month (Kayak Magazine)

Last week, we began discussing Black History Month in our Social Studies classes. We talked about the importance of examining history from multiple perspectives. We started with a discussion about Africville in Nova Scotia. Most students were surprised to hear that a community of African Americans was displaced without their consent right here in Canada. As the week progresses, students will analyze and discuss other primary and secondary sources related to African American history in Canada.

In this edition of Kayak magazine, featuring guest co-editor Natasha Henry shares some fantastic stories and examples of the ways Black Canadians built and shaped this country.

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Grade 7: Climate Factors Project (Due: Monday, January 23rd)

In Social Studies, we have been learning about natural factors that influence climate around the world. Students have been analyzing and discussing the six major climate factors.

Six major natural climate factors include:

  • Air masses and winds
  • Latitude
  • Ocean currents
  • Elevation
  • Relief
  • Bodies of water

National Geographic movies and shows | Disney+

Task: You have just been hired as a videographer for National Geographic! As a lead videographer for the climate department, your first task is creating a video about one of the six factors influencing climate. You will be assigned your climate factor by the producer of this program (Mr. Washerstein). Your goal is to showcase your knowledge of a specific climate factor and include real-world examples that demonstrate how your factor influences climate.

Videographer Shoots Video in the Studio. White. Silhouette by KinoMaster

Due Dates: 

  • Project assigned-Tuesday, January 10th 
  • Graphic Organizer Check-In #1- Friday, January 13th
  • Video Progress Check-In #2-Wednesday, January 18th  
  • Video presentations-Monday, January 23rd

 

Climate Factor Project Assignment/Rubric

Climate Factors Graphic Organizer

 

Grades 6-8: Blogging 101

This week students will be uploading a few artifacts of learning to their blogfolios. These posts are intended to showcase projects and assignments that demonstrate growth.

In case students are having trouble creating their blog posts or changing their blogfolio layout, I have included a couple video tutorials.

Check out these useful blogging videos that Mrs. Thompson created:

Creating a Post

Writing a new post is quite easy! It is very similar to writing a page or even a document in Word of Google Docs. You can choose to write a new post in a few different spots throughout your dashboard; either way will bring you to the same place.

Inserting a Google Doc

Hyperlinking Docs

You are always able to hyperlink to a Google Doc, which will direct people to an external link where they will be able to see the document. Depending on the sharing settings, you can choose whether they can edit, view or comment. If you would like this document to be publicly accessed, it is also important to change the settings so that ‘anyone with the link’ can view the document, otherwise you’ll be getting lots of emails from parents requesting access.

1. Click Share in the top right-hand corner

2.  If you would like to share it with specific people, start typing their name or email address

3. Decide whether you would like them to be able to view, edit or comment.

4. If you would like to allow anyone with the link to have access to the document (best if you are linking on your blog so that parents can access the document without it being shared with them, click Change at the bottom of the Get link box.

5. Click the arrow for the drop-down menu next to The Ottawa Jewish Community School and select Anyone with the link. Remember to also select whether you would like those with the link to view, edit, or comment.

6. Copy the link URL to then add as a hyperlink within your document. You never want to paste a long URL to your blog.

Embedding a Google Slides Presentation

Just as with Google Docs, there are a few different ways to embed a Google Slides presentation, and the option you choose will depend on the purpose for sharing. 

If you would like to share a Google Slides presentation for people to view only, the best way to do so would be to publish the presentation to the web and obtain an embed code. 

Embedding Docs as PDF

If you would like to embed the actual document into your post, as is recommended, you will need to save it as a PDF so that it will show up as an image within your post.

Embedding a Video

When adding a video to your post, it is always best to embed the video so that visitors can watch the video directly in the post without having to navigate to a new page. However, it is still important to consider copyright laws when sharing videos that you did not create! Just because something is on YouTube doesn’t necessarily mean it is free to share (think about whole movies you can find on YouTube for free. You can always read the permissions, but chances are…these are not legally shared)

When in doubt, create your own videos or hyperlink to them on YouTube if they can’t be recreated. 

No matter where your video is from, you will want to use the embed code in order for it to properly show up in your post. 

YouTube

YouTube makes it very easy to find their embed codes to copy. 

Screencastify

If you have created a video in Screencastify, while the video is processing, a new tab will open on your computer. From there, it will give you the option to get an embed code. 

From Google Drive

If you accidentally closed the Screencastify tab, or you created the video in some other program (Screen Recorder or even a recording of your Google Meet session) these will all automatically be saved to your Google Drive. Once the video is in Drive, it’s just a few quick steps to embed it directly into the post. 

 

Grade 7: Geography Quiz (Monday, November 28th)

This week our class learned about various landforms and the movement of the Earth’s crust. We analyzed videos and diagrams in order to determine how the various plate boundaries impact our world as we know it. Students will begin to prepare for an assessment that will take place on Monday, November 28th. This assessment will be comprised of multiple-choice, true and false, and short-answer responses.

This assessment will focus on the following lessons:

  • Landforms
  • Plate tectonics
  • Natural disasters

Students have been encouraged to fill out this review sheet.   In addition, students have been urged to create flashcards or make their own digital study tool (i.e. https://quizlet.com/)

Click here to play a practice Kahoot!

7 Major Tectonic Plates: The World's Largest Plate Tectonics - Earth How

 

Grade 7: Hurricane Fiona/Ian Weather Report (Due: Wednesday 10/25)

The Grade 7 Social Studies class is preparing for their first mission as journalists! Our journalists are currently researching one of two hurricanes and preparing a newspaper report.

Here is your next mission for our news website.

You will make your way to one of these two locations: 

  1. Channel Port-aux-Basques, Newfoundland (Hurricane Fiona)
  2. Fort Myers, Florida (Hurricane Ian)

Hurricane Fiona shaping up to be 'potentially severe event' for Atlantic  Canada | Globalnews.ca

As a journalist, you will write an account that describes the impact and devastation of one of these recent natural disasters. This account will focus on the varying elements of geographic perspective that we have discussed in class.  

You will write an informative article (damage, length, affected area, affected population) on this specific hurricane and the path that it took along the way. Use all of the resources that are available to you, such as the Internet, newspapers, and television broadcasts.

Important Dates: 

  • Assigned-Monday 10/5
  • Check-In #1-Wednesday 10/12
  • Graphic organizer complete- Wednesday 10/19
  • Check-In #2-Thursday 10/20
  • Final Report Due-Wednesday 10/25

Important Links:

Hurricane Fiona/Ian Assignment 

Hurricane Report Graphic Organizer

Grades 6-8: Truth and Reconciliation

Today our class will be discussing and analyzing a variety of resources related to the importance of Truth and Reconciliation. Students will listen to survivor testimonies and review the 94 Calls to Action that were created by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We will discuss the importance of both remembering and changing rather than simply forgiving and forgetting. Students will reflect upon our lessons by creating a blog post that demonstrates their own learning.

Click here to access our slideshow: Truth and Reconciliation Week

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