Nov 16, 2001: First Harry Potter film opens

On this day in 2001, the British author J.K. Rowling’s star creation--bespectacled boy wizard Harry Potter--makes his big-screen debut in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which opens in movie theaters across the United States. Based on the mega-best-selling fantasy novel of the same name, the film, which starred Daniel Radcliffe in the title role, went on to become one of the highest-grossing movies in history.

Watch Today in History 

Today in social studies:

7th grade- Students wrote their reflection papers on the Road Trip USA project that we completed at the end of last week.  Also continued working on their Personalities Project in class.

6th grade- Students took quiz over Chapter 2 Section 2 in class.  Also worked on 3 articles in our Time For Kids magazines in class.

8th grade- Started working on their European Explorers project in class and also

watched the soldier from Hiawatha, Iowa who received the Congressional Medal of Honor from

President Obama today at the White House.  Medal of Honor Ceremony

Mr. Johnson

Nov 15, 1777: Articles of Confederation adopted

After 16 months of debate, the Continental Congress, sitting in its temporary capital of York, Pennsylvania, agrees to adopt the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union on this day in 1777. Not until March 1, 1781, would the last of the 13 states, Maryland, ratify the agreement.
                      Watch Today in History

Today in social studies:
7th grade- Discussed Chapter 2 Section 2 and took a quiz, also students turned in their Personalities Projects.
6th grade- Discussed Chapter 2 Section 2 in class, will quiz Tuesday.
8th grade- Discussed Chapter 3 Section 1 in class, also watched a video about Christopher Columbus in class.

Mr. Johnson

Nov 4, 1922: Entrance to King Tut's tomb discovered

British archaeologist Howard Carter and his workmen discover a step leading to the tomb of King Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt.

Watch Today in History 

Today in social studies:

7th grade- 7-1 had a popcorn party after earning 25 Super Warrior tickets, also we finished discussing Ch 2 Section 1 and had a quiz over that section.

6th grade- Students wrote about a fictional candy product for National Candy Day in class.  They had to answer the following questions: If you could invent a new type of candy, what would it be? What would be the ingredients? What would it look like? What would it taste like? What would you call your new candy? For Monday, the students need to draw a picture of the candy and the wrapper they would use for the candy.

8th grade- Students wrote about a fictional candy product for National Candy Day in class.  They had to answer the following questions: If you could invent a new type of candy, what would it be? What would be the ingredients? What would it look like? What would it taste like? What would you call your new candy?  The students will now make 30 second commercials for the 3 winning ideas.

Mr. Johnson

Nov 3, 1998: The Body is elected governor of Minnesota

On November 3, 1998, former professional wrestler Jesse "The Body" Ventura is elected governor of Minnesota with 37 percent of the vote. His opponents, seasoned politicians Hubert Humphrey III (son of Lyndon Johnson’s vice-president and the attorney general of Minnesota) and St. Paul mayor Norm Coleman, spent a total of $4.3 million on their campaigns. Ventura, the Reform-Party candidate, spent $250,000—money he raised by selling $22 t-shirts and accepting $50 donations from his supporters. His only political experience had been his years as mayor of Brooklyn Park, a suburb of Minneapolis, but his laid-back, straight-talking, libertarian approach to politics resonated with many Minnesotans—especially young men who had never voted before. "I voted for Jesse because he was the most honest," one young constituent told a reporter for Newsweek. "If he doesn’t know something, he says he doesn’t know."

Today in social studies:
7th grade-  Students took Skills Iowa (computer based formative assessment), also did an activity with Google Earth in preparation for Road Trip USA Task #4 Thursday in class.
6th grade-  Students took Skills Iowa (computer based formative assessment) and also worked on Skills Tutor in class.
8th grade- As a class we reviewed yesterday's Chapter 2 Assessment, then moved on to Skills Iowa & if they had time, their Current Events article to read & respond to.

Mr. Johnson

Nov 2, 1948: Truman defeats Dewey

 In the greatest upset in presidential election history, Democratic incumbent Harry S. Truman defeats his Republican challenger, Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York, by just over two million popular votes. In the days preceding the vote, political analysts and polls were so behind Dewey that on election night, long before all the votes were counted, the Chicago Tribune published an early edition with the banner headline "DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN."

Watch Today in History

Today in social studies:  

7th grade- Students turned in their Personalities/Historical Places Project, took a map pretest over 6 western states (Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana).  We also continued discussing Ch2 section 1 until time ran out in class.

6th grade- Students shared their sketches of a building in the United States that they thought was a symbol of America.  When finished we started discussing Ch2 Section 1 more in depth until class ran out.

8th grade- Students took Chapter 2 Assessment online, had choice time when finished.

Mr. Johnson

Sistine Chapel ceiling opens to public

November 1, 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, one of Italian artist Michelangelo's finest works, is exhibited to the public for the first time.
Michelangelo Buonarroti, the greatest of the Italian Renaissance artists, was born in the small village of Caprese in 1475. The son of a government administrator, he grew up in Florence, a center of the early Renaissance movement, and became an artist's apprentice at age 13. Demonstrating obvious talent, he was taken under the wing of Lorenzo de' Medici, the ruler of the Florentine republic and a great patron of the arts. After demonstrating his mastery of sculpture in such works as the Pieta (1498) and David (1504), he was called to Rome in 1508 to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel—the chief consecrated space in the Vatican.

In social studies today:
7th grade- Introduced Chapter 2 Section 1 which deals with the first peoples to come to America by way of the Bering Land Bridge which connected Siberia to present day Alaska.
6th grade- Introduced Chapter 2 Section 1 which talks about the Ancient Greeks & Romans including the rise and the fall of the Roman empire.
8th grade- Reviewed for Chapter 2 Assessment in class.


Mr. Johnson