Costume Day

Nice work on the costumes today!  Photos coming soon.  The homework for the weekend is to read chapter 11 and take notes--I'll be looking at notes on Monday--we're heading to Rome for a week!

AP World Costume Drama

So you know the drill...wear a costume and get a quiz grade. 5/5 for a lame one, 10/10 for a good one, 15/15 for historical figure, 20/20 for all day wear...be smart--no weapons, no dangerous, keep them PG/family friendly--if you wouldn't wear it in front of grandma...and be mindful that some teachers may not want a disruption...We'll be watching Ben Hur tomorrow in class to start thinking about Rome.  For a plot synopsis, you can see the info at IMDB.com, the best source on the web for information about films, in my opinion...Over the weekend you'll be reading chapter 11, so you can get started on that as well if you wish.

AP World Review, Review, Review

Yep, time for a test.  You should be reviewing the material in chapters 7, 8, 9 and 10, a.k.a Classical Age Persia, China, India and Greece.  You will also want to review the Compare and Contrast acronym T.R.A.C.E., as there may be a few questions about that on the test as well.  A great source for review is the textbook's webpage...games, quizzes, outlines, etc, all at the click of a mouse.  The test will consist of 50 questions, mostly multiple choice, but a few true and false will be thrown in for variety as well.  I'll be in after school Weds. if you want to come by to ask questions!

AP World--day late

Yesterday we looked at the Persian Empire's political, economic and social structures, and began the conversation about what makes empires succeed or fail and how that connects to America today.  You have a test coming on Thursday and a costume option for Friday that will certainly help the day go faster for all of us!  Tonight get the pocket map of Greece done: Greek colonies, the Antigonid and Ptolemeic Empires must be placed on it.

AP World History

Today you had an in-class essay, and I missed you all. Make sure you bring your textbooks to class tomorrow so we can finish up with India in the Classical Age.  And the good news is that this will be a weekend free of homework!

US China Relations-Midterm

Tomorrow (October 20) is the mid-term. You were given a copy of an article from this week's Newsweek "Made for China" that will be part of the first question.  The mid-term will be open book and open note, and you will have the full double block to complete it. Good luck!

AP World History--Lots coming up...

Ah, good to be back with a functioning computer. Today we ran through 400 years of China to talk about the Qin and Han Dynasties. Due tomorrow is a pocket map of China during that time. There will also be a two question quiz tomorrow on China's political/social/technological developments in the Classical age, so that's page 189-202 to you and me.
Thursday will feature an all period long, in-class compare and contrast (C/C) essay that deals with the religions/philosophies. This will free up time for our test next week on all these Classical Age civilizations so it can just be multiple choice-type questions.
And don't forget that the Axial Age thinkers in Starbucks activity is due Friday!

US China Relations--Tibet

We are in the midst (well, nearing the end actually) of watching the film Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion to get a sense of the current conditions of and recent history of Tibet.  We will finish that up on Monday and then do some review of the historical relationship of China and the US before the Mid-Term on October 20th.  Bring your book to class each day next week!  It will help our review if you have it with you. (rhyming is fun...)

AP World Alexander the Great

Ah, Macedonians in the fall...Read the brief stories about Alexander the Great that are posted in the google document. (it is a .PDF file) to get a sense of his personality.  We will spend a little time with Michael Woods on his way to re-trace Alexander's route next week.  Read pages 168-172 and 245-254 in the textbook as well to give you a bit more information on the Hellenistic world that he lived in and what happened after he died.

Next week the Axial Age thinkers go to Starbucks activity is due.  We will wrap up Alexander and then take a trip back over the political events of the regions (China, India, Persia and Greece) that are key to the Classical Age and take a quiz on the philosophers before we dive into Rome.

AP World History-ponder reality during the PSATs

Today we began a discussion of the Greek forms of government, which will include a discussion of Plato's Republic.  Read the excerpt The Allegory of the Cave, which is a google document.  You will likely want to set aside time both tonight and tomorrow night to read it; it isn't long, but it takes a while!  Also take a look online to see a picture of the United States Congress (usually there is one where they all stand together on the steps of the capitol...) and take note of the composition.  We'll discuss that after the PSAT's are done...remember that all is illusion, and standardized tests are but the shadows on the cave wall...

US China Relations-EP-103

Today we saw a portion of the Frontline video Dangerous Straits, which explored the April 2001 downing of a US spy plane by a Chinese fighter jet and how the two sides resolved the issue by the "letter of two sorrys."  You will want to read the conclusion and afterward of Mann's book, as these chapters contain some major hints about the questions that will be asked on the mid-term on October 20.

AP World--Persia and Greece

Today we watched selections from the video: Engineering an Empire to see some of the engineering accomplishments of the Persian Empire and the Greek city-states (for you long blockers). For homework over the long weekend, read pages 160-164 and 168-172 in Chapter 7 (Persia) and pages 231-237 in Chapter 10 (Greece).  You will want to take notes on these pages.  When we return, we'll dive into methods of governing city-states, Plato and the Matrix, and Alexander the Great.

US-China Relations--Party like it's 1999

The US bombing of the Chinese embassy in Yugoslavia was looked at through a case study today.  We discussed how Clinton boxed himself in by apologizing prematurely, and looked at how far the Chinese government sought to push the United States.  Tomorrow we'll examine the 2001 downing of a US spyplane and how that was resolved.

AP World--Hinduism and Zoroastrianism

Today we went over the basics of the Hindu faith as it emerges during the Classical era and compared it to Jainism and Buddhism.  Zarathustra's work in Persia was also described.  For homework take a look at page 225 in the textbook to see how numbers evolved into contemporary use.  Tomorrow we'll examine some of the architecture of the Persian Empire.

US China Relations--Taiwan

Today we looked at the three Taiwan Crises of the past.  We spent the most time looking at Lee Tung-hui's 1994 stopover in Hawaii and his 1995 visit to Cornell University, and the resultant Chinese actions in 1996 to try and sway the election results.

AP World Choices

Today we discussed the Four Noble Truths of Gautama and moderation as a means to attain Nirvana (or enlightenment). Tonight you have an opportunity and the gift of time to take advantage of it!  You may, if you wish, compose an essay in response to the question you did not write on the exam.  You will want to pay close attention to the construction of the thesis statement to include the time period; the fact that you only need one similarity and one difference; that you should have four pieces of evidence to support those; and don't forget to say why! Use the score guide on the test to help yourself out.  If you choose to re-write the essay, I will, when it is accompanied by the original test, re-score that section for a new grade.  If you choose not to write the essay, that's fine too.  Look at the amount of work you have to do, and make your choices.  The re-write and test are due at the start of class on Friday.  If you don't have the original test, I won't accept your essay! BE WARNED: the desire to get a better grade may cause you suffering...

AP World Suffering

We are now looking at the Indian philosophies/faiths that emerge in the Classical age.  Yesterday we looked at Jainism and its origins and today we examined the thought of Siddhartha Gautama.  Textbook readings on page 217-228 will help to inform you if you are having confusion.

US China relations--MFN and Clinton

Today we looked at Bill Clinton's handling of the Most Favorite Nation issue with the PRC in the aftermath of his election and Tiananmen Square.  Important to remember his stance on the "butchers of Beijing" during the campaign and how this shapes his perception of reality...Tonight read the speech he gave upon signing his executive order extending MFN to China for one year.  We'll talk about what he thinks he's doing vs. what he actually does by this action tomorrow.  Your mid-term will be on October 20, so plan ahead!  It will be during a long block, open book, open note...

AP World in Balance

Today in class we looked at Daoism directly from the DaoDeJing to explore how they view the world. It is a paradoxical place!  But one that provokes some thought if you allow yourself to pause and reflect a little.  Homework tonight takes us to India, so you are reading pages 207-217 (stop at the blue heading "Religions of Salvation in Classical India."  Again, we aren't going to be discussing this in class, so be sure you take the appropriate steps to remember the information for the test!

US China Relations

Today we looked at George HW Bush's interactions with China--particularly the sale of the F-16 to Taiwan and the response to Tiananmen Square.  We see Congress try to attach a quid pro quo to Most Favored Nation renewal and it falls apart.  For homework, read chapter 15 in Mann so we can see if Bill Clinton has any greater levels of success than Bush I...

AP World History Goes With the Flow

Over the weekend, do some deep thinking.  Visit this link about the Dao De Jing. 
Choose any four of the mini poems to read and understand. And by understand I mean effortlessly understand. Copy one of them down and bring it to class tomorrow along with your understanding of it. (this doesn't necessarily mean a written paragraph...find your own way to demonstrate understanding...) Then read pages 190-197.  We won't be talking about this in class...