We had our opening of school assembly this morning at 9:15. We decided that 9:15 this morning would be much cooler (and shadier) than the originally scheduled time of 11:00 yesterday. It was wonderful to see 579 students and 105 employees all together at once! Ms Herrity and I shared some remarks, and Dr. Trusty read a humorous poem he had written. In addition, the President of the Student Body welcomed everyone and, by stating, "This year is what we make of it," encouraged us to work together to have a great school year. Mr. Hardesty played music, including a lively re-mix of "Silhouette Child" while the students were recessing.
I just finished observing Mrs. Babb's Sixth Grade history class. I am on a quest to observe at least 50 full-period classes this year, and I am starting today, on Day 2 of the school year. I am energized by what lies ahead on my "50 Classes or Bust!" quest! I plan to blog about some, if not most, of my visits throughout the academic year.
Mrs. Babb discussed maps with her students, focusing on the evolution of maps, different kinds and shapes of maps, and perspectives. Most traditional maps American students see have the Western point of view, with North America being in the top left quadrant of the map. The class examined and discussed seven maps including Nystrom's World Map, Peter's World Map, a map from an Australian point of view, a Calvert map, and a Chinese map from several hundred years ago, among others. Under Mrs. Babb's skillful, enthusiastic tutelage, the students realized that cartographers have, for hundreds of years, created maps to put their country in a favorable light and/or position on the globe. "Every country wants to be on top of the world," commented one perceptive student. I am sure Mrs. Babb's students will look at maps much more critically in the future.
Tomorrow, I plan to observe 7th grade French and 8th grade health. Stay tuned!
