I was asked for ideas for technology projects for a couple of social studies classes for end-of-the-year or review projects before the SOLs. Here’s a few possibilities that may be helpful for teachers. The first three are ones that I’ve worked with a lot recently and have had very positive reaction from students and teachers. At the end are links to more web tools for student projects.

1. Glogster

Glogster lets students create a multi-media “poster” that can include images, text, url links, audio and video. Students can add images they find on the web, add a text summary of a unit, or record their own audio narration to go with their poster here are couple of examples:

Here’s a glog on air pollution:

A student’s glog on the Revolutionary War. It shows how images, text boxes, and video clips can be used in a glog.

A “glog” on learning to use Glogster. It includes a nice video of Glogster in a high school science classroom.

Here’s a 15-minute video on creating glogs with students that shows each step from adding images to publishing the glog:

Glogster has free edu accounts that allow teachers to sign up and then invite up to 100 students. Having students create review “glogs” before the exams would allow other students to quickly browse and see videos, images, and key review terms for each topic from the school year. You can use arrows and symbols to show a timeline or cause and effect. In the end, glogster is basically a web2.0 version of your basic “poster” project, but now it can include audio, video, and links to other informative sites.

2. Prezi

Here’s my post on Prezi. Prezi is a zooming presentation tool that allows you to create non-linear presentations. Basically, it’s one big page that can include images, text, video, links, and attached files (pdf, ppts, etc). Prezi then can zoom and jump from item to item on the path that you set, or viewers can move around the prezi as they like.

Here’s a great example from a middle school history teacher on the Arab-Israeli conflict. It’s a great use of a timeline with text and images and movement to capture the viewers interest.

Prezi offers free edu accounts to teachers and students. Select the “Edu Enjoy” account type to create your free Prezi acount. It allows you to set your prezis (or your students’ prezis) as “Private” and provides 500mb of storage to host your prezis online.

3. Animoto

Animoto is a very quick way to create online videos. You can upload photos, images, videos, text, and music and Animoto mixes it all into a 30-second video. Students could pick a review topic or important term and pick a handful of pictures and annotation to go with it and have a video created in under 5 minutes.

Here’s an example that I just created (it literally took less than 2 mintues) with images, video, and music that Animoto already has loaded on their site. To use as a review, I think using more text would be useful, but I just grabbed 10 images and video clips of world travel and set it to some classical music:

Animoto also has educator accounts that allow you to create longer videos and remove the animoto logo from your videos.

*** Update (5/2/2009)–Here’s a link to the CSPAN “Cram for the Exam” with a couple of teachers from Chicago.  It seems they’re sharing a fair amount of similar advice to what Ms. Lewis and I have been advising:  know things like campaign finance, selective incorporation, and some key court cases–but the key is understanding how all of these institutions work together to affect our political system.  It’s worth watching if you have a spare hour this weekend– CSPAN- Washington Journal–Cram for the Exam

** Also, here’s the released MC questions and answer key that you took in class:

released-ap-test-2009-practice.pdf

2 Days until the Exam.  See some of you tomorrow at CHS at 1:00pm for a review session (enter at the PAC/Gym entrance).

—————-Sub plans 4/29/09————————————————

5 Days until the AP exam!  Please keep working through this next week to get the best possible score on the exam.  I know the end of many things is in sight, but one more week of solid review is truly worth your time.

Today, you will be using a variety of online resources to review for the exam. One is an online quiz, one is an online video and text presentation on the bureaucracy, and the other is a choice among online subject quizzes.

1. Form groups of 3 or 4.  Each group will be working together to complete the AP review chart.pdf to go along with today’s online activities.
2.  Go to  http://testprep.sparknotes.com/testcenter/ap/usgovt/   and take the 30 question online practice exam.   (you have to create an account, and it asks for an email, but you can enter a fake email address if you don’t want any additional emails from SparkNotes.) Use the results to guide the rest of your work today.  Focus on the topics that you need to review.
3. Everyone should go to http://government.hippocampus.org/ and take the Bureaucracy lesson.  Watch the videos on the organization and powers of the Bureaucracy.  Pay particular attention to Regulatory Agencies and their legislative, executive, and judicial powers.  After you’ve finished that lesson, split up and have each group member look at a different lesson–hopefully leading to more information for your chart.
4. Look at the AP Review post below.  Choose online quizzes from textbooks, other AP teachers, and test review websites.  Again, divide your labor so that each member is taking a different set of quizzes and then collect the input from each chart onto your chart.
5. Turn in your chart by the end of the period.

Note:  AP review sessions listed on the board: Thursday,7pm; Saturday, 10am; Sunday, 1pm.  Please try to attend one of these sessions.  We will have review stations set up so that you will be moving around and staying active during these sessions.

Also, C-Span is airing a “Cram for the Exam” program on Saturday morning from 9:00am-10:00am for the AP Gov exam.

Ok, we’ve got a week until the AP exam.  Each of you should have the following materials:

• Released FRQs–every FRQ since 2000.  Look these over.  Yes, some are difficult, but walking your way through them and outlining the answers is a worthwhile exercise.
• Bullet points by topics (the “Promise packet”) with questions.pdf.  If you can intelligently discuss each of these items than you are on your way to a 5 on this exam.  Study a section a night until the exam.
• Packet of important legislation.
• FRQ writing tips.

If you need another copy of any of these, please see me or Ms. Lewis as soon as you can.

Here are some other helpful sites:

http://government.hippocampus.org/

http://usgovteducatorsblog.blogspot.com/

http://hippocampusgovernment.blogspot.com/

A really good practice test from Spark Notes:

http://testprep.sparknotes.com/testcenter/ap/usgovt/ (yes, they try to get you to buy their products, but there’s only a few ads, and it sorts your answers by topic to let you know what to focus on)

Textbook sites that have practice quizzes by chapter:

Wilson Textbook (our book)
Government in America  (probably the book we’ll use next year)
Glencoe

another AP teacher’s set of online quizzes (some are good and some are just ok):

http://home.att.net/~betsynewmark/1GoPoQuizzes.html#Amendments

http://aptests2.brinkster.net/usgov.htm  large collection of tests, some dead links.

Here are the powerpoints,  HW assignments, and chapter outlines for Policy-Making and Interest Groups that you may find useful for the quiz on Mon./Tue.

All HW from these chapters are due at the quiz.  Your Policy Paper theses are due on Wed/Thurs along with a brief collection of sources.

Have a great weekend.  Go see Bye Bye Birdie–7pm tonight, 2pm & 7pm Saturday.

- Mr. Daly

ppt-policy-making-process-2009.pdf

ppt-interest-groups-2009.pdf

Policy-Making Outline

outline_interest-groups.pdf

interest-groups-reading-questions.pdf

policy-terms-matching-mc-qsas.pdf

public-policy-paper.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_More_Perfect_Union_(speech)

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/03/18/us/politics/20080318_OBAMA_GRAPHIC.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/23691239#23691239

is postponed due to weather.  3rd period will take it on Thursday; 4th period will take it on Friday.

Below are the 3 sets of S.C. cases for this quiz (free speech, religion, and civil liberties/schools) as well as a set of questions and vocabulary to help you digest the textbook chapter on Civil Liberties.  As always, please shoot me an email if you have any questions.

major-supreme-court-cases-free-speech.pdf

SC cases–Religion.pdf

major-supreme-court-cases-schools-civil-liberties.pdf

civil-liberties-questions.pdf

CHS Seniors are working with their government teachers on a “Save Our History” grant from The History Channel to preserve the legacy of Jefferson School and Lane High School.  The students are studying documents from Charlottesville Schools from 1950-1965.

If you, or any of your family, friends, or neighbors attended Jefferson School, Burley High School, or Lane High School during this time period, CHS students would be very interested in interviewing you and learning your story.  Please contact Mr. Daly (james.daly@ccs.k12.va.us) or Ms. Lewis (heather.lewis@ccs.k12.va.us) for more information.

In addition to individual interviews, there are panel interviews scheduled for Wednesday, February 18, and Wednesday, February 25. The panels will take place in the CHS Booker T. Reaves Media Center, from 6 to 8 p.m. Contact Mr. Daly or Ms. Lewis if you would like to participate in one of these panels by helping our students learn more about this important period of Charlottesville’s history.

CHS is one of 11 nation-wide recipients of this grant.  From the Save Our History website:

1. Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society
Charlottesville, VA
Partner: Charlottesville High School, Charlottesville City Schools
Description: The Tale of Two Schools: Promoting Community Unity through a Historical Study of School Integration

The Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society will partner with Charlottesville High School government teachers to educate and encourage students to conduct historical research using primary source documents from Charlottesville City Schools’ history. Students will document and preserve the voices of individuals who lived during the turbulent years of desegregation in Charlottesville by collecting oral histories. The final product, hosted by the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society, will be a museum exhibit consisting of oral histories combined with copies of School Board primary source documents, and an online exhibit featuring photos, oral histories and related historical documents.

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http://www.digitalvaults.org/#/pathways/19/?record=2386

http://www.21stcenturyabe.org/

http://lincoln.georgetowncollege.edu/index.htm

Thanks for your interest in AP Government.  Feel free to download this Word document of the application, type in your answers, and email it to me (james.daly@ccs.k12.va.us).  The applications will also be available in C233, C235-Ms. Lewis, or through your U.S. History teachers (all levels).

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about the application or the course.  I look forward to seeing you next fall in AP Government.

- Mr. Daly

2009-2010 AP Gov application (word doc)

2009-2010 AP Gov application (pdf)