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Mr. Rowan Social Studies A

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Social Studies Update Week of 10/5/26

Greetings 8th Grade Families!
It's hard to believe it is the last week of Quarter 1!. We will have a short week this week with parent-teacher conferences Thursday afternoon and all day Friday. Remember that Thursday is a half day and students will need to be picked up starting at 11:30.
If you signed up for a virtual conference on Thursday, I will email you the link on Wednesday. If you signed up for an in-person conference on Thursday, I'll see you in room 203!.
This week students will finish with a look at the Tinker vs. Des Moines Supreme Court case and take their Constitution and Bill of Rights test on Wednesday.
Please email with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan

Social Studies Update Week of 9/14/26

Greetings 8th Grade Families!
This week your students will be learning about Articles 1 - 3 of the Constitution which describe our three branches of government. They will start with Article 1 which describes the Legislative Branch. Students will listen to a podcast and take notes, and then participate in a simulation on how a bill becomes a law. The will then study Article 2 which describes the Executive Branch. Students will listen to a podcast and take notes and then play a game on iCivics which simulates the role and responsibilities of the president. 
Please email with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan

Social Studies Update Week of 9/7/26

Greetings 8th Grade Families!
This week students will begin learning about the United States Constitution. They will begin by investigating the Preamble to the Constitution and why the Framers began the Constitution with the three words 'We the People''. We will then define Representative Democracy and explore how democratic our government is. We will explore this question by studying Articles 1-3 of the Constitution which describe the roles and responsibilities of the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches. This will include the concepts of separation of powers and checks and balances. 
Please email me with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan

Social Studies Update Week of 8/31/26

Greetings 8th Grade Families!
Last week students learned about the four main debates of the Constitutional Convention.
  • Should states or the federal government have more power.
  • How should the states be represented in our new government.
  • What to do about slavery, the slave trade, and if enslaved people should be counted as part of the population.
  • How strong should the federal government be and should the Constitution include a list of the people's rights.
Students create pros and cons for each of these debates and then had to choose which side they would have argued for with evidence and reasoning. 
Students then were given a state to represent and participated in a simulation where they got to debate about whether states should have more representatives based on population size, or if all states should have the same number of representatives. 
This week, students will learn more about the debates the delegates had concerning the enslavement of Black Americans, the compromises reached, and the effect these compromises had on the nation. We will then begin our look at the Constitution that came out of that convention by analyzing the Preamble to the Constitution to see what it can tell us about the type of government our Founders wanted to create. Students will have a vocabulary quiz on Friday dealing with the Constitutional Convention.
Remember that Friday is a half day and students will need to be picked up at 11:30.
Please email with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan

Social Studies Update Week of 8/17/26

Greetings 7th Grade Families!
This week in Social Studies students will be examining the characteristics of a hero and villain. The will then read two essays about Thomas Jefferson: one persuading us that he is a hero and the other persuading us that he is a villain. When looking back in history, it is not easy to judge people of the based on the world we currently live in. Students will be asked to consider the context of the times in which Jefferson lived and then make their own decision on whether Jefferson was a hero, villain or maybe a little of both. Finally students will participate in a speed debating exercise where they will be given a side to debate and have two minutes to convince a classmate that they are correct. 
We are using our planners and blue homework folders every day, so if there are assignments due or work to completed I am taking time in class to have students write that down.
Please email with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan

Social Studies Update Week of 8/10/26

Greetings 8th Grade Families!
"Mr. Rowan, why do we need to learn this stuff?" This is a question that inevitably comes up each year. This week students will get to think about what life would be like without history and why it is important to study and learn about it. They will also learn the importance of asking good questions as we learn about the difference between Costa's Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 questions. Finally they will participate in a Historical Thinking Escape Room activity. These activities will lay the foundation for the important work they will be doing in Social Studies this year. 
Please email with any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Mr. Rowan