Deadlines and Great Minds

Okay, here's the lowdown:

First of all, nothing is due tomorrow except for Math. Plus, the kids should read for 20 minutes.

That said, though, I did hand out the kids' Social Studies tests today. These are do-at-home tests; I told them to take their books home. We have read and gone over all this material, but I want them to have their books anyway to double-check their answers. I told them that I often have kids who do more poorly on a take-home test than on one that they would just study for and then take. These are due on Friday, September 11.

Secondly, I handed out instructions and the paper for the kids' Winter Counts. Just in case the child didn't bring home their note, here it is in digital form:

Parents:

In Social Studies this week, we have been learning about the different storytelling techniques associated with early Native Americans. One of these is the Sioux tradition of creating a Buffalo Winter Count. This technique involves creating a different pictograph (a small picture or symbol) for each year or significant event in their life or the event of their tribe.

This week, students are bringing home a large piece of paper to create their own Winter Counts (instead of putting them on actual buffalo hides, hope that’s okay). Here are the specs:

• Each one should consist of no fewer than ten pictographs, with the first one being the student’s birth.
• Each one should be drawn in the layout of the attached picture. (Starting in the upper left hand corner and going around the page clockwise.)
• Pictures should be in color, and should be hand-drawn by the student. The Sioux didn’t have cameras to take pictures! Also, these will not be graded based on artistic ability.
• Put your name on the back of your project!
• This project is due on Tuesday, September 15, 2015.

Thanks! I hope you have fun with it.

Mr. Carter

So there you have it! An example is found on page 32 in their Social Studies books. And here is the picture: