Collaboration Canvas

     Some might not consider there to be a connection between Art and History, but when I stumbled upon the lesson on Ancient Egyptian Art, I immediately remembered my 6^th grade Social Studies course, where we spent an entire unit on Ancient Egypt.  To put it simply, all we have to understand ancient cultures is what was left behind by them, and for Egypt, much of that is artwork and artifacts.  I expanded upon the video and photos present in the original plan by adding some that I feel can benefit the students.  The essential question and content standards were changed, to fit the requirements for this assignment.

     This is an assignment that can benefit Art students, as they learn the history of the artwork they are studying.  And the original lesson plan that I remixed can be a benefit to History students as well, so this could be a very good collaborative lesson.

http://www.play.annenberginnovationlab.org/play2.0/challenge.php?idChallenge=2638&mode=edit#network6

Technology & Social Studies: Stock Market Simulation Games

     One of the most important things in America’s economy is the stock market.  We know that America’s biggest stock exchange is located in New York City, and that in 1929 there was a “crash” that helped America spiral into the Great Depression.  We have heard of things like the DOW index, but may not be totally sure how it works.  In fact, there are many that may not understand the ins and outs of the stock market, and why it is significant to our economy.  While Social Studies teachers are expected to discuss this in lessons, and many high schools and colleges offer Economics as a class, for many the only way to properly learn about something like the stock market is through first-hand experience, and that is where something like a simulation game can come in handy.

I’ve played the “stock market game” twice before: in 8^th grade, and again in my Junior year of high school (this is something that can be done via websites like www.stockmarketgame.org or www.marketwatch.com, or one can just look at the market on Yahoo Finance; this is up to the teacher).  A participant starts out with a certain amount of money designated by the teacher, and then they make their own decisions regarding which companies they would like to “buy stock” in, and what trades and purchases they would like to make as the game goes on.  At the end of the game, whoever has the highest amount of money is the winner (both times I have played, the game went for a month, but this is up to the teacher). 

This is a great opportunity for one to understand how the market and buying shares in a company works, as this is something they may have interest in doing for themselves at some point.  As they invest shares in particular companies, they grow to understand the potential benefits and pitfalls of investing in stock, as they see how easily one can gain and lose money.  It is a good way of showing a real-life situation in a risk-free and hands-on manner.  It helped me get a better idea of how our economy can work, and I feel it is something that all students would benefit from doing at some point. 

 

Unit Plan Canvas

     As I stated in Activity #3, I felt that the lesson plan that I discussed, which attempted to find a connection between The Cold War and Brown vs. Board of Education, to be an interesting one in theory, but was somewhat underdeveloped.  My canvas helps to give students a forum to discuss if there is indeed a connection between these events, and my key question helps raise an important point: can two events that may not appear to have anything in common have a connection of some sort?

     I posted videos and posters related to both events, and the students can work to figure out if there are any underlying connections themselves, promoting their own critical thinking in the process.  This is an interesting lesson, and done correctly can be a great lesson for the students, something that I felt wasn’t fully accomplished by the plan I had read for our previous activity.

http://www.play.annenberginnovationlab.org/play2.0/challenge.php?idChallenge=2469&mode=view#network6