Welcome to Mr. Sach's 8th Grade Social Studies Class Page !

Current Topic: The Cold War


Week of 5/24 - On Monday we examined a Slides presentation about the formation of the UN, and the Nuremberg Trials. Students filled out a guided notes sheet on both topics as we went. On Tuesday we started talking about eh Cold War. How it got its name, what it was, and the big  events. We watched a BrainPop on The Cold War and filled in an important terms sheet.

Week of 5/17 - Monday and Tuesday we focused on D-Day, the Normandy landing, and Operation Bodyguard. We talked about Allied deceptions tactics, and deceptions in general. On Wed and some of Thursday, we switched over to the End of the War in the Pacific, and examined a Google Slides presentation on that topic. We completed an activity on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, examined before and after photos, and answered questions about the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan. With the remainder of the class on Thursday we watched a documentary on the Holocaust, and finished it up on Friday.

Week of 5/10 - On Monday we finished the Pearl Harbor: America Reacts activity from Friday. Tuesday - Thursday we watched the WWII In Colour series of shows, episodes 1-3. Friday we watched episode 5 and wrote a reaction piece on it.

Week of 5/3 - On Monday & Tuesday we examined a Google Slides presentation about the causes of WW2, and completed a vocabulary sheet as we went through the Slides. Wed & Thurs we talked about WW2 on the Homefront. We examined numerous primary sources whih indicated to us how people were reacting to this "European War" in our country. On Friday we analyzed more primary sources by completing a Pearl Harbor: America Reacts activity. This really brought us into the lives of Americans and showed how they felt aboutt the war, and how their opinion might have been swayed and influenced, and by what or whom.

Week of 4/26 - This week we focused on the students presenting their Roaring 20s/Great Depression projects. We finished on Thursday, and once all students had presented, we watched a video on the  causes of World War 2.

Week of 4/19 - This week we started by learning about "The Great Depresssion". What caused the NY Stock Market to crash on "Black Tuesday"? What was the effects on the people of the USA, and what were the implications for the rest of the world. Thursday and Friday were spent working on a new project assigned to the students, in which they had the choice of creating one of three options on a project about the "Roaring 20s", "The Great Depression", or a combination of the two decades. These will be presented to the class starting on Mondy 4/26.

Week of 4/12 -As we returned from Spring Break, we jumped right into the "Roaring 20s". The majority of the week was spent discussing new inventions of the 20s, how they affected the life of normal people, and also the Presidencies of the 20s and the highlights and lowlights of each one.

Week of 3/15: On Monday & Tuesday we reviewed the Progressive Era, which is where we left off before beginning our work on Black History Month and Womenś History Month. On Wed. we began our next topic, World War I. We completed a WWI Vocabulary Sheet as we, went through a Google Slides presentation on WWI vocab. Thursday and Friday were spent learning about the causes of WWI, using a "MANIA" worksheet.

Week of 3/8: Students continued making their "Notable Woman" poster in class on Monday & Tuesday. The students presented their posters to the class on Wed, & Thurs, and the remote students presented their projects to the class on Friday. 

3/1-3/5: For Women's History Month, on Monday, as a class we read about women's roles in Ancient Greece and Rome, and answered questions based on those readings. Tuesday we watched short videos which described women's lives in the Ancient empires of Egypt, China & India. Thursday took us into the Middle Ages/Medieval Times, and we read about and discussed women's roles in those difficult times. On Friday students were asked to go to a "Notable Women in History" website, and after browing the site and the women's lives on the site, choose a women to create a poster about. Students began this poster in class.

22/22-2/26: We studied Hatian history this week. Monday we covered the geography of Haiti. On Tuesday students read "Haiti & Her People". This is a reading which covers Haitian history from pre-Columbus, through the Haitian Revolution, and up to present day. On Wed, as a class we read an article written after the Haitian earthquake of 2010. On Thursday students were assigned a Haitian historical figure and they researched that figure and created a Google Slides presentation, which students presented to the class on Friday.

2/8-2/12: Black History Month- We covered historical African Americans in Sports. On Wed we read a biography on Jackie Robinson, and examined quotes by Muhammad Ali. On Thursday & Friday we worked on "The Black History Month Facebook Project, where students chose a historical African American figure and they had to create a Facebook page on that figure.                                                                                                  

2/1-2/5: Black History Month- We covered African Americans in the military this week. Tuesday we read about the African American contributions to the Civil War. On Wed. we examined a primary source on WWI & "The Harlem Hellfighters. Thurs-Friday we focused on WWII and watched a documentary on the Tuskegee Airmen.

-Our 8th Grade SS Google Classroom page link is to the left under "Links". 

-All class notes will be posted both here, and on our class's Google Classroom page. 

-All future tests & quizzes will be posted here, and below in the event calander. You will have at least a week's notice before any test or quiz so there is plenty of time to study!

-I will note on this page about any WebQuests or Online Activitys that we do in class, but those will always be assigned on our Google Classroom page.

-If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please email me!

LETS HAVE A FUN & SUCCESSFUL YEAR!