September 17 is Constitution Day!

"On September 17, 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention met for the last time to sign the document they had created." -National Archives

That document was the Constitution of the United States. 

What is a "Constitution?"

"The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. Empowered with the sovereign authority of the people by the framers and the consent of the legislatures of the states, it is the source of all government powers, and also provides important limitations on the government that protect the fundamental rights of United States citizens." -Whitehouse.gov

In other words, the Constitution is the document that defines the government of the United States. It's the rule book for our nation. It states what powers the government has and what rights are left in the hands of the people. 

More information on the Constitution can be found here.

So how did Constitution Day become a special day to celebrate?

According to ConstitutionFacts.com...

[An] important figure in the creation of Constitution Day is Louise Leigh. Leigh, after taking a course in Constitutional History with the National Center for Constitutional Studies, was inspired to spread her newfound love of the Constitution throughout the country. In 1997, she founded a nonprofit organization called Constitution Day, Inc. to help encourage recognition of the importance of this national holiday.

Through her efforts, Constitution Day became an official holiday alongside Citizenship Day in 2004 when, with the help of support from Senator Robert Byrd, the "Constitution Day" amendment to the Omnibus Spending Bill passed. In May 2005, the United States Department of Education backed the law when it announced that it would apply to any school receiving federal funds of any kind.

The two allowances of the law were that the head of every federal agency provide each employee with educational materials concerning the Constitution on 17th of September and that each educational institution which receives Federal funds should hold a program for students every Constitution Day.

Constitution Day, along with Independence Day and Presidents' Day, is an important part of the cultural heritage of the United States of America, because it recognizes the value of the American experiment, and the success of a nation of free people whose rights and liberties are protected by a written Constitution.

Why does the Constitution deserve to be celebrated?

To answer the question, watch this video and think about the ideas you read about above. 

On a "Post It" note or index card, write a high quality 1-2 sentence response to answer the question "why does the Constitution deserve to be celebrated?" Bring it with you to class!

Primary & Secondary Sources

When it comes to researching about a topic today, there are plenty of sources available to students. The internet, which is probably a 6th graders first stop, contains vast amounts of information available in a fraction of a second. Students also commonly use books or magazine articles from the local library. No matter where you go for information, there are two main types of sources: Primary & Secondary. The video below explains each type of source and gives examples.


   


 Most of the research currently done by students is with secondary sources, like Encyclopedias or websites. However it is important to learn to use primary sources too! This year in school, students will practice analyzing primary sources and interpreting their meaning. While more challenging, this process will allow students to gain a deeper understanding of the past. 

For class tomorrow, bring the definition of each type of source and examples of each type of source to class. 

 - Mr. Goldstein

Want more help with Primary Sources? Click this link!

Photograph of Abraham Lincoln

Cuneiform Writing from Mesopotamia

What is Ancient Civilizations?

So you're about to start middle school, and you don't really know what it means when your schedule says you'll be learning about "Ancient Civilizations" in Social Studies. 

Ancient Civilizations is the study of the people who lived thousands of years ago. 

In fact, it begins with the study of the earliest humans. Next, we will trace human development to the emergence of the world's first highly organized societies, called civilizations. To qualify as a true "civilization," a group of people must meet certain characteristics. Finally, we will explore several examples of civilizations that flourish around the Mediterranean Sea.   

"Here's a coming attraction of the people, places, ideas, and things coming at you: Your 3.2 million-year-old human ancestor Lucy, mummies, pyramids, Cleopatra, "an eye for an eye", the birth of major religions Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, the birth of democracy, the first Olympics, Julius Caesar, gladiators, the invention of writing, paper, and the wheel, kingdoms built of stone in Africa, the Great Wall of China, the introduction of such concepts as zero, time, and monotheism (the belief in one god), Samurai, martial arts, palaces of gold, and even the Sphinx. Whew!"

-UShistory.org/civ

Unfortunately, it won't be until 8th grade that you will get to explore the ancient civilizations in China and Japan. Otherwise, this is a quick glimpse into some of the exciting topics to be covered in Social Studies class.

Alexander the Great: Hero or Villain?

Rana's Review

The Egyptian Cinderella by Shirley Climo is very similar book to the Cinderella story. There's only a few differences. This book is about a girl named Rhodopis who was brought from Greece to Egypt to be a slave. She was put along the Nile river where it meets the blue sea (Mediterranean sea). Rhodopis was a really good dancer and one day her master sees her dancing and as a gift gives her gold slippers. One of my favorite part of the book is when the hawk (God Horus) takes the slipper from Rhodopis and brought it to the pharaoh. I recommend this book to any one who likes fairy tales with happy endings. -Rana

Fall in Love with Literature

The Egyptian Cinderella by Shirley Climo Rhodopis is a girl from Greece, stolen by pirates, taken far away from her home to Egypt, and sold as a slave. Three leader peasants are mean to her and jealous of ruby red slippers her master gave to her as a gift. Horus, as a hawk, came and took her glass slipper which was specially made for her and dropped it on the pharaoh Amasis. Will she ever get it back? My favorite part of the book was when the Pharaoh searched along the Nile river to find his wife. He would not stop until he found the owner of the shoe. I made a connection to Disney's animated film Cinderella when the prince searched his kingdom to find the owner of the slipper. I would recommend this story to anyone who liked Disney's Cinderella. If you liked Disney's version, you will love Egypt's! -Autumn

Caitlin's Corner

The Egyptian Cinderella was written by Shirley Climo and Illustrated by Ruth Heller. This book is about a girl named Rhodopis who was taken away from her home in Greece by pirates. Rhodopis was like no other girl in Egypt, she was a lonely girl, with no friends or family, all she had were three mean peasant girls who would make fun of her because she had blonde hair and green eyes, different from everyone else. Sometimes Rhodopis would dance for the animals and the master saw her once and gave her custom made rose red slippers. To make everything worse the hawk (the god of Horus) stole one of the slippers and flew away with it. My favorite part of the book is when the master, sees her value and gives her the rose red slippers. If you like fairy-tale stories with a little Egyptian twist you will love this book! -Caitlin