In the Columbian Exchange unit students wrote essays around the claim that the Columbian Exchange was the most important event in history. Students gathered evidence from a video as well as online sources and made the case in written format. Because of a peer feedback process as well as teacher collaboration using Google Docs, these essays were top quality. The student gathered so much evidence to show that the exchange transformed a continent and impacted millions of people at the time. 

In the French and Indian War Unit we have continued to look for evidence in addressing the essential question: how did the French and Indian War create america? Most people would argue it was the American Revolution, but students have been gathering evidence to make the case it started years earlier. Through a self-designed project students will be presenting their evidence soon after February break. 

The Debate Unit has been awesome!  Last week nearly every 8th grader participated in an actual debate. Up this point instruction has been centered on how to make arguments, finding evidence, and debate format.  Students were assigned their team along with a challenging topic requiring some research. Some of our debate topics were: “newspapers are a thing of the past”; “voting is a responsibility”; ‘testing of medicines and products on animals should be banned”. Armed with evidence and carefully crafted arguments, students practiced public speaking and careful listening while engaged in competition with another equally prepared team. Once again, most students met the challenge and the resulting work was impressive. 

Interestingly, the skill of finding and using evidence exists in all other content areas and provides some interesting opportunities for teachers to work together. As the year continues, we will continue to work on finding and using evidence within the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. This essential skill that will not only be useful in high school, but also many aspects of everyday life especially civic involvement. 

Note: This post also appeared on the FWSU Blog on January 29, 2014


Student Jurors returned not guilty verdicts in two cases heard in a criminal trial simulation held in the 7th and 8th Grade Applied Core Mock Trial class at GEMS. The class was formulated by 8th Grade Teachers Mary Bove and Eric Hadd to address some of the shifts required by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) as well as to extend learning from core subjects in a more interactive way. Criminal Procedure and rights of the accused are natural extensions of the 8th Grade Constitution Unit while argumentation, use of evidence, close reading, and speaking and listening are key to the new English Language Arts Standards.

In one case Casey Clevenger, a talented computer student, was accused of vandalizing a school computer lab and hacking the grading database to change grades. In the end, it was not proven that Clevenger committed either crime. In a separate case Beck Martin, a high school student, was accused of murder when a fellow student, who had discovered his cheating on an exam, was found dead on rocks below a beach cliff. Once again the evidence presented to the jury was not enough to elicit a guilty verdict.

Throughout the class, students worked in teams to represent the prosecution and defense while using evidence to create a compelling narrative and craft convincing arguments designed to lead the jury to a conclusion. As each witness testified, the answers helped sway the jury one way or another. As in a real criminal trial, the burden of proof rested on the prosecution which needed to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Although both sides worked hard on the case, the prosecution faced a greater challenge.

Both cases were based on materials generated by the Constitutional Rights Foundation and American Bar Association. These packets contain a basic fact situation, witness statements, evidence exhibits, and courtroom rules and procedures.

Students were responsible for keeping a journal throughout the process that the teachers were able to use for assessment of understanding of key concepts, effective use of evidence, and teamwork. Mock trials proved to be an effective resource to get students engaged in civics concepts in an authentic way while also addressing the increased academic rigor of the Common Core Standards.

As a student wrote in her final reflection, “I know this will be helpful to me in the future. I am actually debating whether or not I might want to be a lawyer, partly because this mock trial convinced me that I’m really good at it.”