United States & Canada Comparison

Today you will be comparing statistics about the United States and Canada (click here for an extra copy of the assignment). To find the data for your chart, the CIA World Factbook is a great resource. Once there, select the country and get started gathering the data.

Dia de los Muertos

Today people in Mexico celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). In class, we're going to be learning more about the meaning behind and traditions associated with this holiday.

Here are some websites you might find helpful as you are completing your work

Los Dios de los Muertos

November 2: The Day of the Dead

Celebrations: Day of the Dead Mini Unit (look at Background Information)

Dia de los Muertos (Pages 8-10)

State Road Trip Project

Today we are starting the State Road Trip Project. You will be planning and researching a trip around the state you picked last week.

For your project you will need to

1. Pick 9 Locations
2. Plan Your Route
   
3. Research Your Stops
4. Write a Postcard for Each Stop

As you select your locations, make sure that you follow the guidelines on the instruction sheet. You should find at least

• 1 city with a population over 1 million
• 1 city with a population between 500,000-999,999
• 1 city with a population between 100,000-499,999
• 1 city with a population less than 100,000
• Capital City
• 4 other places to visit (cities/landmarks)

If your state does not have many large cities, use the biggest cities in the state!

Planning Your Route

Try to figure out the best route around your state. Pick a starting point, and then visit the nearest cities/locations first. You might find mapquest, google maps, and yahoo maps helpful in finding the distance between stops.

Your postcards should include

• An illustration (made by you!)
• Name of the location
• Latitude and longitude (here is a helpful website)
  
• How long you've been there
• Description of the place

Make sure you track the websites you are using to find information for the project. If you don't include a list of sources, you will not get credit!

EVERYTHING IS DUE BY THE END OF CLASS ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28TH!!

Regions of the U.S.

Today we're going to be comparing different regions of the United States. Please use this website to help you complete your chart. Your chart should include the name of the region, states in the region, major economic activity (what are major industries/jobs?) and other interesting features.

Types of Government

Today we are going to be talking about different types of government. Here is a website that will be helpful for your assignment.

Account of an American Activity Homework

For tomorrow (Tuesday, October 11) you need to write a description of what happens during some common American activity/event/routine. You should either observe or think about what happens and describe the activity/event/routine the way an outsider might. Think about how the author described the football game in the article we read last week (For example, she described the football as an oblong object with pointed ends).

Week of October 3rd Wrap Up

Last week our focus was on culture. We talked about what culture is, the ABCs of culture, the culture of IGHMS and how people from other countries view American culture. We finished the week by talking about communication and discussing how culture is like an iceberg.