Day Eighteen

Period 5 buyout! Thank to all of you for participating and supporting the Terry Fox Foundation. I hope you enjoyed the event!

Day Seventeen

Click here to access the Powerpoint presentation for today's discussions.

If you did not finish the rock cycle handout in class, please complete it for homework!

Don't forget about tomorrow's period 4 'buyout'. Pay $2 at the start of class for your ticket to attend the Terry Fox Foundation fundraising event in the cafeteria.

Day Sixteen

- Pacific Ring of Fire worksheet (2 sides)
- Text reading: pages 118-121, Q's page 123, #2-5

- Dante's Peak word search

Day Fifteen

We have done it! We made it to the end of Dante's Peak. I collected your worksheets for evaluation.

No homework tonight!

Day Fourteen

Today we continued watching Dante's Peak and filling in your information sheets!

Day Thirteen

Homework check!

We took up the reading and questions from the textbook.

We also started watching Dante's Peak ... to observe and record some of the indicators that tell us a volcano is 'coming alive'!

Day Twelve

Thanks to those of you who handed in your Canadian Mind Map assignment today!

We watched a short film (an 'oldy-but-goody') entitled 'From the Beginning' and filled in the blanks on your handout. Please see me if you need another copy (or check the extras binder on the side shelf). I don't have an electronic version.

Click here to learn more about the Earth's plates and boundaries.

For the rest of the period (some of) you worked on questions from the textbook reading. These are HOMEWORK and need to be finished for the start of class. For those of you with commitments tonight (ie: hockey, work, etc), please find 20 minutes in your lunch period tomorrow to finish the work!

Read pp. 114-116; Questions p. 118, #1, 2abc, 3, 4, 5

As promised, click here to find out how knowledgeable you are about geographic locations. Good luck!

Day Eleven

Today we started our first unit: natural systems.

Each of you received and are now responsible for your OWN textbook. Please keep track of its whereabouts, and be careful to take your own book at the end of each class!

Please click here to access the powerpoint slide presentation. You will find the textbook reading and questions on the last slide ... but these are not homework for tonight!

Tonight's homework is the Mind Map of 'Being Canadian'. It is due at the start of class tomorrow!

Day Ten

Today was a work period for your 'Being Canadian' mind map assignment.

At the end of class we all decided that an acceptable due date would be:
Wednesday, September 21st at the start of class!

We probably won't have any time to work on it in tomorrow's class ... so please plan to complete it for homework if you haven't already!

Day Nine

I thought we had a very interesting class today ... a discussion on the topic of stereotypes, its definition, examples ... and how they can negatively affect the people they are directed at.

We discussed them in the context how 'being Canadian' may be stereotyped. Click here to see the Joe Canada commercial.

By the end of class you should have been working on a rough draft for your mind map. I will bring the exemplar (example) to class again on Monday. Happy weekend!

Day Eight

We will begin today with a Canada quiz ... that I will collect!!!

Let's briefly review yesterday's lesson on Latitude and Longitude... and then begin our Lat/Long assignment sheet. Please remember to help out your classmates. This can be a tricky assignment!

As part of the Geography of Canada course, I always ask my students what they think it means to 'be Canadian'. To consider this question, I'd like you to complete a special assignment. Click here to find it. We briefly discussed in class ... but we will revisit it tomorrow (so it's not homework!)

I look forward to meeting your parents at the information session this evening!!!

Day Seven

Click here to see our (brief) discussion concerning Kyle's question about Denmark!
Click here to see Rick Mercer doing the CN Tower 'Edgewalk'!

You were given a handout with the title: Latitude and Longitude lesson. We watched a short online video (click here to access) and filled in the blanks on the handout!

Day Six

We started class with a nouveau seating plan ... and a Canada quiz! How did you do? We'll have another one on Thursday.

Mercator vs. Winkel Tripel Map Projections

Click here to access the Powerpoint for today's lesson. Please be familiar with the advantages and negatives for each of the map projections.

If you need an extra copy of the handout ... please see me tomorrow!

Day Five

Kudos to all of you who managed to hand in your Political Map of Canada assignment today! I hope to have it marked and back to you in a few days.

We took up the final lingering questions of the Canada Quiz (from last week).

You took a brief note responding to the question: 'What is Geography?'

And then we worked with oranges (and their peels) to learn how maps (or map projections) can be distorted in many ways. Can we really take something that is round and make it flat (without having any problems?)

Tomorrow we will continue this conversation and learn about Mercator and Winkel-Tripel map projections!

ATTENTION PARENTS!

Grade 9 program night will take place this Thursday at 7 pm. We look forward to seeing you at the school!

Day Four

Happy weekend!

In Friday's class you had (some) time to work on your political map of Canada assignment. Most of the class was spent with your link leaders doing the survey and providing feedback about Tuesday's orientation activities.

HOMEWORK: Map of Canada Assignment, Due: Monday, start of class!!!

Day Three ... already?

This week has flown by!

Today we started class by completing your lovely Mind Maps of Canada. There were 3 questions that were very important for you to answer ... the last one being 'Do you think it's important to know the location of places in Canada? Explain why or why not.' We had a great mini-debate!

Next you were challenged with your first official assignment: A Political Map of Canada. Click here to find a copy. We reviewed the instructions and evaluation points. Remember to check all of your work! You will have some class time tomorrow to complete the project, otherwise it will be homework for the weekend :)

Day Two

Hello again! I'm happy to see that you're using the course blog to keep up to date on our progress in class!

Today we reviewed the course outline. Click here to find the link to a copy!

Since the vast majority of you said that you are VERY knowledgable about geography (because you've been learning about it in school since about grade 3), I decided to test you today in 2 ways:

1) Blue sheet - general knowledge questions about Canada (how did you do?)

2) Mind map of Canada - you were asked to draw Canada on a blank sheet

I've just reviewed your Canada Mind Maps ... and I still think there is more learning to do! (I have the proof in my hands!)

Day One - Welcome!

Welcome to grade 9 geography!
I'm your teacher, Ms. Pattison, and I look forward to learning with all of you this semester!

Please use this course blog to review each day's events and find valuable links to copies of assignments and powerpoint presentations from our lessons.

If you have any questions (any!), you can find me in the social science office located just down the hall from our classroom, or you can send me an email at: pattisonmej@hdsb.ca

Ciao!
P.