2019 - 2020 Parent Letter
Dear Parent(s):
It is a pleasure to have your child in 8th Grade U.S. History. I look forward to working with you and your student so that he or she may have a successful and rewarding year.
Please go to my website (www.mrethierus.weebly.com) and begin under the overview tab. And look at the following pages:
There are three resources that you and your child should rely upon to ensure success in 8th grade U.S. History.
Homework Assignment:
As mentioned above, my website is an important resource for you and your child. As the first assignment in U.S. History, I would like you and your child to visit and review the website and complete two tasks.
Parents: - Go to the website (www.mrethierus.weebly.com) and complete the parent contact form. It is located under the Home tab. I am collecting phone numbers and an email address.
Students: - Look through the various pages of the website and find as many quotes about history that you can. Record the quotes and the authors. Each quote gives the author. There are 8 quotes – you need to find 5 but you can get extra credit for finding more. All the quotes are in a larger font size and in blue. None of the quotes are on any of the chapter pages but it is a good idea to review some of those pages too. DO NOT use any of the quotes from the Guidelines for Quotations or Avoiding Common Problems with Quotations. Please hand in the quotes for credit as the first homework assignment.
Sincerely,
Mr. Ethier
8th Grade U.S. History
8th Grade U.S. History
It is a pleasure to have your child in 8th Grade U.S. History. I look forward to working with you and your student so that he or she may have a successful and rewarding year.
Please go to my website (www.mrethierus.weebly.com) and begin under the overview tab. And look at the following pages:
- Parent Letter 2019 – 2020
- Classroom Procedures
- Behavior Expectations
There are three resources that you and your child should rely upon to ensure success in 8th grade U.S. History.
- Use the Parent Portal available at http://www.torrington.org/ to stay informed of your child’s progress. I put the grades into the Power School grade book at the end of each week – usually by Saturday night. A zero almost always signifies that the assignment is missing and should be made up and submitted. I have also found, especially in 8th grade, that both the student and parent should access and review grades on the parent portal on a regular basis.
- Use my website. The address is: www.mrethierus.weebly.com. On the website you will find overviews of each chapter, class blogs, worksheets, assignments, chapter self-tests and a wealth of Internet resources to help prepare and study for the class. I update the website on a weekly basis with a plan for the upcoming week. Please take advantage of this important resource.
- If you want to check on your student’s progress throughout the year, please e-mail me at [email protected]. You may also call me at 496-4050 ext. 3124. The best time to reach me is between 7:15 AM and 7:45 AM and between 3:00 PM and 4:00 PM. If you need to leave me a message, please leave a call back number and the best time to reach you. I will almost always respond to an e-mail or telephone message within 24 hours, usually much sooner.
Homework Assignment:
As mentioned above, my website is an important resource for you and your child. As the first assignment in U.S. History, I would like you and your child to visit and review the website and complete two tasks.
Parents: - Go to the website (www.mrethierus.weebly.com) and complete the parent contact form. It is located under the Home tab. I am collecting phone numbers and an email address.
Students: - Look through the various pages of the website and find as many quotes about history that you can. Record the quotes and the authors. Each quote gives the author. There are 8 quotes – you need to find 5 but you can get extra credit for finding more. All the quotes are in a larger font size and in blue. None of the quotes are on any of the chapter pages but it is a good idea to review some of those pages too. DO NOT use any of the quotes from the Guidelines for Quotations or Avoiding Common Problems with Quotations. Please hand in the quotes for credit as the first homework assignment.
Sincerely,
Mr. Ethier
8th Grade U.S. History
8th Grade U.S. History
Course Description
This American History course will begin with a short review of the American Revolution and a close look at the Declaration of Independence. We will then proceed to the drafting and signing of the U.S. Constitution and spend some time on what can be called “civics” or U.S. government. After this we will move chronologically from Washington’s administration through the Civil War. We will examine the people, events, and ideas that shaped the United States and brought us to where we are today. The course will consider four major themes in American history: democracy, nationalism, expansionism, and sectionalism. These ideas will help us understand the growth and development of the nation and how they have shaped the country we have today. In addition to the topics mentioned, some other major areas include: the early days of the republic, the birth of early political parties in America, the War of 1812 and its causes and effects, the first industrial revolution, Jacksonian democracy and westward expansion. From here we will look at reform movements, including abolitionism, with an eye to the divisions between North and South in the period leading up to the Civil War. Lastly, we will examine the Civil War itself.