Friday 18 November 2016

The Renaissance: Beyond Italy continued

DISCUSSION PROMPTS: EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION, RENAISSANCE, RE-BIRTH, EUROPE, REPRESENTATIVE, OUR PLACE IN HISTORY, CURRENT EVENTS

UP NEXT: the European Renaissance x TODAY

This week we were very focused on preparing for our spread of the Renaissance presentations, some of which happened today. We focused a lot on good research practices last week, and this week focused on good presentation practices. Specifically, the focus was on ensuring the presenters are the presentation. We did that by co-creating some criteria on what to do, and what not to do. We also made sure to develop our visuals as an enhancement to what we are saying by minimizing text, maximizing useful and appropriate visuals, and using the enhancements like animation to our advantage.

We don't want this...
We do want this!
Image from: www.brightcarbon.com/resources/
Current Events Afternoons

We also started our current events afternoons this week. Students have signed up for one day over the next month to lead a 10-minute discussion on a current event of their choosing. We are mapping these current events on our own specific Google maps. Check them out!

Thursday 10 November 2016

The Renaissance: Beyond Italy

DISCUSSION PROMPTS: RENAISSANCE, RE-BIRTH, EUROPE, REPRESENTATIVE, OUR PLACE IN HISTORY

UP NEXT: the European Renaissance beyond Italy

It became clear to us on Monday that we had one main question in our inquiry docs that hadn't been answered yet: Where else did the Renaissance happen? In order to answer that question, students are working collaboratively to explore the spread of the Renaissance from Italy to other parts of Europe through the lens of specific Renaissance personalities. They will present their findings to the class this week in the form of engaging and informative live presentations.

Do you recognize anyone? 

Friday 4 November 2016

Renaissance: Digging Down

DISCUSSION PROMPTS: RENAISSANCE, ITALY, RE-BIRTH, MEDICI, DOCUMENTARY, OUR PLACE IN HISTORY

UP NEXT: the Italian Renaissance moves into Europe

This week, we really got into the thick of things with regards to our inquiry into what a Renaissance is in order to determine if we are in one, or not.

We continued to explore the European Renaissance by focusing in on the Italian Renaissance. We have accessed a documentary, engaged in class discussions, completed some specific textbook readings, reflected individually, and determined criteria collectively. We also managed to fit in an informal debate!

Our inquiry turned toward art on Monday to help us understand some of the societal aspects of the Renaissance, and the time before the Renaissance. Looking closely at the similarities and differences between these two paintings allowed us to start thinking about the changes that were taking place in Italy around the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.


Students' observations of these two paintings led us to discuss big ideas such as humanism, linear perspective, and feudalism. We also talked about the rise of the merchant class, trade routes such as the Silk Road, and the Black Death as conditions for the start of the Renaissance.

We had two checkpoints this week regarding our big guiding question. Checkpoint 1, before the debate and individual reflection, but after a week of exploration, saw quite the exodus of students moving from one side the other. At checkpoint 2, after the debate, there was very little movement!

8.1

8.2


We are in an excellent, but slightly uncomfortable, place right now as we are still building our understanding of what a "Renaissance" actually is. When asked, each group of students had a different definition, and that means we have room to keep exploring! Next week, we continue our examination by answering some of the questions that remain unanswered in our class inquiry doc, specifically how and where the Renaissance spread beyond Italy.