Hey guys!

Here are this week’s vocabulary words:

Trail of Tears-the forced removal of native Americans from their land in the Southeast US to Oklahoma.

Forty-Niner-People who came to Northern California in 1849 to prospect for gold

Tariff Act of 1828-taxes levied against imported goods after the British began dumping cheap goods into the US.  It affected the Southern states disproportionally.  Also called the Tariff of Abominations.

Manifest Destiny-the belief that white settlers were destined to settle the entire United States.  Used as a justification to remove native Americans from their land.

Secede-to withdraw from a political entity.

Spoils System-where political allies are rewarded with jobs or positions after someone wins an election.

 

Hey Everyone!

We started off our week learning more about Andrew Jackson, and we discussed the Trail of Tears today.  We watched this video and then processed it as it relates to Westward Expansion and Manifest Destiny.

You can watch it here:

 

This week we will be taking an in-depth look at the life of Andrew Jackson, our 7th President.

We will discuss the good, the bad, and the downright ugly of his political life.

Topic covered will include:

Jackson’s early life, education, and military career

The election of Andrew Jackson

The spoils system after Jackson’s election

Jackson’s clash with the Bank of the United States

The Indian Removal Act of 1830

The Trail of Tears

and more!

 

We discussed the causes of the War of 1812, and important terms and concepts associated with this time in history.

Some important terms we learned are:

Impressment-The practice of Britain kidnapping sailors from the US and making them serve in another Britain’s navy.

Treaty of Ghent-a treaty between the US and Britain to cease fighting in the War of 1812.

Old Ironsides-The USS Constitution.  Nicknamed Old Ironsides because the British navy cannon balls bounced off the ship instead of sinking it.

Francis Scott Key-Wrote a poem while watching the Battle of Fort McHenry that would later become The Star Spangled Banner, our national anthem.

War Hawk-a member of Congress who advocated for war against the British.

Battle of New Orleans-The last battle of the War of 1812, which was fought after the Treaty of Ghent had been signed.

Andrew Jackson-Commanded the US forces at the Battle of New Orleans.  He would later become our 7th President.

We also watched this video, and processed it afterwards.(Start at 2:05)

 

Parents,

If your child missed class today, or if you just want to know what we went over, here is the video about Lewis and Clark that we processed today:

We also discussed the following vocabulary words:

Vocabulary:

1. *Lewis and Clark-explorers paid by the government to explore the American Northwest.
2. *York-an African American slave who helped Lewis and Clark by hunting and fishing.
3. *Sacagawea-A native American woman who guided Lewis and Clark’s expedition.
4. *Pathfinder-someone who finds a way through an unknown region.

Monday is a school and national holiday, as our nation acknowledges the achievements of Martin Luther King, and his impact on American life.

 

Starting Tuesday, we will be learning about the American explorers Lewis and Clark, and their adventures in the American frontier.

Afterwards, we will being our discuss of the second war of American Independence, The War of 1812!

After consulting with the other teachers, I did not send the journals home so students could study their vocabulary words.  There is too great a chance that the journals will not come back to school, and they are too important to go missing.

Instead, we will have a word match on the test tomorrow, and the words are included in the review we did today.  The review was sent home with the students to study for tomorrow.  They will also have a brief period to look at the review before the test.