Friday, February 12. 2016

Today's schedule is A-AG-B-C-D

A Block Introduction to Law 9/10 - Today we'll finish up work on our "Typical Victim" of Assault. Don't forget to look through the crime statistics in the course booklet on page 4 that I'll hand out today for help. Who will most likely be assaulted and why? Now you are taking information and enhancing stereotypes for the people you are drawing. The stereotypes you're basing your drawings on are an example of profiling. Later this week we'll take a deeper look at criminal profiling starting with a look at what psychopathy really is along with the differences between serial and mass murder. The poster is due on Monday you'll have a quiz then begin your first major assignment in the course. To get us there we'll start our criminal profiling unit by watching a Fifth Estate episode called the Unrepentant, from the CBC Fifth Estate website...

They are marked by their ability to kill without passion and without remorse. Some are called psychopaths - a term that evokes nightmare images of murderers and monsters. But the label can also apply to men and women who are successful, intelligent, charismatic, charming and amusing - and so all the more dangerous. This week on the fifth estate, Linden MacIntyre looks at what makes a psychopath through the fifth estate's close encounters with of four of Canada's most frightening criminals.

The fifth estate begins with "Lightning" Lee, a former kick-boxer who brutally victimized women and children who was described as a "textbook psychopath." The other criminals MacIntyre takes on didn't outwardly seem to be the type - the respected commander of an air force base, Russell Williams; and Karla Homolka, who convinced police and a psychiatrist she was a victim, even though she helped her husband assault and kill young girls, including her own younger sister. Finally, MacIntyre revisits the harrowing story of two teenaged friends who conspired to murder one of their families and were caught in a controversial RCMP sting. They are all disordered personalities, whose lack of empathy and shame inspires both fear and fascination.

  B & D Blocks Social Studies 10 - Today you are going to begin work on the Summerland topographic map (82E/12). The questions you need to work on are 2 (a&b), 3 (c&d), 4, 5 (a-e), 6, 7, 8 (a-c, omit d, e-g) on pages 50-52 of the Geographic Understandings text.

Look  to the left, it's the 4th edition map from 2008 and the one in your text is the 2nd edition...what differences are there? We'll look at Summerland on Google Maps because you can see a satellite (Google Earth) view and a terrain view which has the topographic contours on it. For questions 5 & 8 consider the following agribusinesses in Summerland:

Dirty Laundry Vineyards
Sumac Ridge Estate Winery
Sonoran Estate Winery

Here are a few webpages to help:
Natural Resources Canada Toporama
Reading Topographic Maps
Mount Union College Reading Topo Maps
United States Geological Survey Reading Topo Maps
Idaho State University Interpreting Topo Maps
National Wildfire Coordinating Group Reading Topographic maps pdf
Natural Resources & Water Queensland Australia Interpreting Topo Maps pdf
How Stuff Works Reading a Topographic Map
How to Read Topographical Maps

C Block Law 12 - Today I'll give you time to work on questions 1-4 of the Canada (Attorney General) v. JTI Macdonald Corp., (2007) case on page 44 in the text. This deals with whether limits imposed on tobacco manufacturers’ freedom of expression by provisions of Tobacco Act and Tobacco Products Information Regulations are justified (referring to Charter sections section 2.b Freedom of Expression and section 1 Reasonable Limits). I'd also like you to work on question 3 from page 46 which deals with the R. v. Keegstra (1990) and R. v. Butler (1992) cases. When we finish this we'll watch an episode of Law & Order from season 9 (episode 1) called "Cherished". From tv.com:

After a baby girl is found dead, Briscoe and Curtis investigate the family and learn that her adopted family and brother were trying to keep some painful secrets. Jack gets a new partner, Abbie Carmichael, who had a 95% percent success rate in her four years with Special Narcotics. Together McCoy and Carmichael try to prove that the little girl's brother committed the crime

The episode deals with some pretty heavy stuff (child abandonment and fraud) and to see a real life example check out the Pravda news article here. The real life case surrounds a couple who adopted a child from a Russian orphanage and a decision was handed down in the case in 2008. From the Salt Lake Tribune:

A Tooele Utah mother who admitted to killing a 14-month-old boy she and her husband adopted from Russia was sentenced Friday to prison for up to 15 years. Kimberly K. Emelyantsev, 34, who had pleaded guilty to second-degree felony child-abuse homicide in the death of Nicoli Emelyantsev, offered a tearful apology in 3rd District Court.

Thursday, February 11. 2016

Today's schedule is Today's schedule is D-AG-C-B-A

D & B Blocks Social Studies 10 - We'll continue our look at the Five Themes of Geography today finishing place and then focusing on Human - Environment Interactions, Movement and Regions. Remember, in order to understand the increasingly complex and interconnected world we live in we need to find a way to make sense of information in a way that doesn't overwhelm us. The Five Themes (Location, Place, Human-Environment Interactions, Movement, and Regions) are a framework for making sense of geographic data.

Geography is not a liner subject nor is it a linear mindset. Geography is inherently holistic or spatial in nature; thinking like a geographer is looking for patterns, connections, relationships and the big picture which can help you better visualize the broad spectrum of humanity and our place in the world.

Geoliteracy requires the ability to reason about three things: interactions, interconnections, and implications. To make context-dependent and far-reaching decisions:

1. People must understand the systems at work in specific places in order to select actions that will achieve their goals and also to anticipate other possible consequences of those actions.
2. People must be able to reason about the connections that link places together, so they can account for remote influences on our actions, and so they can anticipate the impact of their actions on remote people and places and
3. People must be able to reason about the implications of the conditions in specific places for the alternatives under consideration and must be able to reason about the implications of selecting each of those alternatives for places that will be affected by them. They must also be able to systematically weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each alternative based on the priorities and values that apply to that decision

When we're through looking at the Five Themes you have time to finish work:

1. Page 3 and 4 questions 2, 3, 4, & 5a (last week)
2. Page 7 questions 1, 2, 3 and 4 (last week)
3. Pages 8-9 questions 1-4 (last week)
4. Page 17 question 4 and question 1 on page 18 (last week)
5. Page 20 questions 1, 2, and 3 (Monday)
6. Page 21 questions 1 and 2 (Monday)

C Block Law 12 - Today you'll need to complete questions 1-5 on page 40 of the All About Law text. After that I'll have you back in partners to work through the Multani v. Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys (2006) case on pages 41-42 of the All About Law text. After we discuss the case I'd like you and your partner to choose four of the items/statements/scenarios from the list below. If you need to, use your All About Law text and then we'll figure out whether or not Section 2 of the Charter covers the following...


If there's time, I'll have you work on questions 1-4 of the Canada (Attorney General) v. JTI Macdonald Corp., (2007) on page 44 in the text. I'd also like you to work on question 3 from page 46 which deals with the R. v. Keegstra (1990) and R. v. Butler (1992) cases.

A Block Introduction to Law 9/10 - Today we'll finish up work on our "Typical Victim" of Assault. Don't forget to look through the crime statistics in the course booklet on page 4 that I handed out yesterday for help. Who will most likely be assaulted and why? Now you are taking information and enhancing stereotypes for the people you are drawing. The stereotypes you're basing your drawings on are an example of profiling. Later this week we'll take a deeper look at criminal profiling starting with a look at what psychopathy really is along with the differences between serial and mass murder. The poster is due on Friday and next Monday you'll have a quiz then begin your first major assignment in the course.

The crime data indicate that rates have declined significantly in the past few years and are now far less than they were a decade ago. Suspected causes for the crime rate drop include an increasing prison population, more police on the street, the end of the crack epidemic and the age structure of society. The data sources show relatively stable patterns in the crime rate. Ecological patterns show that crime varies by season and by urban versus rural environment, however there is evidence of gender patterns in the crime rate: Men commit more crime than women. Age is one of the largest influences on crime; young people commit more crime than the elderly (and there are fewer young people in society). Crime data show that people commit less crime as they age, but the significance and cause of this pattern are still not completely understood.

Wednesday, February 10. 2016

Today's schedule is B-AG-A-D-C

D & B Blocks Social Studies 10 - Today we'll continue to work on the foundations of Geography focusing on the Five Themes. In order to understand the increasingly complex and interconnected world we live in we need to find a way to make sense of information in a way that doesn't overwhelm us. The Five Themes (Location, Place, Human-Environment Interactions, Movement, and Regions) are a framework for making sense of geographic data. Lastly we'll deal with systems and spheres of geography and you should be caught up to grade 10 for geographic skills and content for Social Studies. After, you'll have a bit of time to finish up the Geographic Understandings work (Page 20 questions 1, 2, and 3; Page 21 questions 1 and 2).

A Block Introduction to Law 9/10 - Today you have the class work on the following assignment: Every day we have specific routines we engage in. Many of these routines are tailored to preventing us from becoming victims of crime. We do things like lock our doors, watch where we walk at night, or avoid walking alone. We take these actions because at some level we are afraid of the possibility of being a victim of crime. Despite taking these actions people often fall prey to crime in Canada.

Is there a “typical” victim of crime? I would like you to explain and draw the typical victim of that crime now. I want you to think about STEREOTYPES...What would the stereotypical victim of an assault look like and behave like? An assault is any unwanted application of force so who would be the typical person in school that would be punched, shoved, or picked on? You will need to keep in mind the demographic statistics about victims and the factors that add to the risks of being a victim. This will be due on Friday. You will need to look at the following factors when determining who might be a target for violent crime in Canada:

• Gender
• Age
• Social Status (wealth and social cohorts)
• Relationship status
• Behaviour / Demeanour
• Location

So there are two things you need to accomplish:

A) Identify the characteristics listed above of the most likely victim of that crime (you may cheat and look in the course handout/booklet I'll give you tomorrow to see some characteristics)

B) Draw what you believe the typical victim of the violent crime, that you chose, to look like (11 x 17 paper will be provided for you).

C Block Law 12 - Today we'll look at the three sections of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that limit your individual rights (Reasonable Limits, Notwithstanding Clause and Where the Charter Applies). After this we'll identify what our fundamental freedoms are (section 2 a-d of the Charter). In partners I'll have you work on the R. v. Oakes (1986) case which established the "Oakes Test" in Canadian law which allows reasonable limitations on rights and freedoms through legislation if it can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society. Then, on your own, you'll need to complete questions 1-5 on page 40 of the All About Law text. After that I'll have you back in partners to work through the Multani v. Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys (2006) case on pages 41-42 of the All About Law text. 

Tuesday, February 9. 2016

Today's schedule is C-AG-D-A-B

C Block Law 12 - Today we will have a discussion in class about your rights that you have guaranteed through various legal documents in Canada (including the Charter of Rights and Freedoms the Canadian Human Rights Act and the BC Human Rights Code a great BC Human Rights Code pdf/booklet can be found here). Expect to partner up and be prepared to present some ideas to the rest of the class. If there's time, we'll look at the three sections of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that limit your individual rights (Reasonable Limits, Notwithstanding Clause and Where the Charter Applies). After this we'll identify what our fundamental freedoms are (section 2 a-d of the Charter).

D & B Blocks Social Studies 10 -  Today we'll continue with map basics, working in the Geographic Understandings book (they're the green geography books in the class). I'd like to work on map symbols, relief and contours. You'll need to work through the following:

1. Page 20 questions 1, 2, and 3
2. Page 21 questions 1 and 2

The Natural Resources Canada website Toporama is a great resource to understand topographic map basics.  Check out their Tips and Hints site here. If there's time we'll go through what the Five Themes of Geography are (part of the map conventions handout that you got this week). For help with your map making on page 21 us the following link: Topographic Map Symbols

A Block Introduction to Law 9/10 - Today we'll look at the reality of crime in Canada. CTV News Crime Severity. After we'll try to understand what a victim of crime is. We'll discuss victims of crime and victimology and the "Theories of Victimization" (active & passive victimization; deviant place & high risk lifestyles; and routine activities).