Wednesday, November 25. 2015

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

A Block Social Studies 10 - Today we'll shift our focus to our own province, British Columbia, looking first at the Oregon Territory and the boundary dispute that led to the 49th Parallel declared as the international border between Canada and the United States of America (oh poor Point Roberts). Then we'll look at Fort Victoria (1843) as well as the establishment of Vancouver Island as a colony (1849) along with Governors Blanchard and Douglas. I'll have you work on the Douglas Treaties "Get to the Source" activity questions along with question 2 from the bottom of page 212 in the Horizons text.
 
D Block Geography 12 - Today we'll look at atmospheric moisture, humidity, and the four atmospheric mechanisms that cool a parcel of air to its dew point & cause precipitation (orographic, convectional, frontal, and radiative cooling). You will complete questions 9 from page 211 and 21 & 23 from page 212 of your Geosystems textbook. While you are working on the questions I'll have the BBC DVD The Weather on for us to watch the WET episode. The Weather is a major BBC documentary exploring the extremes of the world's climate with the engaging presenter Donal MacIntyre and in WET we ride with the rain from the wettest place in Europe to the wettest place in the world, with a stop under the parched Texan skies, where farmers hope to harness the power of nature to create rain. From the first drop of a monsoon to the floods that kill millions each year, water brings life and death in equal measure

C Block Crime, Media and Society 12 - Today we are going to watch a Dateline video called "My Kid Would Never Do That: Stranger Danger".

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This episode deals with the fear associated with stranger abductions and tests whether kids would know what do to when confronted by someone who attempts to lure them. The Dateline website says:
While stranger abductions are rare, all parents worry about keeping kids safe. In this special report, parents and experts watch as the following scenarios unfold, testing whether or not children know what to do when approached by a stranger.

Check out these online posts in response to the show (from MSNBC and the Anderson Cooper talk show)

So now for the reality of stranger danger and abductions...

• Stranger Danger doesn't teach what a stranger is
• It doesn't account for trusted adults and
• It can demonize all adults to children.

A 2000 Justice Department study found that of the 800,000 kids who were reported missing that year, half turned out to be runaways. MOST abductions turned out to involve family members; only 115 of all the cases reported were a version of the nightmare scenario that most troubles parents - abduction by a stranger. For more information look at kidshealth.org; cnn.com; yahoo.com; ncpc.org; ncjrs.gov; or keeping children safe

OK so now what? Here's what I'd like you to answer:

1. What do you think the purpose of the "My Kid Would Never Do That: Stranger Danger" show and what assumptions or beliefs do its creators have that are reflected in the content?
2. Who and what is shown in a positive light? In a negative light? Why might these people and things be shown this way? What conclusions might audiences draw based on these facts?
3. What techniques does the Dateline show use to get your attention and to communicate its message?