1. Welcome to 7 th Grade World Cultures Ms. Holinsky

2. World Cultures This year you will be studying the following: What is Culture? Africa Middle East Europe Central Eurasia

3. Grades III. Grading Policy: Reminder grades are not given they are earned 90-100%=A80-89%=B 70-79%=C60-69%=D The grading policy is based in the following percentages: 50%-Class work 25%-Homework 25%-test/Quizzes/projects If you have not read and signed the course syllabus please contact me as soon as possible.

4. Text Books and Other Resources The main text book for the course is the World Cultures and Geography Additional text include; Regional Studies series, World Explorer series, Global Mosaic, and computer resources

5. Bench Marks and Final Exam Once a month students will take benchmarks or short-cycle assessments These Benchmarks are accumulative exams. Students will be given test dates in advance. Benchmark exams are written by the county not Ms. Holinsky The World Cultures program is a two year accumulative program. At the end of 7 th grade students will take a county wide final exam. Students will be tested on information for the entire school year.

6. Franklin Middle School Wiki pages Please go to http://franklinms.bcps.org/http://franklinms.bcps.org/ Click on Get your Teacher's Homework Online!Homework Go to Social Studies and you will find my wiki page

7. Best way to Contact Ms. Holinsky The number one way to contact me is through email at rholinsky@bcps.org rholinsky@bcps.org If you have not yet emailed me to be a part of the distribution list, please do so. I will be sending out my first “news letter” next week.

8. What is Culture? What is Culture is a review of 6 th grade World Cultures. The Five Themes of geography Components of Culture Criteria for Civilization Amazon rainforest Social Scientist

9. Africa The Objective of the unit is: How have geography and history influenced the development of a diverse Africa? What is the relationship between tradition and change in contemporary Africa? Geography of Africa. Ancient African kingdoms Interaction between Africa, Middle East, and Europe Colonization and independence movements in Africa history of Apartheid in South Africa Economic development of selected African nations

10. Middle East The objective of the unit is: Why is the Middle East defined as a cultural crossroads? What challenges face the people of the Middle East? Geography of the Middle East and determine why it is a region. History of this region and the main religions of the region Students will spend several weeks examining the Palestinian/Israeli conflict

11. Europe Objective of the unit is: How did diverse civilizations and systems develop in Europe? Political and physical features of Europe. History of specific European countries. European society during the Middle Ages Democratic principals in England WWI and WWII

12. Central Eurasia The objective of the unit is: How have geography and political traditions affected the people of Central Eurasia? What factors contributed to the instability of Central Eurasia Regional characteristics of Central Eurasia Major political events Political, and economic stability in the former Soviet Union Students will examine the cause and effects of the dissolution of the Soviet Union