Theater of the Oppressed/ Voices for Change C.

Cs
Art
CP8.1- Create dance compositions that express ideas and student perspectives on social issues (e.g., poverty, racism, homophobia, sustainability, gangs). Within our Art for Change unit, we all created dance exposing how we felt about any social issue we choose. This provided many creative dances that different groups came up with on many different topics. Several dances are going to be showed at our Art for Change event at the Roxy. For a guy that does not like to dance but how we got create it all ourselves and the freedom of actually made the dance yours, made me like it. If this freedom was incorporated in everything that was to happen at school, I cannot think of a kid that would not enjoy it. CP8.2- Investigate and use choreographic forms (e.g., theme and variations, canon). Since we were left create our own dance the way we wanted, lots of investigating was done. We had some instructed education such as learning about hip hop dance at the Cosmo and learning contemporary dance at a local dance studio. The skills that we learned in both of these moves were evident in most dances created. Then even the moves that people had researched and made to their own liking turned out good. I think if it in normal classes and would have done this activity, no one would care but with the work we put into learning the perspectives. We wanted to represent these poor souls and I think we did as we wished. We wanted to be their voice.

Phys. ED
PE8.9- Perform, both as a leader and a follower, self-created, collaboratively created, and established sequences of movements with smooth transitions, incorporating skills and combinations of skills from a variety of games (i.e., target games, net/wall games, striking/fielding games, invasion/territorial games, low-organizational and inventive games) and body management activities (e.g., dance, aquatics, educational gymnastics, track and field, pilates, yoga, wrestling, martial arts, aerobics), alone and with others. Within our dances, this was completed. We collaborate than at one point each person leads and each person follows. We do many different moves from different type of dancing to the different types of sport skills that were not intentional supposed to be there. Once we reviewed

it and read our critique you could really tell how it did involve the sports skills. Dance really can incorporate anything which made it easy to achieve this outcome. PE8.2- Apply an understanding of how to positively affect the major muscle groups (e.g., biceps, triceps, pectorals, abdominals, quadriceps, hamstrings) while clarifying an understanding of the effects of exercise and inactivity on the muscular system (e.g., increased/decreased strength, increased/decreased lean muscle, increased/decreased elasticity, increased/decreased muscle tone). We have learned very different important things of how we are supposed to improve and make our major muscles stronger. Being in an adventure based program we know how we are supposed to work or bodies and know what will happen if we stop doing that very important task. We have experience all the hard work of working out and have sort of grown towards it, I mean I dont think anyone wants to lose what they have gained this year. We understand th e sad reality of what will happen if we stop and we understand the great reality of working our body. I think it ties in perfectly with our dance and pretty much the whole production of our Voices for Change event.

PAA
From the things that seemed the simplest such as singing or dancing to the big things they lead to such as the Voices for Change event. It is not even just those one day events but the reoccurring events. Learning about the foreign First Nations culture (to me) was nothing short of interesting. I was say them as the stereotypical native and sort of cross with hippy. Then, when you actually take time to listen to how the culture works. It sort of does make sense, from what I saw as First Nations sitting in a little tent sweating. To be able to look at it as sort of church but in a different way, in a tent removing your sense of sit while praying for intervals. You then get to really experience the taste of unique and different cultures; something the Europeans did not realize when they colonized the First Nations. If thought is put in before your actions, I believe you then produce the best possible result/ turn out. A great lesson learned that our ancestors had always known and practiced throughout their years, but somehow vanished in the last few centuries. I believe it could be called cooperation.

Religion
I found that this unit shun a new light on religion, mostly on foreign religions and in a way sort of connecting them all. I really noticed the connections from the First Nations religion and the

European/Christian religion sort of provided for us to step into. I had really saw them as the stereotypical native/hippy, being oh everything is alive, or whole bunch natives sitting in tent sweating like a sauna. Then I started to see the bridges with in some of the ceremonies. From a Sunday mass filled with prayer to a sweat also filled with prayer. They may have different cosmetics but the mechanics are very similar. I think if that was realized this world would be rotating a lot smoother and instead of taking a step back but taking a step forward. It is also neat to see how science is proving that all things are living. From the yogurt being affected by our emotions meaning that is has an emotional discharge. Meaning it is yet another living object, provided a very valid argument on whether every item in this world has that emotion within or just a simple blob of yogurt.

Health
USC8.4- Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of violence (including but not limited to emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, spiritual abuse, and neglect) on the well-being of and the supports needed for self, family, and community. We have seen the affects of what happens to be people that are very unlucky and end up in these positions. We even have a demonstration in a part of our dance, from spoken word to our songs there is all evidence of the impact all of these horrible thing cause. Since we have saw it and try not preach it, it seemed very foreign to hear of bullying in school. In Eco, that just does not really happen. It was a sad reality to hear about pasts but looking back into the present was pretty nice reality to see. Our reality needs to be put into full force at schools all around this great city. USC8.5- Assess how body image satisfaction/dissatisfaction and over-reliance on appearance as a source of identity and self-esteem affects the quality of life of self and family. We address this really every day, we practice no judging and all as equal. Personally with this group I dont have to worry about body image, which is how I imagine almost every kid within our class feels too. We dont even really rely in our appearance within our classroom; we are so close that it does not even faze us. The quality of life within our room is always pretty positive; you rarely ever hear sad and depressing comments but happy and exciting comments. I imagine this energy is carried back into the places every kid comes from creating a happy joyful household. A household proud of themselves, not ashamed of themselves.

SS
IN8.1- Investigate the meaning of culture and the origins of Canadian cultural diversity. We investigate what culture means all of the time; we know the stories of Canada and its past. We learn the difference between the different cultures around the world. We say the different ways they live from poverty to over exerting money. We know lots about the First Nations past and have learned more about what the European have been up to in the last few centuries. Learning about all of these cultures and how different cultures colonize one and another really shows the difference between. They show how they collide and how they strive apart from one and another. The meaning of culture is its people. DR8.1- Develop an understanding of the significance of land on the evolution of Canadian identity. We have seen how benefited the land was for the First Nation people. Then we see how the European came over and sold it all off section by section eliminating buffalo and really the food sources everywhere. They try to move forward but instead just messing with mother earth more and more as we grow older and older. I honestly think of the Europeans could have adapted the First Nations culture, the world would be so much more free and would not be a money hungry society. This society is tearing everything apart; I believe that it would be safe and more reliable if we were still living off of the buffalo. The land has had a lot of evolution especially on the Canadian identity. It should have been left the way it was. A way better identity for Canada and anyone in it. Money would not rue us and that would be a dream society, I guess.

ELA
CR8.7- Read independently and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of information texts including understanding the main ideas and supporting evidence, explaining connections between new ideas and information and previous thoughts, and recognizing any biases or false reasoning. We read Maria Campbells book Half-Breed, a university level novel within two in a half weeks. We did all this on our own time as we pleased; we then answered student made questions on the classroom website. To make it even better the questions were ran by the student that had created them. We also read things such as news articles about plastic and slave labour/sweatshops. We read about programs such as Free the Children then did some huge

write ups on them. We read what the world reads not what is given to benchmark a child. It was not three page book but it was 10 page article with words and sayings that surpassed what was expected of us. CR8.8- Read Grade 8 appropriate texts to increase fluency (140-180 wcpm orally; 180-230 silently) and expression. We read so many different things throughout this term. We read things such as news articles, to a novel by Maria Campbell, called Half-Breed. A university level novel, we had completed it in about two in a half weeks. The best part was that we had done it all in our own time at home. We had student facilitators that would create questions we would answer them and they would facilitate them all within the easy of our cyber school website. We would different things such as news articles and reflect about them. We were in the current events and reporting them throughout the day. It was a cool way for was to show what we were interested and that was pretty much how we really started our push towards the Great Bear Rainforest.

Science
WS8.3- Analyze natural factors and human practices that affect productivity and species distribution in marine and fresh water environments. [CP, DM, SI] This is a huge element of our proposed trip to Bella Bella, BC. So many marine animals will be affected by these huge oil tankers ripping downstream. You will have salmon trying to go upstream to their spawning grounds then bam back to the start or possibly no more steam and the only answer would an unexpected death of a keystone species. Then you can the whales out there. A whale in its home verses a tanker, once again one hurt whale. Let alone the pipeline we already have huge problems out there with fish farms. All these diseased fish smuggled together spreading to the wild salmon going upstream, once again killing the keystone species. With no salmon we go up chain and lose most of the animal on the northern pacific BC coast. That includes the beautiful and rare Kermode bear which most defiantly will not be surviving with no food and it habitat being destroyed.