technical writing

Morning Announcements

  • Lunch Menu: Orange chicken for today.

  • FFA Success: Trey Kidman placed 9th in the nation at the national convention. Congratulations to him as an alumni of the chapter.

Senior Reminders

  • Seniors who haven't picked up their cap and gown order forms should do so in the office.

Building Maintenance

  • Students are reminded to take pride in the school building: stop throwing spitballs in the boys' bathroom and report those who do.

Classroom Activities

  • Self-Assessment: Students asked to self-assess their presentation skills on a scale from 1 to 4.

    • 1: Terrible at this; lots of room for growth.

    • 2: Developing skill; still need improvement.

    • 3: Pretty good and confident.

    • 4: Master of this skill.

  • Quizzes: A reminder to complete vocabulary quizzes.

Peer Presentations

  • Students presented their Supreme Court case research. Focus on:

    • Constitutional Articles: Discusses Articles and Amendments related to voting rights.

    • 14th Amendment (1868): Focuses on citizenship and voting rights.

    • 15th Amendment (1870): Prohibits denying voting rights based on race.

    • 19th Amendment: Concerns women's voting rights.

    • 26th Amendment (1971): Lowers voting age to 18.

Discussion on Jim Crow Laws

  • Actively engaged discussion on challenges against African Americans' voting rights post-Civil War:

    • Jim Crow Laws: Violations of rights requiring literacy tests, poll taxes, and intimidation tactics.

    • Grandfather Clause: Exempted voters from literacy tests if their grandfathers had voted prior to a certain date.

    • Consequences: Emphasized how these laws hindered African Americans and poor individuals from voting.

Voter ID Laws

  • Presentation on modern barriers like Voter ID laws affecting access:

    • ID Requirements: 36 states require voter ID, impacting disproportionately underrepresented groups.

    • Statistics: Many people of color and low-income individuals lack proper identification; 25% of voting-age African Americans do not have IDs.

    • Voter Fraud: In-person voter impersonation is exceedingly rare, calling into question the necessity of strict ID laws.

Questions and Peer Feedback

  • Students encouraged to ask questions about presentations, and reflect on biases and barriers to voting.

  • Individual student reflections sought on their takeaways from discussions about voting rights history and current laws.

Upcoming Activities

  • Watch a video titled "Citizen Next" to further explore the theme of voting rights, with note-taking encouraged.

Exit Ticket

  • Vocabulary Assignment: Students to define "democracy" in their own words to reinforce understanding of the concept.