American Dad - Communism vs Capitalism

I was very excited when I came upon this episode. Steve becomes a communist and Stan loses his mind and puts on his American Capitalist Pride persona. There are lots of great terms and lingo in here and it also gives a good representation of the characteristics of both Capitalism and Communism

Haven't had a chance to use this one yet in a classroom but I am excited for the opportunity.

Robot Chicken - Little Hitler

A very brief and basic summary of the rise of the Nazi's and how the isolationist Americans got involved in WW2.

Still a good laugh or hook into a lesson on the war.

Family Guy - Sanctions, Refugees, and More!

I used this clip while I was student teaching, I found it worked well when you tried to parallel Petoria with another country that has sanctions placed upon them as well as refugees. I asked questions "Who were the refugees in this clip?" "Why did they leave Petoria" and see if the connection is made between Petoria's refugees and others (No food, health care, poor education etc)

Enjoy!

Futurama and Global Warming

I first came across this clip while watching some footage from Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth seminars online. Loved it, Bought the season of Futurama and uploaded it here.

Enjoy!

Globalization - The Simpsons and Outsourcing

Grade 8: Renaissance - Ratatouille and the Black Plague

In the bonus features on the Ratatouille DVD is a clip called "Your Friend the Rat". This clip shows the Rat's role in the Black Plague in a clever way where Remy and Emile defend the Rat.

Enjoy!

Watch Ratatouille - Your Friend the Rat in Animation | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Grade 10 Related Issue 3: Globalization, eWaste Clip

While posting this, I did not have the Grade 10 "Exploring Globalization" Textbook handy, but I believe that this video clip parallels either Chapter, 9 or 10 very well. The Clip is about 3 and a half minutes long and covers the issues of eWaste and its effects that it has on the third world. Perhaps it will have some of your students think twice about trading in their iPhone's and Blackberry's twice a year.

I have yet to use this clip in the classroom, But i would be very interested in hearing how it works out!

Grade 11 - Related Issue 1: Nation and Identiy/Canadian Identity

Good Evening!

Here is my first lesson plan, I have uploaded it to youtube. I made the whole thing in video format, hoping it will go smoothly. If you use this, please give me some feedback where I can improve it. Although I allotted some time in the video for the students to record their answers, I would suggest pausing the video.

TV Show: How I Met Your Mother

Related Issue/Topic: Nation and Identity/Canadian Identity

Activities: Snowball Fight - Forces students to take a look from different perspectives, I have posed the question regarding if the Canadian Identity being portrayed in the video is accurate or just a stereotype Americans hold towards Canadians.

An Introduction

Hello!

My name is Darren, I recently finished my Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Alberta with a Major in Social Studies and a Minor in Physical Education. Up until this point, I have focused much of my teaching strategy around finding material in the popular media that could spice up the subject to Jr.High and Sr.High students. I cannot vouch for every Social Studies Program of Studies, but the one here in Alberta is pretty dry.

What I have been doing is finding these TV Shows, Music, and Movies and Editing out the irrelevant/inappropriate material. Since I am currently an unemployed new teacher waiting for a contract or interview. I have found myself with a lot of time to look for new resources.

So far, I have found some quality resources including the following Shows:
-Futurama
-The Simpsons
-Family Guy
-South Park
-How I Met Your Mother
-Robot Chicken





If You have anything to add, I would Love to hear from you!