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CCHS Middle Ages in Motion Project 2001

A Vocational Technical / Academic Cross-Curriculum Integration Project

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The Middle Ages in Motion Professional Development Program will engage secondary and post-secondary math, physics, and technology teachers in five area schools in a year-long project of problem-solving, teamwork, and self-evaluation that will model for their students the process of scientific inquiry and analysis required by Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. With technical assistance from a construction consultant and four Springfield Technical Community College professors, a team of teachers in each of three western Massachusetts school districts will lead students in designing and building a model of a medieval machine called a trebuchet (a gravity driven catapult), to be launched on the STCC College Green in Spring 2001.

Springfield: High School of Science and Technology and Putnam Vocational High School

Northampton: Northampton High School and Smith Vocational High School

Chicopee: Chicopee Comprehensive High School Academic and Vocational Technical Programs

A unique feature of the project is that, while involving students, the project is in reality a sustained professional development experience for teachers, bringing them together with their colleagues across departments, schools and educational levels (secondary/postsecondary) to explore, create, compare, and assess. The project will also require that they integrate knowledge, skills and strategies from diverse content areas, including not only math and science, but also design, construction, history and art. This core of teachers in each of five schools will then in turn share the experience with their peers, through an in-service presentation and/or a regional/state conference.

What's New

The following is a list of recent events. Every month we'll remove the oldest items and place them in the archive. The most recent changes are listed first, and each item is linked to the page with the updated content.

December 12 - 15, 2000

Using all of the resources available in the school library, history students work in groups collecting as much information on their topics as possible. Each group keeps a bibliography of the sources that are used that will be displayed in the final project.

December 11, 2000

History students lead a class discussion on what specific areas will be researched in the Middle Ages. Five major areas of research are decided on and groups are formed for research purposes.

December 7 - 8, 2000

History students spent two days in the school library finding as many books that are related to the Middle Ages in any area. Students then created a bibliography of the resources that are available in the CCHS library. The school librarians then catalog the books into the computer creating a Middle Ages topic list for future students to use in their research.

December 6, 2000

The history class is given a lesson on how to cite sources such as a book, encyclopedia, magazine, internet site, etc. This information will be used when the class goes to the library to find information on the time period for their village.

December 5, 2000

History students lead a class discussion on what role the class will play in the project. The class decides to create a Middle Age village that will be authentic in most regards. Research is the next step based on class discussion.

November 29 - 30, 2000

History students watched a film by PBS on the Trebuchet and the components of the
siege weapon to give them an idea of what type of weapon was used during the
Middle Ages. A general class discussion followed on the Middle Ages and the
differences compared to other time periods.

November 29th 2000

Students in Mr. Ingram's Computer aided drafting class begin converting the Physics students scale drawings to CAD blue prints.

November 14th 2000

Physics Instructor Mr. James Clark hosts a Vocational - Technical / Math / History / Physics connection through a presentation in the CCHS library on the "Physics of Torque". Students from the above classes that are involved in the project attended this event.

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Last updated: November 13, 2002.