[Jade Kidd]

I really feel like the laws are the problem here. They're forcing us to be part of civilization and away from our natural instincts. I'm sure dear old dad was just being spontaneous and going with the flow. I think I'll practice some wu wei here. 

[Jade Kidd]

Jen, I agree! I think students would find this extremely interesting. All too often when we discuss historic cities students picture the dark, drab, and dirty cities of early Europe and not the vibrancy that is captured in this article about Hanzhou. I think it would be really fun to play "guess that city" with students. We could read some of the different descriptions and then have them write what city they think we're referencing. I think they'd never guess it was a city from 1235!

[Jade Kidd]

I have encountered many of the early symbols throughout the course of my life. Growing up in the 90s, I had at least two shirts with a yin yang symbol on them and probably a choker necklace, too. I think the symbol's popularity stems from a few different reasons. First, like the video suggests, it has become a popular symbol to use in marketing...even if its meaning doesn't quite make sense with the product sold (looking at you apples). Second, I think the symbol is popular because it represents the ever-present desire within American culture to be "balanced" when we do everything out of balance. 

[Jade Kidd]

At the beginning of the year, we talk a lot about the movement of people, trade, and the sharing of ideas & technology. The image shared in the first video of the Yellow River's course changes due to flooding would be a great way to show students why we see civilizations just 'pack up' and move so frequently in history. Students don't always understand they have to follow the resources (or in the case of flooding, get out of the way). The image would be a good way to show them how often landscapes can change. Later in the year, we talk about environmental issues. We could look back at that image and talk about how historically, people followed resources, but today our world is much more 'set' and we can't just go where the river is. This could lead to discussion of the disputes and deaths at the source of China and India's water. Then, I would incorporate the information I read in Tom Levitt's article. I was shocked to read that "one-fifth of farmland is too polluted to grow crops, nearly 60% of groundwater is unfit for human use and air pollution is 20 times the recommended safe levels" (Levitt). This would serve as a springboard into discussing the impact that American companies have on the rest of the world. I like to use the fashion industry as my example for this as most students at my school are very fashion and image conscious, which leads them to spending their meager teenage wages at stores and on websites that are notorious for being "fast fashion". We look at the demographics of the people who are working in the factories making their fake Supreme shirts (is Supreme still cool?). I think this lesson will be even more impactful now with the information about how the pollution from the factories is creating "cancer villages" and having negative impacts on population growth (Levitt). 

[Jade Kidd]

Hi everyone! My name is Jade Kidd. I teach a 10th grade world history/world literature block in Sammamish, Washington. I have also taught government and American literature in Kentucky and Arkansas. I'm excited to learn more about China in order for my curriculum to better match the diversity in my classroom. I look forward to learning with you all! 

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