Weekend Round Up!!

This last weekend I celebrated my nephew's first birthday in Utah. My niece Emily came and we had a lot of fun playing in the snow. I went cross country skiing with a college roommate, Lori.

What did you do this last weekend?

Presidents Day

Presidents Day (or Presidents' Day), is the common name for the federal holiday officially designated as Washington's Birthday. It is celebrated on the third Monday of February.

In the late 1980s, with a push from advertisers the term Presidents Day began its public appearance. The theme has expanded the focus of the holiday to honor another President born in February, Abraham Lincoln, and often other Presidents of the United States.

Although Lincoln's birthday, February 12, was never a federal holiday, approximately a dozen state governments have officially renamed their Washington's Birthday observances as "Presidents Day", "Washington and Lincoln Day", or other such designations.

It is also interesting to note that "Presidents Day" is not always an all-inclusive term. In Massachusetts, while the state officially celebrates "Washington's Birthday," state law also prescribes that the governor issue an annual Presidents Day proclamation honoring the presidents that have come from Massachusetts: John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Calvin Coolidge, and John F. Kennedy. (Coolidge, the only one born outside of Massachusetts, spent his entire political career before the vice presidency there.)

Alabama uniquely observes the day as "Washington and Jefferson Day," even though Jefferson's birthday was in April.

In Connecticut, while Presidents Day is a federal holiday, Abraham Lincoln's birthday is still a state holiday, falling on February 12 regardless of the day of the week.

In Washington's home state of Virginia the holiday is legally known as "George Washington Day."

What president's do you think we should honor and why? What can you do this weekend to honor our presidents?

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentine's cards, or offering candy. It is very common to present flowers on Valentine's Day.

The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines." Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards. The mid-nineteenth century Valentine's Day trade was a harbinger of further commercialized holidays in the United States to follow. The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas. The association estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.

What nice things are you doing for your family today?

You can make a valentine for your family and I'll print it out for you!!

Black History Month

Black History Month is a remembrance of important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. It is celebrated annually in the United States and Canada in the month of February, while in the UK it is held in the month of October.

Watch an overview of important people in black history. http://www.biography.com/blackhistory/



Pick a person to learn more about and post interesting facts and new things you learned about the person. (Many other people have contributed in a significant way to Black History but I can't list everyone.)

• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Rosa Parks
• Nelson Mandela
• Jackie Robinson
• Louis Armstrong
• Bill Cosby
• Jesse Owens
• Frederick Douglass
• Sojourner Truth
• Thurgood Marshall
  

American Idol

My Favorite American Idol Contestant:

Don't forget to vote!!
Brooke Ray "White"

Election - Predicitons

This weekend several states had Democrat and Republican contests.

Saturday, February 9

• Kansas Republican Caucuses - Huckabee
  
• Louisiana Primary - Obama & Huckabee
  
• Nebraska Democratic Caucuses - Obama
  
• Washington Caucuses - Obama & McCain
  

Sunday, February 10

• Maine Democratic Caucuses - Obama
  

Delegate Count:

Democrats Total

2,025 Needed (Explainer)

1.	Clinton	1,063
2.	Obama	962
3.	Edwards	26 (Out)

Republicans Total

1,191 Needed (Explainer)

1.	McCain	714
2.	Romney	286 (Out)
3.	Huckabee	217
4.	Paul	16

Who do you think will be the Republican and Democrat candidate? Who do you think will be the Vice Presidents for each party?

Super Tuesday - Reflections

Take the following presidential matching quiz.

• Were you surprised by the results?
• Did you match with a different candidate than you thought you would?
• Would you vote for the candidate that matched your ideas?
  

Questions for reflection:

• What new things did you learn about the candidates?
• What results surprised you the most?
• What do you think will happen to the candidates?
• What issues are important to you?
• What issues are important to your family?

The last contest is Tuesday, June 3rd, a lot can happen in the next couple of months. Who do you think will be the final candidates for the Democrats and Republicans?

Presidential Changes

There is a lot of talk about change. People think that change will happen if one person gets elected instead of another.

• What needs to change?
• How will the change happen?
• What will the new president do to create that change?
• What will the change look like (evidence of the change)?
• What will stop the change from happening?
  
• What topics are the most important to you?
• What topics are the most important to your family?

Be specific!! Don't talk about generalities. All comments should be at least 5 sentences.

Super Tuesday - Results

Did your class votes reflect the results from Super Tuesday? Which states voted the same as your class? Which states were different? Would you voted differently today than you did yesterday?

They are still counting the votes in Missouri to determine who won the democrat contest.

The democrat candidate needs to earn 2,025 delegates to win the nomination.

Clinton - 760
California
New York
Massachusetts
New Jersey
Arizona
Oklahoma
Tennessee
Arkansas

Obama - 693
Illinois
Idaho
Colorado
Minnesota
Connecticut
Utah
North Dakota
Kansas
Delaware
Missouri
Georgia
Alabama

The republican candidate needs to earn 1,195 delegates to win the nomination.

McCain - 615
California
New York
Illinois
Arizona
Connecticut
Delaware
Oklahoma
New Jersey
Missouri

Huckabee - 199
West Virginia
Alabama
Tennessee
Georgia
Arkansas

Romney - 281
Colorado
Utah
Minnesota
North Dakota
Montana
Massachusetts

Super Tuesday - Presidential Primary

In the United States, Super Tuesday commonly refers to the Tuesday in early February or March of a presidential election year when the greatest number of states hold primary elections to select delegates to national conventions at which each party's presidential candidates are officially nominated. More delegates can be won on Super Tuesday than on any other single day of the primary calendar, and accordingly, candidates seeking the presidency traditionally must do well on this day to secure their party's nomination.

California is one of the states that participate in Super Tuesday and will hold the presidential primaries this Tuesday, February 5th.

If you were 18 years old, who would you vote for and why??

DemocratsObama / Clinton

RepublicansRomney / McCain

Super Tuesday Results: http://www.knbc.com/politics/interactive.html