City Neighborhoods Game: Lyons and Strasbourg (France) Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

City Neighborhoods Game: Lyons and Strasbourg (France) Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

Objectives:

-Promote French Conversational Skills

-Promote Analysis Skills

-Promote French Writing Skills

-Promote Knowledge of French Culture

Level 1 – Gathering Background Information

To play this game, you need to read the book entitled La Ville des Temps Modern: de la Renaissance aux Révolutions by R. Chartier, G. Chaussinaud-Nogeret, and Hugues Neveux.

This book is in French only at the time of this writing.

Basically, the three authors write that different sections of Lyons (France) have schools, universities, libraries, public transportation, highways, and markets that met the needs of the city and nation of France during its days as a huge silk fabrication center.

Different kinds of housing and zoning regulations keep neighborhood denizens in their sociological niche usually.

Level 2 –

Look up various maps of Lyons (France) and its surrounding region, including relief maps

What are the city planning challenges in Lyons (France), especially for public health?

Look up public health to find out all the areas that this subject covers, if you would like to earn more

Find out the population of the City of Lyons at the time that the authors examined it and find out what the population figures are for today

What impact could this demographic (population) change have on managing the town?  Examples of items to think about include:

-housing

-sewage

-electrical grid

-school classroom size

-buses needed to take children to school

-health concerns such as vaccinations to attend school and work

Level 3

Write up what are the various neighborhoods in town such as:

-working class areas

-residential areas

-industrial areas

-civic centers

-arts areas

-university areas

(About 2 paragraphs for each neighborhood)

Level 4

After examining Lyons and its neighborhoods, can you guess what its major industry or industries were and are in the past and present?

How well is the City of Lyons set up to meet the current needs of industry in their town?

Level 5

In this level of the City and Neighborhoods Game, you are going to examine the City of Strasbourg (France) by examining the following book:

Dictionnaire Historique des Rues de Strasbourg (available on Amazon.com)

Level 6

Practice your French and write a 2-page summary describing what each neighborhood is like in Strasbourg based on the Dictionnaire Historique des Rues de Strasbourg.

Level 7

Look up various maps of Strasbourg (France) and its surrounding region, including relief maps.

What are the city planning challenges in Strasbourg (France), especially for public health?  Examples of items to think about include:

-housing

-sewage

-electrical grid

-school classroom size

-busses needed to take children to school

-health concerns such as vaccinations needed to attend school and work

Level 8

What are the various neighborhoods like?

(Working class residential, industrial zones, lawyers’ and public servants’ quarters, European politicians quarters, and quarters where the traditional nobility lived)

Level 9

Based on what you have examined, what do you think the main industry or industries were and are in Strasbourg?

Level 10

What are neighborhoods like in your town?

What kinds of markets and commerce do you have?  Can you order foods and pick them up at the markets?

What kinds of stores are in your neighborhood?

What kinds of industry and stores are in your neighborhood?

Level 11

Use the US Census figures for our neighborhood that are available online.

Many retailers would like to know the following basic information before investing in a community:

-income levels

-educational levels

-age distribution

Level 12

If national retailers do not want to come to your community, because of those 3 factors above or crime statistics for your area, think about how to provide these services locally.

The following books provide information on the “why” and “how” of committee formation and management:

Democracy in America: The Complete and Unabridged Volumes 1 and 2 by Alexis de Tocqueville

Robert’s Rules of Order – Newly Revised by Henry Robert III

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Click here for:  Ruth Paget's Amazon Books

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American History Game Using U.S. Presidents Biographies Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

The American History Game Using Presidential Biographies by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

It is sometimes easier to remember events in American history, if you learn them through the lives of American presidents. 

This game will teach you to research items in history and analyze what you find as answers.

Objective:  Gain knowledge you need to be a president who enriches the American people of all ethnicities and defends the nation.


Nota bene:  What is true of presidents is true of leaders in fashion, show business, and publishing almost always.

Use resources such as the following to do your research:

-The Timetables of History: A Horizontal Linkage of People and Events by Bernard Grun

-Presidents Fact Book: The Achievements, Campaigns, Events, Triumphs, and Legacies of Every President from George Washington to the Current One by Roger Matuz and Bill Harris (Editor)

-World Book Encyclopedia – available at most public libraries

-Presidents of the U.S. – whitehouse.org

-Presidential Documents, the U.S. Presidents, and Presidential Libraries

archives.gov

-Presidential Places in the National Parks

nps.gov

Level 1 – Basic Fact Bank

-In a notebook or journal, note the following:

-Write down the full name of the president

-Write down which number the president is

-Write down the president’s birthplace

-Write down the president’s birth year

-Write down the president’s death year

-Write down where the president is buried

-Write down where the president has his library

Note:  Presidential sites and libraries are interesting to visit:

-      to see what kind of communities a president grew up in

-      to see what kind of education he was able to receive

-      to see exhibits of the achievements of his term (s) in office.)

Level 2 – Read about the President from a Variety of Sources

-Write down 5 – 10 of his achievements

-Of these achievements, are any still in place today?

Level 3 – Domestic and International Threats to National Security

-From your readings about the president, note any problems that the United States had due to his presidency domestically or internationally

-Were these problems caused by him or opposition to him by the opposing political party?

Level 4 – The Health of US Commerce under this President

-What did this president do to promote commerce?

-List 5 – 10 achievements

-Are these achievements still in place?

-Use historical statistics to back up your claim

-Are this president’s achievements in commerce still in place?

-Are Americans today richer or poorer due to this president’s accomplishments?

-If the president’s achievements did not endure, examine why.

Level 5 – Wars Fought During the President’s Tenure

-Were any wars fought during this president’s term in office?

-Did the U.S. win or lose territory as a result of this war?

-How much money did the U.S. spend on this war? Look at various budget pots

-Were these wars officially declared by Congress?

-Were treaties signed to end the War(s) or Conflicts?

-What does the original treaty look like?

-What members of government or their family members had shares in weapons manufacturers?  The proverb runs, “Perpetual warfare is profitable.”

Do some weapons firms sell to both sides in a conflict?

Level 6 – Life of the Underrepresented Throughout American History

-What was the life of women, children, and minorities like under the president?

-For minorities, separate your analysis into treatment of men, women, and children for each ethnic group present in the U.S. at the time.

-What parts of the U.S. were the minorities located in?  What countries and regions in these countries did people come from?

Level 7 – Lessons Learned

-What did you learn about being a president from your analysis of this president?

-The Chinese say everyone is a teacher, even bad people for their bad example, so give some evidence for your opinions and how they might make you a better leader.

Level 8 – Presidential Contenders

Who were the main presidential contenders to run against each president?

Make the following data bank:

-the number of each president such as #1 for George Washington

-the president’s name

-the years for the terms the president served

-the president’s educational background – subjects studied, degrees obtained, and names of educational institutions

For each presidential contender, note:

-the contenders’ names

-the contenders’ party affiliation

-the contenders’ educational background

Level 9 – Election Platforms

What were the 5 most important points on each contenders’ platform?

How did the contenders’ platforms differ from the president’s?

Level 10 – What is the immigrant ancestry for each president and presidential contender?

Most people have more than one immigrant ancestor.

Look at women in the family for hidden ancestry.

Level 11 – Ancestry, Economic Policy, and Trade Preferences

How might the immigrant history of each president’s ancestors and contenders’ ancestors affect their economic and trade policies?

By Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

Click here for:  Ruth Paget's Amazon Books

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Global Trade Game that Promotes US Industry Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

The Global Trade Game that Promotes US Industry by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget

Resources for this Game.  (You do not need to use all of them, but you should know how these resources work):

- Online CIA Factbook, which lists all countries of the world

- UN Statistics Division - unstats.un.org

- You Eat What You Are by Thelma Barer-Stein, which describes the cuisines of many countries of the world.  This book is old, but it reminds people of how important it is to have protein-carbohydrate-vegetable meals.

- Google Maps feature

- U.S. Geographical Service – usgs.gov

- State websites with Chamber of Commerce listings

- U.S. Department of Commerce – commerce.gov

 Google Microphone – learn to correctly pronounce all foreign words, especially people’s names

- The Lonely Planet World Travel Book

For Each Country of the World do the Following:

1 – Develop a strategy for making each country self-sufficient in food based following the principles of their traditional diet. 

Are there substitute crops that could be sold planted? 

Could the US sell seeds, agricultural equipment, and agricultural consulting services there?

Outline your analysis in a journal and discuss with your family your ideas before taking action. 

Can your food self-sufficiency plan still allow the country to produce products that the World Bank could finance, for example?

2 – Analyze What Food Storage and Cooking Products are Needed at the Most Basic Level that could be initially sold to the country and then produced there through subsidiary:

These items could include:

-plastic bins to keep dry goods dry

-cookstove

-pots

-pans

-utensils

-cutlery

-hot pads, napkins, tablecloths

-cleaning brushes

-plastic wash tubs

-knives

3 – Look at the Seed Resources, Livestock Breeding Resources, and Educational Resources in Your State

Could any of these resources or consulting services about these industries be sold to the country you are working on that would help make them self-sufficient in food?

Are any trade restrictions imposed by the US government that could prevent trade with that country?  Check with the US Department of Commerce and your state congresspeople.

4 – Look at the geography of the country you are analyzing:

Are there transportation items we could sell the country to help with food, clothing, and shelter in different areas of the country?

5 – Look at Educational Facilities in the Country:

Are there any needs the country has for trainers in teaching people how to type or use computers? Or, work on assembly lines or with statistics?

6 – What is the Communications Infrastructure in the Country Like?

Could your state sell them telecommunications products?

7 – Do a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat Analysis) for the Country You are Working on for sales of the following items:

-cooking items

-food storage needs

-transportation needs (many hi-tech trains run on tracks from the 19^th century)

-housing needs such as mobile homes or products such as insulation, paint, and/or Venetian blinds

8 – For Threats, how could trades with this country lower terrorism threats?

9 – What kinds of recycling consulting services and/or machines could your state offer to the country you are studying?

10 – What kinds of basic sanitation products and educational consulting services could your state offer the country you are studying?

11 - When you have done all of the above for every country in the world read Beyond the World Bank Agenda: An Institutional Approach to Development by Howard Stein.

Do a 5-page summary on Stein's book.  

Then, write a pro or con book review on whether or not you agree with Stein's book based on the research you have just done.

Keep your notes in a journal to discuss with your family.

Game Created by Ruth Pennington Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France

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