Studio 1 · Day 2
How a Studio
Works
Six weeks, one big question, and the thing you'll build.
Do Now
One word.
What's one thing you remember from yesterday about how SDA is different from a normal class? Turn and tell the person next to you.
The shape of every studio
Six weeks. Six phases.
WEEK 1
Launch
Meet the question. Pick your angle. Write your contract.
WEEK 2
Dig
Research. Find sources. Build a source log.
WEEK 3
Build
First draft of the thing. Done, not perfect.
WEEK 4
Shape
Feedback. Conference. Revision plan.
WEEK 5
Finish
Complete your proof. Polish it.
WEEK 6
Publish
Exhibition. Real audience. Reflect.
Week 4 is the secret
"Shape" is where
the grade is won.
Anyone can make a first draft. The students who hit 3.0 are the ones who take feedback seriously and revise. First drafts don't have to be good. They have to exist.
Every studio asks for two things
🎯Demonstration of Learning
Your proof you know the standard. This is what earns the 1.0–4.0 score.
🛠️The Deliverable
The thing you make and exhibit in Week 6 — essay, podcast, exhibit, documentary, and more.
You choose how to prove it
Six ways to show mastery
Written Assessment — a focused response
Extended Writing — an essay or analysis
Verbal Conference — talk it through with me
Visual / Creative — sketchnote, diagram
Multimedia — podcast, video, debate
Portfolio — curate & annotate your work
Your headquarters
The Commons
Everything lives on our wiki: the studio packet, the reading library, the "skinny" skill cards, and every past student's work. sdacommons.org — this is where you'll start every single day.
Your plan for six weeks
The Studio Contract
- Your inquiry angle — your specific version of the big question
- The standards you're targeting
- How you'll prove your learning (your demo mode)
- What you'll build and how you'll spend six weeks
You'll write your first one next week. I approve it before you dig in.
So… what's the
first big question?
The one we'll live inside for six weeks.
Studio 1 · The Essential Question
"Who should govern,
and what gives
them the right?"
Three ancient people.
Three answers.
Long before us, three civilizations answered this exact question in three completely different ways. Look closely — what do you notice?
Hammurabi's answer: LAW
Babylon, c. 1750 BCE. A king carves 282 laws into stone so everyone can see them. His answer: whoever writes the law — and applies it to all — should govern.
Stele of the Code of Hammurabi · Louvre · public domain
Confucius' answer: VIRTUE
China, c. 500 BCE. Forget force — a ruler leads by example. Govern by being so good that people follow you willingly. The best leader is the best person.
Portrait of Confucius · public domain
Pericles' answer: THE PEOPLE
Athens, c. 430 BCE. "Power is in the hands of the people." The first great argument for democracy — everyone with a stake gets a voice.
Roman copy of a bust of Pericles · public domain
…but the same Athens ran an empire.
This democracy also conquered its neighbors and told a smaller island: "The strong do what they can, and the weak suffer what they must." A model to follow — or a warning?
The Parthenon, Athens · public domain
Gallery Walk
Get up. Investigate the evidence.
The four images are posted around the room. Visit each with your group and record See · Think · Wonder — plus one more: whose voice is missing?
~4 minutes per station. Move when I call it.
See · Think · Wonder
See
What's actually in the image? Just the facts — no guessing yet.
Think
What does it say about power, fairness, or control?
Wonder
What question does it leave you with?
✍️ On your handout now
Day 2 Packet · Gallery Walk sheet
Complete See / Think / Wonder + "whose voice is missing?" for all four images as you rotate.
Now — the voices
behind the images.
You looked. Time to read. We'll investigate these thinkers in their own words, one at a time, together.
Read like a detective — the protocol
🎯2.0 Identify
What is the claim? Mark the appeals — ethos, logos, pathos.
🔗3.0 Analyze
How do the pieces work together to serve the purpose?
⚖️4.0 Evaluate
Does the reasoning hold up? Where's the blind spot?
This is the same protocol on every text handout.
Text 1 of 4 · I do → we do
Hammurabi's Code — the answer of LAW
Babylon, c. 1750 BCE. Watch me read and annotate the prologue first — then we finish the laws together.
✍️ On your handout now
Text 1 — Hammurabi · page 1
Annotate as we read: underline his claims about power, star anything that seems unfair. Then compare Laws 196–199.
✍️ On your handout now
Text 1 — Hammurabi · page 2
Do the 2.0/3.0 protocol + Questions 1–2. What does the tiered "eye for an eye" reveal about what Babylon valued?
Text 2 of 4 · we do → you do
The Analects of Confucius — the answer of VIRTUE
Same question, opposite idea. Not force — character. Your turn to lead more of the reading.
✍️ On your handout now
Text 2 — Confucius · pages 1–2
Annotate II.3 and XII.7, then answer the protocol + Questions 1–2. How does Confucius disagree with Hammurabi?
Exit Ticket
Two answers so far.
Law or virtue — whose answer to "who should govern" is stronger, and why? One sentence, using one detail from a text. Tomorrow: Pericles and the Melians.
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