12/13/11

Today we dropped History. (so sad!)

Today in English we started out the class like always with a grammar lesson. After that lesson we discussed the Anticipation guide (although we weren't really anticipating anymore). One particular question we talked a lot about was if freedom was worth dying for. In my opinion, freedom is not worth dying for. If you die for your freedom, your not really achieving anything because your just going to be dead. If your dying for the freedom of someone you love I don't think it is worth it either because if they really loved you, then they would rather have you alive then have freedom.

I could not make a connection today because I dropped History.

12/12/11

Today in History we read a document titled "The Union of These States is Perpetual: Lincoln's View of the American Union" This document was a speech written by Abraham Lincoln. After reading this document, we answered the questions that followed it on a separate paper and then discussed the answers as a class. This document contained Lincoln's opinion on the secession of the Southern States. An interesting thing we were taught is that Lincoln never referred to these states as the Confederate States because this would show that they were in fact separate from the Union.

Today in English we started the class off with a usual grammar worksheet. After we finished, we had a class discussion about the chapters we had just read. After our discussion we received many papers to place in our notebooks and we were given a quote assignment to find examples of Huck's moral growth.

When Abraham Lincoln avoided using the phrase " Confederate States" when referring to the states in the south that had seceded from the nation, it reminded me of one of Jim's crazy superstitions. Jim is always believing that if you do a certain thing such as pick up snakeskin, then bad luck will be brought upon you. This is similar to Lincoln's thinking because Lincoln believed that referring to the Confederate States using their proper name would be very bad. Although Lincoln's thinking did have logic to it, using that name would not change what the Confederate states really were, just like how touching a snameskin would not really change your luck or fate.

12/8/11

Today in History we worked as groups in the Computer lab. My group consists of Me, Rachael, Shannon, Kaley, and Natalie. The event we were given to study was the battle of Gettysburg. Once we received our events, we researched them. After researching, we organized the information we obtained into a google doc that is shared between all of our group members. Now when we do this project we have plenty of facts for it and they are available to every member of our group.

Today in english we had reading workshop.

I could not make a connection today because we did not have class in english.

12/7/11

Today in History we annalyze a photograph of Abraham Lincoln. This was not just any ordinary photograph, it was the last photograph to ever be taken of Lincoln before his assasination. Lincoln is pictured in this photo with a slight grin on his face and lots of wrinkles. A peculiar thing about this photo was the giant scratch in it, that some figured was an omen of his death.

Today in English we started the class with one of our grammar papers and then continued our discussion on the Anticipation guide. After this discussion was cut short due to our "bad behaviour", we were handed a paper to read with a partner titled,  "A True Story, repeated Word for Word as I Heard it" written by Mark Twain. This was about a woman who was a slave talking all about the troubles of her life and being separated by her family thenb being reunited with her son, Henry.

This story was similar to the story of a picture we annalyed in History. "The Modern Medea" was a picture of a slave mother who had slaughtered her own children in order to save them from the horrors of slavery. These situatuions were similar because they both depicted a helpless mother that was doing everything they could to help their children out of slavery.

12/6/11

Today in History we had a substitute and read over multiple worksheets about an idea of Abraham Lincoln's. This idea proposed that the constitution was a picture of silver and the idea of liberty to all was an apple of gold. The constitution acts as a frame to the idea of liberty because it supports and protects liberty to all. Liberty to all is an idea that does not discriminate against anyone and was created in the Declaration of Independence.

Today in English we begun the class with a grammar paper and then a quiz on our reading for Huckleberry Finn. After taking our quiz we discussed the chapters we had read and the questions from the quiz. After this lengthy discussion, we were given lots more papers to work on in our notebooks.

If the Principle of Liberty to all was applyed in the book Huckleberry Finn, then the book would be a lot different. Huck would not have anyone to go on his adventures with becasue Jim would be with his family because he would have been given liberty and freedom. Without Jim with him, Huck wouldve had a very hard time navigating and surviving. My prediction for if Huck never had found Jim on the island would be trhat he would have stayed on the island and eventually would have to go back to shore once he ran out of food and supplies.

12/5/11

Today in History  we had our test/essay on everything we have been learning which consisted of the time period around the 1850's.

Today we had a substitute in english so we had reading workshop.

I can create a connection today because we did not have regular classes.

12/2/11

Today I dropped History.
Today during english we had reading workshop. I read Dead Men Tapping.
I can not make a connection today because in both classes we did not have regular class periods./

12/1/11

Today in History we read over a document called "Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina From the Federal Union" which was the document that nullified california. After reading this document we answered questions about it and annalyzed it's meaning. After this, we watched a video about seccesion and the states in America that did partake in in. these states were called the Confederate states and were in the south and left the nation after Lincoln became President.

Today in English we had a quiz on Huckleberryb Finn. After this quiz we discussed the previous chapters we had read and the answers to the mini quiz. The remainder of the period was spent doing a large amount of papers given to us for our notebooks.

A connection i made between Huckleberry Finn and the seccesion of the south was that in the book Huckleberry Finn, Huckleberry runs away, which is a lot like how the southern states ran away from the nation. When both these states and Huck ran away, they were leaving something theyb didnt agree with. The states didnt agree with how the nation was being run and Huck didnt agree with how his life was being run.

11/30/11

Today in History we examined a Political cartoon. This particular cartoon depicted a group[ of men standing in front of some sort of sheet with a ,map of America on it. Some of these men were fighting over this map and tearing it while others were mending and fixing it. The two men fighting over the map were President Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas and this represented their disputes over the nation.
Today I dropped english.

This political cartoon reminded me of children fighting over a toy. Pulling and tugging, these men turned violent in their actions of settling the nation. Some were greedy and others were not. Just like children, they settled their differences very immaturely.

11/29/11

Today in History we learned about the Harpers Ferry raid. This raid was started by an Abolishionist man named John Brown. In Harper's Ferry Virginia, Brown and his followers took control of the arsenal. By doing this, they attempted to start a slave rebellion. They gave weapons out from the arsenal to slaves in the hope that they would rebel. At the end of this event, however, John Brown was given the death sentence.

Today in English we took a quiz on Huckleberry Finn. After taking this quiz, we discuss the Huckleberry Finn Anticipation Guide and the chapters we had been assigned to read. A big question on this anticipation guide whether you should be willing to die for your freedom. I bel;eived that you shouldnt because life is  what we should treasure most above freedom. Without freedom, you can still exist. Without life, its questionable ifyou can.

If John Brown was given this anticipation guide, he would no doubt agree that freedom is worth dying for. John Brown in fact diid die for freedom. He beleived that being free was worth anything he could give, and everything he had. John Brown was a true example of strongly beleiving in freedom.

Timeline

11/28/11

Today in History we watched a video about Abe Lincoln and Stephen Douglass's speeches. Lincoln thought that the nation should not be divided into slave and free, the Dred Scott case was unconstittuional and not a fair decision for slavery because Dred truely was supposed to be free, wanted slavery to be abolished, and thought America being divided was not a good solution. Douglass's speech was a lot different. Douglass spoke of how he thought that disturbing the topic of slavery would only cause chaos, and he agreed with the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case.

In English today we began talking about Huckleberry Finn. We began class by receiving loads of papers for our notebooks including the Anticipation Guide for Huckleberry Finn. This guide had many statements on it requiring you to fill out how much you agree with each one. The statement I used for the second part of the Anticipation Guide was: If something is wrong to everyone else it should be wrong for you. I strongly disagreed with this statement because everyone is different and entitled to their own opinions on things. If everyone thought the same things were wrong, then there would be no diversity.

In my opinion, Abraham Lincoln's speech was far better than Douglass's. Lincoln supported his theorys better and just took an overall better approach to the subject. Douglass came across as lazy because his veiw was just to leave it alone and not cause chaos. Lincoln knew that in order to be affective in this matter, choas would need to happen, otherwise how would he get other's attention pointed towards his veiw.

11/22/11

Today in History we talked about the Dred Scott Case. Dred Scott was a slave who sued his masters for his own freedom living in the North in a free state. When this case was heard, it was decided that Dred would not be given freedom because he was tequnically not a citizen, but also not considered a person. Dred attempted to gain freedom more than once, but was still not given any. Many slaves similar to Dred sued their master's for similar reasons, but suprisingly they won in court. This showed the dividing of the nation because the courts across the nation had very different opinions on the matter.

Today English was once again taken up by our in class essay.

When hearing this case, I thought that it was incredibly unfair. The nation did not handle this matter fairly because some slaves were given freedom while others were not, but all were equal in the matter. Why should some slaves be treated fairer than others? All slaves trying their masters for freedom should have been given the benefit of the doubt because they all deserved freedom.

11/21/11

I can not blog about History or English today because we dropped History and in English the whole class period was taken up by an essay.

11/17/11

Today in History we annalyzed a painting named The Modern Medea. In this painting, two African American people lay dead on the ground, while a distraught crowd is gathered around them. On one side of this crowd is a group of men looking frightened and suprised and on the other side is a woman looking angry and frantic while small, afraid looking African American children desperatley cling to her. At first glance it looked as though this was a slave family being killed for escaping, but after annalyzing the painting for a while, we were told the true meaning. The Mother in this picture was the real killer, murdering her own children in the hope that they would escape the horrors of slavery.

I dropped English today (so sad).

This painting made me think a lot about how terrible slavery truley was. If African American people were willing to take death instead of face slavery, you know it had to be awful. After seeing this painting, I was horrified by the woman's actions. This woman did not even give her children the chance to live. She took their lives thinking it was for a good reason, but she really had no way of knowing how their fates would have ended up. What if her kids would have grown up to become important people in History? What if one of them even was destined to become the first African American president. Of course, we will never know because this woman had to take matters into her own hands and end their lives before they even had a chance to really live.

Voice Thread

11/16/11

Today in History we discussed and did worksheets on slave laws. On these worksheets I thought California should be admitted as a free state, slavery should discontinue at all costs in the capitol, there should not be a tougher fugitive slave law (or any fugitive slave law for that matter), popular sovereignety in New mex. and Utah, and texas staying the same size. I thought these because I think in all these decisions, the anti-slavery options would benefit the greater good the most because abolishing slavery would set free tons of people and save many lives and also prevent wars over slavery.

Today in english i spent the class carrying out an errand for Mrs. Davis

By reading Frederick Douglass's book, I have learned a lot about the life of a slave and the History of slavery. I have learned how severely the slaves were treated and also how many people veiwed them. Slaves were not even veiwed as people, they were veiwed as property. People back then sometimes considered slaves as 3/5 of a person. In my opinion, slaves are just as much people as anyone else. Just because they looked different, they were treated unfairly.

11/15/11

Today in history we shared our results on the worksheets given last class. This time we discussed how the Constitution was against slavery. My part which was the preamble to the Constitution was against slavery in many ways. First of all it starts out by saying "We the People of the United States" which would include the slaves living there. It then goes on by ensuring things like domestic tranquility, justice, liberty, etc.. These things are all very beneficial things to our country and if we did not have them, slavery would not have been abolished.

Today in English we worked more on our Frederick Douglass packets. I used this class period to read a lot more of the book. Something ineresting that I read was how Colonel Lloyd protected his garden. He protected it by placing tar around it so that any slave caught with tar on their clothing could be immediatly found guilty of stealing or trespassing in the garden. I thought this was clever because it was a foolproof plan and made the slaves terrified of getting any tar on their clothing.

Colonel Lloyd's sytem of using tar was a lot like the modern day security system that stops theifs from stealing clothing. If somebody wants to steal clothing, there is a device on it that is filled with ink and explodes if you dont get it removed in the store. This is a lot like the tar idea because if you do steal the clothing, you can be caught because you couldnt remove the plastic security device or it will explode ink all over the clothing, making them pointless to steal in the first place. Who would've thought that colonel Lloyd and modern day clothing stores had anything in common?

11/14/11

Today in history we re-read the bits of the constitution we were given the previous class, but this time we looked for how they were unsupportive of slavery. When re-reading the preamble to the constitution, my group noticed that the six things the goverment promised were all very unsupportive of slavery. How could a document that ensured things such as liberty and justice be supportive of something as cruel as slavery?

Today in English we worked more on our Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave packets. I used this class period to read more. In the chapters I read today, they mentioned a lot about how the overseers acted. Overseers were basically chosen for how cruelly they would treat the slaves. A "first-rate" overseer was someone who was extremely cruel, persevering, proud, and ruthless. Something interesting about the overseers that we're mentioned in the book is that their names match their personalities. The worst of the overseers last names just happen to be Severe and Gore. The overseer with the normal last name also happened to be the nicest.

The overseers of this book remind me a lot of prison guards. Just like overseers, prison guards are in charge of keeping their prisoners in order. If one of them escapes, the prison guards must do anything they can to keep them from escaping. The slaves were also much like prisoners because they were being held against their will. The difference between slaves and prisoners is that slaves never got a choice in their fate, they are only held there because of their skin color.

11/10/11

Today in History we went to the computer lab to look at an interactive map. This map had lots of information on it about which states had large slave populations and which did not. The states in the south had many slaves because slavery was very popular in the south. The states in the North did not have a large slave population because the North was not as supportive of slavery of the south.

Dropped english due to ACT testing.

When learning about which states had more slaves, it lead me to thinking about the civil war. Because the South was so supportive of slavery and the North was not, it lead to their different opinions clashing and to a war breaking out. This map lead me to see  that different opinions on slavery was the cause of the civil war.

11/9/11

Today I dropped history.

 Today in English we worked more on our Frederick Douglass packets. For this whole class period, I dedicated my time mostly to answering the questions on the slave songs. Something I learned about their songs was that they were very metaphorical so they could express their feelings without the slave owners knowing what they were singing about. I also learned that the slaves sang more when they were sad because it was a way to let out their feelings and make them feel better.

When learning about the double meanings of the slave's songs, it reminded me of learning about the Underground Railroad in 6th grade. This was when a bunch of slaves were lead to the freedom of the North. During this event, the slaves made quilts with hidden meanings as well. What looked like an ordinary pattered quilt would really end up being a secret map that showed the slaves which houses were safe houses and which were not. Overall, the slaves were very clever by keeping their true intentions a secret.

11/8/11

Today I dropped History due to signing up for testing for ACTS

Today in English we got a new book called The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave. Along with the book we were also given a large packet to fill out while reading. This book is about a man named Frederick Douglass that grew up as a slave. So far in it he talks a lot about how in-humanely the slaves are treated. He recalls at one point how even his own aunt was tortured nearly to death in front of him by being repeatedly whipped.

When reading about how awful life was for slaves, it made me feel extremely grateful that in our society today we do not have slaves. If we did, life would be so miserable. Even if i were not a slave, I would feel awful for those who were slaves. The slaves are tortured, overworked, and given little food and clothing. If slaves were around today, I would definatley try to help fight for their rights.

11/7/11

Today in history we listened to the speech of Frederick Douglass. His speech was all about how independence day was not a happy holiday for the slaves. Even though America now had freedom, the slaves had none. After hearing this speech, we examined paices of the constitution and found out how it supported slavery. my group examined the preamble and in it it stated that slaves would not be allowed to gain independence because it would disrupt this newfound domestic tranquility. Slaves, also not being American citizens would not be given freedom by this document.

dropped english

Learning about Douglass's veiws on independnce day made me feel like they did not spend enough time on the constitution. I think they should have taken the time to figure out rights to give to the slaves. They should have taken the time to reason with slave owners before writing this important document. If they had done this, the constitution would not seem so supportive of slavery.

on Dipity.

10/19/11

Today in history we got back into the same groups as last class and finished going over the declaration worksheet. After going over this worksheet, we had a class discussion that took up the remainder of the period. This discussion was about why people would sign the declaration and whether an agreement is better than an agreement in person. I think it was necessary to sign the declaration because it showed king George that lots of people wrote and agreed on the constitution and shows home that the people signing it are all in on their plan. I think that an agreement in writing is better than just a verbal agreement because in writing you can't go back on your word or deny you ever agreed in he first place.

Today in English we read the rest of act 3 in Julius Caesar. In the scenes we read, Caesar goes to the Capitol and is stabbed by the conspirators. After he is stabbed, Antony pretends to not be upset with the conspirators as long as they tell him why they killed his best friend. After hearing their reasons he pretends to be on their side until he spoke out against them at Caesars funeral.

Our conversation in history reminded me a lot of the scene in julius Caesar when the conspirators are deciding whether or not to have an oath to kill caesar. When faced with this decision, brutus immediately decided against it because he claimed that if they were really all in on the plan that they would not need to have an oath to make them do it. I disagree with Brutus because I think an oath would make them more motivated and more in on the plan.

10/18/11

Today in history we were paired up with partners based on a word and it's definition based on the declaration of independence. The word I had was sacred honor which was in the declaration as something to pledge along with life and fortunes. After being paired into groups we read over the declaration of independence and annalyzed it's meaning. This document was made in order to dissolve the connection between the colonists and British once and for all.

Dropped English today

The need for the declaration of independence was very similar to the need to murder Caesar in Julius Caesar. The colonists needed to create the declaration because if they did not, they would be under unfair rule and would not benefit from it. If they did not stab Caesar, Caesars power could become corrupt because it was all in his hands or he could have used it wrongly. In both situations, if they did not rebel, then they would be under an unfavorable rule.

10/17/11

Today In history we split into our groups and discussed the olive branch petition. The olI've branch petition was sent to the British from the colonists in hope that it would bring peace and prevent a full blown war. Britains response to this well thought out petition was just to ignore it. The Americans were angered by this, which shows in an excerpt we read in class from a newspaper. In this excerpt, a man was ranting about how we should break the. Onne tion with Britain because they caused all of America's problems and were only there to benefit themselves.

In English today we read Act 3 of Julius Caesar. In this act, Caesar is stabbed by the conspirators. When this stabbing occurs, Caesar is very astonishEd by the participation of his "friend" Brutus, who was always there for Caesar and loved Caesar. When he was stabbed by Brutus he cried out the famous line, "Et tu, Bruti" which means and you too, Brutus. After he died, Antony pretends to be okay with what the conspirators have done in order to plot revenge.

The olive branch petition is an approach that the conspirators in Juius Caesar should have taken. They should have made a petition ordering caesar to step down because that would show Caesar that he needs to change his ways and would have prevented the war that came out of his death. It would have also ended a whole lot less violently and

10/13/11

Today in history we went over the shot round the world document results and shared them with all of the other groups. My group had a document from 3 Americans about how the British took them with pistols and released than in the morning. We concluded that these three americans thought the British fired the first shot becausE they were armed with pistols when they arrived and seemed ready for battle.

Today I had reading workshop

When dealing with the shot heard round the world I thought that the British fired the first shot. I think this because in most of the articles We read they thought that the british fired the first shot. I also think this bcaus in the document i read they talked about how the britsh had pistols on them as they captured them. Although I think that the titian fired the first shot, I think that the Americans provoked them to dO so.

10/13/11

Today in History we continued presenting projects then started discussing the Shot Heard Round the World. When entering the classroom, we were handed papers that were different primary source documents on the night of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The document I read was written by a group of American Patriots. These patriots were discussing a group of British Soldiers that came up to them with pistols and kept them until morning then set them free back at the town. Our group inferred that these Patriots must have thought that the british fired the first shot because they handled them with pistols in hand.

Today in English we discussed Act 2 of Julius Caesar. In act 2, the Conspirators meet at Brutus's house and discuss their plans for murdering Caesar. Soon after the meeting, Portia questions Brutus about his odd behavior and attempts to prove herself worthy of knowing this knowledge. Many omens appear that day which should cause Caesar to want to stay home, but he refuses. After being persuaded by Calpurnia, Caesar decides to stay home. After Caesar makes this decision, one of the conspirators comes to Caesar and persuades him back into going out again. Caesar leaves and when he arrives at the Capitol, he tells the conspirators to have a drink with him, claiming they are all friends.

I predict that the stabbing of Caesar will be much like the start of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The Battles of Lexington and Concord began with a mysterious shot that triggered the other soldiers to start fighting. I think that when the conspirators carry out their plan of murdering Caesar, one man will stab him and trigger the rest to become part of the stabbing.

10/12/11

Today in History we presented our life sized historical person projects. Although I did not present today, I enjoyed listening to everyone elses presentations and had some time to think about how i would present my project based on the how others were presenting theirs. An interesting project that I saw was the project on Benjemen Franklin. I already knew a lot about Benjamin Franklin becasue we studied a lot about his life and saw a play on him in 7th grade, so when this project was presented it refreshed a lot of this information and reminded me of all the things i've learned about him.

Today in english we had Reading Workshop again.

These presentations reminded me a bit of the play Julius Caesar that we are reading in English. The presentation on King George reminded me of Caesar because he was the king of England whome everyone disliked and wanted to get rid of. Molly Pitcher reminded me of Portia because she is a devoted wife and will do anything to prove her worthyness. John Adams reminds me of Brutus because of how he supported the British soldiers in the Trial of the Boston Massacre. This reminded me of Brutus because he sides with the conspirators even though he's friends with Caesar. They are similar because both are willing to side with the "bad guys" for what they beleive in.

10/11/11

I dropped History today.

Today in English we presented our posters on either Julius Caesar or William Shakespear. My group was chosen to create a poster based on Julius Caesar. On this poster, we recorded some of Caesar's most prestigeous acheivments and presented them to the class. This presentation was important to our reading because it enabled us to know Caesar's background and figure out a lot more about him as a person.

So far, I think that Julius Caesar is a very missunerstood and unfortunate character. I think that Caesar is undeserving of the terrible fate he comes to at the end because he really did nothing wrong to these people and was never even a bad ruler. I think that Caesar just chose to become the leader of Rome at the wrong time because that was when the people were becoming skeptical about Rome being ruled by only one ruler.

10/7/11

Today in History we talked about the midnight ride of paul rever. We started class out by examining the work "Midnight Ride of Paul Rever" by Grant Wood which was a picture expressing this event in history. This picture showed a man riding a horse by a massive church following a long road through a village of houses with all of their lights on into the unknown. In this picture, we learned that this man was Paul Revere riding through the town calling out "The regulars are coming!" to alert the people that the British were approaching.

Reading workshop

The way Paul Revere shouted "The regulars are coming!" connects to the book I am currently reading. Paul Revere shouts this because he doesn't want the British to know he is announcing them so he used a little bit of a codename. In my book, Harry Potter 6, Harry and his friends are required to call the Hippogrith Buckbeak by the name of Witherwings in order to protect him from being executed by the ministry. These cases are similar because in both situations they need to desguise the name of something in order for protection.

9/5/11

Today in History we did on online game that was all about life in America during the American revolution. In this game, you play as the character Nathaniel working as an apprentice in a patriot printshop in Boston. You have lots of tasks to complete around town for the owners of the printshop and on each task you learn a little more abour how society worked during the American revolution. I left off on this game right after the Boston Massacre took place. This event was frightening because it made it seem like people Nathaniel met and became friends with were going to be shot. Luckily, all of Nathaniels friends made it through the Boston Massacre alive.

Dropped English.

The patriots in this game reminded me of Antigone from the last play we read. Antigone is a strong willed character who won't back down while fighting for her way against the law, even if she must face death. Antigone is a lot like the Patriots because the Patriots are also very strong- willed and rebel against Parliament's laws even though they may face death as a consequence.

10/5/11

Today in History we presented/recorded our talk show! Our show consisted of an interveiw portion, multiple commercial breaks, and an audience participation segment. During the interveiw portion, the host asked a question and all four of the advocates needed to answer it based on their beliefs. During the commercial breaks, we presented our public service announcements. During the sudience paticipation segment, we got the chance to ask all of the advocates questions challenging their beleifs. Over all I think our talk show was a pretty big success because it helped us learn but also nhave fun at the same time.

In English today, we toom a quiz on Act 1 of Julius Caesar. From reading Act 1 I learned a lot about the characters. Caesar is a bit full of himself but also has some physical ailments. Cassius is thin and serious and is opposed to Caesar ruling. Brutus is close to Caesar and also well respected and well liked. Antony is who Caesar trusts most and always has Caesar's back. Most of the characters in this play are against Caesar in some way, but a small amount are completely for him.

The character Cassius from Julius Caesar reminded me a lot of the ruler Sun Tzu whom I played in my group's public service announcement. Sun Tzu is a strong willed leader, believing in going to war at any cost in order to try to benefit his rule. Cassius wants to take down Caesar more than anything, even if it means brutally murdering him and turning his friends against him.Sun Tzu is like Cassius from Julius Caesar becasue both are selfish and willing to do anything for what they want.

10/4/11

Today in History we rehersed our skits a bit more. In my skit I'm playing a man named Sun Tzu. After learning what role I would be playing, I was curious to know more about Sun Tzu so I found this helpful website http://www.slideshare.net/bright9977/5-factors-for-life-by-sun-tzu. This website has many quotes about Sun Tzu's war strategy's and his ethics behind them. An interesting point he has was that choosing the setting of the battle can have a major impact on the outcome of it. Another point he brought up a lot on this website was that if there is an obstacle in life, always find an easy way around it.

Today in English, we created posters for either the reading we did on Shakespear or the reading we did on Julius Caesar. A connection I had to the Shakespear reading we did was while writing the script for Homecoming, I remembered a term from that reading. This term was aside, which is when a character says something directed towards the audience, not the other characters. I used this term in the skit by making the main character of the skit say to the audience "Oh brother" when she sees Mrs. Jones coming.

After reading Act 1 of the play Julius Ceasar, I have already made a connection to Oedipus Rex. In Oedipus Rex, Oedipus ignores Tyresias's prophesy claiming that it is not true. In the end, however, Oedipus learns Tirisius's prediction was right all along. This connnects to Julius Caesar because in one part, a soothsayer chimes out in the crowd to Caesar " Beware the ides of March.". When hearing this, Caesar calls his crazy and continues with his buissiness. What bCaesar does not know is that in the ides of March, he will be murdered.

10/3/11

Today in History we planned out what way we will present our Public Service Announcements. For my group's presentation, we started to write out a script and brainstormed the basic idea of our announcement. In this announcement, we will portray the other war theory's by members in our group. After they are finished presenting those theorys, we will then talk about how great of a theory the Just War theory is.

In English today we read all about Shakespears life and how he grew up. Shakespear was considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time and was famous for many of his tragedies. Some of his plays are Julius Ceasar, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and a Midsummer's Night's Dream.Shakespear was known for his rich language and understanding of human feelings.

The way we are representing our War Theory in our public service announcement reminds me of a lesson we had on the different types of Propaganda used in world war two last year.Propaganda is one-sided information used to persuade people into agreeing with your point. We are using Propaganda in this announcement because when we present the other war theorys, we dont present them as in depth as we do for the Just War theory and present our theory with more enthusiasm.

9/30/11

Today in History we did research on our War theorys and found quotes from people who followed it. After researching this information, our groups put it all into a google document so we can refer back to the information when it comes time to work on our class talk show. The people who thought Just war was the proper way to veiw war were Thomas Aquinas, Colin Powell, Saint Augustine, Winston Churchill, and Plato. A helpful website I found while researching the Just War theory was http://www.justwartheory.com/. On this website there are many links to other sources about the Just war theory and lots of examples and quotes from important people in history and from today.

Reading Workshop!

The Just War theory reminds me of the 7th Harry Potter book. In this book, they use the Just war theory when deciding whether to go to war with the dark forces of Voldemort or not. If they do not fight back against them Voldemort will kill everyone remaining at Hogwarts, making them have a need for war. All the students and teachers at Hogwarts do not beleive in going to war for an unneccesary cause because they do everything in their power to avoid fighting Voldemort and his Death Eater Army until it comes to the point where it is neccesary for their survival to fight.

9/29/11

Today I dropped History.

Today in English we continued talking about the true or false worksheet. A statement that brought up a lot of debating in our class was whether it is ever right to kill people. On one side of the arguement, our class debated that it can be okay to kill someone it is to save the lives of others. An example of this is if a terrorist is plotting to kill many other people it would be right to kill them because it would save many other lives. On the other side of the debate, our class argued that it is never right to kill a person becasue life is one of their natural rights and killing them would be taking away that natural right, which would always be unjust.

The debate on this question reminded me a lot of the debate we had in History the other day on the same question. A lot of the arguement was the same in both classes, but in History i heard an interesting point brought up from one of the groups. This point was that if someone was coming after you with a weapon plotting to murder you, would it be right to kill them purely for defending yourself? In this situation I would say that it would be more proper to take any alternative possible other than killing them in order to avoid making the wrong choice.

9/28/11

Today in history we talked about ethics. To begin our discussion we talked about three things we knew morally are right and three things we know morally are wrong. After we stated how we got these ideas about morality. After having this discussion I realized that most peoples ideas about morality come from their parents and their surroundings. This discussion lead to where we stand on the thought of war. I agreed with the just war theory because I believe it depends on the situation whether we should go to war or not.

Today in English class we went over the worksheet we did the previous class. We went over this worksheet by discussing each statement, whether we agreed or disagreed, and backing up our opinions with examples. One of the statements that we got into a heated discussion about was Suicide is never justifiable. With this particular statement I disagreed with because if a person were placed in a situation where suicide was the only way to save people they cared about, I feel like it would be a justifiable reason.

While talking about where we got our ideas about morality in history today, it reminded me of a topic we discussed from Wuthering Heights last year in English class. This topic is Nature VS Nurture. I though of this topic because when asked this question, the majority of the class said thier morals came from their parents and surroundings. This proves the nurture theory, that people are not born a certain way but are taught to behave that way, because the majority of the class learned the way they think from how they were raised.

9/27/11

Today in History we did presentations based on the events we were given. An interesting topic presented about was the Boston Massacre. During this event, citizens who were outraged about the taxation decided to throw snowballs as a small attempt of rebellion at soldiers that were stationed nearby. This little form of rebellion completely backfired on the colonists when the soldiers started firing their muskets back at the colonists. In the end, five colonists were killed by the muskets fire. This event shows just how chaotic things were becoming due to the heavy taxation on the colonies.

Dropped English

The Boston Massacre reminds me a lot of the play we read, Antigone. Like the Boston Massacre, the plot of Antigone becomes very twisted and chaotic. The character Antigone is a lot like the colonists in this situation because she initiates the problem by rebelling against Creon's law, much like the colonists rebelling against the soldiers for Parliaments laws/taxes. In both scenarios, both sides refuse to admit they're wrong or back down. In the end of both situations, things got out of control and innocent lives were spared.

9/26/11

Today in History Class we went to the computer lab and worked on group powerpoint presentations. For each powerpoint, the group making it was required to cover who, what, when, where, and why the event happened. In my group, I was in charge of the Why portion. I said that the Intolerable Acts happened because they needed a way to punish the colonists for the Tea Act, otherwise they would feel they could rebel like this all the time without consequence.

Today in English class we completed the Julius Ceasar Anticipation Guide. On this worksheet, it had many true or false questions that connect to major themes in the book Julius Ceasar. One question that I answered true to was In certain situations it may be neccesary for a political leader to bend or break the rules for the good of the country. I agreed with this statement because if it benefits the country to change this law, then the law must not have been a proper or good law to begin with.

The statement I agreed with, In certain situations it may be neccesary for a political leader to bend or break the rules for the good of the country, connects to the Boston Tea Party. In this particular situation, I think it would be right for Parliament to lift the heavy taxes because if they had, then they would not have lost so much money from all the tea dumped in the harbor. If the taxes were fair or justified, then there would have been no reason for the colonists to rebel to this extent.

9/23/11

Today in History we read about Revolutionary America. The events we read about were the Stamp, Sugar, and Quartering Acts, the Boston Massacre, the Borton Tea Party, the Intolerable acts, the first Continental Congress, and the Shot Heard Round the World. After reading about all these events, each group was given just one event to study. The event my group received was the Intolerable Acts. These acts were a result to the Boston Tea Party. Boston Harbor was closed until the destroyed tea could be payed for and Massachusettes was put under the control of a military governor.  Intolerable acts were a way to punish Massachusettes for the Boston Tea Party, but also helped unite it.

Reading Worskshop!

The way the people of Massachusettes were punished for the Boston Tea Party reminded me of how in the book Harry Potter, Harry and his friends are punished for rebelling against the headmaster Dolores Umbridge. Just like the Boston Tea Party, Harry and his friends were sneaking out and disobeying the school rules by creatig an army called Dumbledores Army. This is like The Boston Tea Party because they were standing up for what they beleived in by breaking the laws and then were punished in the end when they were caught.

9/21/11

Today in History we went over A worksheet we did the previous night for homework. Since we just finished our unit on the Constitution, we are now moving onto the American Revolution. The worksheet we did was all about the new colonies that were established in America. On one half of America was the French, and on the other half was their enemy the English. We also discussed how the New England, Middle, and Southern parts of America developed very differently.

Today in English we had an in class open response quiz. For this quiz, we each were given a sheet of paper containing a civic value that pertains to the play Antigone. The civic value I received on my slip of paper was Perserverance. Perserverance means to keep going no matter what obstacles come in your way. In my open responce, I wrote all about how Antigone overcomes the being rejected by her sister, breaking the laws, the threats of Creon, and the threat of death. Antigone uses perserverence because she doesn't back down when faced with a struggle.

When learning about how all of the different parts of America formed so differently, it made me think of a book I read called Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone. In this book, there is a school with four different houses. The students in these houses are all very different, for instance one house is all about bravery, loyalty, and chivalry while another is all about creativity, learning, and wit. This is like the formation of the colonies because each house ended up so differently with different views, just like the dfferent sections of America at that time.

9/21/11

Today in History we took the test. I didnt think this tst was too challenging becasue I put a lot of effort into studying. I even learned all of the Articles, but none of them were on the test. A big theme on this test were how the Amendments protect American's rights. The Amendments gave Americans a lot more freedom from the government, making sure the government does not hold too much power. Without the Amendments, Americans would have less rights and the government would have too much control over the people.

Today in English we worked on a paper all about Antigone. On this worksheet, there were lots of question that required you to think particularly hard about the play. A good question from this worksheet was Do Antigone's convictions about burying Polyneices mean that she disliked her other brother, Eteocles? My answer to this question was that Antigone cared greatly for both brothers, but Eteocles was already buried, therefore she did not need to put up a big fuss about burying him. I'm sure that Antigone loved the brothers equally, but in this play she only got a chance to express her love for Polyneices.

Just like how without the Amendments America would be compltetely different, without Creon's laws, the story of Antigone would be completely different. If Creon had never enforced that law, then Antigone would have never had to have been sentenced to death after burying her brother. If she were never locked in the vault, then she would have never died, meaning Haemon would have never died either. If Creon had not passed his law, the story would not exist.

9/20/11

Today we dropped History.

In English today we discussed the end of Antigone and got more worksheets about it. In the play, Antigone is brought to the stone vault to die by Creon. After talking with Tieresias the blind prophet, Creon realizes that killing Antigone is wrong and goes at once to free her. By the time Creon reaches the stone vault, Antigone has already hung herself. After learning that Antigone has killed herself, Haemon kills himself as well.

After finishing this story, we were left with the question, who really was the Tragic Hero? I expected it would be Antigone becasue the story is all about her, and was suprised to be persuaded towards thinking it is Creon. I didn't realize at first, but now I truely believe that Creon was the Tragic Hero. Creon is a well-respected, good natured leader who's tragic flaw is how he is very stubborn. If he were not stubborn, he could have avoided the tragedy of the play by not locking Antigone in the tomb and just letting her have her way. He gains wisdom and self-awareness during the play when realizing he was truely wrong. Creon fits basically all the characteristics of a tragic hero, therefore I believe he is one.

9/19/11

Today in History we played an educational game about the Amendments of the Constitution. In this game, you owned a law firm and people would come in with problems wondering if they had the rights based on the Amendments to change them. An example of a problem would be "My teacher will not have me in his class because I am Asian. Do i have the right to change this?" In this situation, the student would have rights because Amendment 15, stating the teacher may not discriminate against the student's race. After deciding whether the client has rights based on the Amendments, you need to match that client to oneof your lawyers based on which Amendment. After this a trial occurs and if you win you receive points, and if you do not win you lose points.

Today in English, we took a quiz on the play we are reading, Antigone. This quiz was all about Scene's 1 and 2. In these scenes, Creon had declared that no one would be able to bury Polyneices, and is told by the Sentry that Polyneices was buried. Creon sends Sentry to find out who buried him, and when he returns he tells him it was Antigone. Antigone then confesses her deed with no regret. After hearing Antigone's confession, Creon declares that Antigone's sister Ismene must be guilty as well. Eventually, he decides only Antigone is truely guilty and sentences her to death. When Creon's son, Haemon discovers his fiance Antigone's fate, he is outraged at his father.

If the Amendments applied to the play Antigone, then it would have gone a lot differently. In the first place, Creon would not be able to pass this law. Antigone would not be able to be accused because they had no certain eveidence to accuse her with. All Antigone was doing was crying over her brothers grave. Antigone's sister would also not be allowed to be accused because she did not do anything associating with this crime other than being related to Antigone. Antigone would also be allowed a fair trial instead of just being brought in to confess. Creon would not be allowed to lock Antigone in the stone vault until the gods decide whether she lives or dies because this would be a form of cruel and unusual punishment.

9/16/11

On friday in History, half of the class portrayed the Federalists, while the other half portrayed Anti-federalists in partner debates. In this activity, I was an Anti-Federalist. My reasons against the constitution were there was no Bill of Rights, the executive branch had an exess of power, congress held too much power, and the national government had too much power. My Federalist partner's reasons for having a constitution were that it lessens the responsibility of the people, it will allow us to make the best of our abilities, and without it we wouldn't have defence, union, government, or credit.

No english :(

In my opinion, the Anti-Federalists defended their opinions better than the Federalists in this dispute. It may be the fact that it is easier to pick out the flaws in something than the positives, but the Anti-federalists had many more points than the Federalists and backed them up with lots of proof. Although the Anti-federalists had more points, I would agree with the Federalists because I think we do need the Constitution. Without it, I think that our country would not be nearly as great as it is today. It would have a weak central government and would not be a very powerful country.

History Timeline on Dipity.

9/15/11

Today in History class, we learned all about our nation's system of checks and balances and the three braches. The Legislative branch has control over approving presidential nomination, the budget, passing laws over veto, impeaching the president, and impeaching judges. The Judicial branch has the power to declare what the other branches are doing as unconstitutional if they do not follow our nation's constitution. The Executive branch has control over nominating judges and vetoing congressional legislature. It is important that the three branches have checks and balances because otherwise, branches could become more powerful than others.

Today in English we took a quiz on Greek Tragedys and Greek Tragic Festivals. We also took a long list of notesabout the Elements of a Tragedy. In a Tragedy, there is a heroic main character with a Tragic flaw, which eventually leads to this character's downfall. Something that really specifies tragedies is that the tragedy could have been avoided. If the tragedy could not have been avoided, then the story would not be a tragedy.

What we learned in History today reminded me of a book we read last year for english called Lord of the Flies. In this book, a group of boys are stranded after a plane crash and have to fight for their survival as a group by working together and setting up their own mini government. The mini government set up by the boys is similar to our government, but not nearly as strong so the power becomes taken over by one of the boys and used wrongly. This book made me realize how lucky we are to have such a stable setup of our goverment with checks and balances, making it so power can not become corrupt like it does in Lord of the Flies.

9/14/11

Today in History class we did an activity on how the president should be elected. In this activity, we filled out a worksheet on the pros and cons of haveing the president be elected by the people, congress, the Electoral College, and by the states. In the end, the best way of electing an Exectutive ended up being by the Electoral College because it made it so the small states had a say in the election. Although the Electoral College was looked at as possibly being deceitful, it was chosen as the best working system of electing an Executive.

Today in English class we begun reading the play, Antigone. Antigone is the following story from a book we read last year called Oedipus Rex. The story starts up when the protagonist Antigone's brothers murder eachother. Antigone's uncle Creon buried one of the brothers, but creates a law saying that the other brother will not be buried or mourned. When Antigone heres of this law she is determined to break it. She comes to her sister, inviting her to join in on her scheme to bury her brother, saying that it is only what is fair for him. When her sister refuses, Antigone does not back down. She holds her head high and stays determined to accomplish her task.

A connection I made between one of our History classes and the book Antigone was with one of the civic values we learned. The cicvic value was perseverence, which means steady persistance in a course of action. Antigone demonstrates this civic value when she plots to disobey the law in order to do what she thinks is right. Antigone demonstrates perseverence by sticking to her goal, even when the law gets in the way, or when her sister will not join her. Even if it means getting in trouble by herself, Antigone is determined to bury her brother.

9/13/11

Today in History class, we received a new paper about the Virginia, New Jersey, and Hamilton plans. In each of these plans, they decided on the terms and conditions for an Executive. The Virginia Plan, introduced by Edmund Randolph, stated that the one executive would be elected by the National Legislators and be in office for one term, could not be impeached and could not veto. The New Jersey Plan, introduced by William Patterson, stated that the multiple executives that would be voted on by congress would be in office for one term, could be impeached, had no veto power, and could appoint federal officers. The Hamilton Plan, introduced by Alexander Hamilton, stated that the one executive chosen by the electors would be in office for as long as needed, could not be impeached, and would have veto power.

In English class today, we started by finishing going over a worksheet, and then we moved on to a brand new worksheet on Greek Tragedy. This worksheet was all about the elements of a Greek tragedy and Greek Tragic Festivals. At these festivals, tragic plays would be put on and a winner would be chosen at the end. The people who chose who would present the plays were called magistrates. We also learned the family tree for the book we will soon read called Antigone.

A connection I made between English class and History was between a Greek Tragic Festival and the government. The crowd watching the performers is like the nation watching and being affected by the government's every move.The magistrates who pick which poets would present plays are like the representatives of the states. The winning poet is like the executive, voted by the majority of the people.

9/12/11

Today in History class, we started off by taking a quiz on the preamble to the constitution, and then continuing going over the notes we took in groups from the previous class. We started by going over my group's notes, and then proceeded to group C's notes. Group C's issue they needed to solve was whether each delegate wanted proportional or equal representation in Congress. Group C's conclusion was that two of the delegates wanted equal and two wanted proportional. In the end, they came to a compromise called the Conneticut Compromise where they ruled out what should be included from each sides arguement.

Today in english class we went over a paper we had a previous night for homework. This paper had multiple statements that you needed to decide if you agreed or disagreed with. The questions on this paper tied in to some of the major themes of the book Antigone which we will start reading shortly. While going over these questions, our class discussed each one carefully, letting each student voice their opinion on each matter.

A strong topic present in many of the questions from English class today that can connect to History class was Should you always follow the law even if it goes against what is right or what you believe in? While thinking about this question, I thought about the delegates at the convention, and thought about how they might answer this question. One particular delegate that I thought about was William Patterson. When faced with this question, I thought that Patterson would say yes, because he believes all people should have equality and their say in things should not be overpowered by larger forces. Patterson would believe in going against the law because he knows when things are not right and are unjust and stands up for what he believes in, so I feel he would feel the same for others.

9/8/11

 Today in History as we walked in, we were handed papers that assigned us into groups. On the paper I was given, there was a conversation between respresentatives at the Constitutional Convention. This conversation ws between Roger Sherman, Elbridge Gerry, George Mason, James Wilson, James Madison, Charles Pinckney, and Oliver Ellsworth. After reading this conversation, we were told to figure out whether each representative wanted voting to be in control of the people or the state legislators. Sherman thought the state legislators because he thought the people would vote wrongly and were easily mislead. Gerry thought the people should be able to vote but the state legislators should have the final decision. Mason thought the people because he wanted every part of the community to vote. Wilson thought the people because the legislators have too much power. Madison thought the people because he thinks the people are a better foundation than the legislators. Wilson thought the legislators because he beleived them to be wiser than the people.

The conversation between the representatives reminded me of a book we read last year in english called Oedipus Rex. In this book, a man named Oedipus kills his father without knowing it, and comes to realize this in the end of the story. Before he and the town come to this realization, the townspeople or "chorus" as they are called in the book voice theiy opinions about Oedipus in something called an Ode. This connects to the conversation the representatives had because like the chorus, they all freely voiced their opinions about a topic.

9/7/11

At the beginning of class, we were put into groups depending on what paper we were given for homework. The purpose of these groups was to read about a problem that corresponds to the Articles of Confederation. The problem my group was given was that Congress couldn't get enough votes for new articles they wanted to be added. After reading through the articles a couple times, our group discovered that Articles 14 and 16 were the reason that the new articles could not get enough votes. Articles 14 and 16 stated that congress would have absolute power over many things, making them unable to get votes.

I dropped english class today.

What we did in class today reminded me of a scene in the book A Seperate Peace. In this scene, a group of boys gather in a room at their school because one of the boys pushed another off of a tree and they are trying to get to the bottom of this incident. Our class connected to this today because we were given a problem that we had to investigate and figure out why it occured. In the book, they question the boy on if and why he would push the other boy off of the limb and investigate the problem.

9/6/11

During History class today, a group discussion took place about the homework sheet we were given during the long holiday weekend. This worksheet was titled "Why we have a National Government". The discussion we held was all about answering this question our worksheet provided. Eventually, our class came to the decision that a reason we have a nationalist government is to keep all states within a same group of national laws, meaning that although some laws do differ between states, there is a set of federal laws that all citizens of the U.S. must follow. This topic lead us to discussing the question; Do people move to different states in order to benefit from that state not having a certain law, and if so, does that mean people in each state are bound together by a shared desire of freedom from that law? An example of this is when people move from Massachusetts to New Hampshire in order to avoid wearing helmets, do all citizens of New Hampshire share this wild desire to keep their heads helmet-free? In the end, we came to the conclusion that citizens of certain states are not all bound together by the common desire to not have a certain law, otherwise each state would be filled with citizens lacking diversity among themselves. One state would be filled with a certain kind of people, while another state would be filled with a completely different kind of people.

The discussion that took place in History class today resembled a discussion that would be held by a national government deciding on a new law. In our conversation, our class elaborated on one idea, just as a national government would elaborate on a new law. We discussed the issues of this idea, the problems there were with it, and the positive outcome this idea could have, just like a national government would with a new law.

Goal 1: to get an A in history. I will acheive this goal by finishing my homework on time and participate a lot in our history class!
Goal 2:to cure multiple sclerosis. In order to achieve this goal I will need to take many advanced science and anatomy classes and raise a great of money for my cause.
Goal 3: my final and most important goal is to save all endangered or suffering seahorses. In order to achieve this goal, I must learn all about seahorses and where they live. I must then travel to these places and help get laws passed to protect this beautiful species. I will also create a safe haven for seahorses in my own house. This large saltwater tank will accommodate for over 50 seahorses. Only then will the seahorses be safe from danger.