9-30-10

Yesterday we watched a movie about the Revolutionary War, it was interesting to see reenactments of the battles.
Today went over the worksheets from last night, and basically reviewed all the major/important battles. I had no idea that so much work and effort was put into making our country independent, but I'm glad they did. Our lives would be so different if America was still ruled by England, we might even have English accents or something. Not that I would mind that, because when I was in England it was cool to be surrounded by English accents.

Timeline

The embed code wasn't working, and also it wouldn't directly embed onto my blog.I don't really know what to do, so here's the URL, it's the best I can do. Sorry!!

http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/76557

9-23-10

I learned a lot today from the activity we did in history. Everyone in the class was assigned a character who was present at the 2nd Continental Congress and we pretended to be those characters in a meeting. It was really educational yet interesting at the same time, because it was like experiencing the event first-hand. After, we all had to sign the "Declaration of Independence". I hope we do more of these kind of things because it will be easy to refer to when taking the test. Although I don't like doing skits and acting and such, I have to say the activity today was really helpful.

9-22-10

Today in class we got back into our groups and reviewed what we learned yesterday. Then, we had to come up with 3 questions to debate the other groups about. Our group was hardly ever asked a question, and some of them were difficult to answer. But overall I think I learned a lot today and got a feel for how people of the 1770s thought.

9/21

Today in class we took a few notes from a powerpoint, which is always educational, then did an activity with our groups. I was in group number 3, and my group had the argument that the British should hold control of the colonies but let the colonies be more independent and promote peace between the two. If I were really put in the position of a British person in the 1770s, I like to think that I'd be understanding of the colonist's point of views, so I think it will be easy to debate this point of view.

9-20-10

Today we looked at the path of the British soldiers from Boston to Concord on GoogleEarth. It was actually sort of cool because we got to see where the soldiers marched, but in modern time. This demonstration emphasized the history of Massachusetts in a way that we all are familiar with. I didn't know that GoogleEarth could do a lot of the things we saw today, such as the info that was written and the direct pathway lines. I learned a lot today without the usual slideshows and lectures we get in other classes.

Revised Poem

Listen, everyone, and you shall hear
The tale of three men one fateful year

Revere, Prescott, and of course Dawes
Saving the colonies without pause

Alerting the towns, streets becoming crowded
"The Regulars are out!" is what Revere shouted

By 1 am they were squared away
But Redcoats made Revere pay

Prescott and Dawes had their own troubles
The fear of that night had nearly doubled

Dawes was thrown from his horse
Prescott continued to the militia force

It was not the famed Paul Revere
Saved the colonies without fear

Event That Started the Revolution Probably

While the American Revolution is obviously the effect of many things, I believe that after the Boston Massacre, it was enevitable.Tensions between the Americans and British soldiers had been rising for a while, and finally, the soldiers just snapped. The colonists were extremely angry, Britain had to assert themselves.

Event Info

After all the hard work and effort, today we finally did our "museum" history tour thing in class. It was really embarrassing for me, since I messed up so much in my part of the voiceclip. I couldn't say the word "intolerable" for some reason, so I was just like, "intobabable" and I paused a lot and even apologized for the mistakes. I wish nobody had to hear that, but it's okay. While it is very useful to always have the info on our iPods, it also was really hard to take notes since everyone talked so fast in their voiceclips. Next time, I think we can all agree to slow down a bit.

First Continental Congress- 55 delegates from 12 different states gathered to protest the Intolerable Acts, which were used to bring the colonists back under control of Britain. The Intolerable Acts greatly limited the colonist's freedom. So, the Sons of Liberty organized resistance agaist the Britsh Prime Minister.

Intolerable Acts- In 1774, Britain felt like the Americans should have to pay for the inconvinience they caused during the Boston Tea Party. Massachusetts was put under official British government watch, since that is where the Tea Party occured. Some colonists believed that it would be better just to conform to the British law being forced upon Americans (a.k.a Intolerable Acts), but some, mostly authorities such as John Hancock and John Adams, believed it better to stand up for the liberty and freedom of America.

Boston Tea Party- In 1773, Britain (in efforts to earn more money for their tea trade partners), developed a tax on the tea that was exported to America. The colonists were furious, and one day a group of angry Americans boarded a tea vessel and dumped 342 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor. The colonists then started to produce their own tax-less tea.

Boston Massacre- Sam Adams wrote the Circular Letter telling the colonists to resist the Townshend Acts.
However, the actual massacre occured one winter day when the British soldiers patroling the area has finally had enough of the daily tormenting they recieved, and shot out into the crowd. Three civilians were killed.

Stamp Act-The Stamp Act occured during 1764-1765, when both Britain and France were fighting for control of America. The Act was developed to pay off about a third of military garrison. Americans clamied Britain has no right to tax them since no American was present in Parliament.

Royal Proclamation- In 1763, after the French and Indian War, colonists gained land in the west, which threatened the Indians. With the help of Pontiac and Ottawa, the Indians rose up in the Ohio Valley and took over several British posts. In response, Britain spread small pox through infected blankets throughout the tribes. The Royal Proclamation was developed in hopes of Britain settling new land in America and establishing good relations with the natives.

September 14th

Well today we presented our history replicas. I had Abigail Adams, and I learned a lot from the small amount of research that I did. I also learned from the other people's presentations and it was at least more interesting than watching PowerPoints and reading packets.
We got our textbooks today and those things are so heavy. Good thing America has the least amount of history of all the countries almost.

Recording the Event Profiles

Today in class we went to the computer lab. We got together with our groups and finalized our information, and then printed it out. We then recorded what we wrote onto Mr.Boyle's computer, and he's going to turn all the information we recorded into an MP3 download. We will then download the info onto our iPods and take a "tour" around the classroom while listening to the information, as we would in a museum. I think this is a really cool idea, and we'll always have the information to listen to when we have tests.

September 10th

Today we had an educational yet not very exciting class. We took notes on the colonies and the conflicts between France and Britain. I did learn a lot though, and it is helpful in the long run to have the notes. I know that they will help me a lot when it comes to take a test on the matter.
Also, today I got a clearer understanding on how to do Voicethread and what the requirements are. I wish we had a rubric or something, but I am confident that I understand the two projects. I think that the museum-like project is a cool idea, and plus we'll always have the information on our iPods for before tests.
Doing these blogs nightly are helping to get my ideas straight in history and what we learned, so far it is a positive thing.

September 9th, 2010

Today in History we reviewed on subject matter that we learned in 5th grade. Our table groups collaborated on the packet that Mr.Boyle gave to us, about the early colonies before the Revolution. It was surprisingly easy to remember what we learned in 5 years ago in 5th grade, so that helped a lot. I would also say that I leared some new facts, such as the ethnicities that made up the colonies.
We already have two projects to complete, and both were pretty confusing in the beginning. We have to use websites that most of us have never used or experienced, so I guess it might be challenging. I haven't tried it yet. I already started to work on my replica, and it's really easy. The other project I wasn't clear on for a while, and I'm still not really sure what it's supposed to look like, but I'll look on Mr.Boyle's blog to find out.

Goals for My Sophomore Year

Highschool, though it is only the beginning of my Sophomore year, is flying by. Everything seems to be occuring at once, which can make it very difficult to focus and really have a grip on my everyday life happenings. I've come to realize that it is extremely crucial to my personal success that I establish goals for myself, and agree to do whatever it realistically takes to accomplish them.

Goal number one: Prioritize.
As a teenager, it is hard not to view my friends as my top priority. But I am aware, in reality, that that is and should not be the case. In the real world, it is my education that will get me to the places I want to go and make me successful. So, this year I would like to start prioritizing my life with the effect of doing better in school. I am willing to decline my friend's invitations if I have a lot of schoolwork to do, or to catch up on. I will definitely try to study every night, so that information learned in class will stay in my memory.

Goal number two: Try to mainain an honor roll status.
Being on the honor roll each quarter is really important not only to my parents, but to me also. In middle school, I didn't put a great amount of effort into my schoolwork, and  I never studied, but I did pay very good attention in class. Strangely enough, I made High Honors each quarter. But in my Freshman year, it was suddenly extremely hard to stay on top of things. I wasn't used to all the studying I had to do, and I ended up not making the Honor Roll the fourth quarter. I was very disapointed in myself, and decided that day that I would try as hard as I could to make it every quarter of my Sophomore year. I am willing to go to study sessions, do all of my homework, and again, choose schoolwork over my friends. I will always ask the teachers for help in understanding material if I need it.

Goal number three: Make varsity again.
Last year, I joined the tennis team with some of my friends. I'd been playing tennis for a few years, but I wouldn't have said that I was good at it at all. The team needed 3 people from the JV team to try out for varsity, and since I had been playing, the coach told me to try out. I made the varsity team, but it was only because they were desperate for three more players. This year, I want to make varsity because I am actually a good tennis player, and I am willing to practice as many times a week as I can until the season starts, and I will definitely take lessons to improve.

I believe that setting goals in life is what makes people successful. And I hope that by setting these three simple goals for myself, that I am successful too.