Western Civilization

Today in class we did a work sheet on Egypt. Mr. Schick didn't make the worksheet so he didn't know some of the answers and half of them weren't in the text book. I searched for the answers half of the class before being told they weren't in the book so then we looked them up on line.

Page 41: 1. Delta- A broad, marshy, triangular area of land formed by deposits of silt at the mouth of the river. Narmer- A king of Egypt that wore a crown that celebrates the unification of Egypt. Pharaoh- Egyptian god-kings that were thought to be as powerful as gods of heaven. Theocracy- Government where rule is based on religious authority. Pyramid- Resting place of kings after death Mummification- drying a copse to prevent it from decaying Hieroglyphic- Pictographs that were used as the earliest form of Egyptian writing 3. Being surrounded by deserts benefited Egypt by giving them land to farm. 4. Egyptians viewed a pharaoh as gods of heaven 5. Egyptians mummified body because they wanted to preserve the corpse of their kings.

Today in class, we reviewed for the 75 point test/quiz about Mesopotamia: Cuneiform- First form of writing Fertile Crescent- 2 rivers flooded to cause silt (good soil) and good access to water. Modern day fertile crescent- Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Tigris, Euphrates Wheat and Barley was grown in the fertile crescent  City State- Form of government that is set up to control cities and surrounding areas Dynasty- Kings and rulers that get passed through families  Cultural Diffusion- The spread of ideas and materials from one place/culture to another Irrigation- Controlling where water goes Polytheism- Belief in multiple gods (many gods were based off animals and nature) monarchy- one ruler like a king ziggurat- town hall and place of worship silt- rich soil caused by flooding of the rivers The same people control the government and religion Gilgamesh- A king Epic of Gilgamesh- Story of a flood like Noah and the arch Paleolithic- old Stone Age- hunters a...

Today in class we wrote down what what would have happened in Hammurabi's time if you broke certain laws. Then we turned in the homework and the blue worksheet. After that, we took notes out of the text book on page 35-43 (Egypt).

Today in class we read about Hammurabi's code in the text book to review background information on what they are in order to complete a worksheet. Hammurabi's code was the first set of written laws. We took crime and laws that were broken in that time period and decided what we thought a fair punishment would be using our laws and methods from our time period. Many people thought that fines and jail were the best consequences but there were still some people who decided chopping off body parts and beating people was the best way to go.

In class, we took notes on the powerpoint. We learned that Sumer occupied the land between the two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates) in the fertile crescent. Towns were growing to the size of around 40,000 people due to food surplus and more job opportunities. Sumerians created the earlier form of writing called cuneiform as well as inventing time as we know it today. We also learned their gods represented elements of nature. We also talked about valentines day. TEST QUESTIONS: The modern day fertile crescent is Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Jordan "Epic of Gilgamesh" was a great flood

Today in class we took notes on the powerpoint "From Prehistory to Civilization" It was basically a review from what we read in the textbook but it went into a little more detail. We took notes on the Paleolithic age (Stone Age). This was in prehistoric times. Prehistoric is before things were written down.  We also took notes on the Neolithic age which is when they went from hunter and gathers to permanent settlements/houses.

Yesterday in class we continued to take notes from the textbook on early river valley civilizations. We also talked about good note taking skills and how you should write down anything in bullets, different font, different color, and anything bold. We took notes on the geography of the fertile crescent, as well as environmental changes and challenges, solving problems through organization, Sumerians creating city states, who controls the government, police and rulers sharing control, the spread of cities, and summering culture.

Today in class we read about Early River Valley Civilizations in the textbook. We learned about the climate and weather changes and how they effected crops and farming. They had floods that would create silt which was good for planting grain. The two rivers in the Fertile Crescent are the Tigris and Euphrates. They flow south west to the Persian Gulf. They frequently flood. When people learned where to plant their plants and how to make water get there, they advanced in their farming.

Today in class we took notes on Early River Valley Civilizations and their government, interactions with the environment, and about science and technology.  Hammurabi's code which was the first set of laws that made people responsible for their actions. Talking about laws and what is fair and unfair then started a debate about why people are poor and if they are poor because of luck or because they did something wrong. I personally think that if you are poor there is a reason. Many people that live on the streets in the city spend the majority of their money on drugs and thats what their priority is. If someone is born into a poor family then they can work hard to get out of it. For example, you could work hard, get an athletic scholarship to a college, get and education and work. If you are born into a rich family but are lazy you won't keep a job and eventually will run out of money.

Today I came to school late and missed half of class. Then I took the test which was pretty easy and didn't take me very long at all. It was all multiple choice besides listing the animals. I think I got an A. Then I did my blog. We didn't do anything else in class.