Spittin Straight Fire... yo

Today we continued our raps. In the middle of class I wen tot my locker and got cup cakey things for my group. As I said yesterday, my rap is rad. I have this vision for the end of the rap video. I think it’s a really great idea to have a Caesar dressing in the video and jut stab it with a knife to end it. I don’t know it might be a little too gory… 

Test Talk

Today we went over our recent tests and Claire was in charge. After that we began our projects. I am in a group with Bryan and Caitlin. We have made the most ultimate rap to ever exist. Or at least it will be… it is about Brutus and Caesar. I had to go back and change some of Caitlin’s words because they were not as rad as they should be. 

Explained Rap

Today in class we went over the rap we were showed the other day. Here are my notes:

·        Latins, Etruscans, and Greeks settled in Rome first

·        Tarquin the proud

o   Tyrant

o   Leader

o   Son attacked and raped a honored woman

§  He didn’t do anything about it

·        Patricians

o   Wealthy

o   Upper class

o   Land owning

·        Plebeians

o   Hard working

o   People of the earth

·        Consuls

o   2

§  To keep from one person getting too powerful

o   One can veto the other

·        Roman Legion

o   Army

o   Police force

o   Well-armed

o   Well trained

·        Century

o   80 people

o   Fighting group

·        Carthage

o   Punic wars

o   Very close to Rome

o   Along the Mediterranean sea

·        Hannibal

o   Used elephants

o   Took his men and went all the way around to Rome

·        They had a civil war because the lower class had no hope

Weird, Weird Class

Today class was weird… first Mr. Schick got a fake phone call and said he had to leave for a second. That was his first mistake because he put a lot of trust in us to be quite. Then he came back in the least threatening rapper outfit I have ever seen. Then he gave himself a weird name and started rapping about Rome. I think the weirdest part was when he said baby girl in his rap… or probably anytime he said yo. Then after he finished his weird rap he put on Hamilton. That was, oddly, the weirdest part of the day. For the rest of the class we listened to Hamilton. Coming from a family off theatre people I should have expected it. Also being friends with one Caitlin Kennedy should have gotten me used to the crazy but oh well.

Names and Terms

Republic- Rome had a republic government when free- born male citizens could vote for their leader

Patrician- This was a group that struggled for republic power. They were wealthy landowners who had most of the power

Plebeians- the plebeians were the people who struggled against the Patricians, these people t=where the hardworking farmers, merchants and artisans who made up most of the population.

Tribune- Tribunes were elected representatives used to protect the rights of the plebeians

Consul- Officials that direct the army and the government

Senate- The aristocratic branch in Rome’s government, it held both legislative and administrative functions

Dictator- A leader that had absolute power to make laws and command the army

Legion- The large military unit’s roman soldiers were organized by

Punic wars- Wars that all started with Rome and Carthage, and ended in the defeat of Carthage

Hannibal- a 29 year old Carthaginian general who wanted to avenge Carthage’s earlier defeat

Alexander Movie

Today in class we watched a movie on Alexander the Great. Let me tell you, they fought brutally. After seeing what kind of life Alexander grew up with, you can kind of tell why he was like he was. His mother was sweet but seemed like she was pushed aside. His father seemed to be too good to talk to him, as if he didnt have the time for his child unless his child proved himself to him. What i did not need to see was people being murdered in a desert. The movie was a little to gory for me. I would rate 6 purple elephants out of 10 purple elephants.

Free Mod

Today we had another  free class period. I got to finish my biology homework and study for the up coming test on Monday.

Test Soon

Possible Alexander the Great Questions

1. At what age did Alexander die?

a. 30

b. 36

c. 32

d. 41

2. What did Alexander NOT learn to do as a boy?

a. Ride a horse

b. Use weapons

c. Make weapons

d. Command troops

3. Who kills King Darius?

a. Alexander

b. His officer

c. Cleisthenes

d. Mr. Schick

4. How long did it take Alexander to die after being sick?

a. 3 days

b. 11 days

c. 14 days

d. 7 days

5. Alexander was not…

a. Power hungry

b. Kind of insane

c. Caring

d. A heavy drinker

6. How did Alexander the great really die?

a. He was poisoned

b. He got sick

c. He was assassinated

d. Nobody really knows

7. When Alexander took his men through the desert, what of the following happened?

a. Less than 1/3 of the army survived

b. Alexander killed many

c. 1000’s died from sunstroke

d. Both a and c

e. Both a and b

f. Both c and d

g. None of the above

Questions we did

1. Who did Alexanders mother worship

a. Dionysus

2. How did Alexander die?

a. Historian weren’t sure but some believed he could have been poisoned by his men or alcohol, or he could have contracted a disease

3. Who was alexanders role models growing up

a. His mother, who taught him passion and emotional nature, and Aristotle, he was his teacher

4. How and wher did King Phillip die??

a. He was stabbed by his guardsmen , who may have been hired by family, specifically Alexanders mom Olympias, at his daughter wedding

5. Who was King of Persia when Alexander conquered

a. Darius the 3^rd

6. What was the job of Cleisthenes

a. He was the personal historian of Alexander the Great and

7. Who killed Darius the 3^rd

a. His officer

8. How long did it take Alexander to quell the rebellion after he took rule

a. One year

9. What land allowed Alexander in with open arms

a. Egypt

Absence

Today I was out of school for my grandfathers funeral.

Hellenistic Culture

Alexander’s policies sprouted new Hellenistic culture. Hellenistic culture is a blend of Egyptian, Persian, and Indian influences.

Alexandria became a very big part of Hellenistic civilization. Alexandria was widely admired by residents and visitors.in Alexandria there was a lighthouse, called the pharos, it used a mirror and fire to create the light house effect. In Alexandria the museum contained an observatory of the planets and the stars. One astronomer named Aristarchus believe that the Earth was at the center of the solar system, and this was widely accepted. Another man named Eratosthenes believed that the earth was between 28,000- 29,000 miles, it is actually 24,860 miles.  One genius named Archimedes estimated the value of pi.

2 Greek philosophers founded schools, one called Stoicism and one called Epicureanism. Zeno created stoicism. Stoics proposed that people should live their lives by the will of god and Epicurus’ believed that the only real objects were those that the 5 senses perceived.

Like science and philosophy sculptures flourished in Hellenistic times. Colossus of Rhodes was the biggest sculpture built in Hellenistic times. It was made of bronze and stood more than 100 feet high. This brilliant sculpture was demolished in an earthquake. 

Holly is Teacher for the Day

Today in class Holly taught us instead of Mr. Schick. There was also a weird new kid in class named Bob. He seemed to be a history buff and a hugggeeee teacher’s pet. We went over the notes we took yesterday and then did the following questions.

2.  The Persian invasion because Persian was one of the biggest world powers at the time and Persia had the biggest army.

3. Phillip could conquer Greece because he was a brilliant general with an extraordinary army.

4. Alexander the Great continued his conquests because he was extremely power hungry

5. Alexander’s empire was broken into 3 different areas.