Latin America Revolutions

The essential question is "Why is it essential to acknowledge human value regardless of race? How are the events in the Latin American Revolutions evidence of this social imperative?" This is important to think about because this has been a big problem for a long time. People used to have less opportunities or rights just because of their race and that's not fair.  Race pretty much decided how well you were treated. White people were seen as more powerful than the black people. For example Everyone was revolted against the peninsulares because they were being unfair based on race and they had an unfair social status. 

Two commonalities are  that they all end around the same time and happened in Latin America. Two differences are that they were all lead by different people and they speak different languages. Race was the reason they started t revolutions. Race is what held them back in life. 

People make a lot of assumptions today. There are still stereotypes today. In the news lately there have been a lot of instances where people they were treated unfair. For example the Michael Brown story in Missouri is a big problem because people think the cop did the wrong thing by shooting him and the whole city was rioting. They thought he was shit because the cop was racist. I think race is still an issue but it has gotten a lot better over the years, but it is definitely still alive today. 

Remembering Toussaint Louverture

Behind every independent country is a ruler that made it that way.  Toussaint Louverture was the man at the head of the slave rebellion of Saint Domingue.  He did many things for the people of Saint Domingue.  For example he was a liberator of slaves, military commander, and a ruler of Saint Domingue.  With all his roles in Haitian revolution he was remembered most as being a liberator of slaves.

Toussaint Louverture was remembered most as a liberator of slaves because he abolished slavery, and he fought to keep their freedom.  For example Toussaint fights for the former slaves freedom because in Document B he writes a letter to the french directory because they were trying to reinstate slavery.  He is basically saying that these men(former slaves) are now free and if you try to reinstate slavery they will fight and revolt against them.  Document B states "Could men who have enjoyed the benefits of liberty took on calmly while it is taken from them!"  this means that these men have enjoyed the perks of being free and you can't plan on taking away their freedom without a fight.  Also he was a big part in abolishing slavery.  For example in Document A it states "A slave revolt begins in the north of Saint Domingue, Toussaint joins the revolution and serves as a doctor to the troops; he also commands a small detachment of slave soldiers."  this shows that he had a big part in abolishing slavery because he helped the wounded soldiers and he led a group of soldiers in battle.  The sacrifices he made to help these slaves shows how courageous of a leader he was.

Toussaint also played a big role as a military commander in the Haitian revolution.  In Document F it states "Toussaint levied fresh forces, raised the reputation of the army, and drove the English and Spanish from the island"  this shows that he had complete control of his army and that he was a successful military commander seeing that he drove the English and Spanish off the island.  Toussaint had complete rule over his military, for example when Hyacinthe Moyse tried to lead a revolt aginst Toussaint he had Moyse's men step out and shoot them selves in the head, and later he arrested Moyse and had him executed.  This shows how Toussaint showed his power as the military commander.  Toussaint was also a very skilled strategical commander.  For example in Document E it talks about how when the French were coming to the port of Samana he burnt it down to force the French to go through the mountains where Toussaint's men were waited and they used the guerrilla fighting style.  Even though he was a very popular military commander he was definitely more remembered as a liberator of slaves.

Finally Toussaint Louverture was also remembered as a ruler of Saint Domingue.  Document C shows that Toussaint was a good ruler, for example it states "Toussaint Louverture assembled and headed the  commission that created Saint Domingue's constitution of 1801.  While its citizens were now all free, Saint Domingue still remained a colony of France."  this shows that he cared about the people by making a constitution for the people to have their freedom. Also it shows that he is a good fair leader to everyone.  The only flaw is that in Article 28 of Document C it says that Toussaint will be leader for life and that is selfish and also that people the people in a sticky situation because if he starts doing a bad job or if they don't like the job he is doing they can't get rid of him.  He definitely made a lasting imprint as the ruler of Saint Domingue but he was still definitely remembered more as a liberator of slaves.

Toussaint Louverture was successful as a liberator of slaves, millitary commander, and a ruler of Saint Domingue.  Also, he left an imprint that will make him be remembered forever.  Some people didn't like him and some did.  He made a big impact on a lot of peoples lives in a good way. Aside from all that he was definitely most remembered as being a liberator of slaves.

Revolution Failures

The revolutions of 1830 and 1848 were really failures because the negative effects definitely outweighed the positive effects. In class we got into groups and each group was assigned a revolt. We had to read an article about our revolt. Then we had to make a survey monkey with 10-12 questions that the students answered base on the article. Then we went over all the questions and the group would give the answers and lead the discussion. 

The revolt I had was the Decembrist revolt. This revolt started when Tsar Alexander I died on December 1, 1825. People didn't like the way that Tsar Alexander I ruled. Some people plotted to kill him. Then the people wanted Constantine to rule but he didn't want the throne so it went to Tsar Nicholas. 

Decembrist Revolt Survey Monkey

The revolutions were failures. Some were bigger failures. Some revolutions had positive aspects but the negative effects were a lot bigger. For example the Decembrist revolt was definitely a big failure. Also the France and Hungary revolutions were also failures according to the survey monkeys. The revolutions of 1830 and 1848 were all failures. 

Congress of Vienna

The essential question means that when someone with a high rank feels like their position is threatened what should they do? In class we answered various questions about napoleon and what he did when his power was threatened. We talked about how napoleon dealt with and and also Metternich wanted to split up the power while napoleon was in jail. 

At the congress of Vienna Metternich wanted a balance of power between Russia, Austria' Prussia, Britain, and France. They said they wanted to bring French territory back to its boundaries as it was before expansion. Also they wanted to give Russia and Austria additional land for what they went through during the napoleon conquest. The balance of power made everyone equal and make everybody happy. 

I believe the people at the congress of Vienna did a good job. I believe they made the right choices. I liked how they made the balance of powers because it made it do everyone had the same power and it helped people after napoleons conquest. It made many people happy and I believe it was the right decision to make.  I think that people should give up some of their power to make the world a better and happier place. I think by them giving up some power made it fair for everyone. 

Napoleons impact on Systems of Europe

Napoleons had a positive impact on social systems in a few key ways. First   he gave more people access to education.  This positively impacts social systems because this gives the children a chance to help the world and come up with inventions and this that help the world become a better place because they're now educated. This gave more people a say and that made everybody happy. Napoleon had a positive impact on the political systems of Europe because he established meritocracy. In "The Lost Voices of Napoleonic Historians" it shows that Napoelon wrote books about politics which shows he had strong views that were supported by the people. Meritocracy gave more people a say and that made everybody happy.  Napoleon impacted economic systems positively and negatively because he controlled prices, encouraged new industry, and built new roads and canals. Also he stole artwork from surrounding countries. 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=0CAUQjB0&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.greatthoughtstreasury.com%2Fauthor%2Fnapoleon-bonaparte-napoleon-i&ei=n-Y_VLOIBMfxgwTst4DoCQ&bvm=bv.77648437,d.cWc&psig=AFQjCNFyvUcuK8So0falcK6kXJlHCD3eBw&ust=1413560343943735

http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/biographies/c_historians.html

Rock Paper Scissors Shute

In class we played Rock Paper Scissors Shute. We all started with a different amount of candy and when you were out of candy you had to sit down. It was fun because I enjoy playing Rock Paper Scissors Shute. It was frustrating because it was easy to lose. The people who started with more candy had an advantage because they had to lose a lot in order to sit down. 

Karl Marx believed that it would turn from capitalism to socialism to communism. He believes that the government should just run everything an the people should have no say.  Marx believed that the merchants would benefit themselves by overthrowing the nobles. Smith believed in the invisible hand. That benefits the poor because it allowed people to buy trade and live the way they want.  That got to regulate their prices. 

In my opinion the invisible hand is the best theory because the shop owners could control their trade and maximise their profits. It is a good system because it is fair and nobody gets cheated. It make it so every gets even prices, the system evened itself out naturally.  I don't believe that there is another alternative because no matter what system you use someone is not going to be happy. The systems that Marx and Smith belived in are the most affective ones in my opinion. 

Women Weaving

The factories were very good at persuading women to go work at the mills. Also they were exceptionally well at persuading the fathers to let their daughters work at the mills.  One reason the girls wanted to go to the mills was the money. It gave them financial relief and also a little bit of spending money. Also this gave the girls family a little money to help make ends meet. Another reason why the girls wanted to work I the mills was the independence. The girls got to do what they wanted after work without their guardians watching over them.  This benefitted the girls because it was a source of pay and a chance to be independent. But some people would say that the cost would that the cost out weighs the reward because they did have bad working conditions and they workers outrageous hours.  Opportunities for women and restrictions on their working lives show that people's attitude towards women was not very good. Women were payed less which shows that they didn't have much respect for them. Women were not treated equal during those times either. In my opinion that is not fair because the women were working just as hard as the men.

Industrialization Skype

We did a lot to prepare for the Skype with Jaime.  First we took notes on the textile galleries.  That gave us some background information about the machines they used and how they made cotton.  Also we watched a video of Jaime touring though the factory highlighting key vocab words that we later found the definitions for.  That gave us more information about the machines.  Finally we prepared questions to ask Jaime while we skyped.

While skyping with Jaime I learned that the cotton had to go through many machines machine before it was finished. Also I learned that there are different cottons that have different quality.  For example Egyptian cotton has long fibers and it is very high quality.  Another thing I learned how dangerous it was for children to work the machines.  It was very costly to their health. Also working in the factories caused a lot of deaths and serious health problems.  Industrialization made the process of creating cotton a lot  more efficient. 

Overall I definitely learned more from a discussion with an outside source because it gave us a first hand look at how everything was back in those times and also it showed us a live look into the factory.  Also it helped answer all the questions we had because we were speaking to experts.  I really like how Jaime an the camera man showed us around the factory and showed us the machines live.  I would definitely like to do this again on another topic.

Child labor Curator

To create our curator first we came up with an interesting title.  Then we analyzed all of our sources using the Curator Analysis Sheet.  Then we created placards for the articles or pictures to explain the what they meant.  After that we put arrows to show the reader which order we wanted them to view our work.  Finally we put our sources on the back.

"Cotton or Freedom?  You decide."  was very organized and it covered all the main points.  I learned that the Boott Cotton Mill was used to show the organizations of cotton mills.

"Living in Filth" was dull but organized, but it was very informative.  I learned that more factories meant more pollution.

"Thomas Takes Great Britain."  was a very colorful and organized curator.  I learned that Robert Fulton wrote a letter to the editor of American Citizen to show his positive experiences while traveling  on the new steamboats.

"Fueling Transportation In The Industrial Revolution."  was a very colorful curator.  I learned that there were railroads through mountains on the London-Birmingham line.

Super Searching

In history we particapated in activities to help us how to search and use online resources properly.  We did an activity called A Google A Day and we searched for the authenticity of the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus.  As a class this taught us a lot and helped us become more advanced researchers.

A Google A Day http://www.agoogleaday.com/#game=started was an activity teaching us how to seatch more affectively.  We had to answer question without searching the full question.  We had to use key words and phrases to find the answers.  I had a lot of fun because it was a nice challenge.  It was a little frustrating because at some points you feel like you hit a rock wall and you don't know what to search next.  I learned that searching key words or phrases are very helpful.  If you can't find the answer you have to find other ways to search for it and A Google A Day helps you realize how that is possible.

While searching for the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/ we had to search for accuracy authenticity and reliability.  The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus web site was a fictional website with a lot of made up facts that I found funny.  We discovere it was not a reliable website because the facts didn't add up.  It was clearly fictional and this website couldn't be used for school purposes because the facts were not in any way true.  

The activities we complete we're very helpful.  I would enjoy doing them again an I suggest you do them again in the future.  The activities helped me realize that there are different ways of searching rater than just typing in the question and also it helped me realize that people should check the kind of website they use before using the information contained from it.

Strengthening a Country

The Industrial Revolution was revolutionary in many ways.  Two main examples are through people and technology.  The Industrial Revolution definitely changed the world.  In class we all got a topic and we had to search for ways that showed how the Industrial Revolution was very revolutionary.

The Industrial Revolution was revolutionary with people in three main ways.  First it improved farming, for example Roy Charles Townsend urged farmers to grow turnips which restored exhausted soil.  This was revolutionary because it made it easier to grow crops, and also it made life easier for the people.  Also the landowners pushed the peasants out which forced them to work in factories.  This helped the factories because it gave them more workers and that helped them complete tasks more quickly.  Lastly because of the agriculture revolution decrease the risk of famines. This made life easier for everyone.

Technology was revolutionary in two main ways.  First the steam engine was invented in 1717 to pump water out of mines to help dig deeper.  This helped the mine get more work done efficiently.  Technology also helped create a higher quality and less expensive iron.  This helps people because it costs less money and they get high quality.  It helped people become more advanced.

The Industrial Revolution made our country a more advanced place.  People may disagree but it improved an amazing amount of people's lives.  In my opinion the Industrial Revolution was a positive event that was outstandingly revolutionary. 

http://mossiso.com/2010/10/09/british-history-and-the-industrial-revolution.html

Great Teaching Paves the Way

Hello, my name is Corey DiLoreto and this is my first blog-post of my sophomore year at Reading Memorial High School.  I play three sports which are football, basketball, and baseball.  My family consists of two brothers, three sisters, my mom, and my dad.  This blog will contain what qualities a great teacher has and what my goals are for sophomore year.

In order to be a great teacher you have to want to teach.  A great teacher should wake up with a smile on their face thinking that they are privileged to be able to go to a wonderful school and teach amazing kids.  A great teacher should always interact with their students and try different teaching styles to help other students and keep them interested.  My favorite teacher from the past was my ninth grade history teacher Mr .Deeb.  He was very funny and knew how to keep us interested.  Also Mr.Deeb knew the right times to joke around and the right times to be serious.  He didn't give much homework unless we didn't do our work in class.  In his class we learned so much and also we had an amazing time.  One thing that would help me a lot this year would be doing interactive activities or working in groups.  I really enjoy working in groups because it divides the work and if we have questions we can ask each other.  I would enjoy interactive activities because I believe that is my most effective way of learning.

I agree with John Green about our duty to use our education to do great things.  I agree with this because teachers only have about an hour to teach us in a day and our duty as a student is to use that information to become more intelligent.  It is our job to use this information to change the world whether that means finding out the cure for cancer or creating an invention to make life easier.  My academic goals for this year is to remain on the honor roll.  To achieve this I will need to pay attention in class, complete my homework,  and finally study for all exams.  My personal goals for this year is to make at least two varsity sports.  In order to complete this goal I will need to practice, work hard, and give best effort. If I stay on the right path and work hard I know I can complete all of my goals.

Reading Memorial High School

http://readingef.org/?page_id=123