january 15

Today in class we reviewed the Korea test material. Mr. Hollin was watching part of our class today. Mr. Schick really liked the way that Cody took charge of the class the other day so we did the same thing again today, but we mixed it up a little. Instead of Cody "teaching" us, Karson stepped in and took charge. I think she did a really good job at taking charge. We had a great class discussion about nukes today. The discussion mainly focused on what we thought about North Korea having nuclear weapons. The conversation drifted off to a opinion topic of what we thought about bombing North Korea. MOST of the class thought that was a bad idea and was generally inhuman, but there was a select few who were all in for nuking Pyongyang. Then Mr. Schick brought up the point of how the world would look at the US if we bombed North Korea for no good reason. When we thought about that for a moment, some of those select few who were in for bombing changed their minds.

january 14

I was not in class today because I had a basketball game.

january 13

Today in class we finished the Korea documentary. The doctor that was performing the surgeries ended up fulfilling his goal of more than 1000 surgeries. When he removed the patients bandages, every time, the person got u and thanked and praised The Great Leader instead of the doctor that actually cured them. That part was pretty interesting, Also, we got to hear about the concentration camps and some of the few people to ever escape from them alive. We also heard from a man who escaped completely from North Korea. He and his friend tried to escape, but sadly his friend died from the shock of the electric fence. He got across to the South, but didn't tell of what happened to his family after they discovered that he was gone.

january 9

Today in class we started the "movie". It is a documentary on North Korea. It talks about a doctor going into North Korea to do cataract surgeries and teach doctors in North Korea how to do them. The doctor said that it would a challenge to video tape what was happening in North Korea because of the tight security. They crew was only allowed to tape some parts and almost got thrown out of the country. They then realized just how tight the country is. So far the movie has been pretty interesting. The one part showing the surgery was pretty darn gross but other than that it has been good.

january 8

Today in class we reviewed North Korea notes. Professor Cody ran the class. He was very informative and he new most of what he was talking about. Mr. Schick helped him out a little bit, but for the most part he ran the class by himself. It was a different way of doing things and I think the entire class really enjoyed it, even Mr. Schick and his daughter. It was a fun class, but believe it or not we actually were learning from Professor Cody.

january 7

Today in class we talked about North Korea. I took some notes even though Mr. Schick put the PowerPoint on his website. Here they are:

Basic facts

• oppressive governmant 
• very secluded/isolated from the world 
• leader- Kim Jong-Un
• The Interview

Oppressive Government 

• state-run socialist government that many consider to be a Stalinist dictatorship
• official name- Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)
• call it Korea not North Korea
• think they rule the entire peninsula 

Secluded/Isolated 

• isolated by government and somewhat geogrphically
• Pyongyang- capital
• it is 39 degrees noth
• and so is Bel Air

Lights

• North Korea is SOOOOOO dark compared to South Korea 

december 10

Today in class we took the test on Cultural Geography, Major religions, And slumdog millionaire. I thought it was relatively easy. There were a few questions that I had NO idea of the answer, but overall I got through it and I think that I passed and may have even got a good grade on it too. I think the test was fair and 33 Scranton questions is a good number. Another thing that was good was that there was no essays. pretty much everyone finished in 20 to 25 minutes. There were a few people that it took longer to finish but that's okay because they probably were just taking their time. It's not like they didn't know the answers or something.

december 9

Here are my notes for today:

Buddism

• 500 million adherants 
• Buddists in southeast Asia, China, Nepal, Japan 
• founder- Siddhartha Gautamia 
• Denominations
• Tibetan
• Zen
• Therauada
• Amidist
• Four Noble Truths
• The Eightfold Path

Judaism 

• 14-18 million adherants 
• Jews found in Israel
• Founder- Abraham- maybe
• Holy book- Talmud and Torah( first 5 books of the Old Testament)
• Beliefs 
• ethical monotheism
• God is one 
• He is concerned with the actions of human kind
• Ten Commandments
• 13 principles of Faith

On the Test 

• Slumdog Millionare 
• Religions
• Cultural Geography
• All Multiple choice 

My notes for today:

Spatial Divisions:

• Are how we divide the livable space fund on the earth by estblishing social, ecomonic, and political control 
• You can be a member of more than one spatial group
• Spatial divisions can also cause conflicts or cooperation 
• Examples of spatial Divisions 
• Countries 
• Economic Alliances 
• European Union (EU)
• Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

We Also listened to Mr. Schick and Mr. Schick's daughter's Slumdog milionare rap/song. IT WAS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

december 3

My notes for today:

Religion

• can be a unifying force 
• example: Christmas
• There are 5 major religions:
• Hinduism
• Buddism
• Judaism
• Christianity
• Islam
• They all have millions of followers all believing the same thing
• Hindus and Muslims fight in India and Pakistan
• There are conflicts beteen Catholics and Protestants - (2 forms of Christianity) in Northern Ireland 
• Jews, Catholics, and Muslims all claim Jerusalem as their religions holy site. They are constantly fighting over the land

Well there they are^

december 2

My notes for today:

Cultural Geopgraphy

• chultuaral characterisics are a parts of a groups everyday life. they are the ideas and themes that they will TEACH to all members. These same characteristics can also link or divide a region. Examples: Language, religion, ethnic heritage
• Language
• Arabic unties the Arab world. 
• Spanish unties the Spanish world
• Brazil is the only South American nation that doesn't speak Spanish. They speak portugese groups 
• Canada is bilingual : speaks 2 languages thay are French and English 
• Switzerland has multiple ethnic group but little conflict
• english is considered the world language
• Ethnic Heritage
• in Yugoslavia ethnic group were made into one country
• when strong leadership died out the different groups fought a boody civil war and now they are have seperate countries
• Tutsis and Hutus hate eachother
• the US and Switzerland have peacefully merged multiple ethnic groups in their country 
• Korea and Japan mainly have one
• 
  

november 22

Today was the last day of school before the Thanksgiving break. We were all excited to get out, but sadly this was the first class of the day so we couldn't get home. Instead, we settled for finishing  Slumdog Milionare. The ending of the movie was pretty good besides the older brother dying. Jamal and the girl ended up meeting together finally and at the very end of the movie, after they met and Jamal won 20 million, they preformed this weird dance to this weird music that got stuck in my head all day. Overall, I thought that the movie was good and it was also a good lesson too.

november 21

Today in class we continued watching Slumdog Millionare. I thought it was very interesting so far. Everything is still clearing up about his childhood. I can't speak for anyone else, but I think that you kind of have to like Jamal the best. Just the way he acts shows how cunning and creative and brave he is. I think watching this movie will give us a new understanding on the cultures of other nations and other peoples. I think everyone seemed to be pretty interested in the movie so far. I know that the few people who have seen the movie really liked it.

november 20

Today we started to watch Slumdog Millionare. As we were watching it I definatly realized how fortunate I am to have everything I do including my parents and brother. I really liked the story of it. I think it gives people a new view on life and a new respect for life too. I really liked some parts of it, but there were also some parts I didn't quite understand yet. I think as we continue to watch the movie those parts will be cleared up for me. I think this movie will lead to a pretty darn-good discussion in class.

november 19

Today in class we worked on our Spotify projects. Mr. Schick wasn't here today so that is why we were doing this. I used songs that stated why people might want to come or go from a country. One song I used was "I hate my job" by Cam'Ron. It is all about how this guy hates his job and boss and just wants to stop and get out. It is kind of a rap, so it has a few bad words but...... I also used "This is war" by thirty seconds to Mars. I think "rich girl" by Hall and Oats could also demonstrate a pull force bacuse people may want to go to a place with money. It may just be me, but I wouldn't like to live in a very poor country like Haiti or something. The US is preety wealthy which is why i am writing this right now on my $1000 laptop.

november 18

Today in class we did 2 slides and took notes and then Mr. Schick put in grades. Here are my notes for today:

Cultural Geography 

Cultural Characteristics 

• cultural characteristics are parts of a group's everyday life
• they re ideas and themes which the group will TEACH to all members
• these same characteristics can also link or divide a region 
• examples of cultural characteristics would be language, religion, and ethnic heritage

At the beginning of the Power Point before we started to take notes, there was a map that showed what the different counties of the United States called soda, as we say it. Here it is:

November 14

Mexico's National Anthem

• All about war
• The man that wrote the lyrics of the anthem, was forced to put an entry into the competition by his fiance. 
• He won the competition and the lyrics that he wrote then became the national anthem 

Chorus:^[3]

Mexicans, at the cry of war,
make ready the steel and the bridle,
and may the Earth tremble at its centers
at the resounding roar of the cannon.
and may the Earth tremble at its centers
at the resounding roar of the cannon!

First Stanza:

Let gird, oh Fatherland!, your brow with olive
by the divine archangel of peace,
for in heaven your eternal destiny
was written by the finger of God.
But if some enemy outlander should dare
to profane your ground with his sole,
think, oh beloved Fatherland!, that heaven
has given you a soldier in every son.

Stanza V:

War, war without quarter to any who dare
to tarnish the coats of arms of the country!
War, war! Let the national banners
be soaked in waves of blood.
War, war! In the mountain, in the valley,
let the cannons thunder in horrid unison
and may the sonorous echoes resound
with cries of Union! Liberty!

Stanza VI:

O, Fatherland, ere your children, defenseless
bend their neck beneath the yoke,
may your fields be watered with blood,
may their foot be printed in blood.
And may your temples, palaces and towers
collapse with horrid clamor,
and may their ruins continue on, saying:
Of one thousand heroes, here the Fatherland began.

Stanza X:

Fatherland! Fatherland! your children swear to you
to breathe their last for your sake,
if the bugle with its bellicose accent
calls them together to battle with courage.
For you, olive wreathes!
A memory for them of glory!
For you, a laurel of victory!
A tomb for them of honor!

november 13

Today in class, we took our test on government types and country leaders. Going into the room and getting ready to take the test I was nervous. I had studied hard for 2 nights and studied through my off mods and classes. I was late to class though, because I was with a teacher, but that just made me more nervous. Overall, I feel good about the test and the essay too. I hope I got a good grade on my test and i hope everyone else did too. And if we do the dings again, I think I'm gonna get one!

november 12

Mexico and Brazil presented today

Mexico

• government- federal republic
• president- Enrique Pena Nieto
• 5 year terms, he can only serve one term 

How to overthrow 

• Impeach 
• drug cartels take over
• assassination
• step down

Brazil 

• government- federal republic
• president- Dilma Rousseff 
• 4 year terms, she can run for unlimited terms but no more than 2 in a row

How to Overthrow

• impeach 
• assassination 
• step down

november 11

2 more classes presented today. Syria and Israel.

Syria 

• government- republic under an Authoritarian regime 
• been in a civil war since 2011(regime is harsh)
• president is Bashar al-ASSAD
• 7 year terms, supposed to be 2 terms, but he is on his third

How to Overthrow

• have soneone else run(not likely)
• if he dies 
• assasination(not likely)
• NO IMPEACHMENT!!!!!

Israel

• government- parliamentary democracy 
• prime minister- Binyamin Netanyahu (bebe)
• president- Shimon Peres
• 7 year terms for president - 1 term max.
• unlimited terms for prime minister 

How to Overthrow 

• elections 
• impeachment 
• assasination
•