Class Discussion

We didn’t have class on Friday because we didn’t have school so Friday was our last class of the week! Mr. Schick decided to make it like a college class so we didn’t use our laptops or took notes, we just had a discussion. We talked about the Greeks and some old stories that were told ages ago. The story was about prisoners that were kept in this cave ever since they were little kids and had chains around their legs so they couldn’t move. They had to sit and stare at a wall for their whole life! There was a big fire behind them but they could not see it because they couldn’t turn around. Some people, that weren’t prisoners, would use signs that looked like animals and people and walk across this bridge and carry the signs. The signs would create an image on the walls in front of the prisoners and the prisoners would try to guess what the image was. The images usually would tell a story. The prisoners would play games to try to guess what each of the sings were and would get a prize. We talked about how if those prisoners were given the chance to be set free and live in the real world would they? They know nothing other than what they learned being a prisoner in a dark cave! I say that personally, if I were the prisoner, I would want to be set free but I wouldn’t know what to do or how to live on my own! It would be very difficult. 

Took the test

We had our test today and I thought it went pretty well. Mr. Schick showed me the test in advisory and I thought it would be very hard but I thought it was alright! We got to use our blogs and luckily I had a lot of notes in my blog! It was very helpful because I think that I did really good! I really need a good grade in this class because I am only a point away from an A. I really hope to get straight A's by the end of the year. I have been trying my best to study as much as I can to bring up all of my grades. I'm really happy we got to use our blogs and I will be sure to put more notes in my blogs now just incase we are allowed to use it. We had a map on the test that I wasn't sure of where the places where ( the seas). I tried my best to remember what it was and I hope I got it right. I hop to get the test back soon so I can see how I did and hopefully it will bring up my grade!

Test Tomorrow

Today in class we watched more of the Greek video to review for the test. Tomorrow is our test which is on the people of Greece. We have a quizlet we can study, a worksheet, and we can also watch the video again. I get very confused when it comes to dates and people. It's hard for me to remember who is who. I've been reviewing the quizlet and I think I will do pretty well on the test. I really want to get straight A's so I hope I can bring up my grade in this class. I am one point away from an A! I need to do great on this test so I can get the A I really want. I am going to review the powerpoint a few more times to make sure I know all the vocabulary. There will be a lot of information on this test so I hope I can keep it all straight and come out with a good grade!

The Greeks

Aspasia- 

• had an influence on government 
• got together with Pericles 
• might have written speeches for Pericles

odysseus-

• many adventures trying to get back to his wife from the trojan war

agora

• central meeting place

olympics

• sporting events

arete

• meaning excellence

homer 

• composed many books including "the Iliad" and "the odyssey"

dorians

• less advanced people
• writings disappeared for 400 years and the economy collapsed

edipus

• was a character in a play and had to marry his mother and kill his father
• stabbed his eyes out

darius

• commanded the first persian invasion of greece which ended the defeat in the marathon

isagoris

• last of the dictators to run greece
• mean; bad guy 
• son was charged for rape

oricals

• flights of birds
• read insides of animals 

trireme

• big boat used to ram into other boats
• 
  

Isagoris 

• last of the dictators to run Greece 
• mean; a bad guy, corrupt 
• had a son who was charged for rape
• for three days, the Athenians threw him out

Cleisthenes

• an aristocrat 
• was told he should rule Athens
• a smart guy
• decided to take over
• was the reason for the inventions of democracy
• shared power with everyone 
• was ostracized by his people 
• got to big for his britches 
• wanted to build up military 

xerxes:

• sat on a thrown and watched his army be defeated by persians in salamis

xerxes and darius:

• natural enemies 
• Greeks and Persians had different completions
• Persians could have made a big empire but couldn't because of Greece
• Darius wanted to take over the Mediterranean
• two groups 
• one fighting to fit in
• one for existence

Pheidippides 

• ran 26 miles
• ran to another Greek city-state for help
• ran to Sparta to warn them but dies

Salamis

• "straight"- water way
• tried to lure ships (Persians) into the straights to attack and trap them 
• a man comes in and pretends to be a trader and tricks Persians to go into straights where Greeks attacked 
• Persians won and destroyed the Greeks 

Pericles 

•  made a bad decision 
• hubris: meaning: so arrogant you can't go wrong, making decisions based on yourself 
• hated Sparta and wanted to attack 
• everything went wrong
• built a wall around Athens 
• wanted to surround Sparta with Athens Navy 
• Sparta took out Athens 
• Athenians hid behind wall
• ships who were bringing supplies brought people with the plague into Athens 
• Pericles got plague and died 
• Persia and Sparta got together and took out Athens 

Oricals 

- flights of birds

- read the insides of an animal 

mycenaeans 

• first people to speak greek

barbarian

• meaning non greek
• came from the word "barbaros"

megalithic structure

• massive rough cut stones used to construct monuments and tombs

tribe

• social and political unit consisting of a group of communities held together

tribes governed by:

• warrior kings and queens
• chieftains
• tribal leaders

greeks

• the first european barbarians to make contact with civilization 

major crops the aegean people subsisted from:

• grain 
• vines
• olives

besides farming, what else did the people of the aegean engage in?

• shipbuilding, piracy, metalworking, and lumberjacking

when did the mycenaean civilization develop?

• no later than 1600 bc

the society mycenaeans are closely linked to:

• minoans

what brought the mycenaean civilization to an end?

• we dont know

a new city-state settled in oversea territory 

• colony

how many letters were in the Greek alphabet?

• 30

three great civilizations of the ancient world by 500 BC

• mesopotamia, egypt and the greeks

fortified location of the parthenon; high fortified citadel

• acropolis

a unit of several hundred hoplites who close ranks by joining shields

• phalanx

a state governed by a single hereditary ruler 

• monarchy

a state governed by a small group

• oligarchy

conquered peoples of Locania and Messenia that served as slaves to sparta

• helots

Test Next Week

We haven't had class much this week because of the snow and the meeting all the teachers had to go to. We were supposed to have a test tomorrow but since we haven't had much class time, Mr. Schick rescheduled the test. He said that the test should be sometime next week. That is fine with me because I still need some time to study. Mr. Schick needed a little time to catch up with things so we were able to sit and talk. I sat with Carly and Hailey and talked with them then helped them study for their math test. At the very end of class Mr. Schick asked us who was preparing for drivers ed. Most of us raised our hands and then Mr. Schick showed us a video of people recklessly driving! It was very funny! Today was a very easy class and even though we probably won't be allowed, I wouldn't mind having another class like that!

Gym Assignment

1. Most fertile land isn't a characteristic of Greece.

2. Approximately 3/4 of Greece is covered by mountains. 

3. Barbarian was used in the ancient world as a word that came from the Greek word "Barbaros", meaning "Non-Greek".

4. A massive rough-cut stones used to construct monuments and tombs is known as a megalithic structure 

5. The term tribe refers to a social and political unit consisting of a group of communities held together by common interests, traditions and real or mythical ties of kinship.

6. Tribes were governed by warrior kings or queens, chieftains and tribal leaders that were chosen by warriors.

7. The Greeks were the first European barbarians to make contact with civilization. 

8. The United States is one of the modern-day countries that is not considered a member of "Western Civilization".

9. The sea that is located just west of the Greek mainland is the Ionian Sea

10. The sea that is located just east of the Greek mainland is the Aegean Sea 

11. The major crops the Aegean people lived on were grain, vines, and olives. 

12. Minoan was a civilization that arose on the island of Crete.

13. The Mycenaean civilization established settlements along the Greek mainland's southern shore and on some islands. 

14. The Mycenaean civilization built massive walls to protect themselves from attack.

15. The period of Greek history in which the population dropped, ships no longer sailed, and writing fell out of use was known as the Dark Ages.

16. The Greeks joined the Phoenicians as the leading commercial and seafaring nation of the Mediterranean.

17. In historical writing, the letter "c" might appear before a date as in "c 1500 BC." It means around, about or circa.

18. By 600 BC, Greek city-states dotted the coastlines around the Mediterranean Sea. These were known as colonies.

19. Although the Greek city-states varied in size, they most closely resembled countries. 

20. An oligarchy is a form of government in which a small group of citizens dominated, and the power of the majority was limited in various ways.

21. Democracy is a form of government in which decisions were made by the majority of adult male citizens. 

22. A form of government in which a self-proclaimed dictator held power is known as a tyranny.

23. Monarchy is a form of government in which power is held by a single ruler, and is often passed along from father to son.

24. Spartans used oligarchy as their training at age seven.

25. Spartan males began their military training when they were seven years old. 

26. The wealthiest city-state in the ancient Greek world was known as Athens.

27. The high fortified citadel and religious center of an ancient Greek town was known as the acropolis.

28. The name of the southern peninsula where Sparta was located was known as Peloponnesus 

29. Triremes were massive fighting ships with three banks of oars that were used to ram or board enemy ships.

30. A hoplite was a heavily armed and armored citizen-soldier of ancient Greece.

short answer:

1. You recall the time period when the Greek population dropped, ships no longer sailed, and writing fell out of use.  What years did this period begin and end?

This age was known as the Dark Age. The Dark Age lasted about four centuries  from about 1150 BC to 800 BC. 

2. During the time period when writing fell out of use, the poet Homer is said to have told stories of the Trojan War, and of a war hero attempting to return to his home.  What are the titles of these two stories?

The two stories Homer wrote were "The Odyssey" and "The Iliad." 

3. The word “Mediterranean” originally meant _____________________ .

The word "Mediterranean" originally meant "center of the earth". "Medi" stood for middle and "terranean" meant earth. 

4. What were prominent and long-established Athenian land-owners called?

They were known as the Aristocrats and they were usually the rulers of the city-states. 

Preparing for test

Today in class we went over some review cards for the test that is on Friday. Mr. Schick found a quizlet from a kid in the school (who is now a junior) and he showed us and quizzed us. We found out that tomorrow we will be in the auditorium for class because there is a workshop going on and a lot of our teachers will be there. We have an assignment to do tomorrow while we are there and it is a few review questions and short answers. While we were reviewing on the quizlet not a lot of us knew the answers. I think we will have to study a little more to be prepared for the test. I copied the link of the quizlet and saved it in my favorites tab on chrome so i will be sure I have it to study. I got a very good grade on my last quiz so I hope I can prepare as well as I did last time so I can get another good grade. We did not do much in class today other than study. That is okay with me because I need to be sure I have enough preparation to do well on this test.