As the year comes to an end, most people have some great memories of the school year. I can't really say I am one of those people. There really aren't that many specific memories I have about the school year. The school year has been more of a general good memory.

This has probably been my favorite school year. Sure, there have been some of those times where something really bad happened and I got angry. But for the most part, it was a pretty good year. I met a lot of really awesome people (even though most of them are 8th graders and I won't be able to see them for a year). Something tells me that tomorrow at Wild Waters might just be the best experience I've had, even though many of my friends aren't going. I just really love going to Wild Waters with friends. But overall, I have really just loved the school year even though I didn't get the best grades all year.  

As we all know - or should know - the Columbian Exchange took place during the Enlightment period. It was basically trading that took place between The Old World and The New World. Normally, trade sounds all good. But, the trading may affect others. That means that the exchanging had some positive and negative effects. What were some of these effects?

The obvious positive effect of the exchanging was trade. The trade allowed both places to exchange things that each other didn't have. However, this trading effected others. The people that went to The New World took over land that was already owned by Natives. This was an obvious problem (for the Natives anyways). Also, the trading took a long amount of time. They didn't have fast transportation back then. This caused some food to spoil, and people to die (since diseases were a major issue at the time).

On our visit to the zoo, we had to participate in about 25 different stations. Each station had a different variety of tasks that we had to do. The stations varied from picking up different "foods" with different kinds of "beaks" to comparing feces with their animal. But, out of these 25 stations; Which was my favorite?

My favorite station was the petting zoo. The reason is because it didn't require much work. It was the last station that we attended. I enjoyed it because it didn't require mental effort and it gave us some time to relax. It simply required us to brush the animals and glue their hair to a paper. Yeah, it sounds kind of weird. But to be honest, it was pretty fun just walking around and brushing the animals.

As we have been studying in CORE, we have learned about two great civilizations that existed in history. The first one is the Aztecs that lived in Mesoamerica. The second one is the Incas that lived in South America. Although both were in different places at different times, how they were similar? Here are some similarities between the two.
For one, both civilizations had fierce armies. As a matter of fact, the Aztec warriors are usually most known for their army. Another similarity is the crops that were grown. As many other civilizations at the time, both tribes grew maize, or corn. Of course, the Incas' main crop was potatoes, but they still grew an abundance of corn in the limited warm lands that they had. A third similarity is the roles in society. It went from rulers to priests and warriors. Middle class was salesmen and craftsmen. Of course, the lowest class was peasants and farmers. 

The year is coming to an end! The eight graders are going on to their first year in highschool, and the seventh graders are becoming eight graders. Of course, everyone is gonna have plenty of memories. But everyone is going to have that one moment that they are not forgetting about anytime soon. Something that will stick with them for a long time.
I think the most memorable thing for me was at the beginning of the year. The day that we were just being walked through the campus was so ecstatic. It was one of those times where you just enjoy school for no reason. It's as if it was the most relaxing and enjoyable time of your life. I just felt as if the rest of the year was going to be very enjoyable. Of course, there has been those moments where I hated being here. But for the most part, the year has been great, and I look forward to another one!

There were many reasons to why the Maya civilization ended (not entirely). But, out of all of the known reasons, what was the biggest contribution to the end? Well, in my opinion, there was no certain reason, but all of them together that caused the Mayans to end. Here's why.
The reason that I believe this is because all of the reasons together could cause a lot of problems. Just think about it. How would you be able to handle a large amount of invasions  mixed with overpopulation, and a harsh emperor to rule them? That could cause plenty of problems; enough to put an end to most, if not all, of a civilization. In conclusion, it was not just one of the problems that caused the Maya civilization to end, but all of them combined to make the Maya civilization to come to an end.

My people rely on me. I have a hard decision to make. We've always been used to have men hunting in groups, and the women to gather herbs and such. But I've been notified that many have began to settle, which is very odd. They talk of this thing called farming, which is where they grow their own food. It sounds very interesting, but not realistic. I need to see it with my own eyes to believe it. But, it does sound easier for us. They say that they make their own places to live, but I don't know how that works. 
I am used to hunting, for I have been doing it since I was taught by my father. But many of our people die very quickly, for this hunting and moving method is very dangerous. I think we should "settle down" and do this "farming" that those people speak of. I need to do what my people expect of me, not what I want. 

My favorite book from this year had to be Crispin: The Cross of Lead. There are many reasons to why this is my favorite book. I liked the plot, the characters, and pretty much everything about it.
The first reason this has been my favorite book this year is because of the plot. I like how it's about a boy (Crispin) who starts off as nobody, and is forced to run from his village in order to not be killed. It's very interesting and exciting.
The second reason this has been my favorite book is because of the setting. The book takes place during the Middle Ages, one of the nastiest points in history. Crispin lives in a poor, little village, and it accurately portrays what happened during the Middle Ages.
The third reason I really enjoyed this book is because of the characters and how they developed. The main character is Crispin, or Asta's Son. He begins as a nobody. But once he runs into Bear, his owner, after running away from his village, he slowly learns about who he really is. Bear is portrayed as a horrible man when he first forces Crispin to become his 'slave'. But we slowly learn how Bear actually treats him as an apprentice, and then a son. It was really cool comparing how they seemed at the beginning of the book, and how they fully developed by the end.

There were many reasons why the Scientific Revolution was important to our history. Without this period of time, we wouldn't know many of the things we do today. 
The reason that the Scientific Revolution is important to our history, is because at that point in time, the base of our knowledge of science was created. Galileo Galilei studied and learned that the earth was not the center of everything, but the sun. He also learned that the planet is always moving (as all other planets are) and rotates around the sun in an oval shape. With this finding, Sir Isaac Newton was able to create his three laws of gravity, which is considered his most memorable and important finding.

There is always something that you want to change. For this school, I have five that I can state right now. Nothing is completely satisfying or perfect for a persons' standards. Here are five theses that I have for this school; ones that I believe the school could benefit from.
The first one is to add some adjustments to the uniform. I definitely agree that it is safer and a good idea to have a uniform, but the policies could be more lenient. I think that they could allow just a few more colors or types of shirts, because wearing the same kind of shirt can definitely get a bit strange sometimes.
The second theses is homework. I believe that sometimes, a teacher might give an unreasonable assignment. Sometimes, I've had an assignment for homework that we weren't taught about in class, and is talked about very little in the textbook. I think that this is unreasonable because it's not very reasonable to make someone resort to the internet or another source that may not be available at home. 
The third theses is more security or safety at lunch times. Everyday that the lunch bell rings, most students begin sprinting to the lunch line. It does get annoying when people start pushing each other aside and hitting random people. I think that there could be some more adult supervision of some sort.