Ben's Blog

  The Second Punic War The Roman Empire was expanding its territory in the 200s BC. Their biggest enemy at the time was the kingdom of Carthage in Iberia (Spain and Portugal) and northern Africa. Rome had already fought against Carthage, notably in the First Punic War a couple of decades prior. Rome had won that war and gained the island of Sicily as a result. The war began in 219 BC when Carthage destroyed the Roman town of Saguntum in Iberia. The beginning of the war favored the Carthaginians. The Carthaginian army, led by Hannibal, marched through central Gaul (France) and crossed the Alps to get past the Roman defenders and enter Italy. The Gallic tribes had long been enemies of Rome, so they joined Hannibal's army, which increased to about 60,000 men. In Italy, Hannibal won decisive victories at Taurini and the Trebia River. After quartering his troops for the winter, Hannibal cut off the Roman army, led by Gaius Flaminius, from Rome. This invoke a hasty pursuit, and Hannibal

      Most years at Thanksgiving, all of my family and relatives would celebrate together. We used to do it at my grandmother's house in Lake Stevens, but now we celebrate at my house, since my grandmother moved to Ocean Shores. We would always have a big lunch with turkey, pies, and much more. One of my favorite things that we eat at Thanksgiving is fruit salad. There is usually a football game on that we watch while we eat. Also, in the morning, my dad plays in what we call the Turkey Bowl, in which my dad plays football with some people in our church. However, we will not be gathering together this year. There are a lot of older people in our family, and we do not want to risk anyone getting COVID-19. We are not doing the Turkey Bowl either. This year, my family (that is, my parents and siblings) will be staying at home and eating a smaller lunch. My mom is making a special banana pudding for dessert. She also made some cupcakes. The cupcakes were meant to look like little turke

https://www.powtoon.com/s/ed7YEXzwvtu/1/m  

The Battle of Thermopylae In 480 BC, King Xerxes I of Persia made the decision to subjugate Greece. This was not the first war with the Greeks. About ten years earlier, Xerxes's father, Darius, tried unsuccessfully to invade Greece at the Battle of Marathon. After this loss, Darius and Xerxes prepared a huge army to take Greece. Xerxes built bridges on the Hellespont (a narrow channel to the northeast) to bring his army into Greece. The many Greek city-states united with each other in order to defeat this common enemy. They sent their combined forces into a narrow mountain pass called Thermopylae, which was narrow to the point that their inferior numbers didn't matter. The Greek army consisted of several thousand hoplites led by the Spartan king Leonidas I. On the first day of the battle, the Persians attacked the pass with 10,000 soldiers, but the Greeks, who used a phalanx formation, cut the enemy army to ribbons, losing only a few hoplites in the process. On the second day o

 First, I visited Gavin's blog at  https://ihadtodothisbecauseschool.blogspot.com/ . Then, I visited Katarina's blog at  https://muffinlover101.blogspot.com/ . Some things I learned from both of these blogs are to do a memory dump (writing down important information) at the beginning of a test to keep from forgetting them later. I also learned to take breaks while studying so I can keep my focus.

  https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1pOYr9dKC3C_iUXT2LEhBaMBHadxzNKgwT32FObmOFak/edit?usp=sharing

  https://www.educationcorner.com/test-taking-strategies.html   http://www.pstcc.edu/counseling/_files/pdf/test-taking-hints2.pdf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6w8CHIeYdi4      When you are about to take a test or quiz, make sure to be prepared. Studying for the test beforehand will help to make sure you know the material, and getting a good night's sleep will help you to better retain the information. When you are studying, do not wait until the night before the test to do everything. Taking time each day to study will help you to stay calm. As the teacher is handing out the test, listen closely for any instruction, so you know what is expected of you. When you get the test, read over it first so you know how long long it is. If you read through something that you don't understand, ask the teacher about it. Make sure to stay calm and relax if you are stuck on a question; chances are that the answer will come back to you. If that doesn't work, skip over the question and c

Battle of Marathon     In the early 400s BC, Darius I, king of Persia, sought to attack the land of Greece. He did this as an act of revenge, as the city of Athens fought against him in the Ionian Revolt. This led to Darius swearing that he would burn down the Grecian cities of Athens and Eretria. Darius started by having his army, which was commanded by Datis and Arataphernes, sail along the northern coast of Africa, before turning northward and sailing to Greece. They landed at the Bay of Marathon, about 25 miles away from Athens. The Athenian and Plataean army, led by Miltiades, rushed to keep the Persians in the nearby plains. Miltiades sent a messenger to Sparta in order to request their aid. But the Spartans could not march to war until at least ten days, the Athenian army would have to hold out until then. Both the Persians and the Greeks did not attack initially, which worked to the advantage of the Greeks. When the Spartans did arrive, the Greeks begun their attack. The Greek

Looking at all of the features in the article, I like how I am able to browse through different fonts on Google. I can find fonts that are basic and easy to read or I can find more unique fonts to give my text a different aesthetic. Having a digital copy of a book is very useful in that it can be accessed from multiple devices. You also don't have to worry about losing your place in a book as the computer should save your progress. Finally, some reading apps will let you search for a key word or phrase, which is useful if you are using the book for research purposes.   

  https://quizizz.com/join/game/U2FsdGVkX1%252B9taFoS90%252FnqLDzQ1Ca7aBAdhIu%252Fn34oj3rzxbZZEx%252Fp3mfty2V%252FBb?gameType=solo I got a score of 19/20 https://quizizz.com/join/quiz/5fa96bc380167e001bd9b4eb/start?studentShare=true

  Battle of the Black Gate     Following their victory at the battle of Pelennor Fields, the leaders of Men, who are Éomer, king of Rohan, Aragorn, king of Gondor, and Gandalf the White, a Wizard, met to discuss their next move in the war against Sauron. Though they had defeated a large army and killed Sauron's general, the Witch-King of Angmar, the majority of Sauron's armies were still alive. They decided that they could not win against Sauron's armies, so they only had one hope for victory. Frodo and Sam, two hobbits, had Sauron's One Ring and were taking it into Mordor to be destroyed. If the Ring was destroyed, Sauron would die and the war would be won. According to Faramir, who had met them in Ithilien, the two hobbits were going to pass through the a tunnel called Cirith Ungol to pass through the mountains, and the had the creature Gollum with them. The problem with this was that they would have to get past all of Sauron's armies to reach Mount Doom. Because

  Election Results-  https://snohomishcountywa.gov/5737/Get-Current-and-Past-Election-Results-an   What is being voted on-  1. Seats in both the House of Representatives and the Senate 2. Thirteen state governorships 3. The Presidential and Vice Presidential offices I admit that I do not actively follow politics. I am only fourteen years old and therefore illegible to vote. But if I could vote, I would probably vote for Donald Trump and the Republican Party for the presidential office. I believe that some of the things that Joe Biden plans to do as president will be a step closer to a socialistic economy, and I wish to keep our current capitalist structure. Though I do not believe that it is a big goal for the Biden administration, increased abortion rights has often been a common goal for the Democratic Party in general.

  Goal #1     Maintain good grades throughout the year So far, I appear to have completed this goal in the first quarter. I was able to do this by studying, paying attention in class, and managing my time wisely. Goal #2     Learn to drive As of now, I have not completed this goal. I believe that I cannot start learning how to drive until next August. Goal #3     Turn in all of my homework on time I have not been able to complete this goal. I probably would've succeeded if I did not get sick a few weeks ago. New Goal #1     Maintain good grades throughout the next quarter Specific-  Maintain a 90% average on my schoolwork for the rest of the quarter. Measurable-  My grades can be seen on Renweb and on my report cards. Actionable-  I can do this by studying, paying attention in class, and managing my time wisely. Relevant-  This goal is relevant in that it may help me get into college and find a job. Time-bound - I must keep this up until the end of the first semester in January. Ne