Sunday, February 7

Ceramic Field Trip

We went to the Snake Kiln in Miaoli last week. It was originally called the dragon kiln but it was not allowed to be called the dragon because it was not allowed to be called the same as the king's. At first they told us about a small kiln that was used for making roof tiles. The smoke inside the kiln made the tiles gray. They then told us about how the snake kiln was usually made to bake vases. The vases made wine taste better because it had better clay. They also had stamps on the vases to tell what the wine was and where it came from.

The guide took us inside to show us the snake kiln. When we entered, we saw a long kiln with a door for throwing in wood, and a long funnel. At the front of the kiln, there was two holes that was called the snake's eyes. It was used for checking how much the clay has baked because in the olden days, there were no timers and they could only look in to see how the clay was doing.
We were given small blocks of clay to make whatever we wanted. Our hands had to be wet to keep the clay from cooling. I made a cup and Calvin ruined his and he ended up with blocks of clay that he called "abstract".

Thursday, January 21

Renaissance Test

Renaissance Test: Friday, January 22, 2010


1. What historical event (the fall of a civilization) took place in 395 AD to usher in the middle ages?

Fall of Rome


2. What was society and culture generally like in the middle ages?

Nobody knows how to read and write. Most people are either very very poor or very rich.


3. Renaissance means rebirth.


4. What was being brought back during this time?

Greek and Roman Ideals


Define:

5. Contraposto

Counter-pose uneven distribution of weight


6. Chiaroscuro

Light and Dark, shadows


7. The painter of the Mona Lisa was Leonardo Da Vinci


8. The man who sculpted the Pieta and the Sistine Chapel was Michelangelo


9. What is different about Renaissance painting compared to painting during the Dark Ages?

No contraposto, no chiaroscuro


10. What is meant by the concept of "Humanism?"

People are perfect

Monday, January 18

NY Times Article

What is this story about?

A person who sees someone having a baby but there is no oil left in the car. 8 people came and helped them push the car to the hospital.


What is important to them about the story they picked?

I think the 8 men are really nice, it is important to me because the men had such sympathy on the husband and wife, that they will help them push the car.


What does this story have to do with what is happening in Haiti now?

The people in Haiti are poor and have no money for food or water, just like in this story. In the story, they didn’t have money to buy oil, just like in Haiti.


Why should we care about what is happening in Haiti?

We are all humans, we have to care for each other, or it wouldn’t be humanity. We also have to get them on our side, make some more allies.


What does this have to do with global citizenship?

Helping others of the world is being a good global citizenship.


Wednesday, December 16

Beethoven

Ludwig Van Beethoven - The Eroica Symphony


He was born in Bonn, Germany on the or 17th of December, 1770 and died 26th of March, 1827. Beethoven was famous because he conducted beautiful music even when he was deaf.


It was partly a revolt against aristocratic social and political norms of the Age of Enlightenment and a reaction against the scientific rationalization of nature.

Beethoven is part of the three Romantic Composers

3. No


a. What composers influenced Beethoven? Did he meet them?

largely influenced by Mozart and Haydn, met Mozart in Vienna at the age of sixteen, gave him first composition lesson after mozart died, Haydn continued to teach him.


b. What was Beethoven like as a person?

He was deaf and had a fatal liver disease.


c. What was there about Beethoven's music that brought the element of romanticism into music?


Monday, November 16

17/11 What we learned in class today

Today in citizenship, we learned about cliques and boundaries. We learned about how they affected us. Ms Sheila taught us about how we use it in real life. We also learned about why stereotyping and cliques hurtful. A stereotype would be when people sometimes say that all asian people are good at math, but some aren't and it makes them feel abnormal. Cliques sometimes hurt us because, they leave us out and make us feel lonely.

Monday, November 9

Art 8 10/11

The 2 people I am about to describe are workers. One is tall and one is short. They were wearing blue T-shirts and black jeans. They were making glass cups to drink out of. They were blowing air into it to make it hollow. Then they dip it into water to cool it.

Hsinchu is called the Silicon Valley of Taiwan. The silicon and the gas is what makes Hsinchu famous.