Castles of the Medieval Times

Castles are amazing. The size and capability of the Medieval castle is a something to marvel at. The castle was more than just home to the King and Queen. In fact, many castles did not have a King or Queen living there. Castles were the homes of Lords. Each lord, depending on their wealth, would have a castle. The King and Queen would visit these castles throughout their Kingdom. The Castle was basically an individual, self-sustaining unit, almost like a little city. There are many, many different parts of the castle and with this project, we are going to learn about some of them. 

Project: Design your Castle

Resources:
Rooms of the Medieval Castle
Rooms of the Medieval Castle (2)
Defending a Medieval Castle

Minecraft Castle Timelapse

Check out this awesome YouTube video of a Minecraft castle being created in timelapse (fast forward). Have you made a castle this awesome of Minecraft? 

Knights of the Medieval Times

There was a special type of warrior of the Medieval Times called Knights. These men were highly trained fighters. They were excellent with swords, lances, pikes, maces, and daggers. They were expert riders on horseback. Knights of the Medieval Times swore a vow to protect women, children, the weak, and the sick. They vowed to fight against evil and corruption. They swore this oath for life. Once they bent the knee and was knighted by the King or Queen, they had to uphold their vows until they died. Knights lived by a code of Chivalry. This was a code of honor, duty, bravery, protection, and courage that they had to live by. A person started out as a "page" then moved to "squire" if they proved worthy. A squire would tend to the knight in battle, help them get their armor on, make sure their weapons were ready, basically anything the knight needed. If the squire proved himself brave, they could then become a Knight themselves. Let's take a look at the armor Knights wore:

Knights and their Armor 

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Knights Online Assignment

Extend the Activity: Are you Chivalrous like Knights? Chivalry in 2013 looks a little different than in the Medieval Times. Chivalry today means respecting your parents, doing good deeds like setting the table or cleaning the house. It can also mean carrying groceries for an old lady or helping her find her teeth. Chivalry in 2013 means doing good things for people. Tell me about a time when you did something good for another person. 

Medieval Times Detective

Welcome to the Medieval Times. You have traveled back in time for a very important assignment: find the 8 suspects on the loose! These eight people are wanted for questioning, it is up to you to identify them so we can bring them in. For each suspect, there are clues that you need to analyze. The first clue is the actual person, with their identity hidden, telling you a little bit about what they look like. You will also be able to analyze a clue that says something about what they do in life. Finally, there is a picture clue that might lead you to a break through in this case. As the lead detective, I have also been doing some work: I put together a document with some further analysis for you to use while sifting through all the clues. I want to wish you good luck. Thank you for your assistance in this matter. 

Time Portal to the Medieval Times  

2013 Wax Museum is Complete

Congratulations. You have completed the 2013 Wax Museum Project. The hard part is over, now we all we have left is watching the movie from our big night and making the donation to the Make-A-Wish foundation. The middle school was packed last night. There was well over 500 people at our school, wandering the halls of history and watching all the famous people come to life. The Wax Museum night is not an easy thing. All those people make it very warm, it's tough standing for that long, its tough speaking that much. You can and should be proud of your accomplishment. You made it through and put on a great show. I was constantly being told how awesome the Wax Museum is and how awesome all the kids looked. I am very proud of you and the work you put into this project which is WAY more than just a school project. Also, 22 pizzas from Pizza Ranch were sold, which is a Wax Museum record.

The Real People of Wax Museum 2013

Check out what the real people look like that will be represented in the 2013 Wax Museum. Can you pick out your character?

The Dress Rehearsal 2013-Wax Museum Preview

Take a look at some pics from our dress rehearsal. You will be seeing all these characters and more at the 2013 Wax Museum. Come check out the characters, look at all their awesome props, and listen to their life story! April 23 and 25 6:30-8:00 Brandon Valley Middle School

What the Medieval Times Brings...

Despite what the weather may show, we are in spring and that means the school year is coming to a close. We have reached our final major unit of the school year: The Medieval Times. Perhaps you have heard the saying: "Save the Best for Last"? Well, it may be true in this case. The Medieval Times is packed with fascinating topics, people, events, and dangers. Unlike the ancient worlds we have already studied, the Medieval Times isn't that long ago. Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, etc. were thousands of years ago. The Medieval Times was only a couple hundred years ago. So, what exactly will the Medieval Times bring? We will be learning about the geography of Europe, Knights, Castles, Feudalism, Manor system, castles, famous people, the Bubonic Plague, the Crusades, and comparing the religion of Islam to Christianity. There will be new activities and projects, along with somethings we have already done like online quizzes, assignments, and blogging. We will see if Johnny is able to complete his last task in his Ancient Quest and save the Tiger. We are going to end our ancient world traveling with a BANG so get ready and get focused. 

Pretending to be Someone your not

With the 2013 Wax Museum less than a week away, I thought I would share this example of what you are all doing: pretending to be someone your not. The Wax Museum allows us to pretend to be someone famous. It allows us to use our imagination and be creative. You have all selected a famous person of the past and will pretend to be that person on April 23. I also chose a character and pretended to be that person. This is a commercial my brother-in-law and I made for the West Mall theatre in Sioux Falls. As you will see, I am pretending to be Rocky Balboa. And one more thing: those raw eggs that I drank are real and it was nasty.

Self-Awareness: A Reflection

We have something big coming up in social studies. The Wax Museum. This is a project unlike anything else you have done in middle school or will do in the future. This project is done individually. It's just you, no group, no parents, just you. You need to be aware of yourself in order to do a great job at the Wax Museum. Today, I want you to do some self-reflecting on how aware you are of yourself. The link below provides some prompts I want you to think about and respond to. These prompts will help you look at yourself and be more aware of who you are and what makes you tick. The Wax Museum project has many of these qualities: Effort, confidence, responsibility, risk-taking, etc. Read the prompts and blog thoughtful, insightful responses. 

Click HERE for your Awareness Writing Prompts

Official Wax Museum 2013 Invitation

Share this invitation with everyone you know. The more people the better!

Here is the link: http://tinyurl.com/waxmuseum2013 

The Garden of Your Mind

This is Mr. Rogers. He was the star of the show "Mr. Roger's Neighborhood" which was a very popular show back in the day. This video is right on: you can grow anything in the garden of your mind. Think. Imagine. Explore.

STOP! Look at this Wax Museum Invite

Our big night is quickly approaching. April 23rd 2013 we will transform BVMS into an amazing building full of famous people of the past. Anybody can read about famous people in books, but at our Wax Museum, we can actually SEE these famous people and HEAR them talk about their life! We have the opportunity to create an awesome show! Practice, prepare, and bring it on April 23rd to create a night you'll never forget. Spread the word. Invite as many people as you can. Tell everyone you know. Email, text, call, send a messenger pigeon. Let's fill up the school and dominate the 23rd. Enjoy the Ice storm...

The Blog Book Conclusion

What does your blog book color mean? We have been waiting for 4 weeks to see what the color of these blog books mean. Each color means something different. Each color will tell you to do something. I feel like we need to be more helpful in our lives. We need to help out more around the house. Our parents do a lot of the house work on top of having a full time job. So this blog book conclusion is going to help us get in that habit of being more helpful around the house. So without further delay, here is the Blog Book Conclusion!

Click HERE to see what your blog book color means! 
Post a comment after you complete your job telling us about how it went.

Our Class Pet has a name: "Biscuit"

In an extremely close vote, our class pet finally has a name. I would like to introduce to you "Biscuit." Click the link below to see the results.

Click Here to see the results

Ancient Rome Open-Note Test

1. Ancient Rome Open-Note Test

2. Blog post: Pick a topic from ancient Rome and tell me about it. Use complete sentences in paragraph form. At least 4 sentences. Post it on this blog post in a comment box.  

Rome Mind Map Sharing

Check out some of the Rome Mind Maps we made today in social studies. Great way to see Roman topics visually!

Ancient Rome Mind Map

What is in your mind about ancient Rome? We are going to be using a tech tool to create a mind map of ancient Rome. I have included a picture of what this looks like. You will be completing this mind map in class and saving it so it can be shared with your classmates. This will help us review for our open-note test tomorrow by not only making one, but also viewing others. 
These mind maps will include INFORMATION, so do NOT put any opinions in this mind map. Use your 3-ring binder to help you find information. 
Details:
Middle box is "Ancient Rome"
The "topics" can be any of the following:
-Ancient Quest ch. 8
-Pompeii
-vocab words
-Blog Book: roads, pantheon, emperors, roman mythology
-Any information packet article: Rome begins, Rome republic, Rome empire, Christianity
-Rome Detective terms

Mind Map Tool

Extension: Once you have created your Mind Map about ancient Rome, post a comment on this blog post with the following:
"Share with me what you have learned about ancient Rome. Use complete sentences!"

Learn Roman Numerals

Use this powerpoint to learn how to use Roman Numerals. In the powerpoint, you will find two rules to help you translate roman numerals and a method I call "Expand" because it expands the number so you can see more clearly how to translate.
We will be having a Roman Numeral Battle on Monday, April 8th so come to class prepared and do your part to help your class win!

Practice:

1. 56

2. 32

3. 98

4. 411

5. 609

6. LXXIV

7. CXII

8. CCCLXII

9. DCCXXXIX

10. MCCCIX

Answer Key

Wax Museum Cover Contest Winner!

Congratulations to the two winners! Rachel's design will be the cover of the Wax Museum program and Anthony's design will be on the back. Thank you to all you submitted an entry. It was a very difficult decision. The winning designs will be shown in class.

Ancient Rome Facebook Page

Have you ever heard of Facebook? Well, duh. Who hasn't. Albums, status updates, 'likeing' stuff, poke, games, walls, etc. Facebook was started when I was in college. When it began, people started signing up all over the place. That has continued non-stop and today, we find Facebook as one of the most popular websites in the world. There are little "thumbs up" everywhere on the internet. Facebook is making itself the most powerful social networking site ever. Perhaps even you have a Facebook account? (though, the age limit is 13). I find it interesting and challenging to take something from our culture and turn it into a school project. Our culture is definitely intertwined with Facebook now, so lets use that. We will not actually be on Facebook, but creating our own "profile page." We have been studying Rome. You are familiar with Facebook. So, I thought we would combine the two to make a dynamic learning/review tool. Though Facebook is on the internet, we will be making our "Rome Facebook Page" on a piece of paper. (Due to lack of computer availability.)
For this project, you will need to read through the instructions. I will also provide you with an example to look at so you know exactly what is expected of you.

How/What to use to fill out your Facebook page:

1. Textbook
2. Websites from the "Ancient Rome Links"
3. Library Books from the cart

Rome Facebook Page Instructions
Rome Facebook Page example