India, "India," and America

Once, the land of India was split into many different countries. These countries were all ruled by noblemen or small kings. One of these countries was called Delhi. It was ruled by the Sultan of Delhi. India was getting poorer and poorer. It was having trouble ruling itself. It needed a leader. And finally one came. But this ruler was not from India, he was from the Ottoman Turks! His name was Babur. When Babur saw that the Sultan of Delhi was having trouble ruling his kingdom, he decided to conquer it. He had only 12,000 men, and the Sultan had 100000! But his men rode on fast horses, while the Sultan's rode big lumbering elephants. Babur was easily able to conquer Delhi. Then he conquered all the countries around it!   Babur was a good emperor, and while he was a Muslim many of his subjects were Hindus. Babur let them continue doing their own thing, while he did his. Although, he ruled India fairly, he was homesick. He thought India was a dull country, so he planted gardens. All together, Babur ruled in India for four years. Then, he died. His son, Humayan reigned, but was driven out of the country. When he came back, he was not very successful. Finally, he slipped on his library steps, bumped his head, and died. His son, Akbar, was a far better king. He conquered more and more kingdoms until his empire covered half of India!

While India was thriving, Europe was looking for it. Traders wanted to find an easier way to get to India than across  Africa. Christopher Columbus thought that the world was round, and so he would get to India if he just sailed West far enough. He was right of course, but he did not know about North and South America. When he finally sailed across the ocean, in ships provided by Queen Isabella of Spain, he thought it was India! He did not find any gold or spices but he did find parrots, peppers, and pineapples, not to mention the "Indians." He made many voyages back and forth but never did he realize it was a new continent. Many other explorers followed in Columbus's wake. Amerigo Vespucci gave America the name it has today. Magellan was the first to sail around the world. Well, he did not make the journey, for stopping to fight in an tribe's war, he was killed. One out of five of his ships came back to Portugal, and from 280 men, there survived less than 36. But he had the idea and that is what counts for a lot.

Ferdinand, Isabella, and Mansa Musa

Long ago, Spain conquered Muslim land. After that, there were three countries that made up Spain. But these countries didn't think that they were big enough. One of the kings, whose name was Enrique and who ruled over the small kingdom of Castile, wanted more soldiers so that he could make his army bigger and conquer other kingdoms. He told one of his noblemen Pedro Giron, that if he would give him some soldiers, he might have the king's sister, Isabella, for his wife. Did Isabella like this idea? No! She did not. The nobleman was over forty and she was only thirteen! She had also heard that he was mean and got drunk a lot. But was she asked her opinion? No! She was not. Did Pedro Giron, the nobleman like this idea? Yes, he did. And he was asked, too. Marry the king's sister? Would he like to? Of course! But before the marriage could take place, Pedro Giron died of stomach pains. Isabella was overjoyed! Her brother was not. A few years later, Enrique decided that Isabella would marry the king of Portugal, so that the two kingdoms could become one. Did Isabella like this idea? No she did not. The king of Portugal was old and fat and old enough to be her father!But was Isabella asked what she preferred? No! She was not. And this time she decided to do something about it. So she sent a secret message to the young Prince of Aragon. She had heard, even though they had never met, that he was kind, handsome, and her own age. Ferdinand agreed to come and meet her in a secret place. Four days after they met, they were married. Did Enrique like this idea? No! He did not. But he wasn't asked his opinion either. When Enrique died half a dozen years later, Isabella became queen. In time, Ferdinand also inherited the throne of Aragon. They united the two countries in to one big country of Spain. Later, they also conquered the land of Granada, where many Muslims lived. Now that they owned the whole country of Spain, Ferdinand and Isabella declared it to be and only Christian country. They forced all the Jews to leave. While we remember Ferdinand and Isabella for uniting Spain, which was a good thing, we also remember the horrible thing they did to the Jews in making them leave the land they had lived in for so long.

        While Ferdinand and Isabella were reigning in their Spain, the world of the unknown lay out before them. Most people felt that places like Africa were dark and dangerous. However, the land of Africa thrived in its own special way. In the Middle Ages, much of Africa was roamed by nomadic tribes who lived off the land. But there were also many cities. Three of them were named Ghana, Mali, and Songhay. Ghana became rich and powerful because of the people who traveled through it. Traders carrying gold, salt, and other things to trade were taxed to pass through the city. The city of Ghana did very well for a long time. But then it began to fall apart because its kings would not convert to Islam. Other cities attacked it again and again. It got weaker and weaker. Soon Mali became the more important city. It copied Ghana and taxed the traders who went through. But it was and Islamic kingdom. One of the most famous kings of Mali was a man named Mansa Musa. Not only did he expand his army and his kingdom, he took a pilgrimage to Mecca, the Islamic holy city! That attracted the attention of the world. Soon, maps showed the city of Mali. Because of Mansa Musa, people in the Middle Ages learned about the country of Mali. But after the death of Mansa Musa, the kingdom of Mali began to fade away just like Ghana had. And, like Ghana, it was replaced by a new and larger kingdom. Songhay grew until it covered the entire region of what had once been Mali and Ghana. It had universities in its towns and many, many schools busy marketplaces and temples were also commonly found. The explorer Leo Africanus wrote about his travels in the country of Songhay. His book was called History and Description of Africa and the Notable Things contained therein. He wrote about the capital city of Timbuktu and its inhabitants, what the houses were made of,  and such. I think I would like to read his book.

2011

Before the new year started, I made a lot of plans and resolutions for the new year. Some of them were related to school. Some of them were not. Some I have, so far, been able to keep, like going to bed at nine o'clock on school nights. Others, like waking up at 5:50 am on school mornings so as to have more time to get ready, I have had a hard time following consistently. (My alarm rings, so I do wake up, but I don't get out of bed!) I could list many other resolutions like brushing my teeth twice a day, reading the one year Bible, or thinking before I say something. But this is supposed to be a School blog, so I will focus on school things.

Perhaps the subject that is easiest to tell about is History. It is quite straightforward. Each week I will read two chapters of the Susan Wise Bauer book. Then, I will read a non-fiction book that goes along with what I read. I will also read a historical-fiction novel that happens in that time period. At the end of the week I will write a book report about the novel. Perhaps I will post it on this blog. I hope to finish this volume of the history series and then get half way through the next one by the end of May. Maybe I will continue reading it throughout the summer.

Math is pretty much the same as always. I work on Math Mondays, Wednesdays, and alternating Fridays. I do roughly three lessons a day and two or three tests a week. The test, when I have them, count for two lessons because they take me almost forty-five minutes to do. I hope to be finished with my math book by the end of February. I have 138 lessons and I am on the 97th. Then I will proceed to a 7th grade math textbook, which I probably will not finish.

I work on Language Arts, or English;as some might call it, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and alternating Fridays. I will do a chapter a week. Each one has five lessons. I will finish the whole book, (which has 29 chapters in it, out of which I have done 13,) somewhere around mid-April.

Theology; I will continue reading in The True Story of the Whole World.

In Science, I have a school text book. One that would be used for sixth graders in a regular classroom. I am making my own science book that would be made for a first or second grader. After I read the chapter, I write about what I have just read in simpler terms. I also include pictures that i take off the Internet.

I have no real goals for my foreign language study. Before Christmas, I finished my Latin textbook, we have ordered a new one. My new German Curriculum still have not come.

So I guess that is that. And I think that it is.