It is almost winter break, and I am so excited. I am most looking forward to Christmas because you get to get a lot of presents. I love to get presents, I mean who doesn't like to get presents. There is also New Year's Eve. I love New Year's Eve because it is the start of a new year which is 2013. I stay up until midnight with my family to see the big glass ball and say,"Happy New Year!" Then on New Year's Day, I get to see the Rose Parade on T.V. I is really cool to see the different floats.

There are so many things to plan for. There is Christmas and New Years and other things. There is the best thing of all, sleeping and relaxing for 3 weeks. There's nothing better than that. No school, no teachers, no tests, and best of all, no homework!!!! Everyone should be happy to get a break.

    In core, we learned that Japan had to borrow ideas from Korea and China. One of those ideas that I think is the most important was Japan borrowing the Chinese writing system. Japan had no writing system when and had to borrow it from the Chinese. They started to realize how each character means something. Without the Chinese writing system, they wouldn't know what to say.
    What I learned was how Japan thrived using the Chinese writing system. The Japanese also borrowed other things from China. They borrowed their language. It was even the official language of Japan. After that they developed their own language and stopped using the Chinese language. 

    It was morning in China and it was time to go pull the weeds. When I was picking weeds, all of a sudden I hear roaring thunder. I look and I see thousands of Mongols running towards us. I knew they were going to attack our village. I run as fast as I could to go tell my family. I told them the mongols are coming. We packed what ever to leave the village. I was so scared so I also packed my weapons.
    I look outside and I see that they are almost here. I put the stuff on top of my horse and my family on the other. Then we were off. I look back and see that we left just in time because all I see is smoke and flames. I had to do something because I thought to myself what if the mongols would attack other villages. Then I decided to go to a different village. When my family and I reached the village, they welcomed us.

    In core, we learned about Chinese achievements. I think the greatest ones were finding a vaccine for small pox and making gunpowder. Back in Ancient China, there was no vaccine for small pox. So some people found a vaccine for small pox which prevented people from getting it. Another great achievement was the invention of gunpowder. The Chinese invented gunpowder and the Chinese dominated against other countries. Without gunpowder today, we wouldn't be able to use weapons.
    What I learned was how the Chinese achievements changed China and how it affected them. Many people thank the Chinese for these inventions. I knew a little bit about the Chinese. I knew they invented gunpowder.

    Thanksgiving is coming and there are so many things I am thankful for. There are 3 things that I am thankful and that is my family and friends, food, and my education. My family is the best most of the time because sometimes it gets rough, but I still love my family. In some countries some people don't have families. Also some people don't have food to eat. I am thankful for the food I eat. In addition, I love my education because it gives things to learn and will get me a career in the future.
    There are other things I am thankful for too like video games and technology and water and other things. I am also thankful for church because I learn about God.

    In West Africa, there was no written language. Everything had to be memorized. That is one main reason that griots were important. Griots were West African storytellers who had to memorize the heritage of the clan and recite the history with no mistake. Griots were known for their excellent memory and many times a griot would put on plays and gather everybody around to tell stories of the clan and how it progressed. 
    Griots were important to West Africa in many ways. Mansa Musa, a great ruler of the Mali Empire, took hundreds of griots with him to record his journey with his scholars. But griots were only popular in West Africa so Ghana, Mali, and Songhai all had griots to preserve their heritage. Griots still exist today in West Africa.

    I really like fall because it is cooler than summer. The best thing about fall is the Big Fresno Fair. It is a time to relax and have fun. The Fresno Fair has a lot of games for you to play, but some games you have to pay for. There is delicious food that makes you mouth water. There are animals that you can see and places that you can learn new things.
    My favorite food at the Fresno Fair are the corn dogs. The corn dogs taste so good because it's crunchy and sweet. My favorite place to go is the animal place because there are so many animals.

    In core, we learned how the discovery of iron changed Ghana which is in West Africa. Ghana was being threatened by nomadic herders and needed protection. That is when they discovered iron. Ghana used the iron to make better spears for battle. Since many spears were made of bone, this was a great advantage for the people of Ghana. Then Ghana started to conquer other villages and neighbors and that was the making of the Ghana Empire.
    What I learned was that iron had a big impact on the people of Ghana. Ghana conquered people to make the Ghana Empire. It reminds me of when I read about the Aztecs.

    In core, we learned that there are different climates in Africa. One that I think would produce more hardships for living is the desert. Temperatures in the desert can climb up to 120 dergrees F. Also, rain is rare because the heat can evaporate the water. There is not much life in the desert, so little food lives there. In Africa, the Sahara is the largest desert in the world.
   I learned that desert climate in Africa presents many hardships. I think that if I was there, I wouldn't make it. I think the climate that is the best to live in is the oasis. Oases have good climate and have water for you to drink.

    In core, we learned how trade helped Islam spread. When caravans came to Islam. they came to trade their goods for things they needed. The reason the caravans came was because Islam was in the middle of an oasis. Oases have cooler temperatures than the rest of the land. Since Islam was in the middle of a desert, more people came to trade in cool weather. I think that the Muslim people told traders about Islam.
    So what I learned was that trade helped Islam spread its religion.