A Walk in the Museum

This week in class, we were broken up into groups to create an exhibit for a museum that would help us better understand some of the aspect that went along with the Industrial Revolution. For our exhibit, my group was given the topic of child labor. To the right is the final product of my group's museum exhibit we worked on in class. Each group was given artifacts that correspond with your groups topic. My group and I began analyzing the pictures and notes that were given to us so we could write what each item is about. We then started to create the poster. We put on each artifact with their summaries and we then added other decoration that we thought would fit the topic. We chose to do a black background with chains going from each artifact because it represented the dark and depressing state these children were in while working in the factories. We added things like cotton balls and fabric to represent coal and textiles that the children worked with. My group wanted to really give off the feeling that these children were put through harsh and dangerous condition. After we were done and hung the poster, we got the check out the other groups posters.
     The first group I visited had the topic of family-used looms. Families would have their own looms in their houses that became very valuable. As new inventions were created and mills were becoming more common, the home looms were not up to working standards anymore. This caused a lot of families to move into the city and get jobs in factories.
     Another group I visited had the topic of transportation. I learned that the invention of steam engines helped increase transportation by introducing railroad systems and steam boats. Workers would use these new inventions to transport goods at a faster rate.
    The next group I visited had the topic of living conditions during the Industrial Revolution. I learned that with all the factories producing large amounts of goods, it caused major cities to become polluted. Workers who lived in the cities would become very ill and living conditions were becoming more and more expensive.
    The last group I visited had the topic of slavery during the Industrial Revolution. Slaves had a huge role in the productivity of the factories. With the increase of demand of goods, more slaves were put to work in the factories.

Industrialized Inventions

        For my first unit in History 10, my class is learning about the Industrial Revolution. We started the unit by watching a brief video that gave us information about the Revolution. To watch the video, press here. The essential question for this post is what was 'revolutionary' about the revolution? We can categorize the things most effected in the Industrial Revolution into four groups, people, technology, resources and transportation. For this post, I am going to be talking about the two that I think are most important, people and technology.
         Before the Industrial Revolution, most people were farmers. Actually, about 80% of people were farmers who sold their crops for money or just used the goods for their own families. Today, only 1% of people are recorded farmers. This all has to do with the way the Industrial Revolution helped make farming easier and more efficient. Techniques were made to help the farmers like starting using fertilizers, making fields larger, and tools were made to harvest more with the use of less farmers. Also, goods could now be eaten do to the new techniques and fertilizers. Enclosures were also starting to be built to keep out peasant farmers to create more room for cultivation. Also, there was more room for sheep pastures which created more wool to be collected. With all the surplus amount of goods, the health of the people was increasing. Famine was no longer a problem and the birth rate increased with giving birth being safer. The Industrial Revolution made it so people could do their jobs faster and more efficiently.
         During the Industrial Revolution, new technology was being made that made doing jobs faster. Many new machines were being made especially for the clothing industry that allowed making clothes easier and with less people. Inventions like the  spinning jenny, flying shuttle and the water frame all increased productivity in the industry. These machines ushered in the new era of factories. More machines could be stored at once which caused more clothes to be made. With the factories in full swing, more electrical energy was needed. The problem was solved with the invention of the steam engine that made electrical energy by burning coal to boats, power trains and the new factories. New ways to make iron cheaper and stronger were possible thanks to the Darby family. The iron was used on railroads which helped transport goods faster. Below, are some of the machines invented during the Industrial Revolution.

                                                           The spinning jenny: Link here.                                   

 The water frame: Link here.

                                                           The flying shuttle: Link here.

Exploring the Web

    Over the past couple of days, my class has been learning about online search engines and the reliable and effective way to use them. We practiced using the search engines to teach us how to search and use online resources responsibly.
    The first activity my class did was called a Google a Day. This activity was powered by Google to give users a chance to use the search engine to find the answers to random questions. To try a Google a Day, press here. By doing this activity, we learned how to effectively search for the answers to series of randomized questions. I liked doing this activity because it was a creative way of learning how to use search engines to find the right answers. The most frustrating part of a Google a Day is really figuring out what the question was asking. After finding out what the question was asking, its was then hard to find which link to get the correct information. I learned from this activity how to correctly search and find answers on Google.
     Accuracy, authenticity and reliability are all things to take into account when searching for online sources. Accuracy means the quality or state of being correct or precise. Authenticity means being genuine and not copied. Reliability means the ability to be depended upon. We use these to get good source information. Recently, we visited a website for the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. We put our new knowledge to the test by seeing if the site was accurate, authentic and reliable. This site was not accurate because there is no such thing as a Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. It was authentic because the information was all original from the site. The information was not reliable because the author and the source site for the website was not credible. To visit the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus website, click here.
     Overall, this week has made me feel more confident about finding information on the web.

            The "Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus", click here to view.                                                                                  

    

Hello, My Name is Student

       To start off the year I should introduce myself. My name is Jamie Callahan. I am a high school sophomore. My History 10 blog will include many blogs having to do with the things we are learning in class at the time. My first task given was to decide what makes a good teacher. What makes a great teacher is such a hard question because they have so many jobs. A teachers main job is obviously to teach their students curriculum and make them advance in that subject. But, I think a job that not all teachers take is the task of teaching lessons outside the curriculum that can stay in a students mind for a lasting period in time. Things like social advice, advances in the world of technology or even just those small random facts have always stuck in my mind after the numerous years in school. When I think of some past teachers that I really admired, the name Ms. Gilbert stands out the most in my mind. Even though eight grade earth science was never my strong suit, I always looked forward to that class. The way Ms. Gilbert involved the class with the learning and always kept the subject interesting made learning about rocks just a little more bearable. Even when I was totally lost and confused, she was always there after school willing to help me until I was fully prepared. My favorite thing about Ms. Gilbert though is the talks we shared after the lesson was done. She cared so much about her students problems and was willing to help them through rough times made her a very trusted and admiral teacher. The thing that my teachers could do this year that would help me immensely is just being available for extra help when I need it. I know that there is nothing more over whelming for a student than having to move on from a lesson they don't fully understand. With just some of the things just mentioned, a student could become much more successful.
      
         On author and Youtuber John Greens youtube channel named vlogbrothers, he posted a video called "An Open Letter to Students Returning to School". This video goes into great detail about the importance of education on world and how it is the duty for students to use there education to do great things. I agree with John Greens thinking because amazing inventions that we use today were made from the educations of schools. If we use the education that we get today, we could have the newest invention breakthrough. I plan to utilize my education to the fullest this year. My hopes are to be on honor roll all four quarters. As well as my many sports go, my goals remain optimistic. I hope to learn new tumbling passes and tricks in cheering and gymnastics as well as obtain enough points in track to receive a varsity letter. I know I can reach all my goals this year if I put in all my effort. Staying focused is probably going to be the hardest challenge when trying to reach my goals, but with time I will be able to stay productive and become successful.  I know I can make this year a great one.