For the past 2 or 3 weeks I’ve been making tons of weekend trips to Big Lake. Why? It’s a program called Kids in the Woods. It’s an educational program to teach about the forest and things related to nature. We did many things in it Thursday to Saturday.
The first time we did it, we brought along my friend Josh Bell. Our study that day was on Earth Manners. Pretty much it taught us to be considerate to Planet Earth. We had to take a hike on the Big Lake Vistor Center Nature Trail. We enjoyed the hike a lot. We ate and went back home.
The next day we wanted to see the Native American dancers. When we got there, we were the only people other than the 2 rangers at the BLVC. They cancelled the 10 a.m. dance. Then we went to hike. When we came back for the 2 p.m. dance, the dancers didn’t show! My mom said to one of the rangers, Jay, “Start pluckin’ feathers and start dancing!”. We all laughed. Even I laughed, and I didn’t think it was funny!
We came back the next day for the speech on the Mexican Grey Wolf. Again, we were the only people there. Now, you may think the ranger was tutoring me on wolves. Guess again. I knew the answer to pretty much every question he asked. Not every question, but most. We joked around and he said I should do the speech.
We came back at 2 p.m. for Camping with Bears. The lady there taught us about bears. We played a little game where we have 6 people divided and placed in 3 hula-hoops. The hoops were habitats and we were the bears. She said we had to change habitats because a forest fire started. We then moved to a smaller habitat. We had to move AGAIN because a big building was being built smack-dab in our habitats. We moved from a small hoop to a smaller plate! There wasn’t enough room for 2 “bears” per habitat, so 1 bear from each habitat had to either “die” or moved to a very bad habitat. It was fun, but sad.
The next week we went to a game of Forest Frisbee. It was fun, but sadly, I got one of the highest scores, which isn’t good in Forest Frisbee. We went through 18 holes, and the guy who helped run the game was the “flag”, which meant he showed us were the goals were.
Afterwards we got prizes. While we were picking prizes I got to know a kid named Nick. He was a nice guy. I really liked him.
The next day we went to a program called Transformers of the Forest. We enjoyed it a lot. It was all about frogs and how frogs are like Transformers. We then went on a hike around Big Lake. When we came back, they were about to start a program on rocks. We learned about rocks, the Rock Cycle, made a model volcano erupt, and took a hike to find petrified wood. I was pretty much Bad Luck Ben. I couldn’t find one thing of petrified wood if my life depended on it.
You can probably see what the Kids in the Woods program is like, I hope. If you are in Eagar, you can see the Kids in the Woods program at the BLVC. It lasts May to August every year.
Hope you enjoyed!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Getting Tough with the Colonists
After such incidents as the Boston Tea Party and the decision by the Continental Congress to begin a complete boycott of British goods, the British government decided to get tough with the rebellious colonists. In your opinion, was there a “good guy” and a “bad guy” in this situation? If so, which was which, and why.
Yes. The colonists were the good guys, and Britain the bad guys. The reason the colonists were the good guys is that they didn’t deserve to be taxed like that. They did nothing wrong!
The British were bad because they beefed up the taxes for no good reason! They were like legal robbers. They were stealing, yet they were never going to get punished by law. They were not being fair.
That is how I feel about things. The British were like the sheriff from that classic child’s story Robin Hood. He stole money from the poor so he could beef up his own budget. Again, that’s what Britain did.
Yes. The colonists were the good guys, and Britain the bad guys. The reason the colonists were the good guys is that they didn’t deserve to be taxed like that. They did nothing wrong!
The British were bad because they beefed up the taxes for no good reason! They were like legal robbers. They were stealing, yet they were never going to get punished by law. They were not being fair.
That is how I feel about things. The British were like the sheriff from that classic child’s story Robin Hood. He stole money from the poor so he could beef up his own budget. Again, that’s what Britain did.
Defending Taxes
When North American colonists protested at the taxes Britain was levying, Parliament replied that the colonists were still British subjects under British law, so they were subject to British taxation. Parliament said that it represented all British subjects, even the colonists across the Atlantic Ocean, who didn’t have representatives in Parliament. Using this information, imagine you are a member of the British Parliament and write a response to the colonists who are complaining about taxation with representation.
Dear Benyamin Soto
Calm yourself! For heavens sake, you are British subjects under British law, so stop your whining! This is what you deserve when you left Britain and left us with less workforce to sustain us. You brought this upon yourselves.
Oh, and those crops you give us, half of those end up rotten when they get here. And it’s all because of the fact you sail slower than you’re supposed to. You do not deserve to get representation. You have no hope of defeating our army, so you might as well live with the taxes.
If you continue to protest against our taxes, we will be forced to take action. Heed this warning, and no one will have to get hurt.
Sincerely,
Parliament
Dear Benyamin Soto
Calm yourself! For heavens sake, you are British subjects under British law, so stop your whining! This is what you deserve when you left Britain and left us with less workforce to sustain us. You brought this upon yourselves.
Oh, and those crops you give us, half of those end up rotten when they get here. And it’s all because of the fact you sail slower than you’re supposed to. You do not deserve to get representation. You have no hope of defeating our army, so you might as well live with the taxes.
If you continue to protest against our taxes, we will be forced to take action. Heed this warning, and no one will have to get hurt.
Sincerely,
Parliament
A Tax on Paper
In 1764 and 1765, Britain raised taxes in the colonies to beef up the British budget and to pay for an increased military presence in the colonies. The Stamp Act, for example, taxed all sorts of paper items, including legal documents, newspapers, pamphlets, marriage licenses, and even playing cards. Colonists didn’t appreciate these taxes and insisted that only the colonial legislatures could raise the colonies taxes. They argued that they should not suffer from British taxation without representation in British Parliament. Imagine you are one of these colonists. Write a letter to Parliament expressing your concern about the Stamp Act.
Dear Parliament,
I strongly oppose the Stamp Act. I demand you remove the burden from us for good.
Reasons: We have done nothing to have taxes raised in the New World. If you continue this raise, we will secede and form our own country. We also do not have representation in Parliament, as you think we are not important enough. We are people too, and we deserve representation in Parliament. We give you half of our crops, and what do we get? More taxes.We are having trouble getting by as it is, but if we have to deal with the Stamp Act, we will not even be able to actually BUY paper, and what good will that do you?
As I said, remove the taxes or we will be forced to take action.
Sincerely,
Colonist Benyamin Soto
Dear Parliament,
I strongly oppose the Stamp Act. I demand you remove the burden from us for good.
Reasons: We have done nothing to have taxes raised in the New World. If you continue this raise, we will secede and form our own country. We also do not have representation in Parliament, as you think we are not important enough. We are people too, and we deserve representation in Parliament. We give you half of our crops, and what do we get? More taxes.We are having trouble getting by as it is, but if we have to deal with the Stamp Act, we will not even be able to actually BUY paper, and what good will that do you?
As I said, remove the taxes or we will be forced to take action.
Sincerely,
Colonist Benyamin Soto
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Goods and Crops
According to theory of mercantilism maintained by British colonialists before the American Revolution, colonies existed solely for the economic benefit of the mother country. Why would it be beneficial for Britain to permit the selling of colonial goods and crops in Britain only, and not in any other countries? Do you think restricting the sale of goods and crops was a win-win situation for Britain and the colonies? Explain.
Yes, I do believe it was a win-win situation because Britain got all the goods they wanted without having to share them, and for the colonies because if they got paid for them, and that they used British currency, and that there wasn’t a way to change money, that they actually got money they could use!
Yes, I do believe it was a win-win situation because Britain got all the goods they wanted without having to share them, and for the colonies because if they got paid for them, and that they used British currency, and that there wasn’t a way to change money, that they actually got money they could use!
The United States of France
When Britain controlled the colonies, France tried several times to take over North America. Imagine what North America might be like today if France had succeeded. What would we eat, wear, do for fun? What would we believe?
We would probably eat French foods like ratatouille, shrimp in French sauce, etc. We would wear (in the summer) tight shorts, tennis shoes, and t-shirts. In the winter, we would wear the same clothes we usually wear in the winter. We would probably bike, race, or do some other type of outdoor activity for our main source of fun. We would probably be (using the results of a French poll) either Catholic or atheist.
We would probably eat French foods like ratatouille, shrimp in French sauce, etc. We would wear (in the summer) tight shorts, tennis shoes, and t-shirts. In the winter, we would wear the same clothes we usually wear in the winter. We would probably bike, race, or do some other type of outdoor activity for our main source of fun. We would probably be (using the results of a French poll) either Catholic or atheist.
Everyday Heroes
How do you define hero? Do you think fame is an important component of heroism, or do you think most heroes are unknown? Is there anyone you know personally whom you consider a hero?
To me, a hero is some one who helps people on a some-what regular basis. Fame is NOT a important component of heroism. Take my dad: He’s a hero, but he hasn’t even been an extra in a commercial!
My dad is a hero because he helps stop wildfire and burns forests to help prevent wildfires. He saves many lives that way, and not just human lives.
To me, a hero is some one who helps people on a some-what regular basis. Fame is NOT a important component of heroism. Take my dad: He’s a hero, but he hasn’t even been an extra in a commercial!
My dad is a hero because he helps stop wildfire and burns forests to help prevent wildfires. He saves many lives that way, and not just human lives.
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