Mikhail Gorbachev and the end of Communism

Mikhail Gorbachev opened up the Soviet Union by adding more churches. He wanted people to talk about their society and what can they do to make it better. Mikhail Gorbachev made this idea called glasnost. This idea was made in the year 1985 which means openness. Mikhail wanted his people to come together and open about their society.

Another idea Mikhail Gorbachev created was called peristrokia. This idea was based on the economic system. Managers could finally take over their farms and factories. Also many people could make their own business. This is how the Soviet Union had become a better place.

Collapse of Communism

Commumism collapsed in Eastern Europe and the USSR because of their ethnic groups. Yugoslavia had six groups, which caused problems. Another problem that caused Eastern Europe to collapse was Poland. They were facing economic problems. Lech Walesa was a bad leader so they took him out of office. People torn down the Berlin War because West Germany and East Germany could not cross the border. They didn't like the thought of that. West Germany and East Germany could not meet each other. Then on November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall torn down.

Creation of Israel

Zionism is a Jewish movement where it established in Israel. Some of the conflicts that occurred when Israel was created, was in 539 B.C., the Israelis went to Jerusalem to make a temple to pray there. It was then destroyed by the Romans. Another conflict was when Israelis took over Canaan but then Assyrians took over the Israelis. There temples and tribes were in ruins. The Palestinians were not getting along with the Israelis because of the 1948 war. The Palestinians had to leave their home. After the war, Israel took over the Palestinians country.

Nelson Mandela and Apartheid

An apartheid is a practice that separates people by their race. South Africa had this practice from 1948 to 1994. During this time the black people or also known as the Bantu people were not allowed to vote. Nelson Mandela was the leader of South Africa.

He is known for being a hero and establishing peace. He didn't believed in apartheid and wanted to demolish it. Nelson Mandela spend twenty-seven years in jail for being in a "anti-apartheid campaign." People were nervous because they thought that if he died in jail, everyone will kill each other. Luckily, he didn't die and was elected president. I think people find him a heroic person because he made very good changes in Africa. He was also awarded for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993. Today apartheid is banned all because of one heroic person.

African Independence

According to the map, the Africa had changed so much in the twenty year period from 1955 to 1975 because they were indepedent. In 1955 there were only four countries that were independent. Then in 1975 there were numerous countries that were independent.

Some of their leaders were Kwame Nkrumah, who was the first prime minister of Ghana and then president. Kwame Nkrumah wanted better schools and better health issues. In the 1960's, Patrice Lumumba became the first prime minister in Congo which is now called Zaire. After that another leader Mobutu, over-threw Lumumba.

9th Grade Review - Neolithic Revolution

The Neolithic Revolution was a period of time in history when people domesticate animals. Most people spend most of their time either hunting or gathering. People were divided into men and women. The women had to make food and the men had to hunt for animals. Soon after, people invented tools to use is in everyday life. New technologies were invented such as the calendar to keep track of hunting. Also there were weapons to protect themselves. This is all about the Neolithic Revolution.

The European Union

The European Union was when the European leaders wanted peace and union in their countries. The twenty five nations wanted to change the society of Europe. I think it is a good thing because it made a powerful nation in the world. Also the European Union has a strong economic and political nation. It was also a good thing because people that lived in the European Union could work in the nation. These are the successfulness of the European Union.

Film Lesson-"The Right Stuff"

In the movie "The Right Stuff," there were a lot of competition against the United States and Russia. The United States had the first man on the moon. While in Russia, there was the first man in space. Russia was winning the competition because they sent the first satellite in space. The only thing the United States did was to put the first man on the moon. The scene that will remian in my head is when the men were tring to breathe as hard as possible to see who has the strongest lung capacity. This will remain in my head because they all wanted to be in space.

Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis was part of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. This all started on October 14,1962. During that year, the Soviet Union's leader thought of the idea of putting missiles in Cuba. The leader of Cuba was Fidel Castro. He didn't want his country under invasion. John F. Kennedy stopped the Cuban Missile Crisis because he thought it would harm others.

NATO and The Warsaw Pact

NATO is the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The countries that took part in this organization was Eurpoe and North America. The purpose of NATO is if one country is under attack from another country, then NATO would help them. This all started on April 4,1949. Six years later the Warsaw Pact was made.

The Warsaw Pact was a military alliance to take over the Eastern Europe. The countries that took part of this pact was the Soviet Union and Europe. Then the Soviet Union took control over Europe. After that, things were not going good for the Warsaw Pact. Their military wern't strong and their technology was beginning to get old. This is all about the Warsaw Pact and NATO.

Film Lesson: "Schindler's List"

The movie Schindler's List shows the brutal time during the Holocaust. As a viewer the most powerful scene I saw was when all the Jews were packed into a train to go to Auschwitz, the worst death camp. The people were suffocated and hungry. Another part of the movie I thought was powerful was the children. The children were searching places to hide from the Nazis. A boy was looking all over to hide and then he had to hid in the toilet. The worse thing is that the children were separated from their parents. An image that will stay with me from the film is when the guy goes in the sewer just to escape. Then the Nazis were in the sewer killing people.

Film Lesson: "Night and Fog"

The documentary "Night and Fog" was sad and disturbing. I thought it was horrible the way the Nazis treated the Jews. When the Jews died, they just dumped them into a hole. It is different from the movie because the documentary shows little clips from the Holocaust and the movie shows a lot of details. I think the film illustrates the Holocaust more effectively from the movie because they show what happened from the very beginning. I didn't find it that powerful because they only showed the people dying.

US Atomic Bombing of Japan in 1945

I think that the US Atomic Bombing of Japan in 1945 is the number one news story of the century. The atomic bombing took the lives of everyone in Japan and in America. Little boy was dropped in Nagasaki while Fat boy was dropped in Hiroshima. Many people died from radiation. I think that this shouldn't be the number one news story of the century because there were bigger stories. Martin Luther King Jr being assassinated was a big story because he let people come together. I also think that earthquake in San Francisco should be last because earthquakes happens all over the world. This is what I would change.

Germany at War - WW II

A propganda is a poster that influenced people in a time of war. Some of the posters will tell the people to help join the war or help people in need. The poster is saying that Germany destroyed Britain. The fist represent that Germany wants to take over the east. I think that cross is showing that Churchill's grave because of the cross. This is what the poster is about.

The Treaty of Versailles (ended WWI)

Explain how the Treaty of Versailles affected Germany at the end of WW I. Some historians say that the Treaty of Versailles led to the rise of Fascism and Adolph Hitler. Why do you think historians say this?

The Treaty of Versailles went very badly with Germany. Germany lost a lot if land and was blamed for World War I. People were not getting enough money and was getting poor. Some people may think that the Treaty if Versailles led to the rise of Fascism and Adolph Hitler. I think that this was true because Germany was in need of a leader and that would be Hitler. Germany thought by getting a new leader they would have more power. This is how the Treaty of Versailles effected Germany and the end of WWI.

Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) and the Modernization of Turkey

Explain how Mustafa Kemal (aka: Ataturk) modernized Turkey and made it more secular. What changes did he make? Also define secular.

Mustafa Kemal was the very first president of Turkey. He wanted to modernized Turkey by telling all the people not to wear this type of hat called the Fez. Also he wanted to make Turkey more secular. Secular means to reduce religious and spiritual beliefs. This became known as secularism. People had to dress in a certain way. This is how Mustafa Kemal modernized Turkey.

Film Lesson: "Gandhi"

The movie "Gandhi" shows the life and teachings of Mohandas Gandhi. Mohandas or also known as "Great Soul," was born October 2,1869 and was assassinated January 30,1948. Gandhi was best known for his non-violence and the Salt March. The British were paying taxes on their salt and the Indians thought this was unfair. Gandhi and his crew took action and decided to get their own salt.

Mohandas Gandhi was compared to Martin Luther King, Jr, Malcolm X and many more. Another thing Gandhi did was to encourage all the Indians to make their own clothing by using a small machine. They burned all the clothes that the British made. Gandhi used two hours of his time to make his own clothing. He went to prison four times but that didn't stop him from gaining India's independance. He also believed in civil-disobedience which was refusal to obey laws.

India got their independance and on January 30,1948, he was assassinated by a hindu. I think India's independance was all about Gandhi because if it wasn't for him then India would still be under British rule. During this time World War II was occurring. This is the life of Mohandas Gandhi.

"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." Gandhi