Mel's school work

   When working on the computer, we tend to forget how long we’ve been sitting down for. Now that many more people are working from home and most work is digital, this mistake is becoming more common and harmful among not just teens and young adults, but older adults and elders. Sitting increases the risk of heart diseases, cancer, type 2 diabetes,  and neck and back pain. 

   We also forget that we need to exercise. The average adult and elderly adult needs 150 minutes of physical activity each week, and teens need 60 minutes or more each day. Exercise decreases depression and anxiety, and the risk of dementia. It is suggested by medical professionals that while working on the computer, we set a 15-30 minute timer, and when the timer goes off, we spend 30 seconds or more moving around and stretching.

   Exercise produces more brain cells, serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and endorphins, which prevents depression. And as mentioned, exercise reduces our risk of dementia. A study showed physical inactivity increases our chances of developing dementia by 82%!

   In conclusion, get some more exercise during school hours, whether that be walking, running, stretching, dancing, etc.

   St. Francis of Assisi was born in 1181 in Italy. His family was very wealthy, so Francis lived a very carefree life of drinking, partying, and women. In 1202, war broke between Assisi and Perugia, and Francis took his place in the cavalry. 

   He was dressed like an aristocrat, in new, expensive armour. He was quickly captured, and taken as prisoner. During these months in this dank prison cell, he had claimed to have seen a vision of God. After he was ransomed out, he was riding a horse when he saw a leper. Normally, he would’ve run away from the leper, but Francis saw this leper as a sign from God; he saw the leper as Jesus, but incognito. He embraced the leper and kissed him, later telling about the sweet taste in his mouth. Suddenly, his old life of partying and drinking didn’t appeal to him. 

   Francis completely devoted himself to Christianity. He disposed of all of his belongings, and left Assisi. His family was very unhappy with these changes, and his father even beat Francis, but Francis renounced his father. 

   Francis tried to spread the word of God to the people of the town, and many people said Francis was a madman, and a fool (even giving him the nickname ‘God’s Fool’), but Francis’ message was spread, and thousands of people were captivated with what Francis had to say. 

   Francis later died on October 3, 1226, at the age of 44, but two years later, he was canonised as a saint by Pope Gregory IX.

   Joan of Arc was born in the small town of Domremy, France in 1412. As a little girl, her father would tell Joan of the sad conditions of France, and how France was in the possession of England. However, when she was 12 years old, she had many visions and voices in her head telling her that God had a mission for her to save France. 

   Many people tried to stop her from doing so, even her mother and father told her she shouldn’t, telling her that she needs a fine husband to care for her, but she did as she wanted anyways, and went to persuade the king at the time, Charles VII. Charles listened carefully and kindly to what Joan had to say. She told him that she was sent by God on her mission to rid of the enemies from England. After Charles and his nobles talked over the matter, they finally allowed Joan to lead an army. She led an entire army at age 18, leaving English men in astonishment when they saw her ride her horse around the walls of Orleans. 

   Joan and her army succeeded greatly, having 6,000 soldiers left, and England only having 400 soldiers left. She wished to go back to her parents, but the king urged her to stay a little longer. Joan consented, telling King Charles, “I hear the heavenly voices no more, and I am afraid.”

   Sadly, she took part in the attack upon the army of the Duke of Burgundy, and was taken prisoner by him. She was in prison for a year, and was charged for sorcery and taken to trial. 

   At the end of the long, tiring trial, she was doomed to be burned at the stake. As she was being burnt, near death, she muttered, “Jesus”, and died. A statue of her stands where she suffered, and is known as the martyr who saved France.

   Giotto Di Bondone was an Italian artist, known for being the first person in history to use emotions in his paintings. Giotto’s parents were painters, although he seemed to be completely self-taught. He was the apprentice to a master whose name was Cimabue, which evolved Giotto’s art style much less stylised and elongated than that of Cimabue.

   Later in life, he became known for painting Frescoes, such as the frescoes on the life of St. Francis in the Church of Assisi, and most notably, the Scrovegni Chapel frescoes. He died later in 1337 in Florence, Italy. 

   Petrarch is known as the father of the Renaissance, and the first ever tourist. Born in 1304, unlike many people, Petrarch learned how to read and write. Petrarch was also a great poet, and his style of adventure and thought certainly didn’t fit the culture around him. 

   Petrarch was known as the first tourist, because he wanted to travel Europe simply for the excitement in travel. Not only did he travel for fun, but in 1336, he also climbed Mt. Ventoux just to see the wonderful sights from above. Petrarch’s way of living was something unheard of. No one would travel for fun, and no one would climb a mountain for fun, since they’d always go around the mountains. He died one day before his 70th birthday, but will be remembered for turning the Renaissance from the ‘Dark Ages’, to the ‘Enlightened Ages’.

   A knight was a title given to a man honoured by a King, or a monarch for an act of bravery and/or chivalry. Originally, knights were known as mounted soldiers, but eventually, they were just known as honoured people, mostly recognised for their great deeds in the military. 

   An 8 year old boy (often a son of a knight or from a noble family) would be sent to a neighbouring castle to be trained as a page. They would become stronger, learn how to fight with a spear and sword, and even learn how to read and write, and how to dance and sing!

   At the age of 15 or 16, they would become a squire, which is technically an assistant to a former knight. Care for his horse, tend to his armour and weapons, dressing the knight, serving his meals, etc. He would also follow the knight to tournaments and assisted him on the battlefields. 

   And at age 20, if proven worthy enough, the squire would become a knight. There would be a dubbing ceremony too, where the knight would pray to be purified, and a chaplain would bless the knight’s swords. Then the next day, the squire’s lord would tap him on the shoulders, proclaiming him knight, followed by music and dancing.

We first start with our protagonist, Hank Morgan, in his work place. A fight broke out, and while trying to stop it, he got hit in the head with a crowbar. He then ended up in the 6th century of Camelot, England.

Everyone thought that he was evil (Since his clothes were a lot more different than what they had in the 6th century) so they planned to kill him on the day of a solar eclipse. But since Hank remembered that the solar eclipse was on that day, he said he ‘Did magic’ to make the sun disappear, so they made him boss, so that Hank would ‘Make the sun reappear’.

Many other things happen: Hank discovers many technologies early, such as telephones, machines, bicycles, and many other things. Hank and King Arthur pretend to be peasants, but end up being sold as slaves, and ended up being saved by knights. A woman named Sandy was having some troubles in her village with water, so Hank fixed the problem.

Hank eventually marries Sandy, and has a daughter named Hello-Central. The antagonist, Merlin, is disappointed with Hank, and all he has done with all of the new technology, so he casts a spell on Hank, which puts him into a deep sleep.

Hank wakes up, and it is the 20th century, and he is 70 years old. It turns out, he had been in a coma for most of his life. This is where the story comes to an end. Hank Morgan starts worrying about his wife and

   There would be so many places I would want to travel to, so many things I would want to learn, so many people I would want to meet, and so many cultures I would want to know about, but there is one place that I would be more than overjoyed to be in: Mediaeval Japan. Well, if I’m being completely honest, I want to visit Japan in general, modern or Mediaeval.

    For a lot of my life, I have found Japan’s culture more than interesting, and everytime I would hear someone talking about Japanese culture, I would slip into that conversation in a matter of seconds. Learning about the different cultures, holidays, traditions, different dishes, important people of the history of Japan, anything about it interests me. I would learn more than enough if I travelled back into the Mediaeval times of Japan. 

   One of the first things I’d want to learn about would be the culture. I want to learn about what they do, about different religions, landmarks, traditions, and many other things. I’ve always wanted to visit a Japanese shrine, and see how people would pray there. I would love to learn how to make different Japanese dishes too, since I love cooking for my family, and Japanese foods. Another thing I would want to learn would be the art. Japan was very famous for their art, and was known for creating many famous pieces of art too. I love art very much, and want to learn as much about art as possible. And finally, the last thing I would want to learn about; The literature. Japan has a poem structure that has always interested me, and those are Haikus. Haikus, for me at least, have been a little tricky to write. So, it would be interesting to see where they came from, who made them, and when they became more famous in other countries besides Japan. 

    In conclusion, I know that I’ll probably never go to Japan (Especially mediaeval Japan), but if I ever do, this would be what I’d want to learn about.

/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmYVfyqzu4Y

They have strange things in Japan.

10 Weirdest Things in Japan

• Vending Machines. One of the weirdest things in Japan are the vending machines. …
• Hi-Tech Toilets. Japan is known for its Hi-Tech toilets. …
• Capsule Hotels. …
• Canned Food Restaurant. …
• Rabbit Island. …
• Public Sleeping. …
• Green Kit Kat (and Other Novelty Food) …
• Maid Cafés.

   Someone important to me who has shaped the person I am to this day is my Stepfather, Chris. He’s a dork, he likes to joke around, and sometimes, he can infuriate me, but I don’t think I’d be the classy, polite girl I am today without him. When I was in 4th grade, I would intentionally misspell everything on my schoolwork so that it would be funny. But Chris talked some sense into me and told me not to do that, because it’s very disrespectful. Now, all the time, whenever I’m writing an essay or an email to a teacher or boss, I always write it formally, with correct grammar and spelling. 

   Another thing he does is tell me when I’m being an idiot or when I’m being rude to someone. If I’m making a crude joke, Chris tells me to stop, and to apologise. My mother does that too, but Chris does it a lot.

   Not only does Chris shape my manners and style, but he also inspires me a lot. This last year has been really difficult for him, but he still stays strong for my mother, my sisters, and me. He’s started a very successful business and helps a lot of people. Even though he’s very busy with his new job, he still has time to help me and my mother when we need him most. Whenever he has the chance, he’s always happy to check my schoolwork and he always listens when I tell him what I learned. He’s always happy to teach me something too. If I need his help with maths, or if I need him to check my computer when it’s acting up, he always finishes what he does to make sure that I understand and learn from my mistakes. 

   Chris may not be my biological father, and I don’t love him any more than my biological father, but I have no idea what my life would be like if Chris hadn’t shown up in my mother’s life. I don’t know where I’d be, how smart I’d be, how polite I’d be, and how happy I’d be. I am grateful for Chris everyday of my life, even if he can be a bit of a pain sometimes. And that is why I chose to write about him for my essay.

This is my paper on Ancient China.

   Already at around 500 AD, China had 5 dynasties:

 -Xia

 -Shang

 -Zhou

 -Qin

 -Han

   The first dynasty was the Qin dynasty, ruled by a man named Shi Huangdi. He was not the best leader. He hated education and he burned most of the books and killed many scholars. He moved many nobles to the capital to prevent rebellions too. He promoted building the great wall of China, but he also forced many slaves and prisoners to do so. The Great Wall of China is now seen as China’s most famous landmark (being 1400 miles long and known as the only man-made object that can be seen from outer space) but for a long time many people were ashamed of the great wall. Shi Huangdi later died in 210 BC, buried in a massive tomb with thousands of terracotta army soldiers and horses.

   Later after Shi Huangdi’s death, in 202 BC, the Han dynasty began. This dynasty tried to fix Shi Huangdi’s terrible mistakes he made when he was alive. They tried to replace all of the burned books and encouraged study. Their rules were less harsh, which led the country to flourish. The Han dynasty also discovered many things such as paper-making, seismographs, and bamboo bridges. They also discovered that each year has 365 ¼ days in it.

   But eventually, the dynasty declined due to food shortages, and the borders were invaded. Many people died during this time period, since the emperor fled after a military coup. 

   Following this incident, another period of unrest started. In North China, a man named Yang Chien ruled, which started the Sui dynasty. He was a very gracious leader and recovered most privileges that were lost after the Han Dynasty. But after Yang Chien died, his son, Yang Di ruled China, but was so much more cruel and disliked, that he was later killed by his own subjects.

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