Robinson Crusoe

Daniel Defoe

In this story the main subject is when Robinson Crusoe gets stranded on a unoccupied island. While he meets some friends along the way. The setting is on some kind of island near the coast of Africa. This theme is like an adventure survival book, with some kind of twist. Like the fact that he got their in a ship wreck.

At first Robinson was wrecked at sea along with about 50 people. The worst part is that he was the only survive. He survived some hardships too, like when he was almost killed by pirates. Or when he found that a group of cannibals used the island for there human feasts. The climax is when he leaves all his troubles behind and ships off looking for Africa. But he got stuck in a storm and ended up on the island. The best part is at the end when he went back to England on a ship owned by a "friend".

In the beginning Robinson Crusoe was an adventures, and confused. I think that, because in the beginning all he wanted to do is sail and go to Africa. Also he would not want to listen to his parents when they said not to go. But then at the end of the book he learned to be a little more cautious and know that sometimes parents do give good advice.

I enjoyed this book because its like you are actually there on the island. It was a good tale of survival and coming home again.

Intresting person

Rembrandt van Rijnan

Rembrandt easily tipped the scale for one of the best artists in history. You could say he was gifted, with not only painting but with printmaking too. Born in Leyden, Holland and being the son of a miller you wouldn't exactly think "painter"right? Oh but he is, and is now one of the most popular and talented artist out there. Rembrandt was a one of a kind painter who made some of the most famous paintings in history. he was born on July 15, 1606. He died on Oct.15,1669.

Rembrandt painted a lot of self portraits because he used them for "practise paintings"."Most of the paintings he had were self portraits, and when he went bankrupt the only thing he cared about keeping was his mirror. The reason he went bankrupt is because he "forgot"to pay back some people, a lot of people.

The first wife he had was Saskia who would be the mother of four children but sadly only one survived. But that kid was pretty miserable kid. His mom died when he was only one year old. But soon after got a new mother named Hendrickji. Both are in a lot of his paintings. Above is one of his self portraits.

He was even a teacher at a point, even though he was very young (22 to be exact). Rembrandt also loved to teach and paint scenes and people from the Bible. Some of his most famous paintings are still intact in the museums. They are The Night Watch, The Shell, and The Head of Christ. So he had a successful, sad, and poor life.

Dog Breed

Greater Swiss Mountain Dog

Since the last book report I did was My Side Of The Mountain I thought I would do a mountain dog. So today I am going to write about the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog. This dog is a big mass of love when it comes to it and its master. They are just like a big teddy bear, a big droolly teddy bear.
Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs were originally used to pull carts and heard cattle and sheep.Yes, I said pull carts, they were so big they were used to pull carts of stuff like buckets of fish, bales of hey, etc. Basically they were used like horses, they could carry up to 300 pounds of dog food!
Swissies are not very active, and don't need a lot of exercise. There vary affectionate and easy to train. They actually don't need much grooming, just a weekly brushing and a quick wipe at the mouth from all the drool and they are fine.
Although the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog has some miner health issues they can be treated easily. Just watch out for stuff like CHD, shoulder OCD, and seizures have been occasionally seen. Other than that they live to be 10-12 years, and live it happily.

(information found from The Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds, Second Edition.)

book report

My Side Of The Mountain
by: Jean Craighead

The main subject of this book is a boy who decides to run away from home and live in the Catskill Mountains. No not because his family was bad to him or anything, its just that he wanted to see how it felt. The boys name was Sam Gribley. He along with a falcon named Frightful are the main characters in this story about his survival.
At the beginning of the book, he is already at the mountains and starts to tell how he got there. He did have some hard times but, he fixed them in whatever way he could. Like when he first got there he had a pretty hard time, especially with the initial stuff, like a shelter. But he soon found a way to get one. He burned-in a tree and made a little cave in it. As for food Frightful helped with that. The book ended by his family finding him and eventually coming to live with him for good in his woodland home.
At the beginning, Sam was scared, nervous, and determined to live on his own. There where many challenges for him along the way . Like when he could not get enough deer fur while getting ready for winter, and having to hide from visitors in the summer.
I like this book because its fun and entertaining. I have always enjoyed adventure books like this one because it is always a great way to explore situations and places that you wouldn't normally be able to. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good adventure or survival story!

current event

Girls and Baseball

Baseball isn't just for men its also becoming a fairly popular sport for women to. That is ever since Eri Yoshida decided to join a professional team. You see, Eri Yoshida is not your average girly girl, she is just as strong and ruff as all the guys. She proved it to , by competing in the majors and winning. She was the first girl to compete in the majors. Her signature pitch was her knuckle ball she learned from her favorite team ever, the Red Socks. Eri posed as an inspiration to many and will soon be written down in the sports legends book, for she was truly an amazing pitcher.At five feet this girl has a lot of courage to go to the majors being the first women to play in the majors.

Here are some questions about it I will answer them and you can to -

Do you think women should play professional baseball with men why or why not?
My answer to that question is yes, because women are just as good as men.

How might other women feel about Eri playing baseball?
Probably proud, inspired, or even insulted. I know I feel inspired.

How would men feel about Eri playing baseball?
Either surprised, inspired, or down right furious.

Please send your answers to these questions to comments section below this post! Thank you and I look forward to seeing your responses!

(information found from The Weekly Reader.com-http://www.weeklyreader.com/featurezone/yoshida/ )

The Arctic

The Landscape Of The Arctic

Everybody thinks that the north pole is at the top of the globe. But the boundaries are not yet clear.The Arctic is bordered by Asia, North America, and Europe. O.k. so most of you would say the north pole is just a big flat chunk of ice am I right? For those who think it is think again! Its actually covered with hills ,ice bergs ,and some mountains. Some areas of the Arctic are even considered deserts. In some areas the air is so cold it can not hold moisture, so very little precipitation falls, which makes those areas very dry (desert).

As for the wildlife there is a surprising amount of animals. Animals like the Arctic term (a bird), and the caribou only stay for vacation . Other animals stay in the Arctic full time like the polar bear, and the arctic fox.

Some of the coolest things about the Arctic are the glaciers. Glaciers are masses of compacted ice that slide downhill very slowly. These glaciers can form into cool shapes and forms.

Some Interesting facts:

Did you know that penguins don't live in the North Pole?

There are no trees in the Arctic?

Or that the Arctic hare can change its coat color depending on the season?

Dog Breed Of The Week

The Border Collie



The Border Collie is a fun, friendly dog. This wonderful breed is always trying to please its owner. I should be the one to tell you I also have a border collie/lab mix and she is a great dog. Her name is Oreo and their is a picture up on my posts, labeled Oreo the brave.

The border collie came from great Britain around the 1800s. They were used as herding dogs for the farmers. They where put through many of the first dog obedience competitions. Border Collies are one of the smartest and popular dog breeds in the world!

These guys are great but have a lot of energy . Because of this they require lots of excersize. However it is very smart and is easy to train, it would do better with a family with very few pets. You don't really need to much grooming with this dog, maybe one or two times a week brush him with a dog brush,and he should be good to go.

Other than a few miner issues the Border Collie is an all around healthy dog. These are some of the issues: CHD,PRA,PDA,CEA and OCD but they are great dogs and I am proud to have one.

(Information from the Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds Second Edition by D.Caroline Coile, Ph.D.)

book report

The Call Of The Wild
(by Jack London )

The setting is in the heart of Alaska on the cold icy trails around 1903 . The main character of this book was a Saint Bernard, Shepard mix dog named Buck. Buck and his dog sled team members where on a mission to go all the way through Alaska. This book was about all the things that happened to him going from one owner to the next, which was not always by choice.

At first the poor dog got kidnapped buy two men and was then sold. Then he got taken to the scariest place on earth, were he got beaten with a club. In the story Buck is challenged with all sorts of stuff, like his worst enemy Spits a white husky who wanted to kill Buck from the beginning. Or the time he could barely walk , but still got wiped by his third owner later on in the story. The climax is when Spitz goes to far and Buck kills him. The story ends by Buck choosing to live with a wild pack of timber wolves due to his owner being murdered by Indians.

I liked this book because it teaches you the lesson that a true "master" will always make it easier for you when life gets tough. I also liked in the end when Buck got to live out his life in freedom .

Obama puppy

The White House gets a new dog!

Of course you know this is the current event I am going to report on this week! I mean come on I am a huge dog lover! The Obamas got a new 6 month old puppy, and not just any puppy a Portuguese Water Dog! His name is Bo. Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy had given Bo to then as a gift. They named him Bo because of the musician Bo diddly and also of Michelle's fathers nick name was Diddly.The reason they got a Portuguese Water Dog is because one of the first kids has allergies to dogs. This dog breed is supposed to be wonderful for people with allergies. The Obamas are not the only ones in love with this happy -go -lucky dog breed. It is more than happy to take direction from its master. So it is pretty easy to train. Lots of people have them, in fact they are becoming very popular around the U.S.A. They appeared in Portugal in the middle ages as fishing aid. But are now used for water rescue, and companionship. These little guys need a lot of exercise,and do a lot better with families. So I guess both of Obamas daughters will get lots of playtime with this little guy. As for grooming, well they need a lot of it to keep the coat up to standards. But I am sure being the first dog means you are never have to worry about that kind of thing! Portuguese water dogs live to 10-14 years old, not bad for a little dog. This I am sure makes the first daughters very happy that he will be around for a long time to come. All around these dogs are one of the nicest dogs out there and I am sure the first family would agree! Congratulations on your new puppy Mr. President!

*this information was found in the Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds, second edition and Timeforkids.com "A Presidential Puppy".

Helen Keller

Helen Keller

1880- 1968

At first life was normal for little Helen Keller, and then one frightful day Helen got a high fever.That left her deaf, and blind. Her mother did not know at the time so when she did not respond to the dinner bell her mother started to worry. And when she walked over to her, and was talking to her Helen did not even move. So her mother waved her hand in front of her face she did not make a sound. She was more worried than she had ever been, so was her father. When the doctor diagnosed Helen to be deaf and blind, they went to pieces. But a few months later, Helen's father becomes a complete pushover for his little girl. Soon she turned into a completely different child, she was no longer the sweet little girl everyone loved. She became a terror to everyone in the household. Once she even locked her mom in a storage room! Another time she almost trampled her baby sister! Her parents finally decided to hire a teacher for Helen. Her name was Annie Sullivan. She to was deaf at one point so she had a heavy heart for Helen. The first time she saw Helen she ran up to hug her but Helen had other plans. She pushed her away and started to scream! The next day they began her lessons. Any time Helen played a prank, or did something bad she would be corrected. Annie taught her how to eat with a fork and how to have manners. Annie also taught Helen how to be polite when in public and at home. Annie also taught her how to spell into her hands. That is how she learned how to read. Annie taught Helen lots of things that helped her become successful. Helen even got to go to college at Radcliffe University in New York. After college Helen continued on to a amazing life. She protested woman's suffrage, helped the deaf and the blind, visited soldiers before they went to war and when they got back. Helen Keller died in 1968 after living a life many thought was impossible. Helen Keller taught us that nothing is impossible no matter what is stacked against you in life!

*information was found from "Helen Keller- A photographic story of a life. Written by Leslie Garrett"

beagle

Beagles

Beagles are fun loving playful dogs with a knack for mischief. I should know I have one. Her name is Lola. She is about a year and a half old, and full of energy! She gets into trouble all the time with my mom, but she's my baby and I love her.

Beagles, as a breed, have been in existence for quite some time, although their precise origins are only vaguely known. Beagle-type dogs are described in documents dating from 400 B.C. Greece and A.D. 200 Britain. The Romans are also thought to have transported to England with them small rabbit hunting hounds and bred them with the local hounds.

As for the basic characteristics I can name a few. One beagles are high energy dogs and need a lot of exercise. Two, they are very affectionate with both people and other dogs. Three, they are not so easy to train, you have to be patient and have a bag of treats on you!Last of all grooming doesn't take long at all ,just run a slicker (grooming tool) over him and be done.

There are some things you need to know before getting a beagle though including health disorders you need to look for. The real major concerns are intervertebral disk disease,and CHD. Some miner concerns are glaucoma, epilepsy,CPRA,hypothyroidism,and cherry eye. Life span is 12-15 years.

*Information found from "Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds ,second edition" pages 62-63