Monday, September 30, 2013

Some maps to learn about international trade in the 17th century

Here you have some maps to study the evolution of trade during the Modern Era:

- This map includes the traditional trade routes controlled by Portugal and the Hispanic Monarchy (the spice route to Asia and the precious metals route to America) until the 17th century and also the triangular trade route. You can observe the main products exchanged in these routes: 




This is an interactive map about triangular that includes an oral explanation about the rise of cities as a consequence of trade. The map is focused in North America's trade. That's why it doesn't include the products exchanged between Europe and Africa. Click on the map to play the animation: 




Source: http://glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/socialstudies/in_motion_10/tav/TAV_039.swf

And this one also includes an oral explanation that you can follow reading the text below. Click on the image and later Play : 



And finally, here you have a report about the slave trade. The route the slaves followed was called Middle Passage: 

Monday, 30th September 2013

Hello everybody!

Today in class of Social Sciences we have done several things. First, Paqui said all the things that Bea has to correct in her journal
 . After that, Paqui has corrected the homerwork, that was a summary of 17th century. This summary is divided into  different parts:

 The first part of the summary has been  corrected by Dani Carmona.:
- Demography: Population grew very slowly caused be epidemics(bubonic plague) and strong famines related to bad harvests. Only in the places where new agricultural techniques were new agricultural techniques were introduced, the population grew.
 The second part of the summary has been corrected by Santy:
     - Society: It continued to be divided into privileged and underprivileged, but the differences inside the underprivileged estate grew.

 source: http://jaimecast.blogspot.com.es/2011/09/el-antiguo-regimen.html
Privileged states: clergy and nobles
under privileged third state: workers, peasant, baurgeoise
The baurgeoise became powerful, rich.. They were critical to the privileges and unhappy with their situation
The third part of the summary has been  corrected Andrea and Carlos Rodriguez:
- Economy: Agriculture continued to be the main economic activity. The most important changes took place in production and trade:
                     -  Production: Production was limited by the guilds, which controlled the work in workshops Some merchants had the idea of escaping the control of guilds by producing in the countryside. They provided the peasant with tools and raw materials and they also concentrated workers and tools in big workshop called manufactures.
. In some countries (France) the State create royal maufactures, where products for the royal palaces were produced
 source: http://mariaantoniajosephinajohanna.blogspot.com.es/2012/07/gluck-et-marie-antoinette.html
                        - Trade: International trade grew by the Portuguese and the Castilians in the 16th century.
Paqui has show the colonial empires, America in the 17th century and Galleon ( heavier ships and  whith more cargo capacity) in the proyector
And after the trade routes in the indian ocean in the 17th century:
In 17th century a new trade route appeared: the triangular trade, which linked Europe Afirca and America.
 source: http://abolition.e2bn.org/slavery_43.html

The mediterranean Sea lost importance and the Atlantic ports grew.
The English, the French and the Dutch broke the Iberian monopoly of colinial trade. Trade companies of their States. Trading companies dedicated to trade, whose shareholdes invested money in a commercial business and received benefits in proportion to their investment. Trading companies got the protection of the States they belonged to.


  At the end of the class, Paqui for homework said that we copy  in the power point "the trading company" and we explain with own words the triangular trade.

Today we learn a lot of vocabulary:
keyboard: teclado
farmine: hambruna
bad harvet: mala cosecha
bourgeaise: burguesía
wealth: riquez
health: salud
healthy: sano
weak: débil
manufactory: manufactura
guilds: gremios
merchant: comerciante
crockery: vajilla
porcelain:porcelana
raw: crudo
raw materials: materias primas
glassware;cristalería
caravel: carabela
galleon: galeón
to seize: apoderarse de, ocuparse
trading companies: compañías comerciales
shareholder: accionista
share: acción
go bankrupt: arruinarse

And the bell has rung, and we have gone to the next class!

See you soon! :)




Sunday, September 29, 2013

Presentation to study the 17th century


Here you have the presentation we are going to use to study the second point of this unit. It also includes information about the Hispanic Monarchy, but we´ll include this on point 3. Please, use the presentation to complete your notes and exercises. 

Michelangelo's Last Judgement and the Sistine Chapel



This is a short analysis of Michelangelo's Last Judgement in the Sistine Chapel, made by the Khan Academy experts. You can read a summary of their explanation on the following link: 


Here you have a more detailed explanation of the different scenes and figures of the fresco. It includes the information I gave in class: 


And this article by The Telegraph includes 50 fascinating facts about the Sistine Chapel: 

More about Raphael's School of Athens

Here you have a video about  The School of Athens, by Raphael. It explains the composition of the painting, the classical architecture and the meaning of the gestures of the main figures



On the following link you can see the video with subtitles in English: 


And this is an interactive map, where you can lean about the main figures represented on the painting. Click on the image to access the interactive presentation



And here you have two more interactive  explanations of the painting. They are less complete, but you can also learn something from them: 


Friday, September 27, 2013

Friday, 27th September 2013

Hello classmates!
Today in Social Sciences we have learned a lot. First Paqui has explained the different Mona Lisa versions and some videos that she has put on the blog about that. Then she has remembered somethings of tuesday. Afterwards we have seen different paintings by Rafael (The school of athens).


This picture has a classical architecture with vault and barrel vault. We can distinguish 3D dimensions and other classical elements. The people of the picture are philosophores, scientists... And there were important persons like Leonardo, Plato, Aristotles, Michelangelo, Bramante representing Euclid etc.. All the people listened to the philosophers and scientists because there were persons interested in learning.

Also we have seen Perugnino one work by Perugino; The marriage of the Virgin.


And a lot of works by Rafael; The fire of the borgo, and The portrait of a young girl.


We saw some works by Michelangelo like Sistine Chapel.

The new Pope was elected there, in the Sistine Chapel. Not only the new Pope, but all the Popes are elected in the Sistine Chapel
Some details of Michelangelo works were distribution of the Sistine Chapel frescoes on the wall and the distribution of the sistine chapel frescoes on the ceiling.
Other works of this artist were:
The creation of Adam.


The last judgement.


Michelangelo painted naked mans, this was a scadalus because this picture would be in a religious building.

Later we saw the work Venus of Urbino, by Titian.


The portrait of emperor Charles V at the battle of Mülhberger Sistine.




After this we saw in the projector a virtual web of the sistine chapel very interesting and amusing, here you have the link of this page:

And saw different pictures of the sistine chapel that were in the blog. 
She has given the introduction of the point 2:
2. The 17th centuryy and socity
A. Demography, economy and society.
B. Politics: Absolute Monarchy and the English Revolutions.
C. Art and culture: The Scientific Revolution and Baroque.

For homework we have to summarize the point 1 that is in the page 101.
Like all days we have copied some words in the glossary
Comission: encargo
Vault: bóveda
Vanishing point: punto de fuga
Tribute: homenaje
Childish: infantil
Canvas: lienzo
Scaffold: andamio
Breeches painter: pintor de pañales
Sinner: pecador
Flayed skin: pellejo
Armor: armadura

And that's all for today!
See you soon :)




Tuesday, September 24, 2013

The different Mona Lisa versions

File:The Isleworth Mona Lisa.jpg

Sources: http://elpais.com/elpais/2012/02/02/inenglish/1328163642_850210.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isleworth_Mona_Lisa

Here you have three different versions of Leonardo Da VInci's Mona Lisa: 

- The painting on the left is considered to be the original one and it's located in the Louvre Museum, in Paris (France).

- The work in the center belongs to El Prado Museum. It was stored in the basement of the museum and was discovered and restored in 2012. It is supposed to be a copy made by Salai, Leonardo's pupil, at the same time that Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa. On the following link you can read more about its discovery and restoration: 

http://elpais.com/elpais/2012/02/02/inenglish/1328163642_850210.html

On this video in Spanish you can see the restoration process of this painting: 



- The painting on the right is called Isleworth Mona Lisa. It was discoverd by a British art collector called Hugh Blaker, who bought it and brought it to his studio in Isleworth, London. There are a lot of doubts about its authenticity, but last year the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology said that this painting was made before the Louvre Mona Lisa. Here you have more information about this  painting: 


And this is another article which analyzes Mona Lisa' s similarities with Salai and the theory about the real model for this painting: 


And finally, here you have a link with a small biography of Leonardo Da Vinci that includes data about his sexuality: 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352915/Mona-Lisa-model-man-Was-Leonardo-da-Vincis-male-apprentice-model.html

Which version you prefer?

Tuesday, 24th September 2013

 Hello everybody!

Today, in the class of Social Sciences we have done several things. First, Paqui has explained how to comment on the journals and she has reminded the people who haven´t accepted the invitation for the blog.
After this, Paqui has remembered the things learned yesterday and then, we have started correcting the last part of the schueme of the Renaissance art meanwhile Paqui has added others important details:

Sculptures of some artists:

·Donatello: Il Zuccone, Equestrian Statue of Gatamelatta.
















Source:http://arthistoryblogger.blogspot.com.es/2011/07/brunelleschi-ghiberti-and-beginnings-of.html

·Michelangelo Buonarrotti: David ( his most famous sculpture of 5.17 meters long and 5.5 tonne which represents David before his confrontement with Goliath), Pietà ( which had several conflicts because the Virgin looks younger than Jesus) Tomb of Medici and Moses.El original David de Miguel Angel
Source:http://www.academiaflorencia.com/el-david-de-miguel-angel/

When we have seen that Moses had horns, Paqui has told an anecdote: the translator of the Bible from Hebrew to Latin, Saint Jerome, made a mistake in the paragraph that tells the moment when Moses came back from Mount Sinai. The mistake that he made was in the word Karan, which has two meanings in Hebrew; 'brightness' and 'horn'. This part suggests that Moses' head was surrounded by some kind of halo, and Jerome wrote 'horns' instead of 'halo'; and this is why Moses is represented with horns.

PAINTING:
-Features: the main subjects were religious and mythological, the use of perspective and drawings were more important than colours.
-Painters:
 15th century:
    · Massacio, Hole Trinity and Tribute Money.
Tribute Money
 Source:http://www.artinthepicture.com/paintings/Masaccio/Tribute-Money/

·Piero della Francesa, Constantine's Dream and the Flagellation of Christ.   
Click to view full-sized image Source: http://www.artchive.com/artchive/P/piero/dream.jpg.html

·Botticelli: Primavera and the Birth of Venus.
  Source: http://historiadelartecomentarios.blogspot.com.es/2011/03/nacimiento-de-venus-de-botticelli.html

15th-16th centuries:
   ·Leonardo Da Vinci: Mona Lisa, the Last Supper and the Virgin of the rocks.
Archivo:Mona Lisa face 800x800px.jpg   Source:http://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:Mona_Lisa_face_800x800px.jpg

  Paqui has explained why the drawings of people (man or woman) of Da Vinci
have femenine characteristics.

·Rafael: Madonnae and School of Athens.
The School of Athens - Raphael  Source:http://www.wikipaintings.org/en/raphael/school-of-athens-detail-from-right-hand-side-showing-diogenes-on-the-steps-and-euclid-1511

·Michelangelo: Frescoes of the Sistine Chapel.
Image of The Last Judgement  Source: https://www.boundless.com/art-history/italy-in-the-1500s/the-counter-reformation/rome-and-the-vatican/

·Titian (Tiziano): belonged to the Venetian school. Charles V in Mühlberg and the Venus of Urbino.
  Source:http://culturedart.blogspot.com.es/2010/11/venus-of-urbino-titian.html

    While we were correcting the scheme, we have copied some new words on the glossary:
 -On horseback: a caballo
 -Muscles: músculos
  -Fold: pliegue
 -Cloth folds: pliegues del vestido
 -Golden calf: becerro de oro
 -Dusk: crepúsculo
 - Dawn: amanecer
 -Coffin: ataúd
 -Corps: cadáver
 -Foreground: primer plano
 -Background: fondo
 -Androgynus: andrógino

   Finally, the bell has rung and we have gone to the breaktime.

See you!

Monday, September 23, 2013

Monday, 23rd September 2013.

Hello classmates!

Today in the Social Sciences lesson we have done a lot of things. First, Paqui has reminded us to accept the invitation to the blog, cause some students don't accept it yet. Afterwards, Paqui has revised that we have done the homework ( a scheme about the Renaissace art). 
Then, we have corrected it and Paqui has added some important details.
The scheme is formed by different parts:

CHRONOLOGY AND STAGES: Renaissance art was the art style of the 15th and 16th centuries. It started in Italy and it spread to the rest of Europe. There was two stages in Renaissance art:
·Quattrocento (15th century): It developed mainly in Italy and the main centre was Florence.The most important patrons were the Medici family.
·Cinquecento (16th century): Renaissance spread out to Europe. The main centre was in Rome and the Popes were the most important patrons.

MAIN FEATURES OF THE RENAISSANCE ART:
·Inspiration in the artistic models of Antiquity(Greece and Rome): simplicity, harmony, proportions... They rejected the elaborated decoration of Gothic art.
·Interest in representing the ideal beauty. Artists studied the human body and nature to reach this goal.

ARCHITECTURE:
-Features: Architects used simple and classical elements: rounded arch, columns with the classical orders (Doric, Ionic and Corinthian) They built smaller buildings.
-Artists and works: ·Brunelleschi(15th century): Church of Santo Spirito in Florence( don't finished)




Source: http://www.caftours.com/magazine/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Santo-spirito-oltrarno-florence.jpg


Church of San Lorenzo in Florence
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Basilica_di_san_lorenzo_33.JPG
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/cofmmons/a/a7/Basilica_di_san_lorenzo_33.JPG

Dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria di Fiori in Florence
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/View_of_the_Duomo%27s_dome,_Florence.jpg
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/View_of_the_Duomo%27s_dome,_Florence.jpg

·Alberti(15th century): Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, Rucellai Palace.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Palazzo_Rucellai.jpg
Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Palazzo_Rucellai.jpg

·Bramante(16th century): Church of San Pietro in Montorio, project of the Basilica of San Pietro in Rome ( in the Vatican)
http://www.arttrav.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/tempietto-bramante.jpg
Source: http://www.arttrav.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/tempietto-bramante.jpg

·Michelangelo: Dome of the Basilica of Sain Peter in the Vatican, the staircase of the Laurentian library in Florence.
http://static.ddmcdn.com/gif/michelangelo-buildings-10.jpg
Source:http://static.ddmcdn.com/gif/michelangelo-buildings-10.jpg

SCULPTURE
-Features: showed interest in representing human beauty and proportioned sculptures.

ARTISTS AND WORKS
·Ghiberty: Gates of the Baptistery of Santa Maria dei Fiori
http://sunilshinde.typepad.com/.a/6a00d835494ab953ef016302df0d21970d-pi
 Source: http://sunilshinde.typepad.com/.a/6a00d835494ab953ef016302df0d21970d-pi

 ·Donatello: Saint George, Il Zuccone, David in bronze, Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Donatello,_Monumento_equestre_al_Gattamelata_04.JPG
Source:  http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Donatello,_Monumento_equestre_al_Gattamelata_04.JPG

And we will continue tomorrow in class, so tomorrow we will study the famous sculpture Michelangelo  and also we will study the painting in the Renaissance ( features, artists and works: Masaccio, Botticelli, da Vinci, Raphael, Tiziano, Michelangelo).

Today also I have added new interesting words on my glossary:
-competition: concurso
-gravity: gravedad
-cloisters: claustro
-rustication: almohadillado ( Rucellai Palace)
-tempietto: templete
-courtyard: patio
-Tholos:Templo circular griego
-centralized  floor plan: planta centralizada
-equestrian:ecuestre, a caballo
-idealized: idealizado

In the today's lesson Paqui has explained a very interesting thing that surprised me. She has told that the tempietto of Saint Peter is built were S.Peter was crucified.

Paqui has explained  also the different types of the floor used in the Church's ( Latin cross floor plan and Greek cross floor plan).
Finally, the bell has rung and Paqui has told us to review the new things that we have learned.

See you tomorrow!


Sunday, September 22, 2013

Presentation to study Renaissance art

Here you have the presentation to study Renaissance art. You can use it to complete your scheme and enjoy the art works of that period.   



P.S: I've just corrected the spelling mistakes some of you have found and re-uploaded the presentation. 

Friday, September 20, 2013

Friday, 20th September 2013.

Hello everybody!
Today has been the second day of Social Sciences class and we have done several thinks. First Paqui has reminded us that we must have a Gmail account to write in the blog: those students who don't have one will have to create it as soon as possible.
Then, she has explained us how to use the blog: publish posts, comments, add imagenes (these must include the source), etc.
Next, we have copied the index of Unit 1: Modern Era (a continuation of the second year). It has three different points: 1)Culture and art in 15th-16th centuries. 2) The 17th century. 3)The Iberian Peninsula during the 16th-17th centuries.
Later, Paqui has shown us a Power-Point Presentation about the Renaissance art and we have started copying some notes, belonging to point 1: 
At the beginning of the Modern Era there was a revival of Antiquity and interest for the culture of Ancient Greece and Rome. This interest was evident in art. The new art style of this period was  Renaissance art, inspired on Antiquity. Renaissance art appeared in the Italian Peninsula in the 15th century and it spread to the rest of Europe. It was the predominant style in the 15th and 16th centuries. Two styles: Quattrocento (15th century): Main development in Italy and the main centre was Florence. The main patrons were the Medici family. Cinquecento (16th century): Extension to Europe. The main centre was Rome. The main patrons were the Popes.
Architects used simple and classical elements such as rounded arch, columns with the classical orders (Doric, Ionic and Corinthian), pilasters, pediments, tympanum, frieze, metope, tryglyphs, etc. 
We have also included some new words in our Glossary: to bother, to scold, knowledge, antiquity, revival, Renaissance art, patron, to sponsor, The Pope, to commission, commissioner, austere, etc.
At the end of the class, Paqui has shown us some sculptures: the sculptors showed interest in representing human beauty and proportioned bodies.They were inspired by Greek and Roman sculptures. They sculpted different types of sculptures: busts, equestrian sculptures, portraits, tombs...



David by Michelangelo.
http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/arts/artwork/michelangelo-sculptures7.htm

She has shown us paintings too: the main subjects were religious or mythological and drawing predominated over colour. Painters discovered how to represent the third dimension (depth) into a two-dimensional space. This was perspective.

File:Sandro Botticelli - La nascita di Venere - Google Art Project - edited.jpg

Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli.
http://www.abm-enterprises.net/venus.htm

Finally, Paqui has given us for homework to do a scheme about Renaissance art. We must include chronology and stages, main features, architecture (features, artists and works), sculpture (features, artists and works) and painting (features, artists and works). Today's class has been noisy, we should pay more attention.  
Have a nice weekend !! 

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

First Day of High School!

Hello everybody!

First , welcome to the new school year. Today in the class of Social Sciences, Paqui has given us the books and she has explained us the assessment criteria:

-50% of the mark will correspond to the marks of the exams.
-50% of the mark will correspond to the attitude of the student, the notebook, the participation in class and on the blog...

Then, she has told us how we'll have to organize our notebook. It will include theory, exercices and vocabulary. The notebook has to be clean and organized.

Paqui has explained us that this year there is a change: a diferent person will write the journal each day in the blog and the rest of the class has to comment on it.
Our class this year is really amazing. Paqui and Carmen Lázaro have painted a part of the walls with the different periods of history:
-Prehistory: Paleolithic, Neolithic and Metal Age.
-History: Ancient Era, Middle Ages, Modern Era and Contemporary Age.












Finally, Dani Carmona has brought his camera and Paqui has taken a photograph of all our class.

Bye!

A new school year

Come Back To School With Rubber And Pencil Scraps

Hello, students! 

This morning we´ve started the new school year. This is the fourth year of this blog and I hope that your work here will be as satisfying as it was last year. I've just sent you the invitations to join the blog. Accept 
them and join the blog as soon as possible.

Here you have a video tutorial I prepared about how to write posts and make comments:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzfZuBactig&feature=plcp

As for the style of your posts, here you have some instructions:

- Don't change the font (size or style) and justify the text.

- Include a picture related to what we´ve done in class and don't forget to add its source.

- If you want, you can also create links to some key words.


Check the journals of the students of the past years to make an idea of what you have to do. And remember, the deadline to post your journal is 20:00. Comments can be made later or the following day.
This is a collective work, made up with the contributions of many people and it will only improve if you take this task seriously. Try to do your best, writing your journals in time and participate with your comments, suggestions and questions. 

At the moment the blog has reached  331,848 visits. Many people from different parts of the world have visited the blog in the past 3 years. Show them how much your English has improved and write good quality posts.

See you in class!

Monday, September 16, 2013

What happened to Detroit?

Detroit's bankruptcy has been one of the most significant news of this summer. The municipality owes around 20,000 million dollars to around 100,000 creditors

For every dollar the municipality collects, 38 cents are destined to pay the big debt created as a result of the municipal bonds sold to face the expenses of the city. In four years they will have to use 65 cents of each dollar to pay the debt. But how did Detroit get into such a big debt?

There are several reasons: one part of the debt comes from corruption cases. Detroit’s former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who ruled from 2002 to 2008, was sentenced to jail for corruption, racketeering, bribery, extortion, tax evasion and fraud. But the main reason for Detroit’s bankruptcy comes from the decline of its economy.  In the 1950s Detroit was the 4th city of the USA. It reached 2 million inhabitants and was worldly known as Motor City, because of the concentration of automotive industries in the area: Ford, General Motors, Chrysler and a lot of auxiliary industries.  When these big companies started moving production to other parts of the world in the 1970s, unemployment started to increase. Many other companies had to close, as a consequence of the purchasing power reduction and the city started losing population. Detroit has lost around 60% of its population since the 50s. At the moment the inhabitants are around 700,000, 80% of which are black. The unemployment rate is 18.3%, double than the USA rate.

The decline of economic activity and the loss of population have resulted in a reduction of the public incomes. The municipality collects less taxes and has less money to provide public services. Many public buildings have been abandoned:  schools, stations, theaters, concert halls, libraries…Images of public buildings decay and the deterioration of infrastructures show the sad face of past full of life places.

Classroom, St Margaret Mary School

Former school


St Christopher House, ex-Public Library

Former public library


Highland Park Police Station

Former police station

Packard Motors Plant


Packard Motors Plant

Source of the pictures: The Ruins of Detroit, photo exhibition by Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre: 


The city’s economic difficulties also affect the inhabitants’ ordinary life. The municipality doesn’t have money for ambulances, police agents or fire workers. The average time of response of the emergency services is 58 minutes. Criminality and insecurity have grown and Detroit is considered to be the most dangerous city in the USA.

The financial situation of the city is so extreme that the emergency manager in charge of reducing the debt of the city has ordered an evaluation of the 60,000 works of art the public museums of the city own. In fact, all the properties of the city are being assessed to know their economic value and put them "in the market". 



The situation is awful, but there are still some initiatives to start recovering the city, like The Greening of Detroit

If you want to learn more about Detroit's decline, read the following link: