Pirates

“Double-Entry Diary”

Section 1

Part A

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
“For as long as I can remember, I have lived in the village of Holyoak, North Carolina. My family came to the American colonies from England” (5).	My family, on my mother’s side, also came from the colonies of England; however, my family settled in New York.
“Why should we Americans pay taxes to an English King who cares nothing about us and gives us no say in the way our affairs are run?” (13).	Many of the colonists also thought that English taxes were futile.

 

Part B

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
“Pirate life was hard but fair. Among Pirates unlike society ashore, each pirate had an equal share in decisions and in the booty” (top 16)	I thought that this and another reference early in the book were very interesting. I never knew that pirates had a democracy. In connection to history I can think of only a handful of societies that had a democracy.

 

Section 2

Part A

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
“Now that we have three times as many people on board, the ship is very crowded” (Top left side 27).	In the book, “What if you met a pirate”, it also talks about conditions, on p.10 in the last paragraph it states, “pirates were packed into small boats like dogs in a kennel.”

 

Part B

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
There were a couple ways to do this [attack]. Surprise was the best: Sneak up on the prize as it sailed through a narrow passage at night, then swarm over the side of the ship, yelling like demons!” (end of first paragraph 20).	This was contrary to what I had originally thought pirates did. Again, basing my assumptions on movies. I think that this would have been a terrifying experience for the unknowing ship.

 

Section 3

Part A

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
“Without loss of any of our number we captured 350,000 pieces of eight” (39).	After reading literature about how pirates had treasure, other than gold, I think that this makes this particular section less than credible. 350,000 would be a lot of money, even now.

 

Part B

From the book (words, quotes, passages). Please include the page and paragraph.	Connections or reactions to recorded statement
“Life aboard a ship was unhealthy. Germs had not been discovered yet…(second paragraph 30)	I wonder …if there were pirates today if the situation would be any different? I know that when a large number of people live in one area that the issue of cleanliness becomes a big issue. In prisons there are problems with germs being spread between the inmates.

 

Section 4

Part A

1. Who were the colonists?

An individual who came from Europe and settled in North America, individuals who lived on land

2. What are the Navigation Acts?

A series of laws which restricted the use of foreign shipping for trade between England

3. How did the colonists feel about Navigation Acts?

The colonists did not like the Acts because they had to pay more and wait longer for their goods.

4. Who were freebooters?

A Pirate of the Caribbean or the East African Coast in the 17^th or 18^th Centuries. They smuggled in goods to the settelers and sold them to the settelers, untaxed.

5. Describe the relationship between the colonists and the pirates.

The pirates would steel the goods from the ships bringing them to the new world, and sell them to the colonists for much cheaper prices than they would get them for if they were being sold by the English Crown. The colonists also fixed the pirate ships.

Part B

1. What did you learn about the different kinds of pirates?

I learned that each kind of pirate came from a different area or century, and that there are still pirates today. I also learned that some pirates –Privateers – were paid by a particular nation to do find other pirates.

2. Out of all the pirates mentioned in this section, which ones do you find most interesting? Please explain why.

I thought that the Barbarossa Brothers were very interesting. These fierce pirates earned themselves a reputation so strong that their nation hired Khayr ad-Din to be commander of the Turkish Navy.

“The Journal of Jake Carpenter” and “What if you met a Pirate”

I read both of these books with my children. They both loved the pictures, the information about pirates intrigued them both, and my son walked around acting like a pirate for the rest of the night. “Pirate Diary, The Journal of Jake Carpenter” is an engaging story of the life and trials of a boy who goes through a wide spectrum of adventures. The maps that are included were especially interesting to my kids, as well as the swords that the pirates had.  The book was violent, as I am sure that life aboard a pirate ship was. This was part of what kept my children interested in the story. I was not surprised that my little boy helped to turn pages, and my little girl only perked up at the mention of mermaids. After reading about Granuaile O’Malley, and her adventures, last semester, I think that children played a part in the history of pirates, and this is what will engage a variety of readers. The detailed information was also a plus. When you can learn and be engaged in a text the ability to learn is plentiful.

In the text, “What if you met a Pirate”, I was interested after I read the first page. I think that my cooperating teacher from last semester had a book similar to this text that we read to the students one day. I learned so much about pirates from reading this book, I liked how much of the information connected to what we had learned from doing the internet workshop, and then, the information was improved through the use of creative illustrations, and facts that you would never think of. I thought that the fact that pirates sewed their own clothes, and mended the sails on the ships was interesting. I was disappointed that pirates did not ‘walk the plank’ and that they rarely buried treasure. This is what pirates are supposed to do!…or is that a stereotype… …?

I Am Poem: Blackbeard

I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I live incognito and free
I wonder where I can plunder and be rich as can be
I want mygold and glory
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I question those damn cowardly puppies
I see the next dead man to cross my path
I hear the screams of my enemies
I understand why other men crave money
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I believe no one will find all my treasure
I say, cross me, and enjoy your demise
I think I can defeat all with my ship, Queen Anne’s Revenge
I try to intimidate, you better be shaking
I hope my pistols will not stop shooting, and that my cutlass will never dull
I feel the stabs of my enemies
I know my courage will never dwindle
I was once the terror of the Seven Seas
But now just a legend
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea

Version Two I Am Poem: Blackbeard

I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I live incognito and free
I wonder where I can find my next bounty
I want my rum, tobacco and tea
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I question those damn cowardly puppies,
Maynard and his men
I see the next dead man to cross my path
I hear the screams of my enemies
I understand why other men crave renown
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea
I believe no one will find all my treasure
I say, cross me, and enjoy your demise
I think I can defeat all with my ship, Queen Anne’s Revenge
I try to intimidate, you better be shaking
I hope my pistols will not stop shooting,
and that my cutlass will never dull
I feel the stabs of my enemies
I know my courage will never dwindle
I was once the terror of the Atlantic
But now just a legend
I am Blackbeard, tyrant of the sea

Time Warp Trio – The Not So Jolly Roger

The Not so Jolly Roger was a fun and interesting story that I think would be great for lower level fifth graders, down to 3rd graders. If it weren’t for some of the language that is present in the book I would be tempted to place it at lower levels as well. I think that I would read it to first and second graders so that they should hear the story, and then change some of the language that is in the book.

I Poems

The I Poems powerpoint showed me that students can be engaged and learn a tremendous amount about a topic through using creative methods of referencing students knowledge. The process of writting allows students to think about the information that they know, and apply it. Learners apply the knowledge that they have about writting to the new unit that they are covering, and display this information in a unique poetic style.

Both the 2nd graders and the 4th graders displayed a great deal of competency and knowledge by going through the writing process. Because students were analysing the information that they had, to apply it to
an application, they are accessing higher order thinking skills. Seeing the prior knowledge, and the post knowledge of the students in this activity I think that it would be very effective in increasing students understanding of pirates.

Internet Workshop – Pirates

The internet workshop that we completed was interesting. Finding out about pirates was an adventure in and of itself. I had never learned much about pirates, or their counterparts.

I thought that the most interesting part of the workshop was finding out about who created the websites, and determining what website would be the most reliable source of information. Finding out who is providing the information that I am reading, and the sources that lie behind research are very important to me. The workshop showed me that you can easily pick up misinformation on a website, even if it is created by a teacher or teachers.

The privateer discussion idea is a great idea for class, and I think that it will stimulate good higher order thinking. Students need to have their ideas challenged, and they should learn to focus their attention on fact.

Pirates and Technology

As I was completing the physical map of North Carolina [for our history class], I noticed that the shoreline of North Carolina was very unique. I know that this might sound silly, but I have been all over the North Western part of North Carolina, but I have never been to the coast. My Husband told me that North Carolina is one of the few places in the world that has coastline like ours, and that is why so many pirates choose North Carolina as a hideaway from their captors.

In relation to the readings, I think that through North Carolinas colorful history of Piratearing, students could understand more about history through this very engaging topic. In the article, “Internet Workshop and Blog Publishing”, the authors, Dr. Frye, and Dr. Trathen discuss a variety of methods to engage students in the social studies curriculum, with a focus on Piratearing and Technology. Because so many students will be at different levels in our classrooms, it is important that we find ways to engage all learners. Dr. Frye and Dr. Trathen found that through using a structured classroom blog, focusing in on one subject, and guiding students through the research process, that a great deal can be learned by students. For example, they have a great variety of mediums by which to uncover the information that they found. The students do not have to create a two page paper about something that bores them, but rather they build up a flurry of information about a particular person, in Pirate history, and then the students can present the information that they find in a variety of ways. Students can publish the information about a particular Pirate in a creative story, they can write a poem, or they can simply place a journal entry relating to the history of the pirate they are studying. Personally, I feel that this connects individuals and events in history that would otherwise go unnoticed.

In the article, “Pirates in Historical Fiction and Non-Fiction”, and the accompanying pullout, a variety of activities are listed, whereby the reader is processing the information that he or she reads, and then the text is analyzed by each student. Learners ask questions, and are stimulated through increasing their word knowledge, and creatively using technology to enhance the educational experience. Because learning is stimulated through the social environment, knowledge is imparted from the teacher, researched websites relating to pirates [or the content area], and activities centered on group work, and peer involvement in learning tasks. The activities listed could easily stimulate student learning, and connect what students already know to what they are learning.

I could easily see myself incorporating a majority of this planned unit of study into a fourth grade study about what makes North Carolina unique. In addition, I think that it is very important to challenge children to use their technological competency to show that they truly understand a topic by using resources that are at their finger tips. The internet provides many opportunities for learning, and by using a guided tool [like websites that have been thoroughly examined] to research their topics, teachers do not have to worry about false information.