A little Arabian trivia

after a wonderfully fun summer, we've gotten back into the homeschool routine. while I don't enjoy all of the extra work on my part, I'm really enjoying homeschooling, for the simple fact that *I* am learning so much!

this week, we've been studying the middle east, and muslims & arabs. Did you know that in the Dark Ages, after the Roman empire was defeated, the muslims conquered much of the known world? Well, that's not the interesting part. What's interesting, is all of the things that we've gotten from their brilliant minds.

For example, in England, at that time, they were still using sun-dials. So one of the kings invented this way to measure time by how long it took a candle to burn. But guess what the Arabs were doing? inventing pendulum clocks!

Also, the wool from sheep was a very expensive way to make clothing, so they figured out how to make fabric from cotton. Then they would stamp it with ink patterns, called... Calico!

AND...the shepherds would watch their sheep eat these cool little berry things, & then dance around with all kinds of energy. So they decided to take the beans from these plants, roast them, grind them, & use them to make drinks... and that's where we get... Coffee!

I'm so amazed to learn these interesting things about an empire and time that I knew nothing about... All thanks to home school.

...and one more thing: the next time you write a phone number or a math problem, you can thank the arabs that we don't use roman numerals anymore! :)