Rifles

The main weapon used by the British soldier during the war was a bolt action rifle. 15 rounds could be fired in a minute and a person 1,400 metres away could be killed.

Machine Guns

Machine guns needed 4-6 men to work them and had to be on a flat surface. They had the fire power of 100 guns.

Gas

The German army were the first to use chlorine gas at the battle of ypres in 1915. Chlorine gas causes burning sensations in the throat and chest pains. Death is painful you suffocate! The problem with chlorine gas is that the weather had to be right. If the wind is in the wrong direction it could end up killing your own troops. Mustard gas was the most deadly weapon used. It was fired into trenches in shells. It is colourless takes 12 hours to take effect. Effects include: blistering skin,vomiting, sore eyes, internal and external bleeding. Death can take up to 5 weeks

Zepplin

The zepplin also known as the blimp, was an airship that was used during the early part of the war in bombing raids by the germans. They carried machine guns and bombs. However they were abandoned because they were to easy to shoot out of the sky.

Tanks

Tanks were used for the fist time in the first time in the first world war at the battle of the somme. They were developed to cope with conditions on the western front. The first was called ‘little willie’ and needed a crew of 3. Its maximum speed was 3mph and it couldn’t cross trenches. The more modern tank was developed until before the end of the war. It could carry 10 men, had a revolving turret and could reach 4mph.

Planes

Planes were also used for the first time. At first the were used to deliver bombs and for spying work but became fighter aircraft armed with machine guns, bombs and some times cannons. Fights between two planes in the sky became known as ‘dogfights’.

]]> http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?feed=rss2&p=2866 0 http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2803 http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2803#comments Thu, 29 Mar 2012 10:55:25 +0000 FrancisU http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2803

My favourite gun of World War One is the Lewis gun. It is a light machine gun that was made in the United States of America in 1911.

 The Lewis gun weighs 12kg and it is far lighter than the Vickers Machine-Gun. That gun weighs around 18-23 kg. The designer of the Lewis gun was Isaak Newton. I think he is the best designer to make a gun in World War 1.

 The Lewis gun has a circular magazine on it to put its bullets into. It is 666mm/26.5” long.The Lewis gun overall length is 965mm/38”.

 The Lewis gun sadly ended in the mid 1930s. Sixteen years after World War 1.The Lewis gun is by far my favourite gun in World War 1.

went over my head,

I was terrified soon that

I’d be found dead.

Some people started to make their will,

while others were frightened and just stood there still.

The shelling is over

But just for now,

Don’t be fooled they’ll get us somehow.

My friend was right

He thought I was mad

You were right

I’m sorry, soon i’ll be dead!

by

Dean.W

]]> http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?feed=rss2&p=2810 0 http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2719 http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2719#comments Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:56:58 +0000 DeanW http://room11.patstuam.ie/blog/?p=2719 The Pygmy Shrew is Irelands smallest mammal. They weigh about 3g. Pygmy Shrews live in gardens, farmlands, woodlands, bogs etc. They are brought in by domestic cats and are mostly seen when that happens. Pygmy Shrews are very friendly to humans but are very aggressive to each other. If two Shrews meet a fight will start. Pygmy Shrews do not live in groups. A Shrew has its own territory. A Shrew with no territory will die very quickly. The Pygmy Shrews Irish name is Dallóg Fhraoigh.

Like sheep, cows and goats, deer are ruminents-herbivores with cloven hooves and a complex stomach for breaking down grasses and other vegetations. They store partly chewed food and later regurgitate it, this is called chewing the cud.  Sika Deer are originally from Japan-the word sika is actually the Japanese for deer. They were introduced to Ireland by Lord Powerscourt in 1859, at his estate in county Wicklow. China  used to have the largest population of Sika Deer but thousands of years of hunting has reduced the population to less than 1,000. They can cause serious damage to trees and vegetation and because of this, their numbers are controlled in Ireland. People are allowed to hunt them at certain times of the year if they obtain a special licence.

The ferret is a medium sized weasel (35-51 cm) being a similar size to the American Mink. Domestic ferrets usually come in range of colours but feral ferrets usually look like a paler version of the wild polecat, with a creamy under fur. In Ireland, feral ferrets are found on Rathlin Island Co. Antrim and in counties along the border.

Ferrets have four types of teeth – Four canines for killing prey, twelve small teeth (only a couple of mm) located between the canines. These are also known as the incisors. Twelve premolars used to chew. Six molars used to crush food.

Ferrets= Kingdom – Animal    Class – Mammal    Order - Carnivore

We have a fake Christmas tree in Africa. My mum said we could see the school she was building. We went on a Air Lingus plane.

On the first plane there was no food. One the second plane there was food. It took 7 hours altogether in the two planes.

When we got to the airport in Africa me and my mum saw my three sisters waiting at. the door of the airport. They said they were waiting for about an half an hour . There was a taxi driver in his taxi waiting for us. The taxi was nice and clean, because some taxis are very dirty.

Before we went home my sisters had a surprise for us. They told the driver to take us to a fair somewhere in town. Meanwhile my mum was talking on the phone to her Irish friends. When we got to the fair there was lots of animals and fairground games. We were for about an hour.

When we got home we had a mini party. There was already food on the table when we got to the house. After an hour I went to bed. The party was an all night.

When I woke up I walked to the window. I was amazed to see a fat cow on the roof of a car. But then I looked closer and I saw that it was still alive. I changed quickly and ran downstairs. When I got downstairs I started to smell the air. But after I smelt the air I ran back upstairs. I ran into my room to get a small cloth so I would not smell the cow. I held my breath and put my cloth on my mouth. When I got outside my mum gave me a axe and told me to help kill the cow. I did it very quickly. The cow started to moo so loud. I can tell you what happened next.

The next day after the cow died it was my sisters weddding. She looked amazing but I was wearing a very uncomfortable suit. After the wedding we had the after party. There was a Afraican comedian called Basketmouth. He was so funny.

Afterwards we had food. My mum told me it was the cow we had killed the day before. I thought it was going to be disgusting but it was very nice.

After that we started dancind for a while. Last of all everyone including me went home. That is the story about my holiday.

 We got in the car and started the car. As we went there we past through alot of towns. When we got to the beach we saw our freinds waiting for us there.

 We got dressed up into our swimming togs and went to our freinds.

 Suddenly when I went into the water i saw a dead squid in the water.I was scared so I ran out of the water.

 Then our parents called us at the restaurant.We had to go change into our clothes and go to the restaurant.

 After, we ate our food but then we had to go.

 We said bye.

 Finally we got in the car and went home.

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