Period+4+Group+1

media type="custom" key="308313" = = =Group Members: Kate, Elizabeth, Laura, and Kathleen=

Belize Music: http://www.stonetreerecords.com/albums/watina.php The good music:http://www.stonetreerecords.com/albums/frombakabush.php

Social Groups-Laura
Central America." Compton's by Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online School Edition. 1 Nov. 2007 <[|http://school.eb.com/all/comptons/article-198407>.]
 * most Belizeans are poor
 * large groups of people moved from farms and villages to search for better lives in cities
 * by the end of the 20th century, half of the people lived in urban areas and half lived in rural areas
 * the social groups of the people affect whether they have things like cars, televisions, or whether their kids will complete school.

Language-Laura

 * Main language- English
 * Second language- Spanish
 * Other languages- Maya, Arawak, and Indian

Elbow, Gary S. "Belize." __World Book Online Reference Center__. 2007. [Place of access.] 30 Oct. 2007  date visited- 10/30/07


 * Most important Maya languages are Quiche and Cakchiquel
 * Other languages are Mam, Teco, Aguactec, Ixil, Uspantec, Sacapultec, Sipacapa, Pocomam, Pocomchi, and Kekchi.

"Maya languages." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online School Edition. 1 Nov. 2007 <[|http://school.eb.com/eb/article-9051574>.]

Religion-Kat
===**People in Belize have freedom of religon which they value very much.77% of people in Belieze belive in Christanity, 9% are atheist which means they dont belive God, the last 14 percent are various religons.**===

Daily life-Kat
===Belizeans love their familes like most people.Their Familes are usally pretty large.In some cases the grandparents raise their kids children while the parents of the kids leave their famillies = to pursue a life of there own. In most homes the moms are single parents and take the role of the father very few homes have a mother and father and the father is the leader of the home.Most families own or rent homes.===

===Arts-Some of their art includes wood and stone carvings, textiles,basket weaving, and pottery art.Belizeans favorite music is “punta rock”. which is calypso and soca music combined.They also like some music that us Americans like salsa and hip-hop.===



Land Forms-
http://commonwealth.ednet.ns.ca/americas/Belize/belize.htm

The land area of Belize is 8,867 square miles. Belize is known for having the longest living Barrier Reef in the world that stretches out along the Eastern Coast of Belize.

The northern part of Belize is mostly low and swampy with a thick tropical rainforest. The Mayan Mountains are located in the southern half. The highest point in Belize is Victoria Peak at 1122m.

http://school.eb.com/ebc/article-9356944

The southern half is more mountainous and contains the country's highest point, Victoria Peak which stands at 3,681 ft. Off the coast lies Belize Barrier Reef which is the world's second largest barrier reef.

Water Forms
http://media.maps.com/magellan/Images/BELIZE-W1.gif

The water froms in Belize is the Hondo River, Belize River, Eastern Branch River, Northern Lagoon, Southern Lagoon, Azul River, and the Booth River.

Climate
The climate of Belize is sub-tropical. Temperatures in Belize go from 50ºF to 95ºF. the average temperature is 79 degrees F and very humid. November to January are usually the coolest months, with a 75ºF average. May to September are the warmest months with about a 81ºF average. There are wet and dry seasons but the people do not know how long they are because they change from year to year. They can usually predict the amount rainfall once the dry season has started.

Picture above- http://lsirpeople.epfl.ch/girdzija/Fotos/Guatemala/guatemala_diary.html

Animals-http://www.samford.edu/schools/artsci/biology/belize/animals.html Belize has over 500 species of birds. The national bird of Belize is the endangered Keel-Billed Toucan. This bird is is thought of as one of the most beautiful birds in the world.

Carribean Flamingo-[|**www.answers.com/topic/ list-of-birds-of-belize**] Flamingos feed on shellfish and algae. Their oddly-shaped beaks are specially used to separate mud and silt from the food they eat, and are used upside-down. There are 6 species worldwide and 1 species in Belize.

Frigatebird-The males have inflatable colored throat pouches. They do not swim, walk, and cannot take off from a flat surface. They are essentially aerial, able to stay in the air for more than a week. There are 5 species worldwide and 1 species in Belize.

MAMMALS Belize has over 145 species of mammals. There are five different species of wildcats in Belize. Belize is has the worlds only jaguar preserve which is called the Cockscomb Jaguar Preserve. The preserve has over 100,000 acres of land set aside to protect this cat.

Black Jaguar- Belize is home to both the spotted and black jaguar. These animals typically weigh 150-250 pounds and are about six feet long. Jaguars typically hunt at night and feed on a variety of ground living mammals. For the most part, jaguars are solitary animals. They can be found in lowland forests.

Baird's Tapir -These massive animals are also known as "mountain cows" in Belize. They can grow up to 500 pounds. These animals are in the same family as horses and rhinos. This is the national animal of Belize.

Keel-billed Tucan- http://www.answers.com/topic/list-of-birds-of-belize Green Iguana- [|**www.hoglezoo.org/ animals/view.php?id=4**] Quetzal-[|**www.answers.com/topic/ list-of-birds-of-belize**] Frigatebird-[|**www.answers.com/topic/ list-of-birds-of-belize**] Carribean Flamingo-**www.answers.com/topic/ list-of-birds-of-belize**
 * Bairs's tapir-[|home.maine.rr.com/trudge/bl/p55tapir.html]**

BAIRD'S TAPIR

Red Eyed Tree Frog

Tucan-



Quetzal-



Frigatebird-

Carribean Flamingo-



REPTILES

Belize has over 135 species of reptiles and amphibians. Among these are the beautiful green red-eyed tree frogs, green iguanas, crocodiles, and numerous snakes.

Green Iguana- Iguanas are literally everywhere in Belize. It is locally known as the "bamboo chicken". This animal is the largest lizard that can be found in Belize as it can grow up to seven feet long. Iguanas feed mostly on plants, but will occasionally eat small mammals or birds.

Green iguana

Red Eyed Tree Frog. Their body is a bright green with light blue stripes on the side and distinctive red eyes.

Six (6) Photos
[|**library.thinkquest.org/.../ redeyedtree_frog.htm**]

Current Events-Laura
At least 47 cases of suspected dengue fever have been reported in Belize, according to the Health Ministry (July 21, 2007) Several fires have broken out in the Mountain Pine Ridge, fires have also occurred in Belmopan City (May 16, 2007) Hurricane Dean, a category 5 storm, hit the shore early in the morning on August 21st near the cruise ship port of Costa Maya. It spared most of Belize, minus the village of Chan Chen, where several people were left homeless after their houses were destroyed. (August 21st 2007) Days after Hurricane Dean hit, another category five storm, Felix, was headed straight towards Belize. Luckily, the storm veered south and hit Nicaragua and Honduras instead. (September 6th, 2007) http://www.belizefirst.com/current.html Lan Sluder, 1996-2007 Date visited: Nov. 6th 07 Belize First, Late News of Belize and the Caribbean Coast Wildfires Hurricane Dean Hurricane Felix Costa Maya port

Government-Elizabeth
Government:

World Geography Database: Belize Government, no known author, date visited: October 30, 2007.

Belize is a parliamentary democracy. Most executive power is within the Cabinet, which is lead by a prime minister. A governor general is the ceremonial head of the country. Governor General: Sir Colville Young, since November 1933

Prime Minister: Said Musa, since August 1998, member of People’s United Party



The Constitution, written in 1981, eliminates discrimination because of race, origin, political opinion, or sex, and guarantees freedom of expression, association, assembly, and movement.

Executive Branch- The British Monarch (mostly ceremonial role, represented by a governor general appointed by the Crown. The governor general appoints the prime minister who leads the cabinet.

Legislature- The National Assembly is made op of a Senate (12 members appointed by the governor general) and a House of Representatives (29 members elected by people for 5 year terms).

Judiciary- The Supreme court is lead by a chief justice, and appeals to the court come from the Court of Appeal, and can be made to the Judicial Committee of the British Privy Council.

Local Government- Belize is divided into six districts, each of which have a council that oversees their area.

Members of: United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organization, Group of 77, Commonwealth of Nations, Caribbean Community and Common Market, and Caribbean Development Bank.

You must be 18 years and older to vote.

The political parties are: People’s United Party, the United Democratic Party and the Belize Popular Party. PUP is a labor-oriented group; the UDP is a conservative group formed of the Liberal Party, the National Independence Party, and the People’s Development Movement. The BPP is a group tat broke away from PU in 1985 after rumors that PUP had been taken over by communists; BPP is the smallest party in Belize.

Economy-Elizabeth
Belize is a developing country, It’s economy is gets it’s money off of agriculture, and it’s main crop is sugar cane. It also grows grapefruits, oranges, and bananas. (A man harvesting bananas... and yes, Gwen Stefani did teach me how to spell bananas!)

It’s main export is processed sugar, and they also gets conchs, fish, lobsters, and shrimp from the Carribean Sea. Most of Belize’s industries are relatively small, but it’s main busineses are: refining sugar, processing foods and wood, making clothing, cement, and bricks. Belize also gets money from other countries. The government encourages foreign investment, because they believe it creates jobs. They are also working to make their tourist industry better by building hotels, and other necessary buildings for sucessful tourism. (Isn't this a great picture for attracting tourists??) Belize has an international airport, a government owned and operated radio, and several privately owned and operated radio stations and TV stations.

Elbow, Gary S. "Belize." __World Book Online Reference Center__. 2007. [Place of access.] 31 Oct. 2007 <[|http://www.worldbookonline.com/wb/Article?id=ar053730>.]

History-Elizabeth
World Geography Database: Belize History, no known author, date visited: October 30th 2007

Belize was part of the Mayan empire. (Picture of Mayan carvings). British pirates founded the country in the early 17th century. In the 18th century Spain tried to drive British citizens out of Belize. The British won the war against the Spaniards in 1798 in the battle of St. George’s Cay. In 1862 Belize (known as British Honduras) became a British independent crown colony under the administration of Jamacia. After WWII The People’s United Party, lead by George Price, began a fight for independence. In 1954, Britain granted British Honduras a limited power to self-govern. Price because the colony’s first prime minister in 1961, after the People’s United Party won all legislative seats. In 1964 a Constitution was written, and Price became ruler. On September 21, 1981, Belize (as it is now known) was granted full independence after negotiations between Britain and Guatemala, it is also within the Commonwealth of Nations. (Guatemala believed it had territorial clams to Belize, which it had inherited from Spain). There is still an ongoing feud between Belize and Guatemala.

Six (6) Photos
See above pictures. Bibliography Voicethread Story Workspace

Period 4 Group 1 VT Storyboard