12 Knights Riddle

There were 12 pears on a tree. 12 knights came riding by. Each got down and took a pear, but there were still 11 there. How can that be? 

Answer: The knight's name was Each. The other eleven just rode by.

Way of the Warrior

The Young Samurai series (apart from the zen philosophy)is one of our favorites because.......

1. There is tons of action.
2. There are some funny parts.
2. It is also a good book to read for Japanese history and words.

3. If you are a fast reader these books are not small and will                             hopefully keep you reading for a while.

4. If you like books with samurai and ninja these will be perfect for you.

5. These books are good for both girls and boys.A girl(Akiko)is one of the main characters.

6. Josh and I loved these books soooooo much we could not stop reading!!!

Here is a exciting part from the prologue of book one,

The boy snapped awake. He seized his sword. Tenno hardly dared to breathe. He sensed someone else in the room. Moonlight seeped through the lucent paper walls, as his eyes became adjusted to the dark,he searched for signs of movement. But he could only see shadows within shadows. Perhaps he had been wrong..... His samurai training, though warned him otherwise.

To see what happens read the prologue of The Young Samurai book #1 The Way of the Warrior. The first three books are available at the library.

April Showers...

Weekly Joke

If April showers bring May flowers what do May flowers bring?

To figure out the answer do this code 

  

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A

for example, if A is shown, replace it with the letter B

Answer: O H K F Q H L R

Sword Fighting Rules

Rules and Regulations for sparring

1.Don’t hit hard

2.You have to fight until all opponents agree to take a break

3.Only foam no plastic

4.Fight until a fatal hit. If somebody gets a fatal hit then they are out

5.If one player drops his sword then he is out

6.You start the match with rei (start) then you end with yame (stop)

7.If one player gets hurt really bad so he can not continue then whoever dealt the hit then is out to

8.Be careful with players who are younger or smaller than you

9.If one person has a bigger weapon than you then they can not hit hard

Just fight, do not cheat

ninja and samurai weapons

 Our nerf swords were getting really chopped up so we decided to cover them with duct tape. we also made some knifes out of wood and covered them with duct tape. Here are some pics

before

after

before

 after

 

To redo your sword you will need:duct tape, beat up sword,and a partner.First get a little piece of duct tape and wrap it right above the hilt.Next have your partner hold the sword steady as you wrap the duct tape around the sword until you come to the tip then fold the tape over the top.(Our mom helped us so that is why it looks so nice.)You can also do the hilt of your sword. Just repeat the same steps.

Wakizashi

Tanto

Shinobi

we invented that because we did not know what to call it

If you want a knife then you should try this. First of all you need a thin sheet of wood, a parent, a sharp exacto knife, and duct tape. First what you do is you draw out the shape. Then your parent cuts the shape out with the exacto knife then . Wrap it with duct tape . Have fun!

Samurai and Ninja Training Sheet

This is Josh's training sheet. You can copy this and print it out. Once you finish these things, you can put a check after them to know you have done them. At the bottom of the sheet there are some numbers to tell you how to complete each task. Have fun! We'll show some videos of us doing these tricks later.   

Samurai and Ninja training sheet

1. Learn front punch

2. Learn front kick

3. Learn moon kick

4. Learn round house kick

5. Learn back kick

6. Strike 5 flying objects in row with sword

7. Win 3 out of 3 duel with somebody

8. Dodge bullets only get hit 5 times

9. Dodge 5 darts

10. Dodge 3 throwing stars

11. Hit 5 throwing stars on box in a row

12. Hit 4 darts on box in a row

13. Throw 5 arrows and hit 4 on the box

14. Shoot the bow and hit box 4 times in a row

Learn 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 for kneeing and pressure points 

Learn 6 and 7 for 2 swords and defend against 2 swords 

Complete 8, 9, and 10 for dodging arrows  

Complete 11, 12, and 13 for throwing swords 

 

Ninja and Samurai Dojo

We have not had much time lately to write a post, but we're hoping to write more often. After reading The Young Samurai books, we decided to make a post about Samurai and Ninjas. Here's part 1 that Hannah wrote...Josh's post about training exercises will come later in the week.


Make your own Ninja and Samurai dojo (training hall)!

1. Set up a place with lots of room and padding, no concrete . Trampoline, mats, or thick carpet work best.

2. Buy or make your own weapons, nerf swords or mashoongas work best.

3. Some of are favorite things to do are sparring, karate, dodging bullets and shuriken(throwing stars) . To make your own shuriken simply color a nerf disc with silver sharpie.

4. Use these fun Japanese words which we got from the Young Samurai book
abunai: danger
bo, wooden fighting staff
bojutsu: the art of bo
bokken: wooden training sword
bushido: the way of the warrior- Samurai code
daisho: a pair of wakizashi and katana 
dim mak  : death touch, used by evil ninja
gi : training uniform
kama :sickle shaped blade
kata: a prescribed series or moves in martial arts 
katana: long sword 
kenjutsu: the art of the sword
kasha :archery performed on horseback
kissaki :the tip of a sword
kunoichi : female ninja
kyoshaa :archery contest on horseback 
kyujutsu :the art of the bow 
ma ai :the distance between to opponents
manriki-gusari: a chain weapon with steel weights at the end
menpo a mask covering the face
naginata : a long pole shaped weapon
ninjato :ninja sword 
Ninjutsu: the art of stealth 
nodachi : a very large two handed sword
obi : belt
o-goshi :hip throw
ronin: masterless samurai
sasori: scorpion
saya: scabbard
sayonara : goodbye
sensei : teacher
seoi nage : shoulder throw
shinobi shozoku : the clothing of a ninja
shuko: climbing claws
shuriken : metal throwing stars
surujin : rope weapon with weights on each end
taijutsu : hand to hand combat
tanto : knife
tessen: a Japanese fan reinforced with a metal spine
tetsu bishi: small sharp iron spike
tomeo nage : stomach throw
tonfa : a baton weapon
uke : a training partner who attacks
wakizashi : a short sword
yame : stop