https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g Core 4 Samantha Erlich en-us 2017-09-27 18:17:05 UTC 2025-03-23 03:01:52 UTC hello@padlet.com samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191816420 Italy's government is very interesting. They set up this current form of government in 1946, and their constitution was approved one year later, in 1947. In Italy, they have a president, who’s the head of state, and a prime minister, who’s the head of government. Currently, their president is Sergio Mattarella, and their prime minister is Paolo Gentiloni. Both the prime minister and president serve a 7 year term, and the prime minister chooses the members of the cabinet. Both the prime minister and president are elected by an electoral college. The minimum age to be president in Italy is 50. Some of the president’s jobs include appointing the Prime Minister, declaring laws, authorising the presentation of government bills in parliament and, with parliamentary authorisation, ratifying treaties and declaring war. In Italy’s government, they also have a legislature. It consists of a bicameral parliament, and has an upper house (315 seat senate) and a lower house (630 member Chamber of Deputies). Both houses are elected by a proportional representation system, and in both houses you serve 5 year terms. Both  the lower or upper house can come up with a law, but it has to be approved by both houses. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:21:08 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191816420 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191819023 The Italian republic’s divided into 20 different regions, then 31 provinces. Each different region holds some power over the laws that are made in Italy. Some laws in Italy are that you have to show some form of identification at all times. Or that in Italy, national police issue gun licenses to those over the age of 18 without criminal records, who are not mentally ill or known substance abusers, who can prove competence with firearm safety. It is illegal for minors (under 18) to buy and drink alcohol. Another law in Italy that it is illegal to swim in a public fountain. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:25:57 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191819023 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191821055 In Italy, the currency that they use is euro’s. $1 USD equals $1.19 in euros. On average, people in Italy make around $25,004 each year, but the top 20% of the population can sometimes earn up to 6 times more than the bottom 20%. In Italy, approximately 57% of people that are within age 15 and 64 have a paid job. 66% of men are paid in work, in contrast to 47% of women. And almost 4% of employees work long hours at work, 5% of men and 2% of women. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:29:42 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191821055 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191821520 Italy’s economy is based off of many things. In the north, Italy’s industry is more popular, whereas agriculture is more popular in the south. This is mainly because of the climate in Italy. In the north, smaller businesses are a strong driving force. But in the south, agriculture hires less than 4% of the labor force, but the agricultural products are important because they allow Italy to produce almost all of their own food. Some of these foods are cheese, wheat, potatoes, corn, rice, fruits, olive oil, wine, and they produce a lot of steel and iron.   

]]> 2017-09-27 18:30:29 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191821520 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191822175 There are many important holidays in Italy, such as Epiphany, Carnevale, Easter, Ferragosto and Christmas. Epiphany is largely a children’s holiday in Italy, and it celebrates the end of Christmas. On the website Culturegrams it said, “According to Italian legend, La Befana was sweeping her house when the Three Wise Men stopped to invite her to come to Bethlehem with them. La Befana said no but later tried to catch up to the Wise Men and got lost. Every year, the old crone rides her broomstick through Italy as she continues to search for the Bambino (the infant Jesus).” Epiphany is a lot like Christmas in the USA. On Epiphany, children write letters to La Befana asking for specific presents, and then on Epiphany eve, she slides down the chimney and fills the kids stockings with gifts. Like Christmas, kids are told that if they behave well, they will get candy, but if not, they’ll get pebbles, charcoal or ashes. On Epiphany, parents often take their children to piazzas to buy candy and small gifts from the Christmas markets, where they watch jugglers and magicians perform. The holiday Carnevale is different from Epiphany. Carnevale is an important festival that is celebrated in February or March. Every town in Italy has it’s own festivities to mark this holiday, but most towns organize public markets with musicians, dancers, and people in costumes. Con Carnevale, children love to dress up, kind of like Halloween. The most famous Carnevale celebration takes place in Venice, where the streets are filled with masked revealers. Another important holiday in Italy is Easter. People often take the whole Easter weekend off to stay in the countryside. Families always eat chocolate for breakfast, and then attend a local easter mass. The largest mass is given by Pope in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. For dinner, families often have a large meal together, and normally eat lamb, artichokes, colombia (cakes) and panettone (sweet bread). On August 15th, there’s another important holiday called Ferragosto, or The Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Some of the traditions on this holiday date back to ancient Romans. Family and friends always come together to share a big meal. On this holiday, many towns plan festivities. For example, the village of Positano, sets off fireworks over the Mediterranean Sea, meanwhile the city of Siena holds the Palio, which is a horse race that dates back to medieval times. Lastly, Christmas is another important holiday in Italy. On Christmas Eve, kids receive and open their presents.   Italian families eat a traditional fish dinner and go to church for Midnight Mass. On Christmas, families spend time together, play games, watch TV and go for walks. Christmas markets are set up in Italian piazzas that open on Christmas Day and close on Epiphany. They’re full of kiosks that sell sweets and small toys.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:31:39 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191822175 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191823024 There are many famous people in history that are from Italy, that you may not know are from there! For example, you’ve definitely heard of Christopher Columbus. Christopher Columbus is from Italy. He was an explorer, colonizer and navigator that helped initiate the process of spanish colonization, and was one of the first people to discover America. Michelangelo, who is one of the most famous sculptors and painters of all time is also from Italy. And Leonardo Di Vinci, who was an Italian polymath, and widely considered to be one of the greatest painters of all time. Italy also has many people that contributed to starting the country. For example, both Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour and Giuseppe Garibaldi contributed to the unification of Italy. Alessandro Manzoni made history by writing the first novel in standard Italian, and Goffredo Mameli composed the Italian national hymne that they still used today. And Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia was the first king of unified Italy. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:33:04 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191823024 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191824834 In Italy, since there is freedom of religion, there are many different religions, such as jews, muslims and protestants. Even so, around 80% of Italians are Roman Catholics. The immigration is what continues to add to the variety of religion in Italy. In Italy, Roman Catholics don’t, or very few go to church regularly. Sometimes they will go for weddings, baptisms, funerals and such. There is something called the concordat, which is an agreement between Italy and the Roman Catholic Churches. This agreement governs the relationship between Italy and the Roman Catholic Churches. For example, the agreement exempts priests and other members of religious orders from military service, and gives tax exemptions to Catholic organizations.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:36:09 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191824834 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191825861 In Italy, there is freedom of religion. However, because of it sovereign status and historical political authority, the Roman Catholic Church enjoys some privileges that are not available to other religious groups. For example, in the past, the Roman Catholic Church has had a big influence on laws, but not as much in the present day. In 1970, the church was allowed to block attempts to legally divorce, which was a big deal. But a few years later in 1978, the church tried to make a law that didn’t allow abortions, but the people of Italy had a say in this, and vetoed this law. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:37:43 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191825861 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191828112 Italy has a similar education system to the United States. Like the USA, you are required to go to five elementary school and three years of junior high, which means you are required to go to school ages 6-15. After middle school, there are many 4-5 year high schools that you can choose from. Italy has about 50 public universities that you can go to once you finish high school. Overall, 59% of adults that are age 25-64 high school, 58% of men and 61% of women. On average, students score 490 on LA, math and science tests, and the girls got higher points than the boys by 6 points.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:41:30 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191828112 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191828817 People in Italy’s everyday lives are similar, yet also different to what we are used to. Life expectancy in Italy is around 83 years, 85 years for women and 80 for men. Cooking is also a big part of Italian’s everyday lives. In Italy, they take great pride in their cooking. Their main meal is around mid-day, but they have meals around the same times as we do. In Italy, their large meals consist of a course of pasta, followed by some sort of meat or fish. Once in awhile, when there’s a fancy dinner there will be appetizers. Popular appetizers are a variety of cold meats, vegetables such as salami, olives or artichoke hearts. But come commonly eaten foods vary on the part of Italy that you’re in. In the north, they have lots of flat, ribbon shaped pasta with cream sauces. But in the south, they often eat macaroni and tomato based sauces. For dessert, many people will have fruit. And wine is served with every meal except breakfast. Another big part of daily life in Italy is recreation. People in Italy enjoy a big variety of sports that include soccer, basketball, fishing, hunting, biking and roller skating. The most common sports in Italy are soccer and basketball. In both sports, each major city has a professional team. But it’s not just professionals that play. On the weekends, both kids and adults can be seen playing soccer at the park. Besides sports, another thing that people will often do for fun is spend time with their families. Many families take a traditional Sunday passeggiata (family walk) or drive to the beach or mountains. In Italy, people also really enjoy going to movies.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:42:50 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191828817 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191829396 Even though dance and music isn’t very popular in Italy compared to other countries, they still have many different kinds of dance and music and a history behind them. The most popular dances in Italy are tarantella, which comes from Puglia, Sardinian by Ballu Tundu (round dance) and the Neapolitan Sartillo. Latin and ballroom dancing are also very popular in Italy. In general, you won’t find much folk dancing in the city, but you may see some people in country towns and some in Southern Italy. Music has been around for a very long time. In the 1000s, Guido d'Arezzo, an Italian monk, developed a revolutionary method of sight-singing. Then, during the Renaissance, Giovanni Palestrina composed masterpieces of choral music that was used in church services. In 1950, the first opera house was made in Florence, Italy.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:44:01 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191829396 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191829743 One thing that Italy’s famous for is art. Italy has so many famous paintings and  sculptures. Many of the best paintings and sculptures made in Italy were made in the Renaissance time period. In the 1200s, many paintings and sculptures were influenced by the work of Giotto. Many people were in awe of Giotto’s work because he changed the course of Western art by painting in a new and realistic style that no one had seen before. As it came to the early Renaissance, Florence became very popular. Sculptures in the early Renaissance equaled these painters in achievement. Some of these sculptors included Antonio del Pollaiuolo, Donatello and Andrea del Verrocchio. As it came to the later Renaissance, popular artists were Raphael and Michelangelo. Another huge part of art in Italy is architecture. Architecture started fully developing during the Renaissance time period, and there were many famous people that contributed to that. Two very important people that contributed to this were Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti. They both had a very big influence on architecture in the future. Moving on to modern architecture, modern Italian architects have also gained an international reputation. An example of this is Pier Luigi Nervi, who gained fame for his use of concrete.

]]> 2017-09-27 18:44:40 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191829743 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191830846 Italy is a very interesting country geographically. It’s located in Southern Europe, and to be exact, the geographic coordinates are 42 50 N, 12 50 E. Italy is a very similar size to Arizona, but the climate isn’t very similar. In northern Italy, there’s lots of mountains and the average temperature is a lot cooler than in southern Italy, where it’s very hot and dry. Italy is often called “Sunny Italy”, but this nickname doesn’t always apply to Italy’s weather, because their winters are filled with lots of rain and many clouds. In Italy, there are also possibilities of natural disasters. Landslides, mudflows, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and flooding and land subsidence in Venice are all possibilities. 

]]> 2017-09-27 18:46:39 UTC https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191830846 samanthaerlich2023 https://padlet.com/samanthaerlich2023/nm6o3u1ikv6g/wish/191831383 Italian is one of the many languages that comes from Latin. Latin was a language that was last  spoken by the Romans around 6th century. Italian is actually a direct offspring from the Latin language, therefore their alphabets are very similar. Out of all the languages that come from Latin, Italian is the one that is most alike to it. For example, both Italian and Latin are Romance languages. There are many other languages spoken Italy, aside from Italian. German, French, Slovenian, Ladin and Greek are all spoken as first languages in some parts of Italy. Even though, Italian is used in most public schools and on TV to help make it the first language of most Italians.

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