Dec. 14, 2015

Prompt: Do any of the characters change as you've read? Explain why or why not. 

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

            One character that I have seen really change throughout the book is Scout. In the beginning of the book Scout hears things about Boo Radley. Scout is very scared of Boo. She thinks that he is a harmful person, and tries to avoid the Radley House. There were so many rumors about Boo that made all the children fearful of him. Scout, Jem, and Dill all participate mocking Boo, and even end up making a game out of him. Everytime she would get near his house, she would sprint past it. Later on in the book, Scout's fear of Boo begins to fade. She starts to mature and realize that all of those rumors were made up. When Boo puts the blanket over Scout when it was cold she realizes that he is harmless. Near the end of the book all of Scout's fantasies of meeting Boo have come true. After meeting Boo and walking him home, Scout now knows that he is normal person, and has nothing to fear about him. She has gone to being afraid of Boo to becoming friends with him.

            Another character that that changed a lot is Jem. Jem has gotten so mature over the years in the book. In the beginning of the book Jem would always play with Scout and Dill. They all would make up new games and have their adventures together. As the story goes on Jem seems to be more independent. He does not want to be involved with Dill and Scout's games. You can tell that Jem and Scout's relationship faded a little in the middle of the novel. Jem would be very serious at times, and acts like Atticus a lot at times. At the end of the book you can see how Jem truly does love Scout by protecting her when they were attacked by Bob Ewell. He held her hand through the way, and saves Scout by not leaving her behind. This shows that he has changed a lot, because in the beginning of the book he thought it was brave enough to touch the Radley house, but years later he is brave enough to protect Scout from getting hurt, and killed.

            Although there is only one specific part in the book where you can see Boo change it means a lot to the characters and readers. Boo has spent most of his life indoors without having any contact face to face with people as an adult until the end of the book. He has been isolating himself so much that the town has made terrible rumors about him. He seems to be too shy to come outside, so he just leaves gifts for the children, showing us that he is friendly. At the end of the book when he kills Bob and takes the kids home it is shocking to all of us that he had the courage to come outside. He could have just stayed inside and minded his own business, but instead he was brave enough to go outside, and even kill a man to protect the children. To me that is a very big change that a character has gone through. 

Blog Dec. 3, 2015

Prompt: Think about Dill and Francis. Note ways they are alike and ways they are different. From there, decide what relationship each has with Scout and what effect they have on her. 

To Kill A Mockingbird by Herper Lee

            I think the main similarity between Dill and Francis is that they always seem to find trouble. In chapter nine, page 111 (soft cover), Francis lies to his grandma saying Scout kept him in the kitchen and wouldn't let him out, so he wouldn't get in trouble for playing in the kitchen. Scout then gets in trouble while Francis got away with it for a little bit. A little later he keeps on picking on Scout and gets hit by her. He knew what he was saying and doing was wrong, but he still did it anyway and got what he deserved. In chapter 4, page 51, Dill decides it would be fun to act out the Radley family. The kids decided to keep the game a secret, because Dill and the kids knew it wasn't right to do something like that, but they did it anyway. Later on Atticus found out about their game and they got in trouble. Both Dill and Francis do things that are bad, and end up getting in trouble for it.

            There are many differences, but one that I noticed first is that Francis often repeats everything he hears from people while Dill always manages to make up stories with his wild imagination. In chapter 8, page 109 and 110, Francis says twice"...Grandma says...", showing he gets most of his words and stories from Grandma. It also shows that he is a follower and doesn't make up new ideas by himself, and just copies people. In chapter 1, page 9 and 10, you can see that Dill entertained Jem and Scout by acting out characters, and he made up new games to play. This shows that he makes up his own ideas instead of getting them from someone else. It also shows that he is creative and is able to make up things to do to entertain Scout and Jem. 

            The relation between Scout and Dill, and Scout and Francis are very different. In the book we know that Dill loves Scout and Francis hates Scout. In chapter 14, page 191, Dill says to scout that he wanted to have a baby with her, showing that he really likes her. In chapter 6, page 74, Dill remembers that he is engaged to Scout and kisses her. Dill really loves Scout while Francis hates her. In chapter 8, page 110, Fracis says mean things about Atticus, and Scout gets very angry. Atfer he gets her in trouble he smirks at her, showing he was glad she got in trouble. The relation is very different and Scout is effected by it in different ways. 

            Dill loves Scout, and so Scout loves him back, and Francis loathes Scout, so Scout does the same thing in return. Throughout the book you can see how Scout acts to people according to the way they treat her. Dill is a great friend to Scout and she really enjoys having him around. While Francis is like an enemy to Scout, because he always got her in trouble, so she always tries to ignore him. You can tell by their actions that Scout reacts to them in different ways. If someone is mean like Francis she will not like them and be mean to them, back. If someone if friendly and nice like Dill she will like them and be friendly back. Dill and Francis have a big effect on Scout, because it shows her that there are both mean and friendly people in the world, and she has to learn how to deal with them. 

Blog Nov. 24, 2015

In the photo it is mainly focused on a grocery store. You can see the prices for food that is being sold, and a man in the doorway of the store. You can see that there is only one person in the picture. You can tell by this that it is probably a small town with little people in it like in Maycomb. Also you can see that the prices for the food is a lot less then what we pay now. In the book Miss Caroline offers Walter a quarter to get lunch in the city. This shows that things back then were a lot less money, and in the picture it shows the food for a very low price compared to today. The picture can be in the same time period that To Kill A Mockingbird was in, because the prices for things were similar. 

In the picture you can see a man by the store door. You can see that his sleeves are rolled up and he looks a little tired from the way he is standing. In the book it states, "Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it." This means that not much really happens in Maycomb, and as you can see the man looks tired, and almost a little bored. You can also tell that the time periods are similar, because in the book it takes place in the 1930's and the man's clothes look like what people wore in that time. In the book it states, "...it was hotter then: a black dog suffered on a summer's day..." Showing is was very hot in the summer. The man's sleeves are rolled up, and you can infer that it was a hot day. 

Blog Nov. 16, 2015

Prompt: Analyze the theme throughout your book. 

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor 

            One of the themes is the the book Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is family. The Logan family loves eachother and would do anything to protect one another. In the book the Logan's show that they deeply care about their family. When Papa got hurt Mama helped him, because she knew he was badly hurt. The kids were very scared for Papa. They were also very angry and wanted to know who hurt him. Also when Cassie was pushed on the street by Lillian Jean's father her family had different ways of seeing how to solve the situation. Mama wanted to just leave it alone, because she thought it might become a worse situation, and might hurt the family. Uncle Hammer was very upset and wanted to do something to the father, because he felt it was wrong to do that and wanted to protect his family. Cassie's best friends are her siblings. She rarely does anything without them and doesn't seem to have any relationship with the kids at her school. Showing that her family are like her friends. 

            Another theme in the book is race. The story takes place before the Civil Rights Movement, so race is a major concern in the book. Th book shows that back then race did matter a lot when it came to certain things. In different parts of the book it shows how the black people were treated very poorly compared to the white people. In one part of book the black school received books, inside of the book it showed the race of the student and the quality the book was given to them. For their books it said "Very Poor" and for the white students. Lot of them said "New", "Excellent", and "Good". This showed that because of their race they got poor books while the white children got good books. People treated other people so differently, because of their races. 

            Another theme in the book is justice and injustice. Throughout the book there are many examples of people being treated fairly and unfairly. The Logan family have to face the many kinds unfairness caused by the racist oppression of the time period. In the book at one point the kids go to a store where they receive racist remarks toward them. Another time at a store Cassie and her brother went to the cashier to make their order when they were interrupted. A white man comes and the cashier goes to him before finishing their order. Then a white girl comes and the cashier once again goes to her before finishing their order. When Cassie makes it clear to him that that was not fair since they were there first he replys with, "Whose little nigger is this?" For a much more serious matter a man was burned to death for speaking to a white women. The Logan family has to grow up learning how to deal with these injustices. The book shows how white people are treated with respect while most of the time the black people were treated disrespectfully. 

Blog Oct. 26, 2015

Prompt: Reflect on first quarter 

            The first quarter went by very quickly. I remember the first day of eighth grade like it was yesterday. I think I have learned and improved a lot this quarter. Coming back from a long summer break can be hard, but I managed to keep everything I learned last year, and bring it to this year. I think the first quarter was a little tough in the beginning, but then as the quarter went on I began to gain back my focus, and started to learn more and more each day. 

            Strategies that have helped me during this first quarter is using my time wisely, and writing down everything I needed done. Last year I struggled to get my work done, because I would always finish it on the last day. This year I did not want to do the same thing again, so I worked a little on different things each day of the week. This has really made a change in my schedule, because instead of staying up late trying to complete my work I have extra time to do other things. Another strategy that has helped me is writing down my homework as a checklist. Having a checklist makes me want to complete everything on it. It also helps me remember what I have to get done. Sometimes I would finish something that I spent a lot of time on, then realizing that I still had to do more things. Writing down things has improved my time management as well, because then I would know how much time I should work on certain things. 

            Reading more has always been something I have wanted to do each year. This quarter I didn't read as much as I would have wanted to do. I still read a good amount of books this quarter, but I would have wanted to read more. Last year I know I read less books in the first quarter than what I have read this year so for, so that is good that I'm reading more. To read more I will have to find the extra time to read, and look for more books I am interested in reading. I think finding more books I am interested in reading will help me read more, because then I will look forward to reading them, and then I will. For the second quarter I would like to read more than I did this quarter. 

            Something's that I have improved from last year is revising my work, and my researching skills. Last year I would only look for spelling errors and other small things. This year I go from sentence to sentence to look for things that don't make sense, or things at can can be improved. I also constantly look for words that can be replaced, so it doesn't sound too boring. This quarter I can tell that my word choice has made a difference in my writing. I think that my researching skills have improved as well. Last year most of the time I would rely on only one website for information. This quarter I have learned to look at multiple websites to see if all the information is right. 

Blog Oct. 14, 2015

Prompt: Describe the theme in your reading

Book: The Boy In the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne 

            There are many themes in the book, but one of them is friendship. Bruno and Shmuel are in two completely different worlds, but share a desire for friendship during the time they are living in. Both of them are living in a difficult and lonely time during the holocaust. Even though they have different circumstances they manage to develop a friendship. The boys both know that if anyone were to find out about their friendship, both of them would be in great trouble. This causes them to keep it a secret throughout the book so far.

            Another theme in the book is human nature. While I was reading the book I was wondering why Bruno's family and so many other Germans can be believers in the Nazi, while Bruno is so compassionate. Both Bruno and Shmuel represent all of the good and kind people in the world. On the other hand the evil in the world are represented by the people like Bruno's father and Lieutenant Kotler.  I noticed that in the book it points out the choice humans have to make regarding how they treat others. On the same note the book also considers people's hesitation to take a stand in the face of difficulties.

            Another one of the many themes in the book is boundaries. The most obvious boundary in the story is the fence that separates Bruno and Shmuel. I think the author made Shmuel seem like a mirror character for Bruno. They were both born on the same day and Bruno even says they are like twins. The main difference between them is that Shmuel is Jewish and Bruno is German and is a member of the oppressing group. In a point of the book Bruno wears the same clothes as Shmuel does everyday. They seem to look very similar even though between the Jews and the Germans they are very different. Showing that even if people are different form others we are all human

Blog Oct. 9, 2015

"Reaching Out"

Diana Almazan 

Too many of us go through life

With the covers over our heads 

We need to 

Reach out

It's funny

What a few words

Of encouragement

Can do 

Sticks and stones can break bones

But words

Can often do worse

They can 

Destroy

The hopeful things

Inside us

We fear

To make ourselves 

Vulnerable  

We need to let the outside air

Beat

On us

But beware

The advice from people

Does not always ward off

Evil

Blog Sept. 24, 2015

            Something that is the same in both the article and book Of Beetles and Angels is the idea of belief and not being afraid. I think that in the book, religion was a big part in Haileab's life. In the book it states, "No matter how much the strangers resembled beetles, my father always maintained that they could be angels..." This shows that Haileab believed in God and and was a religious person because he believed that some people were angels. In the article Hasan believes that Allah (their god) will help him and protect him. This shows that he is also religious like Haileab. The other idea in both the article and book is how Mawi and Hasan are fearless of some things. In the book it states, "But whenever I found Mbago alone and he said anything mean to me, I always pounced on him and made him cry." This shows that Mawi was not afraid of bullies as a child and wouldn't be afraid to tell them something. In the article it says that Hasan witnessed a dead body of a child being washed ashore. After seeing this it didn't change his mind about doing the swim. This shows that he is fearless like Mawi is for certain things. 

            Individuals that have similarities in both the book and article are Haileab, and his family, and Hasan, and his family. In the book Mawi explains how Haileab left them while they were still in a camp, so he wouldn't get killed, or taken away. Hasan is going to meet his family when he crosses to Greece. They connect because Haileab is like Hasan's family, like how they are going to wait for someone. Haileab's family is like Hasan, like how they both are going to find someone far away. In the book it states, "... Hoping that we could make it to Sudan and find my father." This is similar to Hasan how he is going to his family, because they both had to go long distances. In the article it says that Hasan is going to swim to Greece, they go to Germany, where his family is near. This shows that both of the families in the article and book are similar in a way. 

            

            War affects individuals and societies in numerous ways. Before wars people can be healthy, with many supplies. Then they can become malnourished with a very scarce amount of food, shelter, and water. War can affect societies from having a happy feeling to a very negative one. People who have expirienced this will know that people do change. Someone can go from a very happy person, to someone who is always dismal or angry. Wars can also turn someone who was very healthy to someone who needs medical or pyhcological help. Societies are filled with people who are depressed or hurt. Many refugees are like this, because they have lost everything they had before the war. They might have lost their education, friends, home, family, or even all of it. War has a very negative tone to it, because it can bring people to their worst, mentally, and physically.

Summer Reading Project: Blog 4

Prompt: How does the author use symbolism throughout the book?
Speak  by: Laurie Halse Anderson
Pages read: 93 - finished

            Throughout the book it talks about the description of her lips and mouth. The descriptions about her mouth and lips tell that she is unable to speak after what had happened the day of the party.  In the book it describes her mouth as dry, cracked, and swollen. This shows that the description of her lips represent what is inside of her, and what she is keeping hidden. It also shows the shame she feels inside, and how she is unable to take care of herself. Towards the end of the book Melinda begins to talk about the truth of what had happened during the party. The condition of her lips also improve. Melinda's lips and mouth change as Melinda does too. 

            Trees in the book shows a lot about Melinda. A tree is what she had to work with her whole year of art class. I think trees are mentioned in almost eery chapter of the book. It shows how Melinda is growing in her year of high school. In the beginning of the year Melinda struggled to draw realistic trees. This represents her struggle and depression in her life. As she gets better, and starts to talk about herself, and starts talking more, she improves the way she draws trees. It shows that she has grown, and is still growing since the beginning of the school year. Trees grow like Melinda has grown in that high school year.

            In the book she didn't like to look at herself in the mirror. She tried to avoid them, because she wasn't able to face her own reflection. This represents how she wasn't able to face her own feelings as well. In the book she says that she can't see herself. Which shows that her appearance has changed, because of what had happened in the past. In the book she looks at a three-way mirror in a dressing room. One side of it was broken. This represented a part of her that was broken as well.

            Melinda often hides in a supply closet that is in the school. This shows that she needs to hide from the outside world, so she doesn't have to talk to anyone. It also shows her isolation. She isolates herself, and her friends have isolated her. No one knows about the closet space, it is kept a secret in the book. Like how what happened to her at the party was kept a secret as well. Towards the end of the book when the secret is out, she stops hiding in the closet. This represents that she doesn't need to hide the secret anymore. A her secret got out, she began to change in a very good way.

Summer Reading Project: Blog 3

Prompt: Pick 3 pictures that represent your reading. Write a paragraph for each, telling what each item says about what you've been reading. 

Speak by: Laurie Halse Anderson
Pages read: 0 - 93

            The first picture that represents my reading is of a tree. In the book, Melinda has to take an art class. In that class their whole year was to to pick an object to draw, and they would have to work with that picture throughout the whole school year. The object they got they had to have to draw, paint, carve it, and more. The art teacher had pieces of paper with the object they had to draw in a broken globe. They had to randomly pick one piece of paper out without looking. The word she got was "tree". Just as she was going to put it back, because it was "too easy", he told her that she couldn't. He said "You just chose your destiny, you cant change that." Every drawing she draws of a tree, is too simple, and isn't good enough for her art teacher Mr. Freeman. She gets better at it though the year.

            The second picture that represents my reading is of Melinda (from the  movie) have her lips stitched together. In highschool Melinda is very quiet. Many people dislike her because of what she did one year. One year there was at party, and she felt the need to call the police, because something bad had happened to her, and she was scared. Everyone found out it was her who called the police, and were very angry at the fact that people got busted for going to that party. Now she keeps quiet, and tries not to talk to anyone. It is not like she doesn't want friends. She wants to have a group to hang  out with but it is very hard for her to do that, because so many people  knew what she had done. She has made one friend named Heather, but only because she was new and didn't know her. In the book she only talks to a few people, and tries to keep quiet.

            The third picture that represents my reading is of a person alone. She had friends before the whole party incident. She even had her own "clan" like everyone else. They would do everything together. They even dressed as the same thing for Halloween. Now all of her old friends won't even talk to her, or even make eye contact. In the beginning of the year she was completely lonley. She didn't have anyone to talk to, and everyone just ignored her, and looked at her weird. Until she met Heather, but even she didn't seem to like how Melinda acted sometimes. Melinda felt like they were both invisible, so it was no use to join clubs so more people know them. She can't even talk to her parents, because they wont understand her. Melinda and her parents argue sometimes. Her parents sometimes just leave notes for Melinda to read when she gets home.

Summer Reading Project: Blog 2

Prompt: In the  book how does the main character's actions make the people around her feel?

The Pregnancy Project by: Gaby Rodriguez
Pages read: 75 - finished

            Her mother was one one of the few people who were in on her project, and promised to keep it a secret. She helped her make her fake pregnant stomach, and helped her at times when she wanted to quit, because of how stressful it was. She also was extra careful in making sure none of Gaby's siblings would find out about her fake pregnancy. Her sisters and brothers were pretty upset about this. At family gatherings they wouldn't even make eye contact with Gaby and her boyfriend, Jorge. Her older brother, Javier, was the one who was the most upset about this. He was very disappointed knowing that Gaby had broken her promise to do better in her life and achieve her goals. Finding out that she was pregnant, Javier, was very upset. Javier thought that she would be the one to be different and make their mother proud.

            Gaby's boyfriend, Jorge, was also in on it, because he obviously needed to know that it was fake and she wasn't actually pregnant. He also helped, like her mom, to keep her from getting too stressed out, and by making sure it was kept a secret. His parents did not know that she had faked her pregnancy. They were not happy at all, when they found out Gaby was "pregnant". Many of her classmates would be very mean to her at times. One of he friends said that she made a huge mistake and that she was dumb to do that. Most people had low expectations for her future since they thought she had gotten pregnant. They would say that her life is over, would question if she would graduate, and say things like they saw it coming.

            She had to tell the principal about this to make sure that her project could be approved. He helped with getting her project approved by the school board, setting up the assembly for her to present her project, and with dealing with interviewers and news casters.  He overall wasn't against her project but instead was shocked that she wanted to try and pull it off. One teacher was very upset with her. He expected more from her, and was very disappointed to hear that she had "thrown her life away". After revealing that her pregnancy was fake her teacher was even more sad to hear that she had been lying to him this whole time. He felt as if Gaby didn't trust him enough to tell him the truth about the project. Other teachers were very supportive to her.

Summer Reading Project: Blog 1

Prompt: What inspired the author to do this project?

The Pregnancy Project by: Gaby Rodriguez
Pages read: 0 - 75

            One reason why the author was inspired to do the project was the background of her family. This helped inspire her, because every girl from her big family, including her mother, went through teen pregnancy. Gaby, showing the sign of being the most mature one, promised herself that she would never get pregnant as a teen, and focus on her education. When her senior year came around, so did her senior project. The senior project was a project that every senior had to do. It had to include research of some sort, and impact their fellow classmates when they later presented them. Gaby, being the bright student as she was didn't want to do any old project. Instead she wanted to truly impact the lives of her classmates and teachers. To do this she decided to fake a pregnancy, and collect data. The data she collected included the reactions of people from her school, and how people treated her, especially because of her family's background. 

             Another reason why the author was inspired to do the project was, because she wanted to have a different and impact full Senior project. What made her project different was how it wasn't just on paper or shown as a presentation. Instead Gaby decided to actually live her project to collect the data she needed for it. What she did was not only show her class, but show the whole school.  She held an assembly to reveal her secret fake pregnancy. After the truth was discovered by her follow classmates and teachers, many of them had different feeling towards it. Some of them were very upset that she had lied to them for so long about such a serious topic just for a project. Others felt bad, and regretful after hearing and spreading rumors over Gaby's pregnancy, and assuming things about her just because she was "pregnant", and now finding out it was all fake. In the end Gaby's project really did impact people's many lives.

          

            The last reason why Gaby was inspired to do the project was, because she wanted to prove to people that she would have a successful life, and not end up pregnant as a teen like her sisters and mother. As Gaby grew up, she would always be told that she would end up becoming a teen mom. Gaby wanted to prove them all wrong. When Gaby told the school that she wasn't actually pregnant, and she only faked it for her project, it showed the people who thought little of her that she was going to have a great future for herself. During the project many people thought that since she was someone who was smart, she had ruined her chance of having a bright future. This whole project taught many people about stereotypes. 

"Paradox and Dream" Reflection

"Paradox and Dream" Reflections

Paradox: "Fortunes are spent getting cats out of trees and dogs out of sewer pipes; but a girl screaming for help in the street draws only slammed doors, closed windows, and silence."

            This means is that many people will help animals before they would help their own kind. Also when people put up signs about missing dogs, they usually have a reward, which is usually money. This also means that when someone is in the need for help, people will not care and ignore the problem. When a pet is stuck in a tree or something, people will get police and firefighters just to get it down. If a pet is missing, many people will probably look for the it. When there are signs about missing children, it seems people don't bother even looking at the sign. 

            I can relate to this, because I have seen something like this on the news and heard of it. It was a video of a little girl getting run over by more than one car. The people in the cars did not bother to even stop to see what it was. Many people also saw her lying on the ground, and didn't care to get help. Those people just kept on walking and ignored the situation. I have heard from many relatives and friends that they have rescued a dog or cat. I have heard more about people saving animals than people saving people. 

Paradox:"We proudly insist that we base our political positions on the issues - and we will vote against a man because of his religion, his name, or shape of his nose."

            This means that people judge people before they really get to know someone. If someone has a different religion then, people will judge him or her for it. Also people judge people a lot from just the way they look. If someone who looks "weird", most people will assume that he or she is weird. This is horrible, because people always judge people before even knowing them. A lot of People will say bad things to one another because they they have a different religion, name, or look.

            I can relate to this, because I have seen and heard many people judging one another by what they wear or what their hobbies are in school. Again, many people just assume that a person is like that, because of the way they do things. I think at one point everyone has judged someone for something they do, say, or wear, including me. Maybe it's because I hear my friends being judgmental or something else, and we just follow them. Whatever it is we will always think something that may or may not be true about someone.

I commented on Justin's, Jared's, and Evie's Blog.

Final Reflection Blog

Prompt: 1- What are the three most important things you learned this year?  2- What is something we did this year that you think you will remember for the rest of your life?  3- What was the nicest thing someone in our class did for you this year?  4- What is something you taught your teacher or classmates this year?  5- In what area do you feel you made your biggest improvements? What is something you accomplished this year that you are proud of?  6- What was the most challenging part of this year for you?  7- What was the best piece of writing that you did this year? Why do you think it is your best?  8- Of the books you read this year, which was your favorite? Why?  9- What advice would you give students who will be in this class next year?

            The three most important things I've learned this year is how to do blogs, annotate, and learned better vocabulary. Blogs are important to learn how to do, because as you go on writing you learn how to get better. I have learned to be a better writer compared to the beginning of the year. Annotating is important to learn how to do because it allows you to understand what you are reading more. We have done a lot of annotating this school year, and I have improved a lot since I first started. I think the most important thing I learned this year is better vocabulary. In the beginning of the year I used confused when I am speaking. Now when I am speaking I use words like, discombobulated, bewildered, and befuddled. Something I think I will remember for the rest of my life that happened this year was when we had out first class party. We all had so much fun. We also had lots of laughs and memories that we won't forget.

            The nicest thing my class did for me was having great attitude. Everyone is so kind in my class. We all have laughs together, and no one is left out of the conversation. I really enjoyed how everyone was never mean to another classmate. I think everyone has a close friendship, because in this class we had to communicate and lot. I felt like everyone is so close now, especially since we got to meet all of these people. Something that I taught one of my classmates was how to understand a book more. I told her to write in notes like, thoughts, questions, and predictions. I think this really helped her, because it made her think more about the book.

            An area that I think I made the biggest improvements is my writing skills. Before I would not go back to check for any mistakes, so I would finish my writing mistakes with grammar errors. Also I would not put a topic sentence. I would also write run-on sentences.  Something I accomplished this year that I am proud of is when I was able to stay in the accelerated class. If you get a grade "C" or lower, you are not allowed to be in that class anymore. I passed that class with "A's" and "B's". I am proud of myself, because I was able to push myself into doing something. The most challenging this this year was time management. Most of my homework was due on Friday, and I was busy on most of the days on the weekdays. I had to do most of my homework all on Thursday. I think I have become better at fixing that problem over the year. I've learned how to make notes on what day I should do each day.

            The best piece of writing I did this year was a blog about an ending to a story called "The Lady or the Tiger?". The story I had to write had to be about what happened at the end, because it never says. I think this was my best, because in my opinion, I think it was very creative. Also because a lot of people seemed to enjoy it. Of the books I read this far my favorite is A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer. This book was so sad. It was about a true story on a boy who was abused by his mother and bothers. This book was something that I will never forget. I recommend this book, because it is just so great.

            Some advice I would give students next year is to set goals. Goals are what keeps you focused on getting better. It's what keeps you moving forward in life. If you don't have goals then it is very hard to accomplish things. Even if you don't reach that goal, you did more to reach it tan not trying to reach it at all. Some other advice is to pay attention. In this class this ear we moved very fast at some times. If you are not listening then you might get lost quickly. It will also help you in the future.

Something That Symbolizes Me

            The object I chose to represent me is my headphones. Headphones to me represent freedom, because when you listen to music you block out everything. When you are having a bad day, you can forget it all with headphones and music. When I listen to music I feel like I can do anything. It can be so calming and relaxing. It feels like you are in a different world. The music you listen to can be very inspiring, so when you listen to it, it can inspire you and make you feel better. People say that music allows you to escape from the real world. I think this shows that you feel free when you listen to music. 

I commented on Devin's, Rebecca's, James', Sam's, and, Bianey's blog.

Blog for Week 5/11/15

Prompt: Although the plot has the same ending in both the book ad the movie, the actual moments of each piece are different. The movie ends with a flashback; the book ends with dialogue. What does the flashback show? How does the flashback leave the audience feeling at the end of the movie? Does the feeling match the feeling at the end of the book? Why do you think the director chose to use a different ending rather than just showing exactly what's in the book? What is the line of dialogue that ends in the book? What does that line tell about the speaker? What feeling does that line leave the reader with? How does it make you feel when he says that?

            I think that the flashback at the end of the movie shows that George didn't kill Lennie out of hatred, but friendship. You saw George crying at the end thinking about Lennie, showing that he didn't want him to die, but he was capable of hurting people. The flashback showed that Lennie and George were very good friends because they seemed like they had a close bond. This shows that since George cared about Lennie, he didn't want Curley to kill him, or have him in jail. If the flashback showed events of when George yelled at Lennie, then it would probably mean that George didn't care for him as much, so he killed him. 

            The flashback left the audience feeling sad at the end of the movie, because it showed that George just killed someone who was his best friend, and someone who was vey important in his life. I think that the feeling in the movie feeling does not match the feeling at the end of the book. I think this, because in the end of the book it ends with George and Slim walking off to drink, and Carlson saying, "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" In the movie it ends with George crying on a train remembering the times he had with Lennie. The ending in the book was less sad than the ending in the movie.

            The dialogue at the end of the book is said by Carlson, and he said, "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" This line shows that Carlson was a little clueless on what was going on. He thought that George killed Lennie, because Lennie took Curley's gun, and George had to fight him for it. When really, George killed Lennie out of friendship, because he didn't want Lennie to go to jail, or have Curley kill him. When Carlson saw George walk with Slim sadly, he was confused, because I think he looked at it like the death of Lennie was a good thing, because he was dangerous. The feeling the reader has with that line is kind of confused. At first a lot of my classmates, including me, did not get what that meant. When Carlson said that that line, I felt like he really didn't understand the relationship with George and Lennie. He doesn't get that George just killed his best friend and how he cared for him so much.

Blog for Week 5/4/14

AOW Impression Blog

            This AOW gallery walk allowed us to learn about things that are going on around the world right now. I have learned many things that I didn't know before, and because of this I do know now. I think that this activity was really helpful, because it opened our eyes to see what is currently happening in the world. I think not just me, but a lot of people learned a lot of new things during this activity. Also this was important for us to do, because a lot of us, sometimes, don't have the time to do this at home. Some things I learned from the gallery walk was the earthquake in Nepal, and the riots in Baltimore.

            During the gallery walk I learned a lot about the earthquake in Nepal. I saw more than one person do this article, so I thought that this must be very important. What I learned from this is that about eight million people were affected by this earthquake. I also learned that over 7,000 people died! A lot of people are still missing. Many of those missing people are foreigners. 1.4 million people were injured.

            The article I had and lot of other people had was on the riots in Baltimore. What I read that started this is that a man died in police custody from a spinal cored injury. Then many people became mad at the police and stared to looting and rioting. What I learned from this is that many people are looting and setting cars and buildings on fire. I also learned that many people got arrested and injured. I think that the riots are just making everything worse. People are getting hurt because of this. I read that many of the rioters threw rocks and bricks at police officers. Many people were arrested, and more than a dozen police officers were injured.

Poem Blog 5/1/15

Prompt: Using "To A Mouse" by Robert Burns as inspiration, write a short poem expressing what happens when you have a dream and it doesn't come true.

"Dreams To Come And Go"
By: Diana A.

When you have a dream

It's the greatest feeling

When you have a hope you beam

You just think, staring at the ceiling 

When your dream doesn't work out

It's not a great feeling

You just want to pout 

Your feelings are not appealing

Dreams don't always come as planned

You just have to get over it

Just hold somebody's hand

You can get over it in a bit

Even if you can't

You can at least try

You feel like hope is scant 

It's okay to cry

More dreams will come soon

Maybe in a strum

Maybe in late June,

But they will come 

I commented on Jared's, Joseph's, and Devin's blog

Blog for Week 4/27/15

Prompt: Brainstorm the different types of conflicts via your Google doc, creating a chart that addresses the conflict, types of conflicts, and the effect that the conflict had had on a plot so far. From your brainstorming session, choose at least two conflicts explore more in depth in this blog. Be sure to include textual evidence and support and also identify the effect that the conflict has had on the plot so far. 

            One of the conflicts in the book Of Mice And Men by John Steinfield is that Curley and Lennie get in a big fight. This is a Man vs. Man type of conflict because this situation was between two people. The effect on the conflict could be that Curley wants to get back at Lennie. He could get them fired because he is the son of Lennie's boss. In the book the effect on this is that Lennie's face had cuts and bruises. Curley ended up getting his had crushed by Lennie, because George told him to fight back. Lennie now is scared of Curley

            Another conflict in the book is that Lennie kills Curley's wife. This is also a Man vs. Man conflict because it was between two people. In the book it states, " 'But Curley's gonna want to shoot 'im. Curley's still mad about his hand.' " This shows that one of the effects on this could be that Curley finds out and gets mad, and would want to kill Lennie. Since Curley is still mad about Lennie hurting his hand, this would just make the situation much worse. 

            The last conflict to talk about is how Candy decided to end the life of his old dog. This is a Man vs. Self conflict because Candy is the one who has to deal with it. The effect on this is that Candy felt very upset. He also felt lonely because he has had that dog for a long time, and his dog was very important to him. Also the effect on this was that he felt regret. He felt regret because he thought that he should have been the one to kill him and not someone else. 

I commented on Justin's, Nick's, and Emily's blog.

Blog for Week 4/20/15

Prompt: Describe the atmosphere of the ranch and bunkhouse. Be sure to include characteristics of different characters that were formally or informally introduced to us in this chapter. Support your choice with textual evidence and interpretation.  Why doesn't Curley's wife have a name?   What message, if anything, is John Steinbeck  trying to send by not giving her a first name?  Support your choice with textual evidence and interpretation.

           The atmosphere of the bunkhouse and ranch is usually negative. Mostly because Curley doesn't seem to like George and Lennie. George and Lennie seem to dislike Curley a lot too. In the book Of Mice and Men, Curley says that he does not like big men. I think this goes to Lennie as a bad thing since he is big. I think more into the book their will be more problems between them. Some of the characters are suspicious of them because they think George is going to take away the money that Lennie earns from working. The people in the ranch seem like they are always arguing. 

           I think Curley's wife doesn't have a name because of the time period they are in. In this time period women were not treated very well. Since she doesn't have a name, maybe Curley wants everyone to know that they are married and together. In the book the characters call Curley's wife some mean names. Showing that women didn't have the same respect they had for men.

          I think the message John Steinbeck is trying to send out about Curley's wife not having a name is to make the story more realistic. In this time period there was discrimination between men and women. If they treated Curley's wife like she was gold, it wouldn't make sense. In that time period women were called the names they said in the book. It would be more realistic if the characters acted and thought this way about her in the book.

I commented on Mia's, Sebastian's, and Emily's blog.

Blog for Week 4/13/15

Prompt: Draw four objects that represent your reading. Write a paragraph for each, telling what each item says about what you've been reading.
A Dog's Life by: Ann M. Martin

             The first picture is of a stray dog. I picked this picture because the main character, Squirrel, is a living as a stray dog. The book is in the perspective of Squirrel. Squirrel has gone through some hard times as a stray dog. Throughout most of the book, she is a stray dog. Squirrel wasn't always alone. She had a mother and a brother. The mother left both of them in the shed. The brother, Bone, was there for him after that, but then was taken by a girl. After that, she eventually found a friend.

             The second picture is of a highway. I chose a highway because more than once has Squirrel ended up on the highway. One time was with his brother. That's when George and Marcy found them, and took them home. Marcy wanted to keep them, but George did not. This is a very dangerous place for them to be, because they could get hurt by the cars. 

             The third picture is of a mall. At a mall is where Squirrel was separated from his brother, Bone. While they were staying at George's and Marcy's house, George did not want them. George then took them to a mall and left them there alone. They had injuries after being thrown out of George's car. A girl then came and saw Bone and Squirrel. She only took Bone, and left Squirrel there at the mall.

             The fourth picture is of a trash can. Squirrel loves to go through the trash to find food. The first time he went through he trash was with his mother and brother. After he was all alone he always went through trash. The time he was with his brother in Marcy's and George's home, they both ran to the trash and got in trouble for making a mess. For some reason, Squirrel loves the smell of garbage. Every time he smells it, the garbage lures her toward it.

I commented on Emily's, Jeremiah's, and Rebecca's blog.

Poetry Response 3/26/15

           Poetry can relate to my life, because I can relate to it. All poems have a meaning to it, and almost everyone can relate to it. Poetry can sometimes be confusing, but in the end you will get it, and relate that to your life. I have read lots of poems, and most of them have changed what I think about things. Before this poetry unit I didn't like poetry that much. I thought it was confusing and boring. Now that we have learned the meanings of poems, and even wrote some poems ourselves I have learned to enjoy them more. If you learn to understand poetry you will like reading them more often.

            I think poetry does belong to everyone. Everyone might not like poetry, but I think some poems can relate to everyone. Even if poems might be confusing for some people once you take the time to read them and think about it, it may become one of your favorites. The first time I read "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost I did not like it because I did not understand it. Then when I got to understand it, I learned that it can relate to me, and that is now my favorite poem. Sometimes the most confusing poems can really change what you think of something. There has to be at least one poem that can relate to you. I know a lot of people who dislike poetry. They probably have not read a poem that they can relate to.

           The life and experiences of a poet can affect the way he/she writes in many ways. If a poet had a lot of deaths in his or her family, he or she will probably write with more emotion. If a poet had a happy life and never really had any bad experiences, he or she will most likely write humorous poems. They write about these topics because they have experienced this, so it will make it easier to write. If someone had a very tragic life, he or she will have a hard time to write funny poems. When I write poems I don’t write them to have a negative connotation. That’s because I haven’t had a really sad or bad experience in my life.

I commented on Sam's, Siari's, and Sebastian's blog.

Nonsense Poem "Unbelievable Forest" 3/25/15

Zoom in to see the poem better.

Found Poem 2/23/15

"Do What You Feel Is Right"

by Diana A.

" Her voice waited to speak, but was silent. The women heard herself say, 'Just try, for fun.' She stepped out into the path. She sighed as she asked, 'You?' "

            The message of this poem is to do what you feel is right, and don't just follow others. The first part says, "Her voice waited to speak, but was silent." This shows that this person is afraid to say something that might not be "normal" to others. "The women heard herself say, 'Just try, for fun.'" This shows that she is willing to go outside the box, and be different. "She stepped out into the path." This is when she decides to not be a follower and make her own decision by taking the other path. "She sighed as she asked, 'You?'" She sighed because it shows that everyone just wanted to be the same and not different. When she says, "You?", she is asking anyone if they are going to either follow everyone else or be like her.

Blog for week of 3/16/15

Two Voice Poem for the book Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements

I commented on Nick's, James', and Lillian's blog.

Spine Poetry

"Speak great expectations for one more day. Never say die, for hope was here."

            The meaning of this poem is that you should never let yourself down, because there is always hope for you. Some people always speak of the negative things. Everyone should think positive and have hope for themselves. This can be told to anyone, because everyone can use this advice. This poem is basically saying to be positive, and to have expectations for yourself. 

Thinglink Poem

3rd Quarter Reflections

Prompt: We have reached the end of 3rd Quarter...can you believe it?! Now take a moment to reflect on what you have learned so far.

            An area I think I most improved in English Language Arts is writing and diction. I really improved my writing a lot. Before I would just jumble words together to make a paragraph. Now I use topic sentences and supporting details. I also improved my writing by getting rid of run on sentences. I used to not put commas where they needed to be. I've also learned to not start sentences with conjunctions. My diction before entering the 3rd quarter was not that great. I have gotten used to saying more challenging words when speaking. 

           Of the books I read this quarter my favorite was Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements. I was attached to it from just reading the first chapter. I really liked how you have lots of prediction while you are reading. I also loved the ending. This book was very interesting, and I think everyone who reads this book will absolutely adore it. I will definitely recommend
this book to anyone. 

           Something that has been the most challenging from the 3rd quarter is finding time to get all of my work done, and my articles of the weeks (AOW). In the 3rd quarter I had to go to clubs and sports, so it was hard enough to go to all of those activities. As soon as I would go home I would have to start my homework, so I won't have to stay up late doing it. AOWs have been challenging because I could never get it right. I would have trouble doing the objective summaries. I would also have trouble with the topic sentences. I would never even have one. Looking back at the 3rd quarter I have learned that I have improved a lot this quarter.

I commented on Anthony's, Emily's, and Siari's blog.

                                                             

Blog for week of 3/11/15

Prompt: Based off of your current novel, this week you will be creating a bio-poem for your literary character/person.

Solveig

Strong, brave, unaware, loving

A character in Matthew J. Kirby's book

Lover of Hilda, Father, Asa, and Harold

Who notices Per and Asa are in love, Ole was right, and animals have been killed

Who feels she should go to war, embarrassed sometimes, and feels like she is plain

Who learns how to move on from being embarrassed, and learns more about the war

Who says, "... I am plain, and Father's eyes do not shine with pride when he looks on me."

Who used to think it was hard to tell a story, but now knows it's easy

Major character in the book Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby

A book that will interest you

I commented on Mia's, Jeremiah's, and Giovanna's blog. 

"A Choice To Be Made"

“A Choice To Be Made”

by: Diana Almazan

A choice needed to be made

Volleyball or Speech and Drama

Both of them are around the same time

I could not make up my mind

If I choose speech and drama will my friends make fun of me?

If I choose volleyball will my family not support me?

What if I choose volleyball, and I fall on my face?

What if I join Speech and drama, and I forget my lines?

I know if I pick volleyball I will want to do speech and drama

If I pick speech and drama I will want to do volleyball

I can’t make up my mind

This bothers me all day

A choice needed to be made

Volleyball or Speech and Drama

“Why not both” I thought

I will join both and not regret it

I commented on Lillian's, Sonny's, and Rebecca's blog.