TKAM ~ Blog for 12/18/15

- How has this book changed you? What are your thoughts on it?

- If you could change something in the book, what would it be and why?

          This book has changed me by making me see new perspectives on life I had never seen before. This entire book is filled with such amazing quotes about life, for example “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what." To me this is so inspirational, because so many people think that courage is a man behind a gun, when in reality it can be so many other things. This book has also changed my perspective on how to look at people,  mainly because of the really good quote Atticus had said, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.” I think I've misjudged many people in my life by not thinking of what they could be going through, which is something I wont be doing from now on.

        To Kill A Mockingbird has to be one of my favorite books now, because of all that I've learned about it. There's so many different things to take out of that book, for example the main theme throughout the book "empathy".  I don't even think I can explain how much this book means to me now, it has so many life lessons inside of it that I don't want to let it go. I remember thinking, "this is going to be boring" however once we started reading more of it, I fell in love with all of the characters, in my opinion, Scout and Boo being the best.

~SPOILERS~

          Something really small that I would change inside the book would be to make Boo stay out with Scout a bit longer at the ending. Yes I know he was exhausted from saving Jem and Scout, but I really wanted to see him interact with them some more and actually talk to Jem. I mean Harper Lee had built up so much suspense for Boo's character, as he never came out, however only coming out for an hour at most made me a bit sad. Especially how nice he was to Scout, asking her to take him home.

TKAM - Character Relationships

- Aunt Alexandra & Atticus

          Aunt Alexandra and Atticus are similar in many ways. This includes them being from the same family (as they are brother and sister). They also both think that Scout should be around more women, to get that "feminine influence". As in page 127 for the hard covered books, it says "We decided that it would be best for you to have some feminine influence." This meant that because Scout was always with Atticus or Jem, Atticus and Aunt Alexandra both worried that Scout wouldn't have that feminine side to her like most girls at the time.

          However, Aunt Alexandra and Atticus are also very different at the same time. Where as Atticus is more relaxed with his kids (for example he doesn't really care what they wear etc.), Aunt Alexandra thinks the kids should be more tightly watched as to what they do, eat, dress etc. for example when she tells Scout that its not proper for her to be wearing overalls. They are also different in the fact that while Atticus is friendly towards the African Americans, Aunt Alexandra does not like them in any way, she's very racist towards them.

          Aunt Alexandra and Atticus both have similar relationships towards Scout. Atticus is her father, while Aunt Alexandra, the sister of Atticus is her aunt, therefore having similar relationships. Obviously, one who has read, or currently is reading TKAM can easily note the differences between both relationships. For example Scout loves her father, and loves the time they spend together, mainly reading. She's always trying to spend time with him, even with his busy schedule as a lawyer. Aunt Alexandra however, mainly disproves everything Scout does, so its not that hard to tell that Scout's relationship with Aunt Alexandra isn't very strong, as there's also the fact that they almost never see each other. While Atticus is with her every day.

          Both Aunt Alexandra and Atticus have a huge impact, or effect on Scout. Atticus has been there for Scout since she was born, and has taught her all she knows now. For example, her "non" love to read, as she states, "Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing," (Pg. 18 Hard Cover). As Scout isn't really fond of Aunt Alexandra, the effect that she has on Scout obviously isn't as strong as the one that Atticus has on her. However, Aunt Alexandra does have some times where you can see her effect on Scout. For example, even though Scout doesn't like being told to act more lady like, dress more like one or talk more like one, these helpful suggestions that her aunt is telling her could be a valuable thing for her in her future. A perfect example would be marriage, In the book Dill and Scout are already "engaged" but when she grows older and tries to find love, I'm guessing no man would marry a girl that wears overalls instead of dresses. At least in the time period that this book takes place.

                                                       

To Kill A Mockingbird - Setting

Jack, and Delano. Main Street of Greensboro, Alabama. 1931. Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress), Greensboro. 

          In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, the book focuses on a certain town called Maycomb in where the characters live. The picture that I chose makes me think of the town Maycomb, because of its description in the book. In the book, on page 5, it states that "People moved slowly then. They ambled across the square, shuffled in and out of stores around it, took their time about anything." I think this quote supports the picture because there is people walking down the street, probably looking for the things they needed to buy. 

          Something I noticed in this picture, was the people in the picture. When I looked at this picture, several questions came to mind. I wondered if maybe this photo was taken on a weekday or on the weekend, seeing as there is many people walking around in the stores. I also wondered what that African American man was going out to do, was he picking up supplies so he could continue working? Or maybe he had to pick up a certain object, type of food, etc. for his family. One of the last things I had observed was how there wasn't too many people in the picture, but there were rows and rows of cars. 

Theme Blog - Roll Of Thunder Hear My Cry

- Life is unfair

- Stand up for yourself

- protect the ones you love

- Segregation is unfair/ Racism is unfair

             These are some of many possible themes in the book Roll Of Thunder Hear My Cry. The most important one, or the one that really stood out to me being "Segregation is unfair". I chose this because the story revolves of a family right after slavery was abolished, but there where many signs of segregation still happening. The story talks about the hard ships of this poor family, because of the depression which was happening at the time. Adding in the segregation between whites and African Americans made it even harder to go about a happy life.

            In the story, there are so many different examples of Segregation, and how it affects the Logan's Family (The main family in the book). For example, in page 98 Mama had said, "The Wallaces did that, children. They poured kerosene over Mr. Berry and his nephews and lit them afire." The Wallaces, are an evil family that run a store in which many people purchased their farming supplies. They had set Mr. Berry on fire only because he had been accused of looking at other women while he was married, which he never did.

            Another example would be in chapter five, when Big Ma had taken Cassie, TJ and Stacey to Strawberry (a town). As Cassie was returning back to the wagon, she accidently bumped into Lillian, a white girl who hated Cassie more then anything. Cassie had already apologized but Lillian wanted Cassie to get on the street, when she refused Lillian's father shoved Cassie to the ground and demanded she apologized. When she was forced to apologize, she did, but went crying afterwards back to the wagon. Big Ma, the person who forced her was scared of what would happen to them if she didn't apologize, since they where African American and he was white, which could of meant severe punishment for disrespecting a white, or a higher class.

First Quarter Blog Reflection

          During the first quarter I have already learned many things. One of the things I learned being how to be a better organizer. Especially in books, I learned from my social studies teacher how, when I pick up my book I can set a specific amount of pages I want to read, or to the next chapter. This helps me be organized and to be time efficient because sometimes I would stay up late reading, so this helps me get more sleep. In order for me to be more active in school.

          In Mrs. Larson's class I've also, as always been learning more vocabulary. Which in term makes me more smarter and it makes my option of words to chose from more open. For example, a vocabulary word we had last week was "Incredulous", in a sentence before I had learned this word, I would have put "The man is skeptical," now that I have learned the word, I can say "The man is incredulous." This is one of many examples, based off of the new vocab words I have learned from just this quarter.

          In my 40 book challenge goal, I'm not that far. I've only read about four to five books just this quarter. I'm a bit of a procrastinator when it comes to homework, so I end up doing it late at night which doesn't give me time at all to usually read. However I try to catch up on weekends by reading all day on, for example Saturday or Friday night. I'm honestly trying to do my homework faster, so I can read, because I love reading very much.

Blog for 10/16/15 Thirteen Reasons Why

• What special way did the author write (for example, flashbacks, told in first

person, multiple voice narrative, foreshadowing, lost descriptive words that

create visual images in your mind, etc.)? Did that make reading it better or

worse? Explain.

* How does the way the characters act affect the theme of the story? Explain. 

          One of the main writing styles in the book Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher is that when ever the main character, Hannah Baker is talking she italicizes her words. She does this because the book is about the main character, Hannah suiciding and leaving 13 tapes, one side for each person that "causes" her death because of this she italicizes her writing to show that it's her talking or the tapes talking. An example for this is in the book on page 166 it said, "So Zach, How many notes did you take?". The author does this every time Hannah is talking (which is almost the entire portion of the book).

          Another main writing styles in the book Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher is that when Clay, the other main character is talking, its in a regular font, which makes it easier to read the book. For example, in the book on page 166 it said, "I glance over my shoulder. Tony's still there, chewing a french fry and pumping ketchup on a hamburger." You can tell the difference between italics and regular font, which in my opinion makes it easier to tell whos talking. I think that the author specifically made it like that to try and help readers understand how to read it without getting confused, so they can understand the actual main topic (which is about the 13 people/reasons why Hannah suicide).

          The entire story revolves around how all these "sub characters" act towards the main character. As to why she committed suicide. These people that have been put in the tapes have all done something to her, maybe not knowing it, that pushed her ever so closer into ending her life. One of the main characters, is the one that currently has the 13 tapes, (each person has to hear all of the tapes before sending it off to the next person.) Which is how these characters affected the theme of the story, by doing all these little acts that made the theme of this story what it was. Which was that little things can affect a person in ways you don't know, so always try to be kind.

"Home is Where the Heart is" ~ A OBAA Poem

I must leave now. 
My community, my people, 
my family, my wealth, 
the status that I have earned
 through decades of service 
I leave all of this 
behind. 
I go to join the millions the refugees 
in Sudan

Would you go to paradise 
If it meant 
knowing 
no one? 

Would you give up
everything
You had ever
known? 

Please Remember
your country
Remember us
Your people

We entered a plane, 
First from Khartoum
Then Athens
And from there, 
Amerikha 
And there
A New Life 

When we arrived,
My father had told us
Tewolda and Salamawi,
Get your shoes on. 
We need to Adventure 
Outside
In our new home 

OBAA and AOW Comparison

            In the article "Holocaust survivors demand Israel help refugees" and the book Of Beetles and Angels have many connections between individuals. A connection in specific, Avital Collete, a main part from the article said she had remembered when she was "spending years hiding, afraid for her life". This connects to the book because it had said that Mawi had to leave his home as a refugee as well. This also connects both the article and the book by both of them still being kids when they had to leave (or hide) as refugees.

            In the article "Holocaust survivors demand Israel help refugees" and the book Of Beetles and Angels have many connections between its events. In the article it said that Avital Collete was "Being forced from her home by Nazi soldiers...". This connects to the book because Mawi also was forced out of his home because of the war, and then had left to America. I know this because in the book it says "Then we entered a plane and took off from Khartoum. Next stop, Athens. The Amerikha, and then there, a new life."

           War affects individuals and societies because it causes harm to both of them. It causes danger and harm to individuals because wars don't miss civilians, if they are caught in a shoot out, they will probably die. Also it affects them because it makes individuals and societies move to refugee camps, just to get away from the danger. For example in the book it says "Trace walking to the house's white exterior, laying her hands on it for a few moments, feeling its heartbeat - feeling her own heart beat - then kissing it, knowing that she might never see it again." For them, the war was about to hit their town and forced them to seek safety at a refugee camp. As for in my article, it says "... being forced from her home by Nazi soldiers and spending years hiding, afraid for her life." This meant that she had to flee and go into hiding because of Germany, when they where at war and wanted to kill all of the Jews.

Parents waving goodbye at a Kinder-transport train. Parents that where Jews and that had kids would send their kids away from Germany so they wouldn't be captured.

Summer Reading Project ~ The Secret Identity Of Devon Delaney Blog 2

What have you learned about life from what you’re reading?
Describe your most favorite character and explain why.
Describe your least favorite character and explain why.

          When reading The Secret Identity Of Devon Delaney I learned that in life its not good to lie. Also that a simple lie can escalate into many other lies resulting in people getting hurt. As what happened in Devon's case when she first lied to Lexi about being popular and dating Jared. The lies grow bigger as the story progresses and you can see the effects it has on Devon. From mini panic attacks to always looking behind her shoulder It made Devon a lot more stressed then she had to be in the first place.

          I would say my favorite character would be Mel or Melissa (Devon's best friend). I say this because she was so understanding when Devon couldn't hang out with her all the time from being with the popular group twenty four seven. She would help Devon out when she got to stressed and needed help, or just wanted to make her feel better by the rare times they got to hang out. I also liked how she would always meet Devon at the library for lunch so they could talk and get out all of her worries.

          I would say my least favorite character would be Kim (One of the popular girls). I say this because of the way she treats not only her so called "friends" (Lexi and Devon), but also just general people in their school. For example, Lexi had a crush on a guy from their school, and Kim ended up stealing him away from her just because she wanted to show who was the "boss" or "queen" of the school. She also threatened Devon when she had found out about all the lies, to not go near Luke (One of the popular guys) or she would tell them all. For the whole book she acted mean and selfish.

Summer Reading Project ~ The Secret Identity Of Devon Delaney Blog 1

What are two emotions the main character has felt?

 What made the main character feel that way?

 What surprises you in this story? Explain why.

          One emotion that the main character, or Devon has felt would be feeling nervous She felt nervous because she had to pretend she was with the popular group when she really wasn't (which was because she had lied to Lexi). If they where to tell Lexi then Devon's secret would be revealed and everyone wouldn't like her. Which for example made her very nervous when Lexi had been able to get them a seat at the "popular group's table". She was also nervous because she had told Lexi that she was dating Jared "the most popular guy at her school). So she had to lie when Lexi asked about them being together.

          Another emotion that the main character, or Devon has felt would be feeling worried. She felt worried because when ever something went "wrong", for example Jared liking Lexi when Jared was supposed to like her. She "fixed" it by lying and saying that Lexi was a hard to get girl. Devon also felt worried when she noticed that Mel (Melissa) was getting hurt and sad whenever Devon ditched her to be with the "popular group".

          Something that surprises in the story would be that it mentions that Devon is 13 and yet she's going through all this drama. I'm her age and yet I've probably never been through that much drama in school. It also surprises me how she's able to go out so much. My mom wouldn't let me go anywhere without bombing me with questions of where I'm going to be etc.

Summer Reading Project ~ Island of The Blue Dolphins Blog 2

List at least three problems the characters faced? Which was the most life

changing? Explain

*Spoilers Ahead*

          

          One problem the main character, Karana faced was when her brother Ramo died. This was a problem for Karana because know she would be all alone. It also pained her greatly to see her younger brother dead. It would also mean that it would be more difficult living on the island when she would have to do the things her brother could have done. For example making weapons since it was forbidden in her tribe for woman to make weapons as they believed when a woman was in danger the weapon they made would break or not work correctly.

          Another problem Karana faced would be when she had started making weapons, since she needed them for survival. At times in the book she didn't know how to make the weapons, and made them off of her memory of the men from her tribe making them. This meant that she messed up making them several times, which cost her a lot of materials which she could have made other tools from. The materials themselves where also a problem for her. For example when she needed to make a bow she would spend days or "suns" trying to find the right wood needed for it. 

          A final problem (just for the blog but there was many other ones) was when she was going to leave the island. This is a problem because since she was spoke a different language from the men that had come to get her (I'm guessing they spoke English), it took a long time for them to understand each other. It was by pointing and hand gestures that she was able to communicate. It would also be a problem because it was later she had found out that her whole tribe had been killed from the ship sinking during a bad storm, so she had no one once she would get to the main land. 

          The most life changing out of all of these would probably be the last one, when she was taken of the island. I think this because after living so long on that island it would be a huge change to suddenly move to a place she didn't know. It would be very difficult for her to learn the different languages and cultures on the main land and with no one there to support or be with her it would be hard. Also, she would need to learn how to act appropriate for example not digging for her food, or dress in a skirt of feathers. 

Summer Reading Project ~ Island Of The Blue Dolphins Blog 1

• Describe the most important event. Give at least three reasons why you think it is the most important event.

*Spoilers Ahead* 

        I think that the most important event in the story would be when Karana jumps off of the boat for her brother, Ramo when he got left behind. Her brother had been left behind because he wanted to get his fishing spear, which Karana didn't let him. They where already a bit far from the island when she sees him and jumps to go be with him. Even if he dies about five days later.

        This is an important event because her little brother, Ramo was very young and wouldn't know how to survive by himself. Even if he did die about five days later I'm guessing it would have been sooner if she hadn't been there with him. He still wasn't old enough to hunt or make tools like the other men from the tribe so he would be in trouble. 

        Another reason why this is the most important event is because when she jumps off, that makes to story progress instead of ending really short. If she hadn't jumped off then the story would have ended there. By jumping off to be with her brother its progressing the story like for example her adventures on the island after Ramo died. Even if the book would have written her adventures on the main land to me it wouldn't have made sense because of the title of the book.

        My final reason why this is the most important event is because her jumping off shows that she loves her brother so much, that she would jump of just to be with him. I think this would be a very important event because to me family is forever and I think she knew that too and wanted to be with him instead of leaving him all alone. Risking his chance of survival like I had explained earlier. What made me curious is why didn't her older sister jump to? Was she restrained by the tribe on the boat after Karana jumped?

Future Books I want to Read :D

Here is some books I want to read in the future! 

- The Giver by Lois Lowry

- The Island at the End of the World by Austin Aslan

- The Kill Order by James Dashner

- Twisted by Laure Halse Anderson

- Survival Colony Nine by Joshua David Bellin 

- The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau 

- A Child Called "It" by Dave Pelzer 

- Unwind by Neal Shusterman

- Downsiders by Neal Shusterman 

- All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

"Paradox and Dream" Relfection

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 the shape of his nose."

             This paradox is saying how we say that we will elect people because of what we think, but in reality we chose based off of how they look, or what his or her religion is. It talks about how It doesn't matter which issue they are trying to solve, as long as they have good looks people will vote for them. This paradox is explaining how some people judge people on his or her religion, and because of that they don't see political people for their accomplishments, or the things that they want to achieve in the future. 

           I can relate to this paradox because I've seen people do this. Sometimes my family will immediately judge someone. It doesn't have to be for political reasons, just the way they look or talk. To be honest I do it to, and I'm trying to not think like that as much. I can also relate to this because I have seen it on the news. How many people didn't want Barack Obama to be President because of his race. Even after he was elected many people still don't like him because of who he is. 

Paradox: "We are able to believe that our government is weak, stupid, overbearing, dishonest, and inefficient, and at the same time we are deeply convinced that it is the best government in the world, and we would like to impose it upon everyone else."

           This paradox is saying that with the people we live with or talk to (Neighbors, friends etc.) we talk about how our government is bad. Or how it's weak and its failing on us or making us pay more tax (this ones more for adults). Then when someone visits from out of the country (relatives etc.) we say how well our country is all because we want to impress them. It's like we are two faced people that love yet hate our government.

           I can relate to this paradox because again, I've seen people do this. In fact I do it. There's been so many rumors about the government on how its bad, that I have found myself believing in them. Then of course when my family from Mexico ask me how its like over there I say everything's great the government is amazing, etc.! I also have seen my brother do this, I feel like I could have got it from him. Then again there's so many bad things related to the government, so is it really wrong for me to have my doubts?      

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Final Reflection 5/18/15

            The three most important things I have learned in Mrs. Larson's class would be how to cite the sources I use, more sophisticated words, and how to correctly write a paragraph. When we had first started citing our sources I had little knowledge on it, but now I know how to cite them correctly. Our vocabulary tests this past year have made me increase my knowledge in more difficult words and even add them to my vocabulary. I want to say I used to not know how to write a paragraph. Like I knew it had to be three to four sentences but to be honest I didn't really understand the concept of a topic sentence and then supporting details after that, I know now however!

            Something that I will remember for the rest of my life would be our holiday parties. I say this because It was one day where we could either watch a movie, or just hang out and eat snacks. This class is like a mini family to me and it made it special that we could all just be together celebrating. I hope to always get good memories from those parties like when Jeremiah and the others ate sardine. 

            The nicest thing that someone in this class did for me would have to be when we would be about to take our vocabulary tests, we would quickly study together. I remembered the words either way but it was nice to have someone quiz you so you can have those words fresh in your brain. I would actually get better grades then I did before those little vocab reminder tests. 

            I feel like something I taught some of my other peers would be to do your time management. Many times me and some of my other peers would wait until the last minute at the beginning at the year. Now I've learned that I have to pace my homework, so that I wont be as frustrated. 

            I feel like one of my biggest improvements would be my reading skills. I think that I've done this because of reaching my goal of 25 books during the year. To me this is a big accomplishment and I'm very proud of it. Even if some may think this is a short amount. 

            I think that the most challenging part of this year would be keeping up with the homework. I would always get it done but sometimes I couldn't keep up and would get very frustrated. This is when I later learned that time management is key in this class. 

            One of the best piece's of writing that I have written would be the Death With Dignity paper. I think this because we took so much time looking for evidence and then converting that into our paragraphs which took a lot of effort. We had also put so much time into making those paragraphs perfect, by checking if they actually made sense. To checking spelling and punctuation inside of the essay. 

            I think that the my favorite book that I have read during this year would be The Maze Runner. I think this because I immediately liked the characters and how they where sort of close to our age so I could relate to them in that way. Another reason its my favorite is because I think that the overall story was very good and that when I was reading it I couldn't put it down. 

           To the future kids in Mrs. Larson's class, the most important advice that I will give to you is to manage your time. If you don't, you will get caught up with your homework like I had in the beginning on the year. Another thing I would tell you is to not goof around in her class. Mrs. Larson is a very nice teacher that's if you do something bad or goof off in her class. From one of her student's, I wish you a great year and good luck! :D 

I Commented On:

Omar's Blog

Siari's Blog

Justin's Blog

Something That Symbolizes Me

            
              I think something that would symbolize me would be a book. I would say this because books are always filled with emotions no matter how crazy they are and I feel like that fits my personality perfectly. I also think it symbolizes me because of the fact that I love to read books. I am sometimes stubborn and very determined, like how If possible I would try to finish a good book in one sitting. As sometimes books can be determined to make people want to read them. I feel like books symbolize me because all books are different in some ways with different styles or different stories, and I like see myself being different from all the others around me. Not just sticking to one story or style but going around to try new things. I also feel like books symbolize me because in every book there is so much potential in the way it's stories are written. I feel like in my story there is so much potential for what I am going to do in the future. 

I commented on: 

 Mia's Blog

Jared's Blog

John Z's Blog

Omar's Blog

 Evelia's Blog

Of Mice and Men: The Movie

             The indecent in Weed was different from what we had read in the book. It was different from the book because in the movie the indecent was what started the whole movie and inside the book you don't know what happens until later when George is talking to Slim. I think the director chose to do it this way because it could have added more of a back story to George and Lennie. It changes the story because now we didn't need to try imagining the setting as it was displayed inside the movie, so there was more space for the indecent in Weed.

             I think that the directer would start off the movie with George on the train instead of them being at the pond because it shows how their life was back then, moving from job to job. I think it also showed how they where very poor by the way his face was dirty. I this tells us that George has had a very hard time during his life. Taking care of Lennie yet also having to move places to find work must be hard. I feel the director is telling us that maybe George must be very emotionally and physically tired, like he has done so much for Lennie and himself that maybe thats why he wants the little ranch. We can see this in the ending of the movie when George shoots Lennie. It shows how he had done so much for him, and the best way to help Lennie and himself was to let him go. 

             I didn't like the directors choice for Curley's wife. I kind of thought she would be blonde and more like meaner towards the men. She wasn't what I imagined, I thought she would have been a blonde like mean attitude, kind of like Tallulah from the musical we saw Wednesday. I would have put Emma Stone as the role for Curley's wife because from what she looks like in her pictures, she always looks serious and to be honest very scary, or mean. I'm not sure what kind of woman she is like (I'm guessing she is a good person) but if I saw her in the movie I would probably say she would do great as the role of Curley's wife. 

             Overall I thought that Of Mice and Men was a very good book. I liked that it wasn't one of those books where everything in life has a happy ending, because it doesn't. I think that from Of Mice and Men was when George had to shoot Lennie. I say this because It shows what true friendship is. That even though George didn't want to do it, he did it for Lennie because he knew that Lennie was dangerous like when he had killed Curley's wife and he knew it was for his own good. It shows how he put Lennie in front of himself by actually shooting him and not letting them take Lennie to jail as they would of if they had found him. I would recommend this book to my friend Karen because she loves books that have sad endings, (I don't know why that's just her) and I feel like this would get her very emotional just like it did to me. 

            

Aow Reflections

            For this week's Gallery walk I learned a lot. For example Devin's aow (Article of the week) talked about how the riots in Baltimore have been causing a lot mayhem. I had heard about this before but hearing him talk about how many buildings and cars where set on fire me me realized how upset, angry and even crazed these people are. The people rioting had set 144 vehicles and 15 buildings on fire. He had severed spine injuries and a crushed throat box, because of those injuries he died in the cop car. Which lead to the many riots inside of Baltimore and other cities as well. I think that because of all the recent news with cops and the killings it has accelerated so much that, it may be the reason it set everyone off. 

             Another article I found interesting was Omar's article on free water in California. I thought this because I know that California has been in a drought for a long time. Their solution was to refine the toilet water, into drinking water. It concerns me that if they where to give away all the water, where would they drink after wards? Omar told me that people can get how ever much water they want for free. He also talked about how 25% of the water has already gone from the water that California has. If the people from California keep using up the water this fast, what will happen in the future?

 
              The last article that I found interesting was Joseph's article about emotions. I thought this because I use to have a dog and I remember always getting happy when I would pet him or be around him. He talked about how just staring into a dogs eyes could make you feel happier. It could also make the bond you both have (friendship or loyal) bond stronger. I feel like I'm evidence of this being true. Even if I didn't stare into my dogs eyes for hours, all those times where he made me happy count.

 

Weekly Blog for 4/27/15 OMAM

Prompt:

Brainstorm the different types of conflicts via your Google doc, creating a chart that addresses the conflict, types of conflict, and the effect that the conflict has had on the plot so far. From your brainstorming session, choose at least two conflicts to 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.

First Conflict: Crook vs Society

Second Conflict: Lennie vs. Curley


            One conflict that I noticed was that Crooks wasn't accepted into the farm. I saw this because he often mentioned that no one wanted him to be around because he was 'black'. This affects the story because he can relate to the other characters and make the reader maybe feel sorry for them. Like the bad things about them or there faults. Like Curley's wife, how she gets separated from them because she is a girl. In the story he says that no one wants him to play cards with him because hes black. This shows how much racism was going on at the ranch. He all alone against all the white men on the ranch.

            The second conflict that I noticed was Lennie and Curley. In the story I think Candy had said that Curley didn't like big guys. Thats why immediately there was that tense feeling in the bunkhouse when Curley first met Lennie. Then afterwords Curley kept sending mean glances or glares while Lennie was scared and tried to hid from him. After awhile it all lead up to the fight that happened between them and caused Lennie to crush Curley's hand.

I commented on:

Mia's Blog

Diana's Blog 

Jared's Blog

Dream Poem

Dreams exisit

Everywhere around us

It's what keeps us going

Even in the darkest times

It helps us decide our future

Even if we change them

Its something that we always

try to reach in the end

because it will make us happy

They are seen as 'dreams'

yet if you chase it far enough

It would become reality

My dream is different from yours

but that doesn't stop us from trying 

to both reach our own

Weekly Blog for 4/20/15 Of Mice and Men

º Describe the atmosphere of the ranch and bunkhouse.
º 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?

            I would say that the atmosphere of the bunkhouse would be tense. I think this because before Curley came into the bunkhouse, it was fine but since a bit later in the book we discover that Curley doesn't like big men. Since Lennie is big Curley tries to intimidate him which causes George to get mad, "He glanced coldly at George and then at Lennie. His arms gradually bent at the elbows and his hands closed into fists He stiffened and went into a slight crouch. His glace was at once calculating and pugnacious. Lennie squirmed under the look and shifted his feet nervously." This means that since Curley doesn't like big men he immediately tried to be mean by curling his fists and going into like a fighting position like if Lennie did something to show a threat, he would attack. Even after Lennie does get scared and wants to leave, George becomes like a brother and tries to calm him down. This makes that tense mood that stayed even after Curley left. I think that the atmosphere of the ranch is mostly Tense as well, as we don't see that much of the whole ranch in the first one to three chapters. 

             I think that Curley's wife doesn't have a name because since shes the only girl there, and is to be married to Curley it would be reasonable for everyone just to call her Curley's wife, as the book refers to her as. I think this because since back then women where seen as possessions there would be no need to give her a name as she could just be called "Curley's wife". In the story it says "He got married a couple weeks ago. Wife lives over in the boss's house." Which just states that they don't bother calling her by her first name if she even had one because now she is Curley's wife, its more practical to just call her that. I think that the message John Steinbeck is trying to say is that back then women where considered possessions and it didn't matter if she had a name or not.

I commented on:

Mia's Blog

Diana's Blog

John's Blog

Weekly Blog for 4/13/15 Alabama Moon

Are the characters realistic (do they seem like they could be read people)? Why

or why not?

• Describe a character that you would like to meet (which doesn’t mean that you

think you would like the character, but that you think the character would be

interesting). List 4 questions that you would ask.

Describe the major conflict. What side are you on?
 

          I think that the characters in this story seem like they could be real people. I think this because sometimes you find people living in the woods like Moon and his father (not exactly like them, they must have electricity and like a cabin).  I also think that they could be real people because like any other boy that loses his parents and has no relatives, he goes to a boys home. I also think that the characters could be real people because in the story, not everyone is perfectly healthy as for example Kit has cancer.

          I would like to meet Moon. He is a brave kid and I would love to have him tell me what its like to live in the wild. I would ask him "What did it feel like burying your own father?" I would ask him this because he must have been very emotional, and it surprised me that a kid had that much strength to bury his own father. Another question I would ask would be, "How did you feel when they put you in the boys home?" I would ask this because it was all of the sudden, from the forest to an actual home, I wonder how he felt. I would ask him "Why did you go back to the store to talk to Mr. Abroscotto?" because I'm guessing he knew that Mr. Abroscotto could have just called Sanders to catch him but yet he did it anyways. My final question that I would ask him would be "How do you feel living with Hal?" I would ask him this because like before it was a sudden change and he seems to be doing well but I would ask this just to make sure. 

          The major conflict in the story is that Moon wants to live in the forest while many other people tell him not to. The major conflict is also when Sanders is trying to catch Moon, because he left with Kit and Hal. I am on Moon's side because yes, it is insane that a kid wants to live in the woods. I would never do it. Moon on the other hand, has lived in the forest his whole life. Even if his father died I think that he is very skilled and prepared to live life the same as when his dad was alive. 

I commented on:

Bianey C

Rebecca T

Devin R  

Poetry Reflection

          Poetry has a great importance in my life because it brings curiosity and joy in reading the many types of different poems. To trying to figure out what they mean to sharing your opinions with friends on which ones you like or dislike. I also think that poetry is important because it because I can sometimes let my emotions out. When I'm sad or happy I can write my feelings out for example if a family member were to pass away or I were to get straight A's. I feel like sometimes the more emotion in poems is what makes them better even if its bad or good.

          I think that poetry does belong to everyone because poetry always has emotion in it, and we do to. This makes it belong to everyone because in one way or another we can relate to poetry and maybe what the poems say themselves. I think that it is also belongs to everyone because poetry is basically experssing emotions, even if it was through figurative language, similes, metaphors or alliteration its always there. We always find ways to put emotions in our writing and I feel like poetry is one of the biggest ways, which is why I strongly believe it belongs to everyone.

          I think that the life and experiences of a poet affect a poem he or she creates because based upon his or her life its going to be good or bad. If he or she has had a bad life, their poems are probably always going to be maybe sad or depressed. If he or she has a good life, their poems are probably always going to be about happiness or maybe good things in life. This affects their poems because its the more good or bad things that they have gone though in life the more emotions either will put inside their poems, like I had said before, poetry is basically all about expressing your emotions.


- Extended Metaphor Poem 
- Bio-Poem of a Literary Character
- Where I'm Form Poem 
- Two-Voice Poem 
- Spine Poem 
- Found Poem 
- Nonsense Poem
- Picture Poem

Nonsense Poem

Found Poem

"The Mysterious Door"

It Just doesn't seem right,

that closed door

The fourth wall

a second red door

several metal bars,

a triple lock

"Where does that strange door lead?"

"It doesn't go anywhere"

Is it a vault?

No

Do you have a key?

I have three keys

Open it, will you?

This poem was made to create a mysterious type feel to the door and to question why its there. It makes the reader question, "Why is it there?", "What is behind it?" etc. I think that this was a good poem because these where the questions I thought to myself while finding this. The other poems in my class are probably also not going to be the same.

Spine Poem

  This poem is about how time goes on through night or day. It talks about how even if someone tried to reach you in the night or in day, you would be too ahead, like if you where almost home. I wanted to make this poem a bit sadder yet sort of happier then the rest of the poems many of my other classmates would have chosen to do. I feel like this poem is meant for those people who don't know where there going in life. Its like there questioning if its either night or day as the (days or nights) quickly pass by without them noticing. Then when someone tries to help them, there to far gone "a long way gone".  At the ending then maybe they are "almost home" as in perhaps they have finally found their way.

Thinglink Poetry

Two Voice Poem

The Secret Garden By Frances Hodgson Burnett
Pages: 0 -142

Picture Poem

“The Mountain In The Sky”

I walk along the bank

hearing the swooshing

and swashing of the river

as it clashes with the mountain rock

The moon making the snow sparkle

and twinkle like millions of tiny

diamonds as I walked past

I layed on a rock at the very top,

with snow covering it like a soft blanket

that wrapped me up in its warmth

and looked up to see, millions of

billions of stars across the night sky

The different shades of

blues and purples all mixing together

to create even more magnificent colors

looking like a giant painting in the sky

Creating something utter most beautiful

I came here to escape my problems

to have my worries disappear,

and let the stars take me

to somewhere I can let go

here in the gentle mountain

I call my second home