Final Reflection Blog -

This year has been full of different obstacles in both academics and in life. This year, English Language Arts, has pushed me to challenge myself more in writing and in many other ways. Now, this school year is almost over and there is a million things all happening at once as it is coming to an end. I have learned various things this year in ELA, but the three most important things that I have learned would have to be improving my writing skills in AOWs and Blogs, using proper grammar, and learning to read/enjoy different genres of books than just the types that I am use to reading. I would say that these are the three most important things that I have learned because they have benefited me the most and will help me in the future when I go to college for journalism. 

A million things have happened this year. Out of those million things, only one thing stuck out the most. One thing that we did this year that I will remember for the rest of my life is when we did the poetry unit this year. I think I will remember this out of all the other various things that we did this year because it allowed me the most to be creative and open about how I feel. In the poetry unit, I was able to explore my mind more and write about things that I didn't even know I thought about or had a concern of. I was able to put so much passion in just a short poem, which shows that I could probably make it as a writer. They were just simple and short poems that we wrote, but they were the ones that carried the most impact because they allowed you to see into another person and what others thought. AND that is something that I will carry with me forever. 

My classmates, this year helped me as well. One of the nicest things that one of my classmates (Jack) did for me this year was give everyone at our table loose-leaf paper every Friday for vocabulary test and not just himself. I think that was one of the nicest things because it helped me out a lot because I didn't always have loose-leaf paper and he would give you paper even when you didn't ask for it. I wouldn't say I did anything really to teach my classmates because we are all very bright and belong in this class. It was little things here and there that I did to help my classmates. I would think that I taught my classmates to have more of an open mind and explore different types of books in order to view different people's perspectives. 

I have improved in various areas of this class. I would say, just being in this class has made me challenge myself more than any other class has and pushed me to go over the highest limit and reach success. I am proud to just be in this class. But, two areas that I feel I have made my biggest improvement would be in my blogs and poetry. I think I made my biggest improvements in those two areas because before learning most of the things that I know now from this class, I would have written half or one paragraph for a blog and I wouldn't even know where to start in writing a poem or the various types of poems. Since, I have improved in these areas, I am most proud of one of the poems that we did this year. The poem that I am proud of and have accomplished, is the poem that we wrote called, "Where I'm From" Poem. I am very proud of this poem because it made me think about certain things that I didn't want to think about and bring up things that I didn't realize I have been thinking about. Also, I am proud of this accomplishment because it made me use my mind and creativity in order to make a very deep and personal piece of writing, which showed who I am. 

 The most challenging part of this year for me would have to be citing sources. It is the simplest thing ever, but it was the most challenging for me. I think this was the most challenging because I would always get the alphabetical order wrong sometimes and sometimes when I would copy and paste my sources in a word document, it would get all messed up, which would cause me to get frustrated. This was the most challenging, but as I kept doing it over and over again, I got better at it and I was able to cite almost anything. This being the most challenging has helped me see what I need to improve on and really got me to work harder. 

This year was full of various types of writing.  I had enjoyed writing a lot of the pieces that we had to do, but my favorite was the poem we had to do recently about what happens when a dream dies. I titled mine, "Bulletproof Dream." I think this is my best type of writing because I put a lot of passion into it and it really made me think about all the possibilities and what could happen if I were to lose a dream I had for so long. It made me think more and understand sort of what some people may go through when they have their heart set on something for so long and then to have it just die right in front of you, just to lose all the progress that you made. It was passionate, creative, and understanding, which is what made it one of my favorites.

 I've read a ton of books this year and all had a good concept/message within them. I don't know how I can choose from them all, but I did. Out of all the books I read this year, my favorite was Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. This book is about a man and a student. It discusses how every Tuesday a young man would go to this class, where he would learn about life. They would discuss life lessons and give advice. This book is my favorite because of its concept. It is beautifully written and like all his other books, has a very good message within it. I've read this book 3 times because it is my favorite and I would recommend it to anyone who comes across it. 

For the incoming students, there is a lot of advice that I could give you.  For example, make the best out of little things, don't hold on to things in the past, or try your best. But, none relate to this class. The best advice that I could give to the incoming students who will be in this class next year is always try your hardest and don't slack off. This class is tough, but it is suppose to be, which is why I enjoy being in this class, it is suppose to make you better as a reader and writer. Never over think things because the things that you over think are always the simplest and sometimes you will get a bad grade on something, but you always have a shot to make it better, so never misuse it. This class will help you in so may ways, so don't take it for granted. 

Of Mice and Men: The Movie Blog

Of Mice and Men, is a very popular novella and movie. The difference is the way that the story is told in two different ways. There many differences between both versions of making the story come to life, but the biggest is the ending of the novella and movie...The Ending of the movie is of a flashback. The flashback shows Lennie and George carrying a sack over to wagon or truck. They throw the sack onto the truck, look at one another, and then turn around to walk away into the distance. As they are walking, George takes off his gloves and Lennie puts his hand on the back of George, they continue to walk away after that. 

The flashback leaves the audience feeling melancholy and pessimistic. I think this ending makes the audience feel this way because you are actually able to see how the characters react to everything, which creates a more realistic feel to it. In a movie, you are able to witness each person's expressions, which somewhat causes the audience to feel as well, making the various emotions come to life. 

The ending of the book is really different from the book. In the book, it ends with a single line said by one of the characters to another. The ending line occurs after George has shot Lennie and Slim comes in. Slim offers for him and George to go get drinks, while Carlson and Curley just stand there. On page 107, Carlson turns to Curley and says, "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" This tells us that the speaker, which is Carlson is way different from George and Slim. I say this because when they saw Lennie laying on the ground, dead, they didn't care at all and didn't feel any pain or sorrow. But, when they saw how George and Slim weren't really saying anything and looked kind of sad, they couldn't understand why. 

The line leaves the readers with annoyance and suspense. The reason for the readers feeling this way is because the end left on a clip hanger. The readers were also left with these emotions because it did give most answers to various questions as to what happened to George and Candy's dream and what George did after he got a drink with Slim. Although, the book ended on a cliff hanger, it also ended with the death of George and Lennie's friendship which was the whole concept of the story mostly and what made it come to life in various ways. 

In my opinion, the feelings that were felt at the end of the book compared to the movie did not match to one another at all. The book had some holes in it and the movie sort of filled in those empty holes a bit. For example, in the book, you weren't really able to view the other emotions of certain characters, but in the movie you were able to see every little and big change in a character. The book also did not match the movie because it used a lot of literary foils, which bluntly describes the characters, where in the movie you had to figure out sort of who certain people were and how they are. I think the author chose to use a different ending rather then ending the movie exactly like the book because the author was probably trying to give the readers/viewers different perspectives in a way on how the book/movie should. I think this because it allows the people to pick which ending they like best This also allows people who like to read on how the book should end and the way they want it to in their heads compared to the people who like sit and have the ending chosen for them like the movie did. 

Of Mice and Men - Conflict Blog

In the book, Of Mice and Men, there are various conflicts that go on throughout the book. These conflicts deal with man vs man, man vs self, and man vs society. There has already been several conflicts that have affected the plot in various ways as a cause and effect of the situations. The conflict in this novella causes it to be more dramatic, which makes it more interesting and suspenseful as an effect. The conflict also causes us to meet various new characters. For example, Crooks, Candy, Slim, and etc. 

The First conflict is that Lennie and George have already been targeted in a way by Curley, who is the boss's son, due to Lennie being such a big guy compared to Curley, which Curley does not like. In the text, it informs us that Curley has gotten in many fights with various "big" guys due to jealously. It says, "He glanced coldly at George then at Lennie. His arms...bent at the elbows...hands closed into fists...," which is stated in page 25. This is a man vs man conflict because Curley immediately had a problem with George and Lennie even though that have both just meant. Later on in the novella, Curley does fight with Lennie. The text says on page 63, "Lennie took his hands away from his face...Curley slashed at his eye...Curley's fist was swinging when Lennie reached for it...his closed fist was lost in Lennie's big hand." The situation between Lennie and Curley has escalated to a bigger conflict, which now could have the possible effect as to getting Lennie and George fired if Curley were to tell on them. 

The second conflict that I have chosen to look more into as to find the cause and effect of it, is the conflict with Lennie. The type of conflict that this is, is man vs self. It is this type of conflict because Lennie is not very smart, so he tends to forget things a lot, so many people (mainly George) don't think that he is very bright. In the text, it says, "I forgot. I tried not to forget.  Honest to God I did, George." This is on page 4. This textual evidence shows that Lennie is a little forgetful about things. The text also states, "Made me seem God damn smart alongside him," which is said by George. This shows that George doesn't see Lennie as a smart person, but he does see Lennie as a hard worker. In the most recent chapter, Lennie was talking with Crooks and he was saying how George and all the guys went out, but George told Lennie to stay so that he doesn't get into trouble. Since, Lennie isn't so bright and has the mentality of a child, he gets into lots of trouble, so he is told not to talk sometimes or go places. This shows that Lennie is sort of having conflict with himself because he is not able to do things because of his mental illness. 

 

"Bulletproof Dream"

BOOM! It went down
My dead dream lost in the cross fire
Thought it was bulletproof
But reality shot right through

I wished-
I prayed-
I worked-
I even gave a little faith
But Three words gave it all...
AWAY

"You ain't got no chance"
"Too Late" - "You won't make it"
They said the dream won't come alive...
and they were right

I carried my dream with me for so long -
for it all to go to waste...
I lost - I felt the pain
Reality had snuck in and...
I no longer had control

I dreamt to be a dancer
...a journalist
And in reality I thought it was possible
But I no longer had control

Reality had control over my dream
They were possible dreams, but...
They got lost on the way of becoming real
Reality didn't think they were possible

The simplest and the most realistic dreams
But compared to the unrealistic...
like two pawns in chess
battling against one another

There is no winner
And sometimes there will never be a winner
I thought my pawn was bulletproof
Protected with a shield
But reality shot right through

I won't give up
I'll get back up and...
I'll try again and if I fail once more-
I'll dream another dream
And this time I'll win!
(Just makes me stronger)

"Of Mice and Men" Blog

In the book, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck there is various atmospheres included. The atmosphere of the ranch seems to be very negative and deals with a lot of bad moods from the people. Many people at the Ranch seem to have a problem with Lennie and George, mostly the boss and his son, Curley. For example, in the book it says, "We jus' come in,' said Lennie softly. Curley stared levelly at him. 'Well, nex' you answer when you're spoke to..." As you can see, Curley seems to have a very negative attitude towards Lennie even though he does not know much about him. The overall atmosphere is negative for the ranch.

The atmosphere for the bunkhouse is not very welcoming. It was very neutral, but a lot of negative energies were in this chapter. When Lennie and George first get to the bunkhouse, they were not very happy because George found a can that kills lice and bugs next to his bed, which made the place seemed very dirty. The atmosphere was positive because Lennie and George made a friend sort of, named Swamper or Candy, which seemed to be a nice guy. Also, they met Slim, who was also a very nice fella.  The bunkhouse sort of had a negative atmosphere though because of the negative energy that was given off by Curley, who was very happy to see Lennie and George and was starting trouble with them both. 

I believe that Curley's wife not having a name in the book is due to many reasons. I believe that the reason is because of her gender. I think it is because of her gender because during that time women weren't really important, I guess I can say, so they sort of just saw the women that were married as sort of the man's arm candy and nothing else, so there was no real importance to know their names because they were like property. The message that John Steinbeck could be trying to send by not giving her name is probably the message of how most women acted in that time and maybe how no one really bothered to known what their names were. He could also be trying to send the message that all women were seen as her husband's property since they were married and nothing else because in this chapter Slim and Curley's wife were flirting and once she heard that Curley was looking for her, she ran. Also, in the chapter, Curley comes looking for her since she was not in the house where she was suppose to be, so he was really mad, which shows that he is very protective over her like you would be of your property. 

3rd Quarter Reflection

Prompts: 1). Of the books you have read this quarter, which was your favorite? Why? 2). What is something you have accomplished this quarter that you are proud of? 

I've read various books this quarter. They were different from books that I usually read, they had great life lessons, and had the most amazing plot. If I had to choose one book that was favorite out of them all, it would have to be the book, "After Ever After," by Jordan Sonnenblick. I would have to pick that book to be my favorite because of its them and the form that it is written. Its different from other books because it is written in simple form, but even though it is simple, it is still very complexed. What I mean by 'complex' is that its has many layers to it and problem that each character tries to solve. It doesn't hide the fact that Cancer is a big problem in kids and it hard to override it and survive, it shows the 'cause and effect' of having cancer and how the effects do not stop even after you have been treated and cured. 

In the book, the main character, Jeffrey, suffers from a cancer called leukemia. His best friend, Tad, also suffers from a cancer called Chronic Myelogenous  Leukemia. They both met in the 4th Grade and now they are in 8th Grade, ready to graduate. Jeffrey has been cured for his Cancer, but Tad is still being treated. Even though Jeffrey is cured, he still struggles with his math skills and learning certain things, it is an effect from his cancer. On their first day to school, Jeffrey meets a girl named, Lindsey, who Jeffrey and Tad become friends with. Tad is very blunt and isn't the nicest person, but that is only because he has been through a lot and believe that if he is cruel then people will not miss him as much (they won't feel as much pain) when or if he passes away anytime soon. Throughout this book they go through a lot of crazy obstacles and in the end things don't turn out so very good for Tad.  As you can, this is a sad, but very interesting book to read because it is about kids that are close to my age, suffering from very serious things and that is why it is my favorite. 

Something that I have accomplished and am very proud of is improving my writing skills. I am proud of this because I want to study journalism in college and hopefully become a journalist. I love to write and I want to write about the world as I maybe travel the world and study it. This quarter has taken me just a couple more steps closer to my biggest goal, but I am proud of it because it shows that I am going to reach it very soon. I know journalism isn't easy, there are a lot of things that you have to learn, even though it is just writing, but it isn't. You have to be able to understand what you are writing as well and not just write from what you know in your head, but also from what you know from your heart. I am proud to say that I want to be a journalist and that I have improved on my skills on getting there.  

Literature Circle Blog - "Trouble"

Trouble By: Gary D. Schmidt

Pages: 1 - Finished

Genre: Fiction

The book that I am reading for my Literature Circle is called Trouble by Gary D. Schmidt. It is about a boy named Henry and his family. In this book, his family says that if you live far enough away, then "trouble" will never find you, but the family (the Smith's) soon figure out that what they believed wasn't really true. Their older son, Franklin is the first one to witness trouble on first hand, when he is hit by a car that was driven by Chay Chouan, a Cambodian boy, while he was asleep at the wheel. Franklin is taken to the hospital, which he soon dies and later Henry promises himself to climb a mountain called Katahdin to prove to his brother that he is strong. 

The essential question that I have chosen is, "Is it ever really possible to move/live far enough away from trouble?"  My essential question ties into my novel because it is basically what this whole book is about. It is about how 'trouble' sort of finds its way to this family, the Smith's, and turns their whole family around. The outcome of this 'Trouble' getting to the family is that it was sort of like Karma because their son Franklin, who was hit by the car driven by Chay. This is karma cause Franklin beat Chay a couple of months before in a locker room for some reason. The outcome was also that Franklin died because of the amount of swelling in his brain from the accident. 

 The topic that is both presented in my book Trouble by Gary D. Schmidt and the article, "Donald Trump's campaign cancels rally as protesters pack the crowd," written by Newsela staff, shows the same topic of racial relations. In the book, this topic is represented by two teenage boys named Henry and Chay. It is represented by an incident that happened between both boy's families. Henry is American and Chay is Cambodian, so they are both looked at differently from others. For example, when Chay and Henry are sitting in a restaurant, two policemen walk in and immediately Chay gets stiff and nervous because the policemen start to look at him suspiciously, but not at Henry. In the article, it is represented by protestors and supporters of Donald Trump. The supporters believe that Donald Trump is doing what is best, but the protesters believe that he is wrong for trying exclude the Hispanics, African Americans, and other people from other countries from America. For example, Donald Trump has gotten his supporters (mostly Americans) to turn on the other people of various races. 

 The authors use almost the same information, but differently because of the way it is written. In the book, race relations, is used as fiction, but in the article, it is all reality. In the article, like I said, they represent it between two groups of people. For example, in the article it says, "...he is making his supporters turn against Hispanics, blacks and people from other countries...Our country is not going to make it being divided by the views of Donald Trump." As you can see, people are saying already how the various races in America are being separated. In the book, like I said, they represent the topic between Henry and Chay, two teenage boys. In the book, it discusses some personal stuff about Chay's family, since they are not American like Henry's, but Cambodian. For example, Chay has a sort secret relationship with Henry's sister, Louisa. So Chay's father was angry, but Henry nor his family knew why, until Chay told him that in his family, his father always says, "Remember you were Cambodian before you were American...And you don't fall in love with American girls." This shows how Chay's family feels towards Americans because they are part of a different race, but they aren't the only ones. As you can see, race relations, is a big topic within both forms or writing (an article and a book).