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). 

Poetry Reflection Blog

Poetry has a very big place/importance in my life. It is something that I do in order to express what I feel. Poetry carries a lot of importance in my life because there is no wrong way of writing poetry or specific format that you have to follow, that can limit your writing. It also tells a story with a deep meaning and it doesn't directly come out and say what it is about. That is why I believe that poetry does belong to everyone because each person writes poetry in a different way and about different topics/reasons. I know this because I have written/read a lot of poetry and none that I have read have ever been similar. Some poetry may have the same topics at times, but they are written for different reasons and in different ways. Poetry is an outlet that most people use to tell stories of certain times that they felt a certain way or just for fun and it something that belongs to everybody.

The life and experiences of a poet affects the poem he/she creates because most poets write about what they have experienced/been through as a way to express what they felt or still do feel about that time. Experiences of life that a person has been through are usually the best stories to write poems about because they have so much emotion that they are able to really connect with someone else. For example, Edgar Allen Poe wrote many poems about what he has been through in his life and many are well known poems. He wrote a poem called, "Annabel Lee," which is said to be written about his wife Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe, who had died. So as you can see, poems that poets right are inspired by their life experiences and some are exactly about them. 

The poem that I chose that has been published about is "Fire and Ice" by Robert Frost. The structure and form of this poem contributes to its meaning because it talks about how he thinks are two good and possible ways that the world will end. Throughout this poem, he describes how the world will end and which one he agrees with, which turns out to be both. The impact that the rhyme has to this poem is that it makes certain words stick out more than others, so you sort of remember them more and gets you thinking as well. This poem uses a good amount of imagery and repetition. The impact that these have to the poem is that the imagery helps readers of the poem picture what the narrator is sort of seeing and listen to what he/she is saying. The impact that the repetition has to this poem is that it keeps repeating the words 'fire' and 'ice', which keeps getting you thinking about it and comprehend what is the meaning of it. The poem that I have written and chose to analyze is called, "Divided Pain & Beauty," which is my spine poem. The structure and form of this poem contributes to its meaning because it is made out of book titles, which is different and gets you thinking more because of its imagery and the fact that you have to use someone else's titles in order to make a story/poem. The impact that the words/phrases has on it is it makes the poem more mysterious and gets the reader to guess the meaning of it, which may be different from what I had in mind. 

- Nonfiction Poem

- Bio Poem

- Where I'm From Poem

- Spine Poem 

- Found Poem

- Nonsense Poem

"From Shimmers to Shatter Flames" - Nonsense Poem

"From Shimmers to Shatter Flames"

By: Amelia

"Gray"

You...Me...Him...Her...They

BOOM! BANG! He's been shot down-
They don't care if we die- I've been shot...
The scent of my blood floating in the air
But you don't mind cause I'm not like you-
We ain't the same, so you just forget about me
But when a white gets shot down, its injustice
So why not for me too??

They have a set mind on race throughout their lives-
Just having someone whisper in their ear-
like a ghost taking over your body
But they're starting to understand that we're equal
That what the police are doing is wrong-
It lightens the feather a little to see that some are on our side

I didn't think a change would happen-
I would have thought they will still think that we are dangerous
like a million shots to the head hurts less than us being alive & standing
They're starting to see that is a point in time that lets us understand...
make conversation, and work with one another-
As equals...From all colors coming together-
No longer making it just a black & white television show-
Instead they act like they've known each other for years now

Not all agree though-
Some still shoot us down- while we're trying to make a change
But some don't want to make a change- they think sitting around & talking is enough
It's not enough! It's actually a dollar short - Do more, not less
Discussing isn't going to help, take a stand and speak to everyone-
Not just a certain group of members from an organization from 50

A beacon light of hope...
shining on our dream of equality and injustice...
of all people of a different skin
Standing in the middle of a bright path-
while you are the only one that is burned out like a unlit candle
Equality is rising, not dying....

Inspired by the article: "Increasing number of whites see racism as major problem. U.S. poll show"

Bio Poem: Molly Barlow

Molly,

Scared, hated, uncomfortable, lonely

A character in Katie Cotugno's story

Lover of showing affection, two brothers, and wanting to change

Who notices the cries for affection from her mother, who seems to use her just to write books about the secrets that she opens up about

Who feels the tough words of hate from people who she use to believe to be her friends, but all turned on her

Who learns to forget about the past and that not everything is her fault, it takes two people to make a wrong, not just one that is punished, while the other is let off the hook

Who says, "...I woke up today: a pattern from this summer, maybe, but instead of twin missives from either Donnelly brother this morning, they were from Imogen and Roisin...'Ready to go?'...'I am,' I tell her, and smile..."

Who used to be in love with two brothers at two different times, but both carry a big part in her heart

But now knows that she doesn't need them anymore, that she has other friends, who will always be there for her and care for her

Major character in "99 Days"

A book about self love, secrets, tough punishments, and making a change

Bronx - Character Development

In the book Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes, various characters changed almost completely throughout the book.  For example, Lupe In the beginning of the book she felt unloved and lonely because she felt like no one wanted her. She had a boyfriend that she never saw, so it made her feel like he didn't really want her either and the same with her family. She always talked about how having a baby was the only way to get someone to love her and make herself feel loved. But the truth was, while she was saying all of this and doing all of this, she was actually really pretty. Others in the story would say that all of the guys would drool over Lupe, but she would never notice or wouldn't care. She puts herself down sometimes and feels really negative, she is a dreamer of love. In the beginning she says, "...if I had a real baby, she would love me..." She keeps telling herself that in order for her to feel loved, then she would have to have a baby. But towards the end she says, "...So I don't have a boyfriend now...Neither does Janelle. Or Gloria. Or Leslie. But we have each other..." Towards the end you can see how Lupe is sort of changing and understanding that she is not alone and that she has people that love her truly, At the end of the book, she says, "Him and me had our first date over the weekend...it's great having somebody to study with...I should be able to get into a decent collage when I graduate. That's what I'm planning on..." She is finally noticing that other people do love her and that there is more to life than having a baby. She is now thinking about her relationship with Raul and what collage she wants to attend to. 

Another character that changed was Devon. In the beginning he was very shy about enjoying reading and would hide from everyone because people thought that since he was a jock that he shouldn't be into that kind of stuff. No one, but Janelle knew about his secret love for books because of a time when she caught him reading in the library. But towards the end of book, he begins to not care about people knowing about his secret love to read. He starts to read in front of people and actually say that he is going to the library to just read for fun. He even stood up to one of fellow jock friends named Max and told him that he likes to read and that he doesn't care what others think and he hopes that everyone knows. In the end, he says, "Mike slams his tray down beside me and sits...'What's that you reading?'...'Oh. Right. You got that class.'...At first I don't say anything. Then I decide. 'No man. It's not for class. I'm reading it for me, actually..." He speaks up and tells that he is reading for himself and that he enjoys it too no matter what anyone says, he loves reading. 

In the book, the setting plays a huge part in what many of the characters are like. For example, Tyrone is a huge character in the book and he is affected a lot by where he is from. He is very scared of dying/being killed because of where he lives and the people that live there. He is so concentrated of being afraid that he is going to die that he doesn't think that he is going to live long enough to do much with himself and his school priorities. The setting also affects the other characters too because some characters like Leslie and Raynard. Leslie feels like she doesn't fit in to where she is from, but Raynard feels like if he were to move from where he is from that he will lose sight of his dream because his neighborhood is what pushes him to achieve it. All in all, the setting of the story affects them all in a different way. For example, it can make one fearful, one feeling like they don't belong, and one want to stay because it was what mede him/her so strong and a dreamer. 

Found Poem - "One Change from a Dozen"

Poem-

A thought of caution
crossed her mind
We don't have many rules
but the rules we do have
might well include no personal thoughts
First after all A blast of country-
Hell for Leather
Put the change in her
what a person can buy, 
In a tour of more than a dozen
Caught her attention:
forty-five cents-
ninety-nine cents-
forty-four cents-
seventy-nine cents-
Even a price-tag, seemed
exciting or significant enough...
Ride to the skylight towers

The theme of this poem is need for change. I chose this theme because in the beginning of this poem talks about how she changes. The message of this poem is that even if you are one out of a million people, you can still change. I think this is a good message for this poem because it expresses what I believe the poem is about and what I was thinking as I reading this page.

The main point of this poem is to show how a person can change no matter what. I think this is the main point of the poem because it is what sticks out the most as you read it and everything that it describes represents this main point. The poem is describing how she changed and why she changed. For example, in the poem it says, "...Hell for Leather put the change in her..." It shows how one thing changed her out of a dozen other things.

           

Spine Poem - "Divided Pain & Beauty"

        The theme of my spine poem is the overlooked. I chose that theme for the poem because if you overlook the pain of something, you are really able to see the beauty of it. This makes the message of the poem, so much more important. The message of the poem is that something can start out really painful because it says, "A Night Divided...Nothing Left To Burn..." But as it continues to go on, it stops at "...Beautiful Creatures," which really gets you thinking about how something can go from bad to good. So I made the message to be and show that no matter if something starts out in pain, it soon becomes beautiful and happy.

The main point of this poem is to show the difference from pain and beauty. When I was putting this together I wanted for people to see that there is nothing left to burn and beautiful creatures, that is the main thing that I wanted to get to stick out more because nothing besides the last line was happy or close to happy. 

"Where I'm From" 2/18/16

Bronx Masquerade - Comparison and Contrast

        The book Bronx Masquerade written by Nikki Grimes is about a group of teens that all go to the same high school. Their english teacher is having them learn about the Harlem Renaissance in class, so they are starting to write poetry about the event. As they start to write poems for class, they all soon discover they're secret passion for writing poetry. Their english teacher sees how many students love writing poetry, so he starts "Open Mic Fridays" where students can come in and read some of their very own poems that they have written. As this continues, the students start to use poetry as their outlet to write what they feel and whats on their mind.

        Two characters that I found were similar in the book Bronx Masquerade are Diondra Jordan and Devon Hope. These two students are similar because they both want to show people who they truly are without being afraid of what will be said about them. Diondra is one of the tallest girls in school, so people feel like she should be good at basketball, but she isn't. She is an artist and wants to show people that, but she isn't very confident and she feels like people would make fun of her. Devon is like that to. He is a basketball player and he's really good at it. He doesn't just like basketball though, he also loves to read, but not many people know that. He is afraid to tell people that he actually enjoys reading because he doesn't want to be judged like Diondra does. 

        Two characters that I found to be very different are Lupe Algarin and Judianne Alexander. These two students are different because they both have very different stories and problems. Lupe feels unloved and neglected, so she wants to have a baby in order to have someone love her. On the other hand, there's Judianne. Judianne feels like she isn't pretty enough and doesn't think her mother loves her because she is ugly. Judianne feels like Lupe has it easy because she is so pretty and every guy falls for her, but she doesn't think or see that. She even says, "Lupe has no idea how pretty she is. You should see how Raul and some of the other guys-Black and white-sniffing around her." All in all, Lupe doesn't feel like anyone loves her, so she wants a baby, and Judianne, feels like she isn't pretty, but Lupe is. 

Poetry Response 1/27/16

"Alone" By Edgar Allen Poe

From childhood's hour I have not been

As others were; I have not seen

As others saw; I could not bring

My passions from a common spring

From the same source I have not taken

My sorrow; I could not awaken 

My heart of joy the same tone;

And all I loved, I loved alone.

Then- in my childhood, in the dawn

Of a most stormy life- was drawn

From every depth of good and ill

The mystery which binds me still:

From the torrent, or the fountain;

From the red cliff of the mountain,

From the sun that round me rolled,

In its autumn tint of gold,

From the lightning in the sky

As it passed me flying by,

From the thunder and the storm, 

And the cloud that took the form

(When the rest of Heaven was blue)

Of a demon in my view. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The poem that I chose to write is "Alone," by Edgar Allen Poe. I chose this poem for various reasons. It's unique compared to other poems that I have read, its darker; it expresses so much through the simplest word choice. It mainly makes me question myself and ask what the mystery is behind it that made him write this type of poem. This poem expresses about his feelings/beings alone and I think many people can sometimes relate to that. He says stuff about the difference from what other people (children) saw and were doing compared to him. It's a dark poem, but it's truthful, not all people have happy childhoods and I think that's what mainly gets to me about this poem. 

I think this poem is about his childhood and him feeling alone. It seems to me that his childhood was very dark and thats what made him express intense/dark points of view in the poem. He uses small words, but they give a lot of meaning to the poem. This poem seems like he was different from other children in his time and so when he said "When the rest of heaven was blue...Of a demon in my view, " it makes me think what the demon sort of represented, so it sort of got me thinking that it could be about a parent, family member, or just a person in general. I think the author wrote this poem because he needed to let out his feelings. I think that he was passionate about it and thought that it was better to share it with everyone else instead of hiding it away. Edgar Allen Poe, I believe wrote this poem to sort of send a message of some sort to a person or himself. It shows what is to be alone through an intense concept. 

This poem reminds me of children around the world, who may feel or are all alone. They do things by themselves and what Edgar said, "And all I loved, I loved alone," made me wonder if thats what other people whether they are adults or children feel at times. I think about children mainly in the world because this poem mainly is about his childhood, so others could possibly have the same childhood or similar to his. This poem also made me think of a time when my cousin and I got lost one time when we were younger in a store. We got scared that we were left alone, it was terrifying and was an awful feeling. It made us feel like something bad was gonna happen, so I can of feel like when it says "of a demon in my view," that it sort of represents what he is afraid of. 

I drew this picture because it was what I visualized as I read this poem. I drew it because of the last three lines, which are, "And the cloud that took the form (When the rest of Heaven was blue) Of a demon in my view." Those lines were mainly the ones that got my attention about this poem because it it really "dark" and it kind of makes it harder to understand the meaning of them compared to rest of lines in the poem.  

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2nd Quarter Reflection Blog

Prompt: 1). Of the books you have read this quarter, which was your favorite? Why? 2). In what area do you think you made your biggest improvements in English Language Arts? 3). What have you learned about the world? 

         I've read various books this quarter. They were all amazing, unique, and had different lessons within them that have taught me so much. If I had to choose one book that I really enjoyed reading, it would have to be the Time Keeper by Mitch Albom because it taught me the most. It was different from other books because it shows how a man created time without knowing how big of a discovery it was. It shows how even though he made this discovery, it made him pay a price, but in the end he found out that "time" itself didn't matter, but it matters what you do with it. The Time Keeper, is the greatest book that I have ever read in my opinion, it might not be so logical in the end, but it makes you open-minded about all kinds of possibilities. It makes you believe that anything can happen in just a matter of seconds and that makes you even more grateful for the "time" that you do have rather than the "time" that you don't. 

        I think that I have made many improvements in ELA, but the biggest improvement that I have made would have to be in writing narratives. It taught me different ways to write better with using more detail in my narratives rather than not using any at all. It gave me a different perspective that I can write with in order to change my writing style and try something different from what I am use to. It let me explore my mind in order to express myself more. I love writing and being able to learn more about it really makes me want to reach for higher expectations for myself. I want to be a journalist and in order to get there, I need to keep improving more than I have already have to reach it. I hope to improve more in English Language Arts and learn new things as well. 

        I have learned many things about the world, that I didn't know much about before. I am able to understand why certain topics that deal with world is important for us to know because it benefits how we live and the events that will or do occur. I learned many things about gun right laws and some of the crimes that have to do with them. There are various things that I learned, but there is still plenty more to learn as well because the world keeps moving and stuff keeps happening. The world never stops revolving around the sun, it never stops spinning either, but I learned that some of the bad stuff that happens in the world, we can stop. There is so much that we can improve about our society. 

       

Blog for Week 1-20-16

99 Days by: Katie Cotugno

Pages: 1-Finished

Genre: Fiction

       The book that I have chosen for this blog, which I have just finished reading, is 99 Days by Katie Cotugno. The genre of this book is fiction, so it is a made up story. The main character of this book is a girl named Molly Barlow, who used to be kind, outgoing, and had many friends is now quiet, kept to herself, and doesn't have many friends. This story takes place in Molly's tiny hometown, Star Lake. There are various moods that go very well with this book, for example, heartbreak, anxiousness, and excitement, but the main mood that the book evolves around is heartbreak. The conflict in the book is between Molly and three of her childhood friends that are all siblings. Her friends names are Julia, Patrick, and Gabe Donnelly. The conflict they are having all started in Molly, Julia, and Patrick's sophomore year of Highschool, while Gabe was in his freshman year of college. Molly and Patrick were childhood sweethearts, until she cheated on him with his brother Gabe and that is when it all turned for the worst. The theme is mainly betrayal and friendship because of Molly bretraying Pratrick and ruining her friendship with her friends Julia and Imogen. 

      I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the way the author wrote the book with so much detail about what happened in the past between Molly and her friends. The book 99 Days is the type of book that is very hard to forget, the style, which is written in detail of what Molly did on each day for the 99 days that she is going to be in Star Lake before going to College. The main thing that I most remember about the book is the relationship that Molly has with all her friends throughout and at the end of book. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading books that are filled with intense amounts of details and has a complicated plot to it, that you would need to be open-minded in order to get the concept of it. I think people should go out and get this book because it is something different from other books that have a similar theme and mood. Also I think they should go out and get the book because I really enjoyed it and I think others would to as well. 

I commented on: Brimady's Blog,  Evelyn's Blog, Darya's blog, and Hazelle's Blog