1st Quarter Reflections

      I cannot believe that the first quarter is over already! It went by so fast. 

Where are you in your 20 Book Challenge?

So far this year, for the 20 book challenge, I have read 15 books. I have read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen, Counting but 7's by Holly Goldberg Solan, Paper Towns by John Green, Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. I have also reread some of the Harry Potter Series, including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. I have also finished the Series of Unfortunate Events Series by Lemony Snicket. The Histile Hospital, The Carnivorous Carnival, The Slippery Slope, The Grim Grotto, The Penultimate Peril, and The End. I hope that I will continue to read more and finish the challenge, which I know that I will, considering that the challenge is only 20 books and I have three quarters left.

How has your writing progressed?

I think that my writing has come a long way since last year. Just this quarter, I have learned a lot about writing style, voice, formatting, grammar, etc. Looking back at my old blogs, I am noticing all of these little mistakes that I hadn't noticed before. 

What are your goals for ELA in the next three quarters?

My goals for the next three quarters are, for one, to get better ar vocab. Last year, I was great at vocab. I would study and I would usually do very well on the tests. But, this year, I am struggling. I usually forget to study and don't do as well as I would like to. So for the next three quarters, I really want to improve on that. Another goal for the next three quarters is to finish the 20 Book Challenge and hopefully get to 40. Last year, I got so close to finishing the 40 Book Challenge, I think that I read about 35 books. This year, my goal is to finally finish the 40 Book Challenge. 

Confessions of a Madman

The following is a recorded confession of Montresor to the murder by asphyxiation of one -- Fortunato.

You understand why you are here correct?
Yes.
So then, why are you so calm?
You do not frighten me. 
And why is that?
Nothing does, nothing ever has. Now then can we get on with it? You're wasting my time.
Just to clarify, you are speaking of your own free will?
Yes.
And you will speak the truth, and nothing but the truth?
Of course I will.
Now then can you please explain, in detail, why you are here?
You already know why I am here.
Yes, but you must say it yourself, otherwise it would not be a confession.
You have a point. I am here to confess  to murdering my dear friend Fortunato.
In detail, Mr. Montresor
Everything? From planning to the act?
Yes.
Very well. I first wished to kill him when he dared to insult me.
He insulted you? 
Yes.
Was it really deserving of murdering him?
Yes. 
Well, what did he say?     
He insulted the Montresor family. If I'm correct his exact wordswere, " The Montresors we once a great family, so full of culture and talent. It is a shame that they have been reduced to this."
Well that is rather harsh. When was this?
Over my dead mother's grave.
Ah....I see.
You understand my contempt for him, no?
Regardless of what was said and where, don't you feel remorse for your actions?
No.
Not at all?
No, not at all.
I see. Carry on.
I returned home and considered if I would ever have a chance for revenge. I wanted to reduce him to a mere sentence, as he did to my family. I understood that it would not be easy, he was a rather public figure, then there was the pesky matter of witnesses. I was thinking that I would need to lure him to a place he would not be noticed, and then do the deed. I know that murder can be a messy business, so I had to find a way to kill him without killing him. That way if they found him I wouldn't be directly responsible.
So why are you confessing?
I got bored.
Bored? Bored of what?
Bored of everything. I had been planning this for months, it was my everything. And so I now have nothing to do with my life.
You do realize the years you will be facing, right?
Considering the insults, and all the other things I had to bear, it was worth it.
What other things?
He hurt me in a thousand ways. 
Hurt? As in a physical injury?  
One could perceive it that way.   
You could be facing the death penalty, and you claim it was worth it?
I have no intention of facing my charges. 
And just how do you intend to escape them? 
I have just as many enemies as I do friends. 
Please elaborate.
I'd rather not.
It was not a request.
I do believe it was
I will repeat myself, how do you intend to escape your charges?
………….
Mr. Montresor?
…………. 

The recording ends there. There is no record of anything said or done by Montresor before the trial, where he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to death.

I commented on Sofia's Blog, Aine's Blog, and Hazelle's Blog.

"A Gift From the Angels" - Of Beetles and Angels Poem

This is a poem made from quotes taken from Of Beetles and Angels by Mawi Asgedom.

I was told to forget our differences.
And unite.
That I needed a heart that sees angels
A lifelong inspiration.
I was told that no matter how much strangers resembled beetles,
to treat them as if they were angels sent from heaven.
That they were to test the deepest sentiments of my heart.
In America, I found that people used a different calculator.
Beauty was external, money mattered, and so did skin color.
They only saw angels, when angels could help them.
To my parents, It didn’t matter who the person was or how much they had.
The poorest, most recently arrived refugee
received the same welcome as the richest American.
That is something I learned from them.
I learned that of the gifts that we can give,
the greatest is to see the beauty in each other
Because true power
comes from focusing on what we can give,
not just what we can take.
The big sweeping revolutionary actions are not always the most noticeable.
Quite often, it will be the small things that all of us can do
that will have the most impact.
And today’s small act of kindness
can become tomorrow’s whirlwind of
human
progress.

Of Beetles & Angels Blog

      We are reading Of Beetles & Angels by Mawi Asgedom. It is the story of his life and how he went from a refugee camp in Sudan, to getting a full scholarship to Harvard. So, currently, Mawi is in America with his family. His mother, Tesege, his father, Haileab, his brothers, Tweolde and Hntsa, and his sisters, Mehret and Mulu. They are brought to America by the World Relief Organization. 
This week, I also read an article called, "Refugees can be an economic engine for small communities" by Stateline.org and Newsela. It is about how some small towns across the country, but more specifically Rutland, Vermont, have been relocating refugees from all over Africa and the Middle East to try to boost their decreasing population and economic issues. In the article, it says, "The mayor, however, sees a solution. He has asked Vermont’s resettlement agency to send refugees to Rutland. He adds that they would help fill vacant housing and entry-level jobs and keep the economy moving. Many small towns across the country are doing the same thing in order to deal with shrinking and aging populations." this means that the population is going down, so they are taking in refugees in order to help it. The connection that I made to Of Beetles and Angels is with the World Relief Organization. In the book, the World Relief Organization, is the organization that helps Mawi and his family relocate to America. They helped with finding sponsors, housing, education, etc. In the book, it says, "My parents could'nt just snap their fingers and conjure up a transatlantic jetliner. They needed help, so they contacted World Relief, a U.S.-based Christian organization that located refugees and helped them resettle in the United States." In the article, the refugees were being helped by three different organizations. The first one is called The Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program. In the article, it says, "After considering other cities in the state, the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program, the local section of the USCRI, recommended that 100 Syrian refugees be sent to Rutland." I think that the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program is like the World Relief Organization because they are both organizations that help to find refugees and relocate them into America.

      Another connection from the book and the article, is another organization that helped with relocation. It is called the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI). In the article, it says, "U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), a network of groups that help resettle refugees around the country." This relates to the World Relief Organization because they, again, both help to find and relocate refugees into the U.S. 

       How does war effect individuals and societies? 
War can greatly effect individuals and societies. For example, during wars, many people are forced from their homes or villages into refugee camps. This is what happened in Of Beetles and Angels, with Mawi's family, and it is currently happening with the Syrian Refugees. In the book, it says, "I may or may not remember seeing my mother look at our house in Adi Wahla, Ethiopia, just before we left... I remember playing soccer with rocks, and a strange man telling me and my brother Tewolde that we had to go on a trip, and Tweolde refusing to go. The man took out a piece of gum and Tewolde happily traded it for his homeland." Mawi and his family were forced out of the house that they loved, they were forced to go to a Sudanese refugee camp, because of the 30 year war (1961-1991) that took place between Eritrea and Ethiopia. Refugees from Syria, have also been forced out of their homes and into refugee camps. But, it is just one of the ways that war can effect societies and individuals.  

All About Me (Again)

       Welcome back to my blog. Or welcome new people. My name is Sophie,  as you can see from the title, and I am 13 years old (14 in February). I am in 8th Grade and I live in Illinois.

       I don't really do much in my free time. I watch YouTube and Netflix, I draw, I read, and I love to listen to music. I also play the guitar and the ukulele. I am obsessed with the Harry Potter Series and the TV show Sherlock on Netflix. I can quote entire episodes and they are 1.5 hours long. I hope you have enjoyed learning a little bit about me.

   

End of the Year Reflection - (Final Blog of the Year!)

      I cannot believe that we have reached the end of the year already! It all went by so fast. So much has happened this year, and although I am kind of heartbroken that it is coming to the end, I am really excited for summer. 

What are the three most important things you learned this year?

      I learned a lot of things this year. I think that the most important thing that I learned about this year was time management. Last year and at the very beginning of the year, I would usually wait until the last minute to do homework or projects. This year, since there is a lot more homework, and I had more after school activities, I had to learn how to manage my time more and plan things out so that I can get things done and still have time do the activities that I want. The second thing that I learned this year was about studying. I learned that the best way for me to study was using flashcards. This helped me very much when I had to study for the vocabulary tests. And the third most important thing that I think I learned this year was about annotating articles. We learned how to annotate, and what to annotate for. I think that annotating is important for understanding news articles. 

What is something we did this year that you think you will remember for the rest of your life?

      Something that we did this year that I think I will remember for the rest of my life is the poetry unit. I learned about different types of poems, figurative language (mostly metaphors), and how to write poetry ourselves. During this unit, I found out that I actually like poetry, and I really like writing it. I think that I never really liked poetry because I didn't understand it. But, now that we learned about metaphors and figurative language, I think I can understand it a little better, so I enjoy it a lot more. I also really enjoy writing poetry. I have written a number during the unit (Where I'm From, Spine Poem, Found Poem, AOW Poem, etc.) I think that this unit helped me a lot, and I think that I will continue to use these skills for a long time. 

What was the nicest thing someone in our class did for you this year?

      The nicest thing that that someone did for me was when Evelyn helped me with my homework. If there was something that I didn't understand, I would call her or text her, and she would explain it. And I would do the same for her. I am very grateful because she helped me so much. Thank you, Evelyn (if you read end up reading this).

What is something you taught your teacher or classmates this year?

      Something that I taught my classmates was about gender equality. For one of my AOWs, I chose an article that talked about the pay gap between men and women. It said how in some countries, women don't even have the same access to food that men do. The article said that even though International Women' s day is considered a holiday (kind of), women aren't close to being equal to men, at least not with equal pay. So, during the AOW gallery walk, I taught my classmates about gender equality. 

In what area do you feel you made your biggest improvements? What is something you accomplished this year that you are proud of?

      I think that my biggest improvements were with poetry. At the beginning of the year, I didn't understand most poems, so I didn't like them. I also could not write a decent poem. Ever. I wrote a terrible poem about how I didn't have anything to write about. Then, we did the poetry unit, and I got better at writing poems. I guess I was good at writing when I could write about anything and write in whatever style I wanted. I also learned about metaphors and figurative language, so I understood poems better. Something that I accomplished this year that I am proud of is getting up in front of the whole class and reading some of my poems. I was crazy nervous, but I did it. And, to my surprise, they actually liked them.  

What was the most challenging part of this year for you?

      I think that the most challenging part of the year for me was the 40 book challenge. I completely underestimated my time. I spent about a month on a book that I wasn't interested in (so I don't know why I kept reading it) and didn't read as much as I wanted to this year. For the 40 book challenge, I read 31 books, so I didn't complete the challenge. I blame myself completely. I underestimated how much time I had and wasted most of the time I had. I wish that I had spent more time reading, because I enjoyed a lot of the books that I read. I discovered that I enjoy historical fiction books, and the author Mitch Albom. But, I am really disappointed in myself that I couldn't finish the challenge. 

What was the best piece of writing that you did this year? Why do you think it is your best?

      I think that the best piece of writing that I did this year was my poems. I am really proud of them. I think that the best poem that I wrote (for this class) was the Where I'm From Poem. I think that it is the best because it has a lot of memories from when I was a little kid. For example: "from making weird videos with friends." A bunch of friends and I went to the park and spent the whole day filming an awkward dancing music video to "Worth It" by Fifth Harmony. The poem brings back a lot memories and it just makes me happy. 

Of the books you read this year, which was your favorite? Why?

      My favorite book that I read this year (that was not for this class) was The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom. This book is very different from the rest of the books that I read because it starts off with the main character, Eddie, dying. The book is his journey with five people, who help him understand his life and what happened to him. I really like this book because it is really interesting, his journey through heaven, meeting people who help him understand his life. He meets a "blue man" from the carnival where he worked, who (after a chain of events including Eddie) died. He meets his marine commander who sacrificed himself so that Eddie could live. He meets Ruby, who died before he was born, but was the inspiration for Ruby Pier where he worked, where his father worked, etc. He met his wife, who had died in a car crash trying to apologize to Eddie for yelling at him. And finally, he met a little girl who helped guide him to heaven, and had an impact on his journey through heaven, as he was trying to figure out who she was. 

What advice would you give students who will be in this class next year?

      My advice for the sixth graders going into this class next year is to manage your time well. Obviously, get your homework in on time, but leave time for after school activities. Say, if you have soccer practice or something Tuesday and Thursday, and an AOW due Friday, get it done on Monday, so 1) you don't have to worry about it the rest of the week, and 2) you aren't frantically trying to rush through it at 1 A.M. on Friday. Because if you do it at the last minute, your work won't be as good.

Blog For Week: 5.16.16 - Of Mice and Men: The Movie

      We just recently finished the novella, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, and yesterday finished the movie. Both were great, although there were some things that were different from the movie than in the book. There were also some scenes that were added into the movie. For example, the movie shows us the incident in Weed, when in the book, we hear about it from George reminding Lennie why they are on the run.

Section III

      Although the plot has the same ending in both the book and the movie, the actual ending moments of each piece are different. The movie ends with a flashback; the book ends with dialogue.

      The flashback at the end shows Lennie and George "buckin' barley bags", as they would say, and then walking off together. This shows that Lennie and George are a team and they work together. Always. This leaves the audience (at least, in my opinion) feeling sad, knowing that George has just killed Lennie, and destroyed that friendship and teamwork. 

      The book ends with a quote however. The last line is, "Curley and Carlson looked up after them. And Carlson said, "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" It kinds shows that it wasn't normal to really care about another person. It was kind of like it was every man for themselves. That's why everyone was so surprised that Lennie and George traveled together because it wasn't common for men to do that. And that is what the quote shows. It shows that Curley and Carlson thought that it was unusual for Slim to feel kind of sympathetic towards George because he had just killed his best friend. This shows that back then, it was every man for themselves. It kind of makes me feel bad, the line because no one really had a true friend or people that they could rely on. So I don't think that the feelings at the end of the book and the movie match up that much. 

Section IV

What are your general thoughts, feelings, reactions of Of Mice and Men? What had the most profound impact on you or your understanding of the novella? Who would you recommend this  book to and why?

      I really like both the movie and the book Of Mice and Men. Although I think I like the book a little more, I think in the movie, it gave off slightly different emotions (like mentioned, with the ending). In the ending of the book, there was a quote, which some people think takes away from the death of an amazing character. In the ending of the movie, there was a flashback which shows how much of a team Lennie and George were, which makes you feel really sad because that was just destroyed.

      I would recommend this book to everyone. I really would. I think that this is an amazing book and I've seen so many people (classmates), who usually don't enjoy reading, fall in love with the characters, and cry/get upset when something happened to Lennie and when Lennie died. So I think I would recommend this book to everyone.