End of the year reflection

This class is one of the few classes that actually like teaches you about the real world. I enjoyed this class so much because you made it interesting and fun. You actually were excited to teach us everyday!!


For me the hardest essay was synthesis because you had to manage your time well. It's hard to time yourself when you have to read all the sources. Then categorize them and organize them. Whenever I wrote the essay it was always jumbled because I wasn't very good at putting them together with the same idea.


The argumentation a was  easier for me because although you had to pull information from politics, history, and others, I enjoyed the fact that I was able to put my own opinion into it. It's easier for me to write about how I feel about a topic than stick to a structure.


I thought the book The Things They Carried was an interesting book. I enjoyed reading it and it was an easy read. Also it wasn't that long which helps a lot. It also opened up large discussion topics for the Socratic seminar. It was one of my favorites


The Crucible was the worst. It was harder reading old English. And thinking about the topics with a mindset from our time period. There were also a lot of characters so it was hard to keep up with. Also I don't think how we read it was very good. We read in class and then small groups. I think we should of just completely read in class and kept the same people the same characters



This class was one of my favorites and I am so glad I took it! You're such a good teacher and keep everything interesting and fun to learn! Thank you so much for being excited to teach us everyday!

The Things I Carry

 Like the book The Things They Carried, I carry physical and emotional things with me day to day. They shape who I am and what I do daily.

  One physical thing I carry that drives my mom crazy is my cellphone. I always need it near me. I feel completely lost with out it. This isn't always a good thing, but I love having it with me. I am connected with my best friends  by my phone. If they need anything I am always just a phone call away, and I like the idea that if I need someone I can just call. My phone is a thing I carry. 

  One of my dreams and goals that I carry would be the best I can be. That has to do with college and grades, but also being the best person I can be. I want to be the person everyone wants to go to and be with. I also want to be successful in life. I'm not exactly sure what I want to study or be when I grow up, but I just know I want a job that doesn't deal with being stuck in an office all day. This pushes me everyday to try my hardest and do the best I can do. My dreams and goals are things I carry.   

 My relationships are another thing I carry, they help me get through the day. My best friend would be Zoe, she helps bring me back down to earth and I can tell her anything. She is one of very few people that I can stand to be around for a long time. If I make a dumb decision she is there to help me get through it. She never judges. It's nice to have someone like that in your life. My parents are also something I carry. I imagine what they would say or do when I make some decisions. It is also nice knowing that there will always be someone who will love you. My brother is another person that effects me greatly in my life. He helps me and tells me when I make a dumb decisions. He also helps me get through them. My relationships with friends and family are things I carry.

  My personality is one thing I carry that defines me. I would describe myself as nice, worrisome, and dependent. I try hard to be nice to people and if I don't really know them that well I try to be extra nice. I am worrisome because I'm constantly worrying about upcoming events or interactions, and I always worry about what people think of me. I am dependent because I hate doing things and going places alone. I have never gotten gas alone. I would love to be carefree, independent, and confident. I think people can think of me as mean, independent, and stubborn. I can be viewed as mean because I am not afraid to speak my mind when someone close to me makes a very bad decision. I can be seen as independent because I do not constantly cling to people ,and I can be seen as stubborn because if there is something I truly disagree about doing I wont do it no matter what. My personality is what defines me. My personality is something I carry.

  My one memory that will always stay with me takes me back to kindergarten. It was the 100th day of school celebration and after school my mom drove me to my grandmothers house. Something had gone wrong with my grandfather, he had a brain tumor and had not been doing good for a while. Once we got there an ambulance came to take him away. I remember looking out of my grandmother's front window holding my candy bag in my hand watching the ambulance drive away. He died shortly after this moment. This memory has always stuck with my throughout my life because it shows me that you should always appreciate what you have and who you have in your life because you never know when it could all be gone. I have made many decisions in my life based off of this memory. The memory of my grandfather is one that I carry.

Other

       America is known to be a melting pot of cultures. People from around the world come here to experience the diversity of America. Some people come to be who they are and others come to make their lives better, but still respect their culture. Sometimes when they are put into places with a ton of other cultures it is hard to keep their own through generations to come. One of the many issues families face is how to accept and explore their cultures without forcing it on your kids. You want your kids to grow up and love what you grew up to love, but they were born and raised in America. They grew up completely different from how you did and you can't change that. You can try but they will never truly appreciate your culture. The one good thing about America is the fact that not one single person is the same, every person has a separate background. As much as they try to run from it, it will always be apart of them.

      You could say that my family is lucky because we don't really have to worry about all of that too much. Both  of my parents were born and raised in America, and their parents were too. My dad's great grandmother was part Native American and my mother's side of the family is part German and part Scottish. We don't have a rich culture to celebrate and accept. We do though have some Indian artifacts through out my house, and my uncle does look for arrow heads. Sometimes he will even make them. Besides that we really don't look into our culture. I do though wish we had some sort of rich culture, like if my grand parents were from some foreign country or even my parents.

    If my family had a dynamic background I would be interested in it. I would want to go visit every summer where they are from. I would want to try all of the cool and unique foods that come from there. I believe learning their language would be a great way to celebrate the culture as well, not only does it help you get a job but there is now something about you that sets you aside from everyone else. It's important for people to celebrate their rich culture and heritage, if I had a super cool one I would.

A Walk Down Creepy Hollow

   The one technique that I would definitely use would be the fact that he had an open ended ending. He ends the story with not truly telling what happens to all of the characters. This makes you want to re read it to figure out what happened, to see if you missed something. Also you may have a theory about one way the book ended and someone else might have a theory of their own about how it ended. So they will go back and re read it and maybe even get more people to want to read just to settle the debate of what really happened in the ending.

  Edgar Allen Poe is an amazing author. He can create the scariest stories, you feel as though they are happening right before your eyes yet they are just words on a paper. He takes you into a world of his own. That is why I would look to his creepier works when trying to write a scary story.
   One technique Poe uses is imagery. Imagery is one of the main techniques that create a make or break story. If the imagery is not that detailed then the story will be bored. Poe uses this technique very well in "The Fall of the House of Usher". One of the best parts was when Roderick sees Madeline back from the dead still bloody from her struggle. The use of imagery allows us to imagine it happening, and feel the feelings of fear that Roderick would have felt. 

  Another technique he uses that I would use would be resurrection. With today's obsession with the dead it would be a key part to a scary movie. Poe uses resurrection when Madeline comes back from the dead and Roderick dies of fear. Using resurrection adds a completely new concept of fear, because of horror movies and short stories like these people fear death and everything about it. Can you imagine how scary it would be to open your door and see someone you have just seen dead standing there still covered in blood?

  Poe also uses personification and setting. Both of these strategies go hand in hand. Poe does a very good job of describing the house. He sets up an eerie tone even before the story has started by describing the house. Also using personification to exemplify this creepiness. By describing the house as a ghost-like thing. He does this to add another factor of scariness to the story.


   As you can tell Edgar Allen Poe is an amazing author. He was the beginning to all of the creepy stories, and even today you still see his techniques being used. He should be idolized more for his amazing work.

The Occult

       Americans are obsessed with the occult and all of the supernatural phenomena because when we watch shows or movies about it, it takes our mind off of our lives. We also enjoy the thrill of it. People get bored with movies that have no thrill or action. Which is why we love scary movies. The fear of knowing what's going to happen and not being able to do it. Americans Also like to explore the unknown to find new things. Ghosts and the supernatural to us is so new to us, yet it has been in our culture for ever.

      Ghost Adventures is one of my all time favorite shows. A couple of guys go into a haunted place and get locked in. They take cameras to record throughout the night. They capture "ghosts" and moving objects. Sometimes they even capture faint voices. I think people love watching this show because it's such a thrill. You never know when something will fall or move behind the guy. If you're like me, your eyes will water when you know something bad is going to happen. It is not crying ,but for some reason your eyes decide to produce tears.

 

  Another show that I enjoy is called American Horror Story. Every season is about something different. The first season was about ghosts and seeing the dead. The second season was called Asylum ,and it was about the devil and how it takes forms in different people. This season is all about witchcraft. It takes place in Louisiana, and has a lot to do with the Salem Witch Trials. This show makes people fall in love with the characters and hate others, it also takes your mind off of the world of a while. In the show some perform Voodoo. This is a supernatural phenomena, but it is still practiced today. Most people believe in Voodoo more than they do in ghosts.

     As you can tell Americans are obsessed with the unknown. We like to watch things that give us the feeling like its happening to us when its really not. It almost seems as though we enjoy watching others suffer for our entertainment, yet if this happened to us we would be miserable and want it to end. Americans are obsessed with bad things happening to other people. We love the unknown and the mysterious.

Blair Waldorf

    In Gossip Girl, there is one Queen B at the School. Some people like her and some love to hate her. Watching the show you first start off hating her ,but in the end you begin to love how rude and sassy she can be.  Blair Waldorf. If you've ever seen the show or heard a reference I'm sure this name has been used a at least once or twice.
  
   One word used to describe Blair would be greedy. Although she has an abundance of money and could buy whatever she wants, she wants everything and if she can't get something then she will do what ever she can do to get it. Even if she has to hurt someone or back stab a friend, leave it to Blair to get what she wants. Chuck Bass are one of the main boys that is an issue for her. He is never quite in hands, but he is always close enough to grab. She is constantly chasing after him in the show and will not stop until she finally, fully, has him.
  
  Blair is also very manipulative. She can make people do whatever she wants. She knows everything about everyone and will use their secrets against them. In the show she makes many people's lives not so good. She will black mail them and pressure them into doing things just so they can hang out with her. When some one hurts her best friend she is able to set up a scenario ,and have the person fall into her trap perfectly so she can chew them out about what they did. Which in a way makes you love her for standing up for her friend like that.

    Even from the examples above you can tell Blair is very deceitful. She doesn't feel guilty about this though. She enjoys making people do things for her, and constantly having them twisting around her finger. She has all the power in the school and is able to even make the teachers do what she wants. At first, if she likes you, she will be very nice to someone to pull them in. Then the closer you get to her the more and more she becomes rude and puts you down. She gets you involved into many bad situations that you wouldn't be in if it weren't for her.

   Although Blair is not the nicest girl, we all love to hate her.