End of The Year Letter

         Throughout the past year that we have been in ELA class, the memories couldn’t have been more entertaining and fun. Through Poetry and Shakespeare, Ms. Galang had found a way to make lessons both educational and enjoyable.

        One of my favorite memories from ELA would most definitely be the one of the Shakespeare unit. It was really fun to take part in and it actually helped me a lot. Ms. Galang taught us plenty about how to look deeper into what Shakespeare was writing in Romeo and Juliet. I was able to decrypt the thoughts behind Shakespeare's writing with Ms. Galangs lessons on note taking. I think that learning how to take critical thinking notes in the margin of your book would be really helpful in the upcoming four years of high school for a number of different reasons. One of them would be that if in high school there would ever be another Shakespeare unit that we would partake in, then we would already have been prepared to read Shakespeare. We would understand it better and would have already known how to read what Shakespeare had written.

       The activities that Ms. Galang had made us partake in were also really fun and interesting. One of them would be the continuous book clubs that we were put into. The reason that I liked this so much is because in these book clubs we had a chance to read books that we chose and also books from different categories sun as banned books being one of them. In these book clubs we also learned how to take notes in the books and how to translate them into synthesis pages which I believe were really useful. We could use the process of synthesis pages in high school because it taught us how to translate written notes into changes and feelings of the character. Book clubs run by Ms. Galang were also really fun because it also gave us a chance to learn more about ourselves and learn how to work together. 

      Overall, the past year with Ms. Galang have been entertaining and a total joy being in. The class had learned so many things that could be used for our own future in high school. There were many things that we learned that were really education and all of this was taught by one teacher. 

Summer Reading List

Books I want to Read

-1984 by George Orwell

-A Midsummers Night Dream by Shakespeare

-Paper Towns by John Green

Summer Reading List for Colonia High School

-The Illustrated Man byRay Bradbury

-The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey

Poetry Project

Poetry Project

By, Julia Nowak 811

My Voice

Pencil to paper

And worlds collide.

It’s part of my human nature

It’s what makes me feel so alive.

Different colors,

All dancing in harmony,

Filled with such wonders,

All drawn very carefully.

It’s what makes me so unique,

It’s my only thought.

A painting to speak,

When my words cannot.

            This poem was written to describe my passion using personification such as making colors dance to using rhyme scheme of abab. I started off by describing how much art meant to me and what my thought process was during the making of art and I ended off with how art has affected my life.

Love

Grab on to love

For if love runs

The heart is a lonely star

Forsaken by the sun.

Grab on to love

For when love goes

The heart is a cavern

With sunlight that never shows.

            This poem was inspired by the poem Dreams by Langston Hughes. I decided to use personification to show that love is something that is almost alive. I also used metaphors to deepen the intensity of love and its meanings.

A Smile (A Shakespearean Sonnet)

She was quiet and so compassionate.

She could put a smile on anyone’s face.

She was always full of love and passion.

Always laughing with her and her best mates.

Months passed and she became a spinning top,

Holding a smile so bright and so warm,

Hiding a quiet and frightening sob.

Her eyes sent a plea narrowed and so firm.

And still no one seemed to pay attention.

She took her life with her and disappeared.

We never noticed her dark depression.

We never thought that her life was so hard.

She seemed very happy on the outside,

I should have asked her if she was alright.

            I decided that this sonnet should reflect an original sonnet by using the same rhyme scheme of a Shakespearean sonnet and use near rhyme to try and make the poem sound more mysterious. I used the metaphor, a spinning top, to try and make her seem like she was about to fall down any second just like a top normally would.

 The Road Not Taken

By, Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh!  I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. 

Response

            “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” is something every person comes across at some point in their life, where they have to choose whether or not to take the path less traveled by or to take the path most traveled by. The poem, The Road Not Taken by, Robert Frost is a decision that’s been thought about to choose to be like everyone else or to be an individual and stand out. The decision is something that the speaker has to make.

            The poem became really meaningfully to me as soon as I was done reading it. The way it was written and the theme that it created related a lot to me and the decisions that I have made and will make. In the start of the poem, the very first stanza, the speaker is trying to choose a path and knows that he has to choose wisely or else it would be really hard to go back and start all over again. As many other people in their lives also have to make important decisions, to start all over after making a choice might not always be the easiest thing to do, I thought that that message that Frost incorporated was truly inspiring. In both stanzas two and three, the poet sets another theme by saying that it’s alright to choose each option and that whatever you choose; your life won’t be over. In the last stanza, the poet not only gives a concluding message saying that the path not traveled often made his life interesting and better, but he also shows the readers an important symbol of the road. The road is showed as the choices that you have in your life and I find that to be beautiful and inspiring.

            As soon as I began to read this poem, I knew that it would become my favorite poem because I noticed that I could relate to it so much. This poem made me think about how to be different and how to present myself to the world. It was one of the few poems that I enjoyed to analyze and understand. It ended up inspiring me to find myself at the crossroad; it made me think about which path I would take if I was the speaker. I think that like the speaker, taking the path less traveled by would be the better choice because it would give me a chance to become unique and my own person. I also really admired the way that the poem was written made it seem like there is a lot more to the world than following the footsteps of another poem. This inspired me so many times because the choice that the speaker makes is a lot like the choices that people make at some point in their lives.

            At the time I read this poem, I was going through high school selection and it made me really think about what path I was going to take. This poem encouraged me to choose choices that make me unique and my own person. This poem is the reason that I dare to be bold and daring, this poem is forever going to be one of my most favorite poems written.

Nature Picture

Wheatfield With Crows Painted by Van Gogh

Reading Response

            Power, the ability to do or act, force and strength, power can mean money or even just sheer strength, but to Jonas, the main character in, “The Giver by Lois Lowry, power meant memories. During the Ceremony of Twelve, a place where twelve year olds receive their future jobs, Jonas finds out that he had been elected to be the Receiver of Memory. The current receiver that is called Giver by Jonas, transfers memories of pain, joy, feelings, and color to him. As he grows on to receive more memories, he yearns for a life outside of his current one. This Utopian society that Jonas lives in seems that the government has all of the power, but really it’s Jonas who has because he has the potential to receive memories that were stolen from the community and transfer them to other people.

            In the beginning of the book, everyone in Jonas’s community feels the exact same way about each other. If they do feel anything unusual they are forced to take a pill each morning that is administered by the government. For example, “‘It was your first Stirrings… you’re ready for the pills’…he swallowed the pill. The feelings were gone. The Stirrings were gone.” (37-39) This proves that there weren't any feelings allowed in Jonas’s community. It seemed that the government had the power because they were controlling people’s emotions and dreams. Another example of this is in the book, jobs, families, and numbers of children are all determined by the government. People didn't get to decide by themselves, it was already decided. This made it seem again, that the government had all the power, but in reality Jonas had the real power because he was the one who carried all of the memories stolen from the entire city.

            Towards the middle of the book, Jonas started to receive more and more memories and in time he learned the ability to pass them on. The government warned him not to give it to anyone but Jonas did anyway. He passed on peaceful memories to a young toddle named Gabriel. For instance, “Each night he gave memories to Gabriel: memories of boat rides and picnics in the sun; memories of soft rainfall against windowpanes; memories of dancing barefoot on a damp lawn.”(161) This shows how by transferring memories to another person, Jonas is breaking the governments rule and in that way, Gabriel has free will unlike every other person who do not own any memories. Another example is, after Jonas escapes the government with Gabriel and the memories the author writes, “Behind him, across vast distances of space and time, from the place he had left, he thought he heard music too. But perhaps it was only an echo.”(225) after looking back at his community, Jonas has the thought that someday there might be music if he can find other people and pass on the memories that were lost. To him, memories are wonderful and because the government is hiding that from his home, it makes Jonas more determined to use his version of ‘power’ and help restore what was once lost.

            Therefore, although the government is ruling everything and everyone, Jones is the one with all of the memories that people have lost. Memories is what the government fears that if people of the community get, it would turn into utter chaos. That’s what Jonas has, and he is the one with all of the power, not the government. He can give these sacred memories to people and potentially take away the ‘power’ of the government. Memories are power, and that’s what Jonas has. 

Julia Nowak 811

Foreword

In 1969, America achieved something that would be remembered up until the end of time. America became the first country to ever step on the moon. Neil A. Armstrong was that person who did the impossible and would inspire millions to do the same. According to NASA, Neil Armstrong was an engineer, test pilot, administrator, research pilot, and a naval aviator before he became an astronaut. Neil Armstrong worked really hard to get up to the point of traveling to space.

During both 5^th grade and middle school, I could relate a lot to Neil Armstrong because of the way he worked to achieve his goal. Getting admitted into a new middle school and/or a high school of your choice took me a lot of dedication and work. According to Neil Armstrong’s Last Interview: Rare Glimpse of Man and Moon Mission, by Paul Gallagher, ever since Neil Armstrong was young his goal was to always see space and get the chance to fly. Relating to him, I have always loved to exceed my teachers expectations and just like Neil Armstrong I will work hard during my entire life to get the successful ending that I want.

Even when Neil Armstrong wanted to go to space so badly, on the road to getting there, challenges were faced and they became so hard that he may have just wanted to give up. He told people that he wasn’t going to give up because he was going to keep fighting for his dream. After being told that Neil Armstrong was going to the moon, he was exhilarated that all of his hard work finally paid off. He worked through so much and he had forever become known as the first man to walk the moon. He was accompanied by two people who also worked as hard as him, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins. After walking on the moon, those three astronauts became an inspiration to the world, an inspiration to me and one day I hope I’ll somewhat have an outcome like that. They inspired people to figure out ways to fly to Mars. They are truly people who will never be forgotten. 

Julia Nowak 811

Synthesis Page

I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

Critical Thinking Question:  How does this book help you to think about social issues you care about or causes you are committed to?

Bullying

            “One of them is glaring at me and I realize that he hit me with his backpack as he walked past. I doubt it was an accident and I start to follow them. I know I’m not going to do anything, even though I could. I just don’t like bullies” (Page 28)

            This shows how many of the ‘new’ kids such as John often gets bullied. Although John displayed civil action against the bullies, he didn’t stand up for himself nor did anyone else. There are many kids who enter school for the first time and get treated horribly because they are ‘new’.

            “You think you can stay in school a little longer today? Or are you going to run off again like a little bitch? Snickers spread through the crowd.” (Page 58)

            This happened the day after John had an asthma attack and had to leave school early. Not only is John being physically bullied but he is also being bullied verbally. The ‘big kid’ is picking on the little kid which is very common in bullies all around the world. Bullying could potentially provoke other people to become bullies because of how easy it supposedly is.

Conclusion/ Connection

            Many kids all around the planet are being affected by bullying exactly the way John is. As John was being bullied there were many bystanders who never stood up for him because he was the new kid who was potentially a little bit different than the rest. Students shouldn’t be bullied by their peers both physically and verbally.

Abuse of Power

            “I have the interview with the Gazette tomorrow, and the game on Friday. I don’t have time to worry about crap like this. I’m being accused of something I didn’t do. It’s hard to stay focused with this shit going on.—“I believe you,” the principal says with a smile at Mark.” (Page 67)

            This shows how the principal was only interested in publicity for his school and never considered that his ‘favorite’ student was actually a bully and was harassing other students. This happened right after many people witnessed Mark throw food at John. Although he had many people that witnessed it, he abused his power of being principal to excuse bullying because his star player was being featured in a magazine.

            “I bring my knee straight up into his crotch a little harder than I should have. His breath catches in his throat, and he doubles over. The whole lunchroom gasps.” (Page 59)

            This shows how even the hero can sometimes abuse his own ‘superpower’. He had excessive strength and he used to hurt an average person because he was mad at the original bully. Sometimes the good people in school who seem kind, everyone has a dark side and sometimes people just show them to somebody else, and someone gets hurt.

Conclusion/ Connection

            Many governments and many individuals take power and end up abusing it for their own good. Like the principal, the government can sometimes abuse their own power and cover something up that was supposedly better for themselves. Like John, there are people in the world who have so much power, they take it for granted and use it for themselves and their own liking.

Taking advantage of the Weak

            “The small beasts target the children. They are defenseless, holding sparklers in their hands from the celebration. That is how we are losing—only a few of the Loric are fighting the beasts, the rest are trying to save the children.” (Pages 114-115)

            This happened right after the Mogadorians decided to invade Lorien to take their resources. I think that this part was important because it showed that in order to defeat someone both people and potentially made up characters sometimes choose to attack the weaker kind in order to take advantage and get the outcome for them. This was a lot like the people in our world only there aren’t any aliens. The “children” are the weaker human and the “beasts” are the people that take advantage of the weak.

            “He looks down at the pile of manure on the floor, then back at me. “Mark?” I ask. He nods sadly. “It’s like this all the time, they always pick on me,” he says sighing.” (Page 99)

            The student that was being picked on was Sam Goode, a scrawny teen that still believes in aliens. Mark was always picking on him because he possibly believed that he was weak and that he could never fight or talk back. Mark is the kind of bully that picks on the small kids because he might believe that he is superior and ‘popular’.

Conclusion/Connection

            Many people in this world take advantage of the weak/small people. Just like the characters in this book, people in the world are actually quite similar to them because of their coldness and selfishness to other people. Not all people are like them, some are the victims just like John and Sam, while others are exactly like Mark. 

Julia Nowak 811