Immigration Project Reflection

The book I chose to read was A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah because I felt this book reflected all people who have been soldiers and the horrors they have seen. Looking back now, this story showed me a lot of what it means to be in a war. I am grateful that I picked this book because Ishmael was a mere teenager when he went through it and I am sure that he went through the worst things a human can ever go through. So many times there were parts in the story where I felt like not reading the story anymore because it was too horrific but I chose to go on because I knew after reading this book, there would be so many things I would learn.

After reflecting every week on my blog, there were so many things that I found out about Ismael that I have been through. Although it was not as horrific or horrible, I felt the same and it taught me that everyone is connected someway because once a while there are times where we feel the same or think the same. I think one thing that would improve the LC process would be adding what you feel about the book every week because this will give the students a chance to see if they gradually like the book more every week or vice versa. I think it would improve the LC process because this will show how interested the students are reading their books. And after, the students could answer why they liked or disliked the book.

I felt like blogging was better for me only because I am better at typing then writing. I feel like writing the responses would be better though because it would give the students a little more time to think about their response and correct a few things in their response before they present it. For commenting, I do not think blogging is right because it takes too long. Also, sometimes there are things that you cannot explain on paper or computer and have to physically explain it. Because commenting is not during the time we are reflecting the story, our group members cannot argue or agree at times where it is crucial to respond at the time the person is reflecting the story for it to be more relevant.

Blogging was not much of a problem for me except on some days, I would have many things planned after school and I would have to rush the blog response which is not good for my group members because their comments would not be as truthful or full as if I took my time with my response. Also, when you are exadurating or using any tone of voice to interpret what you are thinking, your group members would not understand because the text is too plain and you cannot use any type of poetry or creative writing into your writing. Blogging is also hard at times because my computer has a problem with blogger and sometimes does not load so I would have very little time to post my response before it is due.

I chose to do a redesigning of the book cover because I felt it was the easiest but at the same time, one of the most important for a person who is an artist for books. I also felt that making a book cover would be the best way to express what I feel about this book. I also chose it because I think that my viewers would better understand what everything meant of they saw the book title, the authors name and the objects and items around them because they are all connected. This was also a way to show what I thought about the original book cover and what I think could be improved.

I felt that my viewers could see a connection immediately after seeing my painting. There are many symbolic items in my painting though, so the audience has to look deeper to understand the true connection to the story I am trying to make. There are many simple items in my painting. When I say simple, I mean by easy to understand from its appearance. But, to truly understand what I am trying to say, the viewers can look deeper into the pictures and think of all possible connections that that picture has. Almost everything in my painting has a dark and light side but is not visible without a little thought.

I felt that my final product did not turn out as well as I planned it to be but I was ready for it because I have used paint before and I know how it spreads out and screws up my painting. My final product was amazing to my standards except for how the paint spread out. The colors were not as “on” as I planned but some colors actually worked better than the original colors I planned for the painting. I spent a bunch of time on my final painting and tried to be as intricate and exact as I could. I actually spent more time than we were given which made me think that this painting was better than I could ever do with the time I was given.

I believe a thinner brush and in some places, different colors would help my painting a lot. If I was given more time to sketch my sketches, my painting would have more details and much more realistic. I feel like I learned many things from this whole experience. Reading this book, I feel like Ishmael is trying to write a story like those men or women who did drugs or were in a gang and inform us to not be like them. I don’t think this applies to Ishmael because he was brought into this and did not have a choice. Reading the book, there are so many life lessons and things I could use in the future that are going to help me greatly. I learned things even from the fighting parts of the story because I try to apply it to a job or other situations.

I felt my interview with my friend’s mom went spectacular because I asked clean questions and was very polite. I was not a bit nervous mainly because I knew her and she was always nice to me. It was sort of difficult making up secondary questions for her because of the rate she was answering the questions. I was so happy to interview her because I knew her and I knew how she would react to a question that was a little more emotional than others. The interview lasted a good amount of time and ended perfectly because I ended it with a backup question that I felt was the best question I had.
I felt interviewing my participant three times was not a problem because I knew Ms.Abbassi wanted us to get as much information as we could and be comfortably asking an adult about their past experiences. Something unique that I learned from interviewing was that even if the questions are not that good, you will get plenty of information from just one question. And I learned that even if your question was not good, there are about 15 more chances you can have to ask the perfect question. I would always wonder what the immigrants were thinking in Ellis and Angel Island when they came here, now I know because of the interviews. Although the person I interviewed had it better, they should have the same thoughts because the only reason a person would immigrate from another country back then would be because they are having huge problems or are poor. That should not affect their thoughts because they are use to having a hard life and working for everything. I felt so proud to give my person a gift that I put my time and hard work into because I knew that I understood what this person has gone through and I know that my gift will make their life better even if it was a little bit better.

A Long Way Gone #6

Quote #1:"I concluded to myself that if I were the hunter, I would shoot the monkey so that it would no longer have the chance to put other hunters in the same predicament." Pg.218

Significance: I felt that Ishmael is saying that if you have to do something, you have to do something. There is no ignoring because you know that if you do, someone else is going to suffer. He is saying that its better him than anyone else. That is a rule for him because of all these things he has done. If someone has to die, he will. If someone has to leave, he will. He is just apologizing to all the people he has hurt.

Personal: I feel I can relate to this because a lot of times, I feel like I should just do that extra job, or help that extra person because if you add all those up, it will make a difference between being good and bad. I feel like if I do not do something, letting the next person in line will just eat me up inside.

Question #1: Do you think Ishmael is saying this because he is apologizing or he just feels that every human on this earth is equal?

Quote #2: "I sat on the ground next to the grave and talked to my uncle". Pg.208

Significance: Although there are so many people who do this, I chose this quote because this is one time where Ishmael really felt a connection so strong that he did not care if his uncle was there or not. This is one time where after someone dies, he actually stops and feels his heart pumping, knowing that someone is still there.

Personal: This is one of the quotes where it relates to me all the time. I always feel like my deceased relatives are still talking to me, they are still sending me messages. My friends would always say that I have no emotions but when it comes down to just plain feeling something connecting with me, I have a lot of that. Sometimes I feel like no one has died, all is normal and I just go on talking to the person who is deceased like I would talk to him normally.

Question #2: What do you think Ishmael was talking to his uncle about beyond all the talk about loving him and helping him?

A Long Way Gone #5

Quote #1: “I was thinking about the fact that they had run so far away from the war, only to be caught back in it. There is nowhere to go from here.”

Significance: I think Ishmael is talking about how ironic it is because the town is called Freetown and still there is war. He feels so used to this, he see's executions everywhere and can't help but feel deja vu but he knows he can not do anything. All these kids around him have already adapted to the war and are ready for any sudden attack. I think that Ishmael is saying that it is so sad that these people have already felt the fear, tasted blood and have been killed on the inside, they have been completely cleaned of what is human inside. I think because this is the last place they are fighting, he has to summarize what he thinks of the war.

Personal: I can relate to this because sometimes, there are people who are forced into things they don't want to be in. I know that feeling and it is worst than breaking an arm. The feeling just eats you up inside because of the unwillingness to participate but still being forced to. You feel your rights are being violated.

Question #1: How do you think Ishmael felt when he saw these people die compared to how he felt at the beginning when he saw the first person die?

Quote #2: "Maybe they just want to give you a new look, a more African look, instead of those big pants you always wear," His Uncle pg.190

Significance: This quote really shows that now he is so much happier than before, he's finally talking about things a normal teenager needs to talk about instead of war and killing. Although it was so small, he probably really appreciated it because now he is being respected as a normal person and not how many kills he can get. Now he is dancing in pubs and not in a war zone with killing and madness.

Personal: I have been in these situations where I finally accomplished something challenging and is relieved and I go and get ice cream or something. Accomplishing this goal is so amazing because I know that I worked for what i get. Ishmael was forced to fight but his main goal is to stay alive. Once you accomplish your goal, you are so relieved and everything seems much better.

Question #2: Do you think Ishmael is enjoying his life now or do you think he would rather live with his whole family in the war?

A Long Way Gone #4

Quote #1: "It began to rain and my family ran into the house, leaving me outside". Pg.165 paragraph 1

Significance: This was so interesting along with the whole paragraph. Ishmael is trying to say that his family was trying to stop him from learning about his and being what he was so much, but they failed. Ishmael was exposed to the horror and now they are scared. They are scared that he is a killing machine, they are scared that he has not been transformed back yet. He feels so left out because of something he was forced into.

Personal: I felt I could relate to this because there have been times where I've made mistakes and all my friends just left me because they think I'm a completely different person because of that mistake. They are scared of me just because of one small mistake, that is all it takes. They feel you are a bad influence to them after the smallest mistake.

Question #1: If you were Ishmael, how would you have reacted and what would you have done?

Quote #2: "Congratulations, man, you have a family member in the city away from all the madness," Mohamed Pg.173 paragraph 5

Significance: I felt that Mohamed did not know what that madness was, I felt that he said it in such a tone he thought it was a small fight. The truth is, this is a war and he's saying madness. It isn't madness, this is much worst. Often people think of wars or major events as small things because they are not apart of it. Mohamed thought this was a small war. Although this quote is very debatable and is very small, I feel that Ishmael responded happy but was shocked or felt pain in his heart because there is actually a person who has not experienced the war.

Personal: I related to this because there have been times where I made comments about something that turned out to be a serious matter and was very ashamed. Of course my comments are were not about a war but I still felt ashamed because someone experienced it and I did not. I had no right to say anything or think of any event different than what actually happened. I'm pretty sure that Mohamed did not mean madness to be a small fight, but he did think that this war was small. If you think about the whole book, this war and all he has gone through is no where near madness.

Question #2: If you went through all that Ishmael went through and heard a comment about the war, the people and the losses that was so wrong you could not bare, what would you have done?

A Long Way Gone #3

"Their faces were dark as if they had bathed them in charcoal, and they stared intensely at us with their extremely read eyes" pg.100

Significance: This really made me wonder how horrified he would have been because right after he talks about the smashed head and spilled guts of soldiers. This probably made him think of American soldiers and what they do to dead bodies. There is a huge difference between soldiers of a third world country and American soldiers because of the different lives they live. He must of been wondering, what am I doing here? How the heck did i get into this? Every minute I read this book makes me want to explore more about what this war is about.

Personal: I feel I connect to this quote because at that moment he said that his head was spinning like when your almost going to pass out and you can hear your breathe louder and louder. I've been in those moments and I was like a bear being shot with tranquilizer darts. I was scared of everything and confused.

Question 1: Did you think that Ishmael wanted to help those people or just follow orders from that guard sipping water?

Quote #2: "In the daytime, instead of playing soccer in the village square, I took turns at the guarding posts around the village, smoking marijuana and sniffing brown brown, cocaine mixed with gunpowder, which was always spread out on the table, and of course taking more of the white capsules, as I had become addicted to them" Pg.121

Significance: This was surprising to me because in America we are ashamed of people who do drugs, but in a third world country, to relieve the pain and stress they have to do drugs. I am pretty sure that when Ishmael was telling his friends this, he was probably thinking about all the pain he suffered and how now there is no need for that.

Personal: I don't think I relate to this much because I don't plan on taking drugs anytime in the future. I have felt pain so much that I've always buried it inside and hide myself from reality. I would not say that drugs is the answer but crying out for help is the closest thing to Ishmael.

Question #2: Do you think that Ishmael was hallucinating about his family and other memories while on drugs? If yes, how do you think he felt even if he was in a state of almost unconsciousness?

A long way gone #2

Quote #1: My grandmother once told me a story about a notorious hunter of wild pigs who used magic to transform himself into a wild boar. pg.53 paragraph 3

Response: This was a very interesting quote because even if he immigrated to America, he still remembered what his family members told him. He is still in touch with them on the inside. Even if it was just a story, he felt that this is a time of war and any time he could die. So he felt he had to remember everything his family members said because he can do nothing if he gets taken away.

Personal: I felt that this connected to me because my grandmother and other family members would tell me about story's about hunters and other. Although I don't remember all of them, I feel i should remember some because I only get to see them once a year.

Question: Do you think Ishmael is going to have another encounter with the rebels anytime soon?

Quote #2: Everyone listened attentively, raising their eyebrows and cocking their heads as they tried to understand what kind of music this was.

Response: This quote really showed how blocked off from the present day society of America Ishmael and others are. They have never had that music before because they were poor and in a war. After Ishmael came here, he probably knew about this kind of music.

Personal: This is sad because music is once of those special things that all people have heard. American music is especially popular but Ishmael has never heard the kind of music played because they are never watching TV or keeping up with current events.

Question: Do you think Ishmael liked the music he heard because he has never heard it before?

A Long Way Gone

Quote One: I saw myself holding an AK-47 and walking through a coffee farm with a squad that consisted of many boys and a few adults. Pg.19 Paragraph 2

Significance: This has to do with him immigrating to America because before this sentence, he said that he started thinking of New York and the freedom they had their. I could tell, at that moment he wanted to be in America. He saw death everywhere and smelled it, the only place he wanted to be was away from it all.

Personal Connection: I felt this connected to me because I have felt extreme sadness to a point where I felt half dead. I'm sure I can not match how much he was feeling then, but I can relate. There have been times where all i wanted to do was go home or somewhere away from where i was just like him.

Question: What do you think was going through his head while he was walking with the group, did he want to escape, forget about everything or what?

Quote: Once we found the path, we started walking back toward the village where we had spent most of our hunger days. Pg. 36 Paragraph 2

Significance: I felt that he was thinking of America while doing this because while they were hiding, attacking and killing, he must have been thinking of a better life in America. Although I do not think he knew what he was doing morally but he must have felt some pain and at least thought of how much better it is in America.

Question: How do you think his classmates reacted when he told this horrible story?

Field Trip Reflection

Part I: I felt that this exhibition was to teach us about the history of the Jewish living in America. This exhibition really showed how much the Jewish have contributed to the founding and making of America. This exhibition was to show that the Jewish should not be excluded from being called American just because of their religion. The Jewish helped the Americans fight in every single war; they’ve helped in so many ways. This exhibition was to teach us about all the discrimination and hard times that the Jewish had to go through. They were massacred in WWII; they were always treated differently just because they did something different. Part of the exhibition was dedicated to all the famous Jewish Americans and another part was to how the Jewish lived and their traditions. This exhibition taught me a lot about how their religion and traditions actually changed things we do today. I also learned that a Jewish person actually founded Las Vegas as it is today. People have always treated the Jewish differently because of their religion, but I learned that they are just like every other human on this earth and without them; America would not be what it is today. I learned that when America was split into two, the confederate’s president was Jewish. The last thing I learned from that exhibition was that the Jewish are a proud religion and believe that anything could be possible if you just try, and so far, that’s pretty much true for them.

Part II:
Photograph: My favorite photo is the Mexican Independence Day photo. This photo really showed me that even when your not home in your own country, you can show that you are proud to be whatever religion or race you are. When I looked into the people’s eyes, there was no shame. These people all felt that they needed to show the world what they were made of.

Quote: My favorite quote was “When I left my country, Vietnam I didn’t know that I would probably never come back again. I was just ten years old. I knew my life would begin from this moment” by Ngoe Nguyen. This really showed me what he was thinking when he came to America. This showed that when you immigrate to another county, you are looking for a new start. It’s like clearing the records of your life, and starting a new one.

Essay: The essay I chose was an essay written by Paul Tran who emigrated from Vietnam. I chose this essay because it really showed what he thought about America. He reflected his old life in Vietnam with his new life here. He showed how he felt, where he lives and what he did. Everything he said was a reflection on America. He put everything into specific detail, even the school name and what his room looked like.

Immigration Reflection

I think that the word immigration means a person who is moving to another country for a new start. I am connected to immigration because of my mom; she is an immigrant from Taiwan. I think me, and everyone in the United States is connected to immigration. There are immigrants all around us, even if they speak perfect English. Immigrants are just seeking new hope; all they want to do is find themselves.
The United States takes a huge part in immigration because there are so many immigrants living here today. I think the United States has so many immigrants because it is living up to its name as the land of opportunity. Maybe some immigrants come here because they see commercials, movies, TV shows from America and feel like that’s a great place to live. There are others, who come here because they feel that there is hope here. They feel that there are things to learn and things to teach.
The United States has always been a huge part of immigration because of our constitution. Our constitution basically says that America is a land with no religion, no race and no background. The constitution says that our land is your land. The United States is open to every religion, race and background there is. I think another reason there are so many immigrants is because of how free America is. We are allowed to do so many more things than other countries. I think even if your not born here or raised here, you are considered an American. I think that every American that understands what this land is about, is proud to be an American.
I think San Diego is affected by immigration because we are neighbors of Mexico. Most people from other countries want to experience America. They want to know why everyone loves it. They want to see it with their own eyes.

Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams



The book Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy is written by a brilliant but crazy author named Douglas Adams. This book is about a young man named Arthur Dent who thought he had everything taken away from him, his house, his family and his life. What he didn't know was that something much bigger was going to be taken away, the Earth! Aliens are preparing to destroy the Earth to build a galactic highway. As Arthur is preparing to die, he finds out that his friend Ford Prefect is an alien too. Seconds before the Earth is demolished by aliens, Arthur and Ford figure out a way to sneak onto the aliens space ship and travel through space.

Arthur is a young man from England and is the reason I kept on reading this book. He is the only person who helps me understand all the situations they are in. He is the only human left after the Earth is demolished. Arthur is a tall man who is very nervous because Arthur is just about to have is house demolished, but what he didn't know is, something much bigger was going to be destroyed. Arthur is always the brave one and never backs down, and is a very nice person.

Ford is the second main character of the book and is also my favorite. Ford is an alien but acts like a human because he has lived on Earth for over 15 years. Ford is a good friend of Arthur but kept his alien secret from him for a long time. Ford is one of the most exiting people in the book and is always looking for action. Ford is basically the person that keeps Arthur from getting killed because Ford is very familiar with space and other aliens.

Zaphod Beeblebrox is a friend of Ford and also the president of the universe. Zaphod is a very weird person and I don't really understand why he is elected as president. Zaphod had saved Ford and Arthur's life many times and knows space gear well. Zaphod is an alien with two heads and three arms who acts like a soldier but a little more relaxed. Zaphod are like the presidents from the movies, he does not read the script but makes up his own words.

The theme of the book is to always be aware and open yourself up to possibility. Maybe the Earth is just a planet and there are aliens out there. The theme is really hidden so you have to read the book very carefully to understand it. The action will never stop as long as your keep reading. Many secrets are to be revealed, and many surprises are to be found. Who is Ford? Does Arthur have anything to do with this? This book is the answer to those questions and will amaze you with all the endless possibilities and questions that you will find.

Chapter 13: Back To Reality

After the boys were rescued from the island of hell, they all went back to living their normal lives. Ralph went back to his house to the wild ponies that come to his fence and peak over.

“Here you go little ponies, have some sugar” said Ralph.

As Ralph feed the wild ponies, he heard the faint call of his mother.

“Yes, mother”, said Ralph

“Two young boys are here to see you”, said his mother

Before they came in, Ralph already knew who it was, Sam & Eric He raced to the door and invited them in for some tea.

“I have not seen you both since we got off the island, I missed you both so much”, said Ralph

“We just thought that we should stop by to see our old friend”

“How are everyone else”, said Sam & Eric

“Oh, the littluns? Yes, yes they are doing fine”

After hours of play with Sam & Eric, they decided to go find Robert. They all went down to Roberts house to look for him.

“Knock, knock”, said Ralph

“Hello, is Robert home?”, Asked Ralph

“Robert left a few minutes ago”, said Roberts mother

“Do you know where he went?”, Asked Sam

“He went down to the store to buy some milk for me”, said Roberts mother

“Thank you”, said Ralph

Ralph, Sam and Eric all went down to the store, hoping they would find him there. As they walked, they saw a surprising face across the street. It was Jack, he was walking with his old friends who were previously, the hunters.

“Hey Ralph!”, said Jack

“What do you want?”, asked Ralph

“You should have stayed back on the island”, said Jack

Ralph walked away, ignoring anything Jack said to him. Ralph was tired of being physically and mentally bullied by Jack. When they had reached the store, they saw Robert trying to buy some milk for his mother.

“Robert!” said Ralph

“Ralph!” said Robert

As they greeted each other and talked about how their lives are now, Jack walked into the store.

“You escaped me last time, but you wont again” said Jack

“YOU TRIED TO KILL ME!”said Ralph

“You should not have treated me that way, you should have just let me be chief”said Jack

As the boys argued, Sam & Eric tried to stop them. After they all calmed down, Ralph went home and Jack continued taunting and yelling at Ralph.

“You will be dead like Piggy if you come back here again”said Jack

Tears started coming down Ralph's face as he thought about the death of Piggy. Still ignoring Jack, Ralph walked away.

Final blog post

Ralph's Journal

I wake up and i felt very angry at Jack and their tribe. I picked up the conch and blew. All of the 4 people in my tribe came to the meeting, i told them that we needed to get Piggy's specks back. For some odd reason, Piggy wanted to bring the conch with him thinking it would work as a talisman to scare the evil out of Jack. We walked down to castle rock where Jacks tribe have stationed themselves. I got into this argument with Jack. Out of nowhere, Jack truculently stabbed at me with his spear. Piggy started complaining and told us to stop fighting. Roger got annoyed and shoved a gigantic bolder down and because Piggy did not have his specks, he did not know. Sadly, Piggy has died and it is all Jacks Tribes fault. I saw the spear coming and blocked it, then i smacked Jack on the side of the head. Then i could see all the boys delirious, thinking this was just a game. All of the boys chucked their spears at me, one had hit me and wounded me. I ran as fast as i could into the forest, hoping they would just let me go. Later that night, i tried to find Sam and Eric because i knew i could not take on Jack and his tribe all by myself. Sam and Eric shooed me like a group of pigeons trying to steal his food. I was very disappointed in them for not coming with me, but i understand that under those circumstances, they could not. The next morning, I hid in a place by the castle rock where it was completely impossible to get into unless your a great climber like me. I was hoping that they could not reach to me. They had a better idea, they just burnt the hiding spot and forced me out. So i came out the other side and ran as fast as i could until my lungs were on fire. I could hear the ululation of the boys, they were forming a cordon to search for me. I knew i had to find a safe spot to hide, so i found a spot that had no light that peered into it. Then i heard Sam and Eric being tortured by Jack and forced to tell him where i was. I got out and ran all the way to the beach where i stumbled and a strange man with a drill uniform and epaulets walked up to me. He started to ask me questions like are there any adults on this island and are there any people dead. I was very happy that we are rescued but i never really thought about it because of all of the things that were going on at that moment.

blog post #6

Gift For The Darkness

Simon's Jounal

After Jack finally declared that there is definitely, we settled up on the mountain until a new day came. We traveled back to the beach, with frightened faces. Ralph said that it was far too dangerous to go up the mountain or even go into the jungle. We started lighting a fire on the beach, hoping we will never have to go on the mountain again. Then Jack started mutinously talking about how Ralph should not be leader because he was afraid of the beast. I knew exactly what Jack was trying to do, he was trying to be chief. Flailing his arms up in the air, Jack tried to throw Ralph out of power. This conflict was interminable but at the end, no one wanted jack to be leader like they all wanted to be embroiled. Waxy, Jack walked away saying that he will start his own society and anyone who wanted to join him was free to. A few hours after, i walked down the beach a few miles and saw a pig's head, with flies swarming around it like bee's protecting its hive. It started talking to me, like a psychiatrist. I knew it was all in my head but it seemed interesting because it helped me figure out the unsolved mysteries in my head.

Blog #5

Boring

Piggy's Journal

After i woke up, i was told to look after the littluns. I found myself embroiled with the littluns about whether or not i should take care of them. After i have about explained why i should not take care of them, i felt dun because i knew either way, i would have to take care of them. I watched them until i saw a small child flailing a small piece of seaweed. I ran over there waxy, trying to tell him that he is not supposed to do that but he seemed impervious. He just stood there, not caring about a word i said. I felt bad for him and told him sagely, "Don't swing that around because you might hurt some one, now go have some fruit". When it was almost dark, i was told that Ralph and the hunters were not going to be back for another few hours or even days. I felt like i was the only person on this island that actually cared for the littluns, everyone else treated them like animals and not humans. Someday those little boys will be great people and they will thank me.

Blog post #4

The Meeting

Ralph's Journal

After i declared the meeting, it was time for everyone to know that they cant just play around all day and let us do all the work. I was very disappointed in everybody on the island, including myself for not keeping everybody on track. I started telling everyone that they needed to pull their own weight, and i sincerely did not mean to scare everybody with my effigy of anger. Every one on this island was acting completly ludicrous with their behavior. i really expected much more from a group of boys with decorum. By the time the meeting was about midway, a very young man walked up and started talking about the beast the was known to the littluns. I feel bad for the young man because almost every person at the assembly was looking at him jeeringly. The small boy almost started lamentation infront of the whole crowd of people. Jack was very mad at the meeting because i would never let him talk, but it is his fault that he let the fire out. Then Jack started talking about how if there was a beast, he and his hunters would kill it. After these few days on the island, i am feeling like people are starting to loose their manners.

Blog Assignment #3

More Meat

Jack's Journal

I have been wondering through the jungle for about 2 hours now without any sign of pigs anywhere. Suddenly I see something move behind some bushes, I quickly through my spear into the bushes. I missed, feeling like i will never kill a pig, I heard the voice of Ralph. I looked around and saw Ralph standing on the beach. Ralph saw me and started yelling at me for not helping him with the huts. Why does he have to ask me, why can't he have the other boys help him. Ralph is so ludicous about being rescued, he wants to be rescued as soon as possible but i know we need to stay alive rather than trying to get rescued. If we are going to survive on this island, we are going to have to get more meat. Ralph started talking about how all my hunters were swimming and playing around, instead of helping out. I know Ralph is just trying help get everyone home, but he needs to relax first. Ralph is not going to do anything until he starts having some fun. Besides, the only person i see helping Ralph is Simon.

Later on i started getting mad because i could not catch a pig, so i brought the hunters to help me on my journey. We were hiking through the jungle when i heard something, I knew it meant meat. Suddenly one of my hunters decided to jump on the pig. From there on out, the pig was ours. We formed a circle around the pig so it had not escape, then we all attacked it. It was an insane battle between us and the pig. People were falling, the pig was squealing, but after a minute or two, I slit its throat and we finally concord it.

We walked home with pride on our shoulders. When we got back to the beach, Ralph looked at me malevolently. I told Ralph about our magnificent victory against the pig, but all he could do was tell me that a ship was on the horizon and there was no fire with a effigy of sorrow on his face. At that moment, I felt extremely bad about letting the fire die but I felt that we needed to survive instead of trying to get rescued as fast as we could. I apologized for my mistake of letting the fire die and told everyone to light the fire again. We had a pig roast not long after that, I ate without any decorum because i have not had meat in a decade. Ralph still had a look in his eyes like he is going to tempestuously attack me. I would think he would accept my apology and forget about this.

Blog assignment #2

Fire On The Mountain

Simon's Journal

After everyone had settled down, everyone started fighting about all sorts of different things. Ralph wanted to use the conch as some kind of a microphone, so whoever had the conch got to speak. Usually i would agree with something like this, but then i started to think. What if some boys are not as well known as the other boys, and never get a chance to speak. Then piggy starts yelling about how we are never going to be found because no one knows we ever crashed. First of all, we are going to get rescued because if a plain goes missing, people will go searching for it. I feel like piggy is just to stressful and should relax a little. After all those crazy arguments were over, a little boy started talking about how he saw a snake like monster crawling around. Although everybody knows that this story is fake of course, everyone seemed to actually listen to what the little boy had to say. We all started thinking about how we are actually going to get rescued because nobody knows our exact location, so we decided to make a fire. We found some wood that was scraped by the plain by the top of a mountain, so we decided to use it. At first the fire was burning very well, but there was no smoke. So we put in some green wood, hoping it would ignite and create smoke. We knew we couldn't have all of us watch the fire, so we split up into groups. The groups were pretty good and were containing the fire, until one group was to lazy to actually watch the fire. They let the fire get out of control and burnt down many trees.

The Sound Of The Shell #1

Chapter 1 : The Sound Of The Shell

Piggy's Journal


I started off wondering in the woods, until i met a very strange but cool person named Ralph. I was talking to Ralph for a very long time until we happened upon a beach. This beach was like no ordinary beach, the water was clear as a crystal ball. The bottom of the lagoon, there were incredulous efflorescent tropical weed and coral. Me and Ralph also saw something else in the water, that was out of the ordinary. We found a conch, a very rare shell. The shell was mainly a tow pink color. When we found this conch, i knew in my mind that there has to be more people on this "island". I thought that Ralph could blow on it and see if anyone would respond. After Ralph blew on the conch, all sorts of children started appearing out of the jungle. Most of the children were wearing school uniforms. I thought to myself, what if i take their names just to get to know them better because we might all be stuck here for a very long time. All of a sudden, a very large group of older kids appeared on the beach. There was a teenager out of all of them that appeared to be their leader, and i just had a feeling that he was very specious.

When we started settling down, i could not help but look around at all the palm fronds that were very different from normal palm trees. The palm fronds were much larger than most palm trees. After that was the most embarrassing moment in my life because my friend Ralph told every person who was there that my name was piggy. I felt devastated because my so thought friend betrayed me and told everyone my darkest secret. Ralph decided that three people should go exploring to see if this is really an island. I would think that Ralph would proffer me to go, but he did not for some reason. I wanted to go into the jungle and study the intricacies of the trees and animals.

Romek Last Post

1. I think the most horrific part of the whole book was the part when David witnessed his brother get tortured by the Nazis. It was so shocking, because I've never imagined that anyone could be that cruel. His brother died the worst way anyone could ever die. I can not even imagine how David felt when his brother was being tortured and then finally died. I almost cried when David started saying to himself "Let him die already".

2. At the Krawinkel camp, David got a very good job. His job was feeding the German Shepard's food. At the beginning, David was really scared of the dogs and would only feed them food with a stick. After a while, David could feed the dogs without being scared because he was use to the dogs ferocious faces. Because he was very hungry, he stole a piece of food from each dog too eat for himself.

3. The condition at camp Bergen-Belsen was very poor, because they did not get anything to eat. David was very lucky that he had energy, because there was only one job. The job was too bring the dead to burn. Every time you brought the dead to burn, the Germans gave you a little soup. Although the soup was not very good, it gave you enough energy to carry another dead person.

4. I feel like David felt pride in his ability when he still had strength to crawl outside to get help. He had almost no strength left but because he wanted to live so badly, he knew that he need to crawl outside. I knew that he must of felt proud of himself the moment the people said he was going to be ok because after all he's been through, he had never heard that word before.

5.David Faber's book, Because of Romek, should be required reading in all middle schools, high schools, and universities because all students need to learn about the horrors of the Holocaust. There was an example in the story where David had to witness his brother get tortured to death with a burning metal sword, which is very cruel and unusual punishment. I think it should be required because the young people in the world need to know what really happened during the holocaust. The Nazis were not just killing the people, they were trying to make sure that they wish they were dead before they die.

Renaissance reflection

Name: Michael Fortin

Project Reflection: Post on your Blog

Project Title: Renaissance project

Class: Ms.Interlandi Dates: june/06/08

*You may type directly in this document and copy and paste into blog, or simply address each of the following in a post. It should be approx. 2 pages worth of writingJ.

PURPOSE: In this section, explain what you were supposed to learn and what you were supposed to do.

The purpose of this project was to learn more about the Renaissance. In order to learn about the Renaissance, we had to research a lot about Renaissance clothing and daily lives. We had learned about Renaissance artwork and tell the difference between Renaissance artwork and medieval artwork. We were all allowed to pick a famous figure from the Renaissance and research that person. We had to learn what the person did and what he wore.

WHAT I LEARNED

In this section, tell what information or skills you learned or improved.

I learned about the different clothing that the Renaissance people wore. I explored the topics of what jobs and work the people had to do, for their daily work. In this project, I learned how to dance an old style of dance, called the Pavan. I learned about the different types of food they had, and the different types of wine and drinks. I learned about the artwork, which was more realistic than medieval artwork.

REFLECTION

In this section, reflect on your experience. Did you like the project? Why or why not? How did you do? What would you do differently next time?

I enjoyed this project because I usually enjoy all history and this was one of the times in history that I most enjoyed. I feel like I could have done better on this project because I did not get enough information on my person Prince Henry and didn’t have many pictures of Prince Henry. Next time, I would research more, and use all the sites I find.

ARTIFACTS

You should have at least one artifact from each project on your DP. What document, picture, or link will you have for this project?

I will make a timeline of Prince Henry and post it on my DP.