Literary Analysis #3

Don't Hurt Laurie 
GENERAL:

1) Laurie is a child of an abusive mother who can't summon the courage to tell anyone what's going on.  For as long as she can remember her mother, Annabelle, has been abusing her as a result of her father abandoning them.  Annabelle always says that Laurie is a spitting image of her father, and it saddens her to just look at Laurie because it just brings back so many painful memories of her ex-husband.  Annabelle ends up remarrying an older man named Jack with a younger son and daughter.  Laurie becomes quite close with her step brother and comes to him with her problems about Annabelle.  As a result of the doctors and nurses becoming accustomed to Laurie visits at the hospital, Annabelle decides to move the family into a quit neighborhood, closer to a new hospital to get rid of any suspicious   At the new house, Laurie meets a new friend named George, who has health issues of his own.  Laurie and George become very close, and the bond they make finally lets Laurie's guard down and tell George what has been going on.  Laurie wishes her mom would just die so she wouldn't have to live with the constant fear of being pushed down the stairs, or cut with a knife; Until one day Laurie's wish comes true.  Annabelle has been hit with a car and is in critical condition.  Laurie and her step brother are relieved knowing that she won't be beaten for awhile.  As Annabelle is on bed rest from her return home from the hospital, everyone finally had a chance to be free and actually be a kid for once.  It doesn't last long though.  Annabelle reached her breaking point and even had the nerve to hit Laurie's step brother too.  The kids decided enough was enough and ran away to the kids' grandmas house because they knew it was a safe haven.  There Laurie had to tell the grandma what was going on so she finally put an end to all the abuse.  They sent Annabelle to a doctor to seek the medical attetion she needed and Laurie finally felt the huge relief she had been looking for.
2) The theme of this novel is to know that you can go to anyone with your problems.  You shouldn't have to hold such a big secret like Laurie's and think that you're alone.  There is always someone out there to help.
3) The authors tone of the story is sympathetic because Laurie is being tortured in her own home.
4) Dialogue:  Throughout the whole book, the only person Laurie ends up feeling comfortable talking to one-on-one is to her step brother.
Irony: its ironic that Annabelle isn't feeling any mercy towards Laurie because as a child, Annabelle was abused too.
Allusion: Laurie dreams of bad things happening to her mother because she just can't take the abuse anymore.
Flashback: Laurie thinks back to when her dad was around and how she loved everything about him.

CHARACTERIZATION:

1) Two examples of indirect characterization are:
-Jack's mother and Jack.  The author describes them the way Laurie sees them.  Jack is hardly ever around always on the go because of work.  Jack's mom is a very sweet woman you can tell by the way the author make Laurie describe her.
 Two examples of direct characterization are:
-Laurie and Annabelle.  Laurie is a shy, depressed girl because she has no one to go to about her problems.  Annabelle is a harsh woman that is very strict and abusive to her daughter.
2) The main thing the author uses here is syntax.  When switching to different characters the author uses a distinct set of words so that the readers know what the mood and tone are.
3) The protagonist is a dynamic character because throughout the book Laurie ends up getting stronger and realizing that she can put an end to all of this abuse she has been going through.
4) After reading this book I left it feeling a lot of sympathy towards Laurie because I realized a lot of people probably are holding a terrible secret inside them like this.  They need to know that you can talk to someone about these sort of things and that you're not alone.  When Laurie stated that it made her sick to think about telling an adult about what was going on I wanted to jump into the book and help her myself and let her know everything was going to be okay.


 




book.

Literary Analysis #2

GENERAL:
1.  The Secret: One will not understand or know the secret until he/she has read this book.  It's about life and how you chose your fate by the thoughts you have, and your entire outlook on life.  The Law of Attraction states that "Everything that happens in your life all comes down to attraction.  You attract all the things that happen to you, every last little thing, no matter whether its totally awesome or truly awful.  Its all about you."  That being said, your thoughts become things.  "Whether you think you can, or can't, your usually right." -Henry Ford.  If you have negative thoughts or doubt, the law of attraction will give you what you sought for, failure.  On the other hand, positive thoughts like "I can do this," or  "I will do my best," will bring you exactly that, whether it be winning that game or finishing a book by its deadline.  What the author is trying to portray is that you can do anything you set your mind to, but only if your attitude and thoughts are nothing but positive.
2.  The pursuit of happiness and well being is the theme of this book.
3.  The tone of this book is entirely positive.  The author Paul Harrington uses a lot of "You can do it," "It will happen," type of thoughts.  You can do anything you set your mind to.
4.  Conflict:  The main conflict in the story is whether you can or can't do something.  
    Foreshadow:  On page 78 of The Secret, and inspiring actor Jim Carey forward-dated himself a check for ten million dollars.  He kept it in his wallet and believed that he could do it and will make it big no matter what it took.  Five years later on that very date, he was making well over ten million.  This was all thanks to the law of attraction and dedication.  He believed in himself and that alone transcended him beyond goals.
CHARACTERIZATION:
Being that this book had no characters, there's not a whole lot to talk about.

Some of my favorite quotes coming from this book would have to be:

"If you can dream it, you can do it.  Always remember that this whole thing started with a dream and a mouse." - Walt Disney.

"You must be the change you want to see in the world." -Mahatma Gandhi.

"The ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do." - Steve Jobs.

"When you realize how perfect everything is, you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky."
- Buddha.

Guest speaker:

I learned by today's guest speaker that Shakespeare has a whole bunch of inside puns that went way deeper then we all expected .. And this story turned out to be an interesting one!

P3: website

Our table is going to create a website with tabs summarizing the main topics we learned this semester (...hopefully)

Mindmap model :

   

BQ: first steps

I think the first steps to finding out our weather would be to googling our weather and finding out if it's always been like this

The Big Question

Why can't santa maria have regular seasons like everyone else.

vocabulary list #10

1 Pedagogue: a school teacher
dr preston is our pedagogue

2 Cavernous: having lots of space
moving into the new home, most rooms are cavernous

3 Coquettish: flirtatious
that girl is being very coquettish

4 Tete-a-tete: private conversation with two people
i called upon a tete-a-tete with my friend because people were listening in on our conversation

5 Suffice: enough, sufficient
there was a suffice amount of food on the table.  No one will go hungary tonight.

6 Amorous: showing affection
the couple in front of me are very amorous for each other.

Initial impressions of Sleepy Hallow & Vocabulary

My first thought when reading this book in class that it was going to be another boring book.  It's kind of hard to understand but it's not too bad.  As of right now I'm not really interested in this book.  I hope it proves me wrong.

Vocab:
inveterate
repose
recollect
powwow
reverie
anon
owing
cognomen

Presidential Debate: Logical fallacies

The Types Of Logical Fallacies I Found In The Debate:

ad hominem
ad hominem tu quote
appeal to emotion ?
appeal to pity ?
appeal to ridicule
appeal to spite
appeal to tradition
circumstantial ad hominem
composition
false dilemma
straw man
personal attack
poisoning the well
relativist fallacy

self reliance remixx

         
Only images i could find that i thought were good a good example on self reliance

Self-Reliance

Notes on Self-Reliance:

Rely on yourself, you make/choose your own fate.  You decide what happens 

Each persons voice can be heard as strong as the great man in history.  The need for an induvidual to avoid conformaty and false consistancy and follow his/her instincts ideas.  

You get experience and knowledge from your own understandings.  Envy is ignorance. 

"The eye was placed where one ray should fall, that it might testify of that particular ray" meaning, they are to be more comfortable with themselves.  You choose what you focus on and think about.  

Another way of wording induvidualism: everyone has something to offer.

Significance of the "iron string", chosen because iron is strong and is extremely hard to break.  Connecting your life the bond between you and you needs to be strong. 

Trancsendentalism: to go beyond.

"The virtue in most request is conformaty, self-reliance is its aversion" meaning, being independant.

Don't be a follower, break out, be your own person and make a new path to follow

"words as hard as cannon balls"  meaning, these words will have great affect.

Vocabulary List #7

1: ad infinitum: again and again
2: apportion: divided
An apportion piece of pie was on the table
3: bona fide: real
My group of friends are bona fide
4: buoyant: able to float
I am buoyant in the water
5: clique: small group of people
There are cliques throughout the school
6: concede: to admit
I had to concede my wrongdoings to police
7: congenial: like able, pleasant
That baby is very congenial
8: lofty: spacious
The living room is very lofty
9: migration: seasonal movement of animals
The ducks migrated for the winter
10: perceive: become aware
I perceived the voices downstairs as a burglar
11: perverse: to behave badly
Those kids in timeout were being perverse
12: prelude: introduction
The prelude of that movie was great
13: rancid: smelling or tasting bad
The milk went rancid
14: rustic: simplicity or charm
That older lady had a rustic feel about her
15: sever: to cut
His arm was severed in an accident
16: sordid: dirty?
17: untenable: no able to be maintained
That garden was untenable
18: versatile: able to adapt
You must be versatile with the jobs nowadays
19: vindicate: to clear someone of blame
The chief finally vindicated the man with the charges of burglary
20: wane: decrease in size, to become weaker
The moon waxes and wanes

Midterm Reflection

A) I think writing that short story using the vocab words went well.
B) I knew most of the definitions to the words, it's just that the definitions I were studying didn't quite match yours.
C) Most of these words will stick with me. I am already beginning to use them in my everyday dialogue.
D) What I can learn ?? STUDY STUDY STUDY... And a little more study.

LAQ's on 'MockingJay' by: Suzanne Collins

GENERAL
1: In the city of Panem long after us, all that's left is 12 districts that are ruled by the capital.  The capital is full of unlawful, blackhearted people that decided after a worldwide rebellion to create the Hunger Games.  The Hunger Games are when the capital  picks two boys and girls from each district to fight to the death for their entertainment.  In the third book "Mocking Jay" Katniss the main character decides to become the face of the rebellion and becomes the Mocking Jay giving everyone something to fight for and honor during this war. The main objective for this war is to kill President Snow, the one in charge for the Hunger Games and create a place where everyone is equal.
2: The theme is this novel is mainly about humanity and how we need just the right amount of ruling or else things can turn from bad to worse in a hurry.
3: Some examples of the tone by the author are: dark, depressing, action packed.  Dark because there are numerous amounts of children's deaths in this book.  The whole book is about how children are killing each other.  Depressing because Katniss, the main character, is seperated from her real love, Peeta.  Action packed because once you feel like the book is getting boring, right when your about to set it down something amazing happens so that it keeps you on the edge of your seat.
4: One of the literary elements I got from this book was mood.  The feeling when Katniss walked into Coin's room demanding what she wanted was very heavy, quiet, and unpredictable. This was found on page 38 chapter 3.  Another literary element used was tone.  The tone the author uses throughout the book definitely persuades you, falling deeper and deeper in love with the book.

CHARACTERIZATION
1: Two examples of direct characterization are Katniss and Peeta.  The author tells you how they are instead of describing them through their actions and other things.  Two examples of indirect characterization are Cinna and Caesar Flickerman, where the author tells the reader how they are through actions,words, or thoughts.  The author uses this to give it a certain edge to the book.  Using different ways to write will keep the reader interested.  What it made me think of these characters is how important they really are to the story.  It fishes out who the main characters are.
2: The author of the Hunger Games definitely uses a lot of diction when talking about the main characters.
3: The protagonist in the book, Katniss, is most definitely a dynamic character.  Throughout the book she is constantly changing for the better or worse.
4: After reading this book I walked away so dissapointed that the book was finally over.  I absolutely loved this book.  My eyes where glued onto the pages every step of the way. I'd have to say that Suzanne Collins is my favorite author so far.  The Hunger Games series are the only books I have actually enjoyed so far from all the other books I have read.

Midterm review/study strategy

I plan on acing this test by just going over the words countless times until they're all embedded in my head.  We've gone over them before so hopefully recapping them won't take too much time.

Homework: Sept. 28: Romanticism

2) My walk:
    I took a walk around my neighborhood and one of the first things I noticed were how the leaves were beginning to change.  We don't see much of the deep oranges, reds, or yellows here on our trees because of the evergreens and that's something I would definitely want to see more around the fall.  Being outside and paying attention to all the small things I normally wouldn't interest me. Seeing the little kids play in their front yard laughing and running around made me feel blessed at how nice of a place we live in.  Not to crazy and not to quite.  After researching Romanticism it makes sense looking around at everything now and how new authors wanted to bring more life into their literature.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanticism

-Artistic, literary, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe toward the end of the 18th century and in most areas was at its peak in the period from 1800 to 1840.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080417110906AA6fv9E 

-Romanticism concentrated on emotion, nature, and the expression of "nothing"  The Romantic area focused on the commonality of humankind. 

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/romanticism-in-literature.html

-Romanticism contradicted beliefs that formed the very foundation of these periods.  Romantic movement focused on human life, relationships, and emotions. 

Conclusion:

Romanticism is from the 18th century and is mainly about emotions, nature, and most of all about life.

Dream Within A Dream

Poe put all his emotions into this poem and it is very heartfelt. I don't really understand fully what he's talking about but I could tell by just reading it that he's putting all of his emotions into it and expressing his feelings through his literature.

Vocabulary Fall List #6

adroit: clever
amicable: friendly
averse: strongly disliking something
belligerent: engaged in war/conflict
benevolent: kind
cursory: careless
duplicity: dishonest
extol: to praise
feasible: easy, convenient
grimace: expression of pain/disgust
holocaust: slaughter in mass numbers
impervious: not allowing fluid to pass through
impetus: energy in which a body moves
jeopardy: danger of failure
meticulous: very careful, neat
nostalgia: fond memories
quintessence: perfect example
retrogress: to go back, worse state
scrutinize: examine closely
tepid: lukewarm

-that adroit fox got away from the hunter
-i like to consider myself very amicable
-i m averse towards drama between girls
-iraq and the us have been belligerent for years
-the benevolent waitress gave us free drinks
-some kids are very cursory when it comes to school
-the duplicity of that woman irks me
-back in the day most people extol the church on a daily basis
-living next to my best friend is very feasible because we hang out everyday
-after eating that raw union my face looked grimace
-the holocaust devastated many people
-cups are impervious thats why we can take them everywhere
-impetus
-i don't want to jeopardize this game by fouling out
-my aunt is the most meticulous person ive ever met
-the nostalgia of my childhood make me want to go back in time
-i retrogress on when my parents split up
-my family always scrutinize me its annoying
-the tepid water was perfect for the babys bath

Notes: Mocking Jay by-Suzanne Collins

In chapter one Katniss everdeen, one of the main characters of the hunger games go back to her home town district 12 after being rescued from one of the head game makers. She looks around trying to remember what's left of the town after the Capitol sent it into flames after bombing it. She then finds a white rose from president snow on her dresser as a message saying "I will find you"

Vocabulary: Fall List #5

1- Allude- to mention, suggest
2- Clairvoyant- seer
3- Conclusive - convincing
4- Disreputable- not respectable
5- Endemic- regularly fond
6- Exemplary- desirable
7- Fathom- understand
8- Guile- sly intelligence
9- Integrity- strong moral principles
10- Itinerary- planned route
11- Misconstrue- explain wrong
12- Obnoxious- unpleasant
13- Placate- make less angry
14- Placid- not easily upset or excited
15- Plagiarism- raking someone's ideas and using them as your own
16- Potent- having great affect
17- Pretext- something put forward to conceal truth
18- Protrude- extend beyond
19-Stark- completely naked
20- Superficial- appearing to be true until examined closer

1- I allude to the teacher a new way of teaching today
2- My friend knew i was at the door, as if it were like he was clairvoyant
3- My mother says i am very conclusive when it comes to getting what i want
4- There's a girl in my class who is disreputable and extremely annoying
5- Strawberries are considered to be an endemic where we live
6- My homework was used as a exemplary to the rest of the class
7- I cant even begin to fathom the amount of math homework i just received
8- Most little kids are very guile.
9- Unlike some people i know, i have integrity
10- Our itinerary for the trip to africa was detailed
11- My opinions were misconstrued
12- My family can be very obnoxious at times
13- When i get in trouble i need to placate my parents
14- My cat is so lazy and placid
15- All teachers forbid plagiarism
16- The smell of that fish is very potent
17- Pretext for an invasion
18- When he fell out of the tree his bone protruded through his leg
19- Toddlers run around stark naked
20- Superficial in the extreme

Laughing Heart: Charles Bukowski

>Its funny because earlier in the year i accidently went onto the AP blog and did this hw already so i didn't even have to look up the poem for the author.  I ended up liking the poem so much i put it on my wall.

1- Poem called "laughing heart" by : Charles Bukowski
2- Ironic because levis is telling you to live your life, but you can only do so in their jeans
3- Reflects greatly on this author because he has had such a rough life and now expresses it in his writing.
4-Googled "levi go forth commercial poem" and then found the poem "laughing heart":charles bukowski.

Post your plan for revision/strategy to your blog:

My plan to revise my essay would be to make it flow better and have a better structurally formed essay.  After seeing the better essays today in class, i have a better idea of what i should be doing.

American Novel

author: Suzanne Collins
book: Mocking Jay

Why i chose this book:

I chose this book because out of all the years i have been reading, Suzanne was the only author to capture my full attention and get my imagination to run wild.  Her books are amazing and full of all sorts of interesting things.

Vocabulary Fall List #4

1)Melancholy: long lasting sadness
2)Exemplary:  model
3)Peculiar:  strange
4)Dread:  fear
5)Bough:  branch
6)Pious:  religious
7)Communion: community
8)Auditor: inspector
9)Multitude:  large number
10)Eloquence:  persuasive speaking, writing
11)Despair:  hopelessness
12)Hoary: grey

1) After the funeral, there was an abundance of melancholy.
2) My science fair project was used as an exemplary for all the classes.
3) There is a very peculiar man that sits across the street from my house.
4) I dread taking teachers tests.
5) A bough is taking up the whole sidewalk due to a storm last night.
6) A pious woman gives advice in church every Sunday.
7) The whole communion got together to search for the missing girl.
8) My mother made an appointment to see her auditor this week.
9) A multitude of bees swarmed the school playground.
10) Many kids use eloquence when trying to get out of trouble.
11) There's deep despair trying to find all the survivors from the crash.
12) My mothers hair is getting hoary due to all the trouble I've gotten into the past month.

Notes: Sept. 6

The Blue Notebook:  When the lights were turned off in the room, the color of this blue notebook definitely changed from a lighter color, to a darker color.  But did it change shades for everyone? Weather or not the color actually changed, its all up to how we each perceive it and how we chose to view it.


The Paper:  The feeling of the paper is soft to me because it's the my body decides to feel it.


Displacement: When you take a character out its natural element, and place them somewhere they don't belong.

My "AHA!" Moment

One of my "AHA!" moments was when dr. Preston described to us how the old man in the forest was presumably "the devil"

Vocabulary Fall list #3

1-Encomium: A speech
2-Coherent: Theory, policy
3-Belabor: Argue, elaborate detail
4-Eschew: Avoid using
5-Acquisitive: Wanting money, material things
6-Emulate: Match
7-Arrogant: Take or claim
8-Banal: Boring
9-Excoriate: Criticize
10-Congeal: Solidify
11-Carping: Critical
12-Substantiate: Provide evidence to prove the truth
13-Temporize: Avoid making decision
14-Largess: Giving money or gifts, generous
15-Tenable: Maintained or defended
16-Insatiable: Impossible to satisfy
17-Reconnaissance: Observation, research
18-Germane: Not relevant
19-Ramify: Spread, branch out
20-Intransigent: Stubborn
21-Taciturn: Uncommunicative
22-Invidious: To get others mad

1- An encomium was given today at the school gymnasium.
2- We still listen to Einsteins coherent till this day.
3- Never belabor with your parents.
4- I eschew my phone in class.
5- There will always be acquisitive people.
6- The students try to emulate their previous lab.
7- Some sports players are arrogant in what they to.
8- Most of my classes are very banal.
9- People excoriate my artwork.
10- The ice will congeal in the freezer.
11- The man was in carping condition.
12- The police had to come up with substantiate evidence to prove him guilty.
13- Some students temporize on doing their homework.
14- Santa Claus is very largess.
15- The wild fire was tenable.
16- My mother is insatiable.
17- Our lab group does some serious reconnaissance.
18- That statement was germane to our conversation.
19- My parents are starting to feel like I'm really ramifying.
20- My grandpa is very intransigent.
21- My parents say me and my brother are very taciturn.
22- I'm very invidious to my siblings.

Symbolism in Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown"

1) Faith's pink ribbons: a symbol of her innocence.
2) The staff: was a symbol of how the old man in the woods tempted Goodman Brown
3) The forest: in a way was a symbol of hell.  A place where no one wanted to go and explore.
4) The old man: He symbolized the devil and evil temptation when luring Goodman Brown into the forest
5) The voices in the forest: Made him think his wife, Faith, was going to the dark side.
 

"Meanings, Signs & Symbols, Part I"

I found this article to be very interesting and made me really think about what Meanings, Signs, and Symbols were really all about

Ralph Steadman: Fear and Loathing

^ This is a painting done by: Ralph Steadman called Fear and Loathing.

My brother helped my find this painting by noticing the tiny cigarette hanging out of the mouth. It is a trademark of Ralph Steadmans and is nearly in everyone of his paintings.  Once googling "Ralph Steadman" the painting of Fear and Loathing popped up.

Vocabulary Fall List #2:

1) Intercede:  Intervene, Interrupt
2) Hackneyed:  Lacking significance, overuse
3) Approbation:  Approval, Praise
4) Innuendo:  A hint
5) Coalition:  Alliance
6) Elicit:  Extract
7) Hiatus:  Gap, Series
8) Assuage:  Soothe
9) Decadence:  Decline, Decay
10) Expostulate:  Protest
11) Simulate:  Imitate, Fake
12) Jaded:  Tired, Bored
13) Umbrage:  Offense, Annoyance
14) Prerogative:  Privilege
15) Lurid:  Very vivid
16) Transcend:  Exceed, Surpass
17) Provincial:  Concerning a province of a country
18) Petulant:  Testy, Irritable
19) Unctuous:  Oily, Greasy
20) Meritorious:  Deserving, Creditable


1) I intercede my mother when she talks.
2) That word is hackneyed to me now.
3) I have to wait for my mothers approbation.
4) My teacher gave me and innuendo for the quiz.
5) Both teams formed a coalition.
6) We need to elicit the clean dishes from the dishwasher
7) There is a hiatus of that television show.
8) My grandmas voice assuages me.
9) The old building is starting to decadence.
10) The laid off workers begin to expostulate.
11) That the little girl simulates her mother.
12) The students looked very jaded.
13) Some take umbrage to that joke.
14) My parents say my phone is a prerogative.
15) I had a lurid dream last night.
16) I transcended my goals.
17)
18) My mom is very petulant today.
19) Fast food is unctuous.
20) That research paper is meritorious.

Young Goodman Brown:

1:  I have no idea what Hawthorne meant when he wrote this book.
2:  Faith fits her personality because she wasn't a real witch and she was full of faith.  Brown does have faith in his wife
3:  The pink ribbons signify were she might have been.  When Brown saw the ribbons on the tree he knew she was close by.
4:  I feel like Brown was just dreaming, and dozed off in the forest on his long journey.  I feel this way because when he went back into town everybody was acting normal.
5:  I think the old man is just a figment of his imagination.  Brown was really tired and was dreaming this all up.
6:  The staff represents evil in my opinion.
7:  If Brown wouldn't have went into the forest he wouldn't of gone mad.  Everything was alright and he let the gossip and lies get to his head, therefore he had this terrible dream.  This is how I interpreted the story.

3 Q's: Young Goodman Brown

1; I don't understand who he's talking to half the time
2; I don't know where he went
3; he truly loves his wife

Group Discussion: "Earth on Turtle's Back"

In class my group discussed the Tone, ( the author's attitude toward the characters, the subject, and/or the audience), and the Mood,  (the emotional state of the reader), of the short story, Earth on Turtle's Back.  We came to the conclusion that the tone of this myth is that its very informative in how its trying to explain how earth was made.  The mood of the story, in our opinion, is that its teaching us a life lesson and teaching us about what that tribes beliefs where.

Socratic seminar

I liked the fact that Dr. Preston let us have an open discussion group for the class but I knew not a lot of kids would talk, me being one of them. All the kids who did chose to talk however pretty much went over everything I did write in my journal so I felt like there would be no point in repeating everything they said already.

-you have the right to your own opinion as long as you can prove it - Dr. P

-The purpose of arguing is to get closer to the truth.

"Reflections on Week 1"

1)
My main concers about this class would be that most of it deals with online things.  That being said, it would be a bit of a problem for me because when I get in trouble my computer is the first to go. Another factor that would be a problem for me is when basketball season starts up I really strain myself with trying to keep up with all my assignments during the season.  I rarely have the time to do homework for all my classes because of my late night practices or games.  Other than that, those would be the two main issues that I would have.

2)
One of learning experiences I will never forget is during my sophomore year my English teacher, Ms. Byrne, took a select group of students to a special speaker down in LA.  His name was Calvin.  I will never forget this man because with just the few hours we spent together that day, he changed the way I view other people forever.  He is a famous speaker who talks about how naturally it is for us to judge someone without even getting to know them first, like its somewhat of a bad habit that was embedded to our way of thinking.  He taught me a new way of thinking and to be more open to the fact that just because a person looks the way they do, you don't always have to judge them.  There is this saying, "don't judge a book by its cover", it is probably one of the most accurate sayings that a lot of people should become more familiar with.

3)
The concern I have the most about this class is the oral reports we have to do in class.  I absolutely dread the fact that we have to talk in front of the other students. Even though it may not seem like a big deal, I get super stressed out nervous.  The funny thing about it is that once I'm done with a speech I feel completely fine.  I'll be totally comfortable going up with another student but if it's just me left to talk to the class all alone, it's a different story.

Vocabulary Quiz #1

The first week of my junior year here at Righetti has gone by so fast and I'm already begging to BURGEON thanks to all the people around me.  I'am looking forward to all of my new teachers DIDACTIC in each of my classes this year.  I already feel stressed out in one of my classes because one of my teachers comes off as a CURMUDGEON.  I'm very ASCETIC and guarantee you I will never be CONTUMACIOUS.  I don't BEGUILE any of my teachers when they are teaching. I hope at the end of this year my APOTHEOSIS will be in getting an "A" in not only your class, but my others as well.  I hope all my ADUMBRATES in this class are always up to standard.  Hats off and COMPLEMENTS to Dr. Preston for introducing to all of his students a new way of teaching.  This will definitely go far.

The one thing I want to improve this year :My Grades

Its the begging of my junior year and I want to start it off the best I possibly can.  The past two years in high school I didn't give it my all, and now that its a new year I thought what better way to start it out being the best I can be.  I don't want to fall behind or stress out trying to catch back up with my grades. I want to give this class and all my others 100% the entire time. I know at times this will be a lot to handle but I'm sure whatever I put my mind to I will exceed in.  My goal for this year is to try to get a 4.0. I was extremely close to reaching it my freshman year but in the ended up with a 3.8. Knowing that makes me determined because I know I can do it.  This course, weather it be a lot or a little, will help me out because each new class is an opportunity to learn new things and gain new knowledge.